I’m Laura and as a Latina, I know how difficult and challenging it can be to move to another country. In this article, I’ll share the 5 top online English courses that helped me learn English so you can learn for free this 2024.
Learning English will not only help you in your day-to-day life as an immigrant in the U.S. but will also bring you opportunities both personally and professionally.
The courses I will show you below are perfect if you do not have the time to attend in-person English classes, or do not have enough financial resources. This guide also includes some paid English courses as alternatives.
Free Online English Courses and Apps
1. British Council
The British Council is a British organization that focuses on building international relationships and providing educational opportunities around the world, such as learning English.
This organization has different free and interactive English courses that will help you learn English with games, videos, audio, jokes, and more.
A great aspect of British Council that helped me to learn English is that not only do they have online courses, but you can also use their mobile applications to practice on your phone.
The British Council apps include grammar lessons, word challenges, games, videos, podcasts and pronunciation exercises.
If you are interested in investing in your English courses, British Council also offers paid courses with expert teachers and native speakers to help you learn English in the best way.
2. Udemy
Udemy is a platform that I have personally used to learn different skills. It also offers different short English courses that you can complete at your own pace.
These courses are designed depending on your English level so that you can choose the one that best suits your needs.
Among the free courses you can access are basic English courses, tips to prepare for the IELTS exam, formal English, and American English pronunciation, among others.
On Udemy you can also access paid courses at an affordable cost in case you are looking for a more advanced course.
3. Duolingo
Although Duolingo is not necessarily an English academy, it is an app that allows you to learn vocabulary, improve your oral expression, and help you stay motivated while learning English in a more interactive way than a traditional course.
A great advantage of Duolingo is that you can practice on your cell phone from anywhere in the world and it has an easy-to-use interface.
Another advantage is that this app is free, with the only alternative of payment so that you do not receive advertising.
In Duolingo you can also practice languages such as German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, and many more.
4. Edx
Edx is a platform similar to Udemy where you can find different courses of all kinds, including English language courses.
A great advantage of using Edx is that you can find free basic, intermediate, and advanced courses.
On this platform, you can also take courses such as English for business, TOEFL exam preparation, and other courses from universities such as Oxford, Berkeley, Boston, and others.
5. ABA English YouTube Channel
ABA English has a YouTube channel, which is a tutorial type teaching method.
Most videos are created by a native English teacher where you can learn grammar, learning tips, ways to express yourself in real situations and more.
ABA English is also a language academy where you can access individual classes with native teachers so that you can learn English with a more specific curriculum.
How Can I Learn English for Free?
Learning English is a task that takes time and effort. Some things that helped me the most to learn English and reach a C2 level, and that can also work for you are:
- Watch movies and videos in English, with English subtitles
- Set your cell phone language to English to familiarize yourself with more vocabulary
- Participates and interacts in lectures and group activities with native speakers
- Listen to podcasts in English on topics that interest and motivate you
- Read children’s books in English
- Learn the lyrics of your favorite songs in English and sing them out loud
- Make your Internet searches in English
- Make close English-speaking friends and connections
- Don’t be afraid to express yourself in English and keep on learning!