Free Online Spanish Resources
by Russell Sabo
I will always recommend buying an audio course or books to help you learn Spanish, simply because they’re set up in a way to help you progress more quickly. And if they’re not, they don’t last long in the marketplace. But say you have some books and a good, quality audio course and you want to supplement your learning with some more resources and you don’t want to spend the money. Or perhaps you want to prove that, yes, you can learn anything for free on the internet. Well, then you’re going to be subjected to hours of Google searches until you find something that is worth your time.
Unless…you find a handy-dandy list of free, online, Spanish resources like this one. You’re welcome. However, I must admit that I had a lot of help, most of it through the awesome forums of the Learning Spanish Like Crazy product website. The people there are very friendly and many of them have been on the same language-learning journey that you are. As a result, they’ve already scoured the internet for very useful links to sites that provide free information, games, lessons, books, movies, and television shows, all in Spanish. From there, I’ve compiled a list of websites that I think provide the best information
Take a look around. There’s something here for every level of Spanish-learning. Enjoy!
All-Around Awesome Sites for Learning Spanish
The BBC’s Spanish page. There are all kinds of resources here, including a link to Mi Vida Loca. Note: This page has been archived and is no longer updated.
Defense Language Institute – GLOSS
Defense Language Institute. Reading and listening materials that come from native sources such as radio, newspapers, television reports. There are over 6000 lessons encompassing 39 languages, including Spanish. Definitely check this one out!
Everything Spanish. Lots of information here.
Confused about a word or phrase? Come here to search for it or ask about it on the forums. This is quite possible one of the biggest language-learning sites around. This listing should be in the Grammar & Vocabulary section, but I included it here because it truly is awesome.
Spanish Grammar & Vocabulary
A video from the Learning Spanish Like Crazy site that covers some of the most common mistake that English speakers make when trying to learn Spanish.
Spanish forum covers topics in all parts of learning Spanish for all levels: grammar, vocabulary, Spanish for beginners, jokes, etc.
Spanish pronunciation by native speakers. There are other languages also, but this link takes you to the Spanish pronunciation page.
Spanish in Mexico. Basic Spanish you need to get by in Mexico. There are videos included so you can here and see the language being spoken.
Learn up to 7 different languages for free! This would be for beginners to get started on language-learning journey.
Learning Spanish Like Crazy Video Lessons
Video lessons from the Learning Spanish Like Crazy website.
A list of vocabulary and phrase lists. Very helpful and everybody is certain to find something new. If you want to learn the word for “lorry driver” it’s here.
A fun site for learning all kinds of things in Spanish.
A Spanish blog by the Fundación de la Lengua Española that includes news, exercises, grammar, and music.
A brief overview of Spanish grammar. There are ten lessons, but they’re short and I definitely recommend that you go through them if you’re a complete beginner.
Free and paid Spanish Tutorials with Pronunciation, Grammar, Vocabulary, and Verb Drills
Spanish Children’s Books & Sites
A list of children’s books that you can read online. These are actual online books and you’d be surprised at the vocabulary they throw at the 3-5 year olds. I was scrambling to find my dictionary from the first page of the first book I chose to read. Definitely check this site out!
Stories for children – some audio
Illustrated stories for children – some audio
Illustrated stories for children – some audio
An educational site for children
An interactive Spanish site for kids.
Teaching Spanish to children
A childrens’ digital library.
A Spanish site for kids but that doesn’t mean that adults can’t learn from it too.
Spanish Learning Strategies
10 Strategies to Learning Spanish
Patrick Jackson’s (co-creator of Learning Spanish Like Crazy) article of 10 secrets (strategies, best practices) to learn Spanish effectively.
Create your own flashcards about ANYTHING and study them whenever you want. Great for memorizing vocabulary words.
How to Learn Any Language in Record Time!
How to Learn Any Language in Record Time – An infographic by the team at UpgradedPoints.com
Great website filled with language-learning strategies.
Language learning strategies and lots of inspiring posts by Benny the Irish Polyglot. Seriously, make sure you visit this site!
Strategies for how to learn Spanish online for absolutely free.
Strategies for learning languages. The author, David Snopek, focuses on Polish, but the tips and tricks also apply to learning any other language.
An online community of serious language learners. A good site for language learning strategies. There’s also a forum so you can connect with other language learners.
Flashcards! Thousands and thousands of flashcards, divided up into thematic lists that site users have submitted.
This is a language learning site that, as of right now, has a list of language learning schools. I wasn’t able to see any of the other offerings of the site, even after pressing the “Clear Filters” button (as of February, 2019); however, I’m sure they’re coming. But more importantly, check out their blog for some good learning strategies. And don’t forget to hit that “Older Posts” button to check out strategies going back to January of 2016!
Telenovelas & Movies
Destinos Telenovela for Learning Spanish
A Spanish soap opera (telenovela) that is designed to help people learn Spanish. There are 52 half-hour videos that you can watch online, or you can purchase the videos and corresponding books and other resources. The videos are very good, by the way, and the storyline is engaging.
Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life) is a BBC creation of a 22 episode, interactive mystery that will also help you to learn Spanish. I haven’t had the opportunity to watch all the episodes yet, but the ones I watched left me curious enough (story-wise) to want to finish this.
List of Best Sites to Watch Spanish TV
I already have this site listed in the Strategies section, but this page is too important not to receive its own listing. All of these listed sites are free to view their materials and they are listed by source country also.
Update!: Youtube has cracked down and this is no longer available to watch. But it can be found with some careful searching. This is still the original link to the Youtube page but I’m going to leave it here so that the Maria Full of Grace script link just below continues to make sense and you can still use it once you find a working link. If you have Amazon’s HBO channel, you can watch it there, as well as Hulu.
Maria Full of Grace – Script in English
Here is the script for the movie “Maria Full of Grace” in English.
Spanish-language television shows. Watch full episodes. Train your ears!
Radio & Podcasts
Learning languages through music video. The music video plays and you fill in the blank section of the lyrics underneath. It’s not too fast either as the music video stops to let you answer.
Listen to the weekly news in Spanish that is spoken slowly, but not so slowly that you want to plant your head in your computer monitor.
Free podcasts in Spanish for beginner, intermediate, and advanced Spanish learners. Worksheets cost extra.
Interested in training your ears to hear spoken Spanish and learning a LOT about culture? Radioteca is a website with many small audio lessons about a wide range of topics, from human rights, health, politics, war and peace, to news.
Spanish 360 with Fabiana offers free podcasts, literature summaries and has a language store in which you can purchase their premium products.
Spanish resources from the folks at SpanishPod101.
Language Exchange
Share your knowledge by correcting others while they do the same for your target language. In other words, make a post in the language that you’re learning (Spanish, of course) and native speakers will go ahead and correct your writing for you. Remember that you’re a native speaker of English though and there are people who need your help.
Want to speak with a native speaker online? This site sets you up with someone who speaks the language that you want to learn and, in exchange for their help, you help them with their English studies (assuming you speak English, of course).
Print & Other Resources
A free reader, all in Spanish. Read about a variety of topics.
El Mundo – Newspaper From Medellín, Colombia
The online version of Medellin’s newspaper.
Recorded conferences (video) in spanish. More good listening practice.
Learn more about living in Medellín in this popular blog.
A large list of spanish online resources
A site of popular culture in Spanish.
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