39 awesome free resources for learning French language & culture!

Have you ever been preparing for something so carefully and thoroughly that you ended up having no time to actually take action? I have! I love planning very much because you see – I love chaos, but only in art. My desk, lists, plans need to be organised, and before I do something, I like to have a plan. This is why I haven’t got down to French yet, but I have made quite a long lists of resources useful for learning. If learning French is a battle, then… well, I have my army now!

If you want to learn French, but haven’t had time to find resources or you are just looking for new material to spice things up with your studying… this may be a post for you!

The post will be divided into 5 main categories for better navigation. 3,2,1… Ladies and gentlemen, I have a pleasure to show you my ultimate list of 37 resources for learning French language and culture!

*Note: some of the resources I listed aren’t strictly language related, but rather cultural, showing you France and French culture, what I think could be a great motivation in any language studies!

Websites & Apps

There are plenty of websites and apps for learning French, but I’ve chosen to list only these I can vouch for in 100% because I have used them for a long time. The list will be probably updated every now and then,  so it’s likely to get longer!

Duolingo

Good for: building your vocabulary, learning grammar and pronunciation. It’s available both as a website and as an app. Fun, and easy way to get started with foreign languages!

Memrise 

Good for: building up your vocabulary, learning grammar, revising words you’ve already learnt. There are plenty free vocabulary boards to choose from, my first choice was: “Learn French for Polyglots” and so far I’ve liked it a lot. Available both as a website and as an app.

Anki

Good for: building up your vocabulary and revising words you’ve learnt. Its formula is very minimalistic, but this is what makes it effective for many people. Boards I’ve downloaded and liked: 5000 Most Common French Words and French 10000 sentences (easiest to hardest). Available as a program and an app.

Lang-8

Good for: practising your writing skills. The formula is easy: you write a post and get it checked by a native speaker or somebody who’s good at your target language. In return, you check works of people learning your native language. Full cooperation and a nice way to improve your writing skills!

Lyrictranslate.com

Good for: anyone who loves music! You can access the translations of your favorite French songs. Helpful in improving your listening skills and  learning new words, plus the music is said to be effective in teaching you new words, too.

Lyricsgap.com

Good for: music fans! The website’s all about typing words of the songs you’re listening to so it definitely helps to improve your listening skills + pronunciation, too.

Lyricstraining.com

Good for: anyone who loves music! You type the words to songs you hear, so you definitely exercise your listening skills.

Yokee Karaoke (App)

Good for: anyone who loves singing! Of course, it’s also a killer tool for improving your pronunciation in a fun way! I’m trying to learn “Andalouse” by Kendji Girac, and though I’m not the best singer, I enjoy it very much. 🙂 

 

Youtube

I’ve always loved Youtube and I always will. Since I’ve stumbled upon its educational side thanks to John Green, I’ve been using it to become smarter, and honestly… this is probably one of my favorite ways of learning. I decided to give it a try with languages too, and it works very well for me. Below there’s a list of 6 channels for French learners that you might like:

Comme une Française

Good for: everyone who is interested in French culture. You can find out how not to behave in France or what kind of candy French people like to buy, to name a few topics discussed on the channel. With new videos every week,  it’s a nice addition to a learning routine, plus the host is pretty amazing, too.

Alexa Polidoro

Good for: learning grammar. Alexa’s channel is full of many useful videos, including vocabulary ones, but grammar videos probably make her stand out the most. She has published tons of them, so her channel’s definitely helpful when it comes to grammar learning. She has also made a great playlist for learning French pronunciation. Definitely worth subscribing!

French from beginners to advanced

Good for: everything and for every French learner. This channel is just so full of learning material that it’s good for everything. Grammar, vocabulary – everything you could wish for… you’ll find there! Honestly speaking it’s probably one of the best language channels on Youtube if it not the best one. The amount of free material is just outstanding. A+ isn’t enough to rate it.

Francais Authentique

Good for: improving your listening skills and getting used to “authentic” French. It’s not exactly suitable for beginners since it’s only in French, but advanced and intermediate speakers could make use of it, so this is why I decided to include it here. Beginners… we can save it for later – when we master French a little bit more!

Learn French with French Pod101.com

Good for: improving your listening skills and building up your vocabulary. With shorts videos published every week this Youtube channel can be a nice addition to a regular learning routine.

Francais avec Pierre

Good for: building up your vocabulary and comprehension skills. One of the nicest and most fun language channels out there.

Learn French with Pierre

Good for:  grammar practice, building up your vocabulary, enhancing your listening skills. 

Podcasts

As you might know, I strongly believe that podcasts are excellent resources for becoming smarter and learning in general. I subscribe to many podcasts and listen to them only daily basis. Since they also work for learning languages I thought I would share some of them with you! Note: I listen to them on my phone using PodcastAddict app, but you can also listen to podcasts online via links I provided in this post.

Language  orientated podcasts: vocabulary, grammar, listening, pronunciation 

Coffee Break French

Real life French: French for beginners

Learn French by Podcast

Learn French with daily podcasts

 

Language + Culture

French etc >> French songs

Talk in French podcast

Instagram

Instagram has been gaining popularity for some time now, and it is definitely here to stay. Aside from being an excellent resource for fashion, beauty, and fitness lovers… it’s also quite a nice platform for learning! Instagrams posts added to your timeline don’t take much time, but it’s always that one word you’ve seen or that one sentence you’ve stumbled upon and you’re ahead of yourself. You can also explore French culture on Instagram, and for me, it’s a great motivational tool!

Language: tips, vocabulary, grammar

French journal

It’s all about the French

French everyday

Lyra French

Talk in French

Frencheezee

Frenchlessons_Paris

All french grammar

French_by_Agathe

Culture & France in photos

French moments

Visit la France

Top France photo

 

Facebook

Facebook is probably the most powerful social network of today’s world, so its presence on my list doesn’t need any explanation. Of course, it’s a dangerous friend of procrastination, but if you don’t let it befriend you too much – it’s all good!

Language & Language tips

FluentU French

Learn French with French Today

Francisation

Culture

My French Neighbour

The Good Life France

Feels Like Home in Paris

 

That would be my full list of free French resources! I hope it will come handy to you. Let me know in comments what you think about the list and what would you add there – your feedback is always helpful! 🙂

What are your favourite ways to learn languages? What languages are you learning right now? I would love to hear your stories!

Have a lovely day,

Jessie