Learning French that actually sticks
You can live in France without French, but you can't really arrive. A stack that works: one structured course, one listening habit, one speaking outlet.
Updated July 17, 2026
Free and excellent
Free exercises built from real French TV, sorted by level. The best zero-euro resource on the internet for comprehension.
Podcast in slow, clear French about interesting things. The bridge from textbook French to real French.
Spaced-repetition flashcards. Ten minutes a day quietly builds the vocabulary everything else depends on.
In-person schools
Classroom French comes with corrections, classmates and a reason to leave the apartment. For many arrivals the class is also the first social circle.
The classic in-person schools, in most French cities. Structured group classes plus a built-in social circle of fellow arrivals.
The cours de civilisation française de la Sorbonne: the famous Paris institution, with semester and intensive tracks and a serious pace. Prestige plus rigor if you want real structure.
Paris city hall's own evening classes, at a fraction of private-school prices. Registration windows open a few times a year and fill fast, so watch the dates.
The official quality label for French-as-a-foreign-language schools, with a searchable directory of accredited ones. The vetted way to find a classroom in your city.