Tools
Reviews of individual language-learning tools: what each one does well, and where it falls short.
- Nicos Weg review: can Deutsche Welle's free course really get you to B1?
A free, well-built A1 to B1 course that learners have used to pass real exams. It leaves speaking and writing to you, and it stops at B1.
- Pimsleur German review
Unusually good pronunciation training, wrapped around thin and oddly chosen vocabulary, no writing at all, and a ceiling around A2.
- Goethe-Institut German courses review
Strong teaching, a teacher you cannot choose, and the same online course priced very differently depending on which country's institute you book from.
- Duolingo German review
Strong on daily habit and passive vocabulary, weak on grammar, and it teaches German nouns without their gender. Productive ceiling around A2.
- Babbel German review
Babbel explains beginner German grammar well, but its B1 level is thin, and without live classes it gives you little speaking practice.
- Lingoda review
Live German classes on a set course, where learners like the structure and most teachers but group classes can leave little time to speak.