In this article we over all the bases while recommending the best way to learn Italian. As you can probably guess, there is no one way, no magic bullet that will help you learn the language overnight. However some programs and learning tools are better than others. Here we showcase some of the best options for learning Italian, according to the different needs, goals, and learning styles of anyone who may be interesting in learning the Italian language.

What's the best way to learn Italian?

If we're talking course reviews and learning programs these are some of best choices for Italian learners. No matter what your learning goals are, any of these options are a great place start.

Rocket Italian

Rocket Italian is an online course and app from Rocket Languages that takes you from absolute beginner to intermediate Italian speaker. The philosophy behind Rocket Italian, is to teach you Italian that you can actually use in real life conversations. The course has two lesson tracks, which you work through side by side. The first track features the interactive audio lessons. These feature a recorded conversation between two native Italian speakers. Each audio lesson explains the conversation and uses it to teach you vocabulary. You're given practical words and phrases so you can speak Italian from day one. You won't find any unnecessary terminology or useless translation exercises.

The second lesson track features the language and culture lessons. These teach you the grammar behind the phrases you learned from the audio lessons. Rocket Italian's one-two punch method of teaching conversational vocabulary and then grammar, set it apart from many other courses. Many programs focus only on grammar and have you translate Italian sentences all day, or they only teach you phrases and you're never sure of the exact meaning of what you're saying. Rocket Languages also offers a collection of testing tools after each lesson, so that you can practice the material. These activities include listening comprehension exercises, pronunciation and speaking exercises (using voice recognition), flashcards, and written exercises. With Rocket Italian you practice all aspects of the Italian language. If you want a thorough and comprehensive method , then Rocket Italian may be the best way to learn Italian.

Italianpod101

Italianpod101 began as a simple online podcast for learning Italian. Since then it has grown to be a massive collection of Italian podcast lessons and learning resources. Each podcast episode features a real Italian conversation. Your podcast hosts introduce the dialogue and point out notable grammar and vocabulary from the episode. They also share insights into Italian culture from time to time to. Each lesson comes with full transcripts in both Italian and English. You can also play back individual phrases from the dialogue which allows you to 1) record yourself repeating after the native speaker and compare your accent to the original recording and 2) Role play as one of the Italian speakers and respond to the other recording. Both are great exercises and will help your Italian speaking. Italianpod101 offers a a lot of other learning resources besides just podcasts. There is an Italian to English dictionary, a grammar bank, video lessons, interactive phrase lists, a pronunciation guide, downloadable cheat sheets, customizable flashcards, conjugation charts, an Italian learning blog and more.

While the podcast episodes are sorted into lesson tracks by difficulty level (ranging from absolute beginner to advanced), Italianpod101 isn't set up as a systematic course like Rocket Italian. You are free to jump from one episode to the next, or skip around different difficulty levels. It's more of an independent learning tool than a step by step course.

Pimsleur

Pimsleur is an audio course with a single goal: to teach you how to speak Italian. Pimsleur uses a unique prompt-response-correct method that simulates what it's like to practice with real native speakers. In each lesson of the audio course you are taught whole Italian phrases. Pimsleur will walk you through their pronunciation syllable by syllable until you can comfortably recite those phrase like native speakers do. After that you will then be prompted to answer and ask questions using those phrases. The prompts will be spontaneous, and you'll use the phrases in different ways. You have a limited time to answer before the correct response is given. This method teaches your brain to think in Italian. You won't have time to translate words in your head. Thinking in Italian with allow you to speak naturally and with less effort.

Pimsleur also has a nice spread of reading lessons in their courses. You are taught to read Italian phonetically at first, and then gradually you will begin to read for meaning. Eventually you'll be reading the same phrases you learned in the audio portion. Pimsleur doesn't teach grammar explicitly, but you do pick some up through all the speaking. It's real strength is getting you to speak and think in Italian. No other audio course does this as successfully as Pimsleur. You really feel like you make progress with this program. The course is designed to be used for 30 minutes every day.

Duolingo

If you've dabbled in language learning at all, odds are you've heard of this popular app. Duolingo is a freemium language learning app which teaches you basic to intermediate vocabulary and grammar. It uses a gamified approach to provide a learning experience than is fun and effective. Duolingo is a great way to start improving your language skills in Italian. Through a series of audio, written, and spoken exercises you will walk away with a working knowledge of Italian. The app is mostly free to use (with ads). There is a premium version which removes the ads and gives you unlimited access to the app.

FluentU

Babbel

Babbel is a straightforward way to learn Italian with written lessons and quizzes. Babbel lessons teach both grammar and vocabulary. At first you'll learn simple words and phrases, but as you progress you'll start seeing full Italian dialogues in the lessons. There are quizzes and exercises through the Babbel course. You will have to work through fill in the blank, matching, and true or false exercises to complete the lessons. Babbel is an immensely popular app for learning a language, and often brings comparisons to Duolingo or Rosetta Stone. Though it teaches grammar explicitly (unlike Rosetta Stone) and it's not gamified like Duolingo.

Michel Thomas

This is a legacy Italian course, and it's not always easy to find. This audio course has a unique method which encourages you not to memorize or write anything down while using it. Similar to the other audio programs in this list, Michel Thomas focuses on conversational Italian. Listening to the lessons is essentially like sitting in on an actual Italian class. Michel Thomas is a great way to learn, it's just hard to find.

How long does it take to become fluent in Italian?

According the the US Foreign Service Institute (FSI), you need around 600 classroom hours to reach fluency in Italian. So if you were to spend five hours a day, five days a week in an Italian class, it would take you 24 weeks (6 months) to be fluent. Keep in mind that the FSI's estimate does not include time spent on self study and homework. So theoretically, if you buckled down and loaded up on Italian classes, you could be fluent in 6 months.

Most learners don't have the time or resources to dedicate five hours a day to learning Italian in a classroom. So in reality learning Italian would take longer than 24 weeks. However you don't need to be fluent in Italian to speak it conversationally. It will take you considerably less time to speak Italian conversationally than it will to know the language fluently. So don't let the FSI's estimate scare you.

How can I become fluent in Italian fast?

The best way to learn Italian quickly is immersion. Immersion is not a passive process. You can't simply sit on the streets of Naples surrounded by Italian speaking people and expect to absorb the language. Being surrounded by the language is only one part of the process. To really learn Italian fast you'll need to actively push yourself to speak and understand the language.

Now there's more than one way to immerse yourself in Italian. Of course you could spend a summer abroad at a language school and learn the language in Italy. But you can also take the concept of immersion, and apply it at home...

Can I teach myself Italian?

The best way to learn Italian by yourself is to set up a personal immersion experience at home. For starters you can set the language of your electronic devices to Italian. After that, think of all the ways you like to spend your free time. Can you do any of them in your new language? Do you like to watch movies or listen to music? Why not watch Italian movies and listen to Italian music? You do watch Youtube videos on your favorite hobbies and interests? Odds are that there is a video blogger from Italy with the same interests as you. Once you've turned your free time into Italian time, then you can start speaking Italian with real people. You can do this through a language exchange, online Italian classes, or connecting with people at a local language club. Add in an Italian grammar course or class, and you'll be all set to immerse yourself and learn as fast as possible.

What's the best way to learn Italian for free?

You don't need to spend a dime in order to start learning Italian. There are a ton of free language courses and resources. Here's some of the most notable ones:

Youtube

In case you didn't know it yet, Youtube is one of the largest resource banks around for learning a foreign language. Here are some of the best channel to help you get started.

Italianpod101

The folks behind Italianpod101 also run a Youtube channel for Italian learners. They have hundreds of videos. There's videos on vocabulary and grammar rules, general tips for learning a language, pronunciation, listening practice, important phrases, and a lot more. If you're serious about learning Italian, then this channel is worth checking out.

Dolce Vita

Dolce Vita is a channel for anyone who wants to start learning about Italian culture and the Italian language. The videos on Dolce Vita cover everything from Italian grammar, songs, food, travel tips, common expressions, and a lot of other interesting stuff.

Easy Italian

If you want to learn Italian as it's spoken in the real world, then this is the channel for you. Each video on Easy Italian features interviews and clips from native Italian speakers answering questions or discussing an interesting topic. Every video has a subtitle in Italian and English so you can follow along even if you're a beginner.

Apps

Youtube isn't the only place where you can find free Italian courses. There are also some notable free apps as well (some of which we've already mentioned).

Italianpod101

While Italianpod101 is mostly known for its paid premium podcast for learning Italian, most people don't know that they also offer a free lifetime account on their app. With this account you get access to a ton of useful resources like an Italian dictionary, pronunciation guide, essential phrase lists, downloadable ebooks, and some free videos too. You also get access to the first three podcasts in every season on the app (that's over 100!).

Italian for beginners

This free app is for anyone who wants to learn Italian conversationally. Lesson are sorted by subjects and teach basic words and phrases. With this app you will learn how to pronounce, spell, and translate Italian words.

Duolingo

On one hand this is great news for us Italian learners! There are literally hundreds of apps, courses, and programs to choose from, if we want to start learning the language. 

The downside is, with so many options available, it can be difficult to tell which options are worth their salt and which aren't. 

In this post we take a look at the best way to learn Italian and share our top 5 picks for Italian learning courses. But before we get into our list, we should talk about what exactly makes an Italian course or program good. 

What makes a good Italian course?

It helps you learn the language holistically 

It doesn't shy away from Italian grammar

Grammatically speaking, Italian isn't the monolithic beast that students encounter when they learn a language like Japanese, Korean, or Arabic. Italian comes from the Romance language family, which means that by and large it isn't too removed from English. 

A brief intro to some of the unique aspects of Italian grammar

Still, there are some significant grammatical differences between English and Italian. A good course should point out these differences and help you understand them. 

Here's a few of the grammatical differences you will encounter while learning Italian. 

Flexible word order

The english language follows a fairly strict subject-verb-object (SVO) word order. If we change the order of words in an English sentence we will change the meaning.

For an example of this think of the difference between "The dog bit the boy" and "The boy bit the dog".  

Italian word order is more flexible. Sometimes it will follow the SVO word order, and other times it won't. 

Null-subject language (also verb conjugation)

Often times an Italian sentence will omit subject pronouns like "I, he, she, they, etc". This is because Italian verbs themselves can imply pronouns, thus the pronoun doesn't need to be explicitly stated. 

A deeper look into Italian verb conjugation

Italian verbs are able to do this because they take different forms based on who or what is performing an action. This phenomenon is called verb conjugation, and it's a bit different from what most native English speakers are used to. 

It helps prepare you for real life conversations

While grammar is immensely important in your Italian learning, many courses neglect to teach you relevant vocabulary that you can actually use in real life. 

Many classical courses teach themed vocabulary that focuses on grammar only. Thus you learn lists of fairly useless sentences like "The cat drinks milk", "The ball is under the table", "The boy runs fast", etc. 

A good program will help you find a balance between understanding the important aspects of grammar, while also helping you learn Italian you're likely to use in the real world.  

Our picks for the top five programs for learning Italian

1. Rocket Italian

3. Duolingo

Honorable mentions

Italki

Conclusion

This concludes our post on the best way to learn Italian.

There's a lot of options if you're looking for a course to help you learn the Italian language. Hopefully through this article you were able to find the information you need to help you choose the program that best suits your learning style. 

Remember, there is no one size fits all, when it comes to language learning. Each of the Italian courses in this post include some sort of free trial. I recommend choosing the ones you're interested in and trying them out for yourself. Good luck in learning your new language!

Is Rocket Italian right for you?

Yes

If you're a beginner or intermediate student

Like the majority of courses in the language learning world, this course is designed for beginners and intermediate students. Rocket Italian is broken up into three separate levels.

 When worked through sequentially, level 1 will take you from absolute beginner and level 3 to low level intermediate in the language. 

If you want a comprehensive course to learn Italian

Rocket Italian does an excellent job of covering both practical vocabulary and necessary grammar. As you work through the course you will learn both as you read, write, listen, and speak Italian. 

No

If you want to supplement your Italian learning

The method behind Rocket Italian

Rocket Italian is built around two lesson types: interactive audio lessons and language and culture lessons. Each lesson type focuses on a particular aspect of the language.

Interactive audio lessons

The audio lessons primarily provide the user with practical phrases they can use with real speakers. Audio lessons are built around a recorded dialogue between two Italian speakers.

The lessons then break down the conversation into phrases and take a look at any new or interesting words. Users are also able to practice their pronunciation through voice recognition technology and the slow audio playback available with each lesson.

Language and culture lessons

The language and culture lessons examine Italian grammar and often discuss Italian culture. In these lessons Users get to see grammar in action as phrases and examples are always given and broken down.

Also users will have the chance to create their own phrases using whatever new grammar concept they have learned. 

What you get in a Rocket Italian course

Course levels, modules, and lessons

Rocket Italian has a total of three levels. In each level there are about 7-8 modules of interactive audio lessons, and 7-8 modules of language culture lessons. There are between three and eight lessons in each module.

These two lesson types make up the bulk of the course content.

Survival kit lessons & review activities

Each level also contains bonus survival kit lessons. These are essentially vocabulary lessons which follow a specific theme such as travel phrases, dating, around the house, etc. 

Both the audio and language and culture lessons feature a mix of activities at the end of the lesson to help the user practice what he or she has learned.

These include writing and speaking exercises, flashcards, quizzes, and even role playing dialogues. 

Pros of the Rocket Italian course

It teaches practical vocabulary AND grammar

There is almost always a bit of tension between language courses. They emphasize either practical words and phrases you can use in a conversation, or they take a more traditional approach and focus on grammar. 

Rocket Italian strikes a rare balance between the two. The course has two distinct lesson types. There are the audio lessons, and secondly there are the language and culture lessons. 

True to their name, the audio lessons are built around prerecorded Italian dialogues between two native speakers. These lessons will break down the conversation phrase by phrase, so that you know what each one means and you know how to pronounce them. 

This sort of "language chunk" approach is great for developing your conversational skills quickly so that you can start speaking Italian right away. 

However, in the long run, if all you ever learned were chunks of the Italian language you would run into serious trouble once you progressed past the beginning levels. This is because after this point the grammar can get complicated, and it's important that you have a firm grasp on the basics. 

This is where the language and culture lessons come in. The vast majority of these lessons are centered on Italian grammar. These lesson skip straight to the point. They break down sample phrases bit by bit so that you can see and understand how the grammar behind them works. 

Taken together the audio lessons and language and culture lessons help you learn Italian in a way that is both practical and sustainable in the long term.

It helps you learn Italian holistically

We mention this a lot on our site: there are four aspects of language learning: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. A great Italian course will cover all of them. 

This is important because together these four aspects reinforce one another and help you learn the language faster and more efficiently (with the exception of languages with more complicated writing systems like Japanese). 

Also, learning a foreign language this way will give you the practical skills you need to use the language outside of the classroom. 

Rocket Italian strikes a nice balance between all four aspects. Throughout the lessons you will be required to read and listen in Italian. You will also need to write in the language as well. As far as speaking goes, the course does have a formidable voice recognition component. 

Great for audio learners

If you prefer an audio centric learning style, then Rocket Italian is definitely worth looking into. As far as audio courses go, you will be hard pressed to find another course that teaches Italian as thoroughly as Rocket Italian.

The quality of the recorded dialogue from native speakers is superb and makes you feel like you’re actually sitting in on a real Italian conversation.

Available online and through mobile app

Rocket Italian courses are accessible through the online course on the site, as well as through the mobile app. 

The course content carries over to the mobile platform well. The app is easy to navigate, and mobile users have the exact same capabilities and content as the website users.

60 day money back guarantee 

Rocket Italian comes with a 60 day money back guarantee. If you are unsatisfied with the course for any reason within that period, Rocket Languages will refund your money.

Cons of Rocket Italian

Content can feel dull

Many a language course makes an effort to craft their content in a way that is engaging and even sometimes entertaining (think Duolingo). Rocket Italian isn't one of them. 

I wouldn't say the content in this course is outright boring. On the contrary, if you're passionate about learning Italian, it can be exciting. However after sticking with the course and working through the material for awhile, the method and format can feel a bit dull. 

You may find yourself wanting to take a brief break from the course before returning to it. 

Lack of visuals

Rocket Italian really stands out as an audio course, but if you’re more of a visual learner then this course leaves much to be desired. The actual visual layout of the course is fine and easy to use.

However Rocket Italian definitely lacks any sense of aesthetic. Some video or visual content would go a long way in making the course more engaging and accessible to learners.  

What others say about Rocket Italian​​​​​

Alternatives to Rocket Italian

Conclusion

If you're a beginner or intermediate student who is serious about learning Italian, then Rocket Italian is certainly worth a look. The course is both comprehensive and effective, and it will help you learn the essential vocabulary and grammar you need to be proficient in the language. 

Rocket Italian does offer a free trial, make sure to test drive the language course yourself and see if it's right for you. 

Summary of Pimsleur Method

(all languages)