*Use this link to purchase a minimum of $20 (US) of Italki credits and receive an extra $10 free! (Bonus added after completion of 1st lesson)

What makes Italki different?

Italki is the largest language site which offers online lessons with language teachers. The site boasts thousands of teachers and tutors spread over 40+ languages. At the time of this article there are over 80 Korean teachers and tutors on the site. 

One feature I love about Italki is that people who teach on the site are divided into one of two categories: professional teacher or informal tutor. 

Like their name implies professional teachers have some accreditation in the field of teaching a foreign language.

It's generally expected that teachers will provide the student with any and all learning materials, and help guide the student through the language using a course like format.

Informal tutors may have experience teaching, but they haven't usually been through any formal education on the subject.  

Generally a tutor is there to help you practice the language or perhaps help you through any hurdles you come across in your studies. These tutors are ideal for more independent learners. 

An intro video from one of Italki's Korean teachers

Teacher quality can differ

The quality of lessons and learning experience can differ between individual teachers. A good rule of thumb is that professional teachers are typically more prepared and can provide a more in depth lesson. However this isn't always true. 

Sometimes an informal tutor on Italki will outshine their professional counterparts. All this to say, try out a few different tutors and teachers before you commit to any one. You might be surprised that you prefer one over another. 

Unfortunately there's no free trial on Italki. However when you sign up on the site you are given 3 trial lesson credits. These credits allow you to take a thirty minute lesson at a discounted rate (sometimes as cheap as $1). 

The actual cost of a trail lesson will differ between teachers, and not all teachers offer them. Italki gives its teachers the option of giving trail lessons, and allows them to set their own price. 

*Use this link to purchase a minimum of $20 (US) of Italki credits and receive an extra $10 free! (Bonus added after completion of 1st lesson)

Overall it has a higher quality selection of teachers. This is because all teachers on Verbling are required to have teaching experience before using the site. Teachers are also highly encouraged (though not required), to possess some sort of recognized teaching qualifications. 

Things to consider when using Verbling

Less teachers

At the time of this article Verbling has just over thirty-five Korean teachers, compared to Italki's 80+. This is probably due in part to Verbling's stipulation that its teachers must possess teaching experience. 

Higher prices

Verbling has an overall higher quality of teachers, but this also comes at an overall higher price. You'll be hard pressed to find a Korean teacher on Verbling who teaches for less than $13 per hour. 

What makes Preply different?

Preply is a site for finding online tutors for subjects on a range of topics (not just foreign languages). While it's cool to have a site where you can find a tutor for topics as diverse as computer science and geology, Preply doesn't have the language only focus that Verbling and Italki do.

There are just over twenty Korean tutors on the site at the time this article was written. Many of those tutors can also be found on Verbling or Italki (it's not uncommon for teachers to teach on multiple sites).  However some teachers are unique to Preply. 

Things to keep in mind while using Preply

Price

The median price per hour for a Korean teacher on Preply is somewhere around $20. Most teachers don't teach for lower than $18 per hour, which is pretty high when compared to Italki and Verbling. 

Though if you're looking for professional level teacher this isn't as much of an issue. 

No additional features

Italki and Verbling both have additional features that help language learners on their journey to fluency. You won't find any such features on Preply. 

Conclusion

As a student of the Korean language you have a wide selection of teachers and tutors between these three sites. 

In the end it's not so much the site that makes for an excellence learning experience. It's the teacher. Whichever site you decide to go with I suggest you try out a few teachers before committing to regular lessons. 

When you learn Korean in a formal class the teacher is responsible for guiding you. He or she decides what you will learn, how you will learn it, and when. 

Not many people think about this, but as a student you put a lot of trust in your teacher, and assume that they know the best way to teach and learn the language. 

This way of learning is very structured, and usually the teacher/curriculum holds the student's hand as they take baby steps in Korean. 

When you're teaching yourself, all this goes out the window. 

From now on it's up to you to decide the what, the how, and the when behind your learning. 

There are a vast number of tools and resources for learning Korean, and if you're learning on your own it's all fair game. 

Even though you don't have a teacher you will still need to use something as the chief reference/resource for your journey into the Korean language. 

It could be a book, a course, or even an app. At the end of the day you have to get your Korean from somewhere. 

Which tool or resource you use will depend on why or how you're learning the language. 

Are you more focused on speaking and aren't too concerned with reading or writing?...Then your approach should reflect that. 

Do you prefer to start with grammar? Maybe you don't want to focus on grammar and simply want to learn phrases. 

Are you big on pronunciation?...You get the idea. 

The Korean language is vast and intricate (like any foreign language), you will pick and choose which aspects of the language you focus on.

This approach is my personal favorite, and is the one I like to use in my studies. Although it's probably not the most popular, and compared to the other two approaches it's a little complicated.

The idea here is that you learn correct pronunciation first, and develop a decent Korean accent. During and after that process you learn hangul and how to read in Korean. 

Once you can read and pronounce words in Korean you start learning a ton of vocabulary (usually a list of the 500+ most common nouns, verbs, and adjectives). Typically you use some sort of spaced repetition flashcard platform to commit these words to memory.

Note: because you learned pronunciation and how to read Korean you don't use any English on your flashcards. You simply use pictures, the written Korean word, and maybe a sound file from Forvo of a native pronouncing the word.

After that you open up a Korean textbook or course to start learning basic grammar. Anytime you come across a new rule you practice mixing and matching the 500+ words you learned before to start constructing simple sentences. 

You get this practice by writing or speaking with native speakers, and receiving feedback.

You continue to work through Korean grammar and commit new words to memory as you find them.

With this method you start by diving straight into Korean grammar. You take the examples of grammar rules and sentences from a textbook or course, and then you do your best to practice them with native speakers. 

As you practice using the Korean grammar and phrases from your source material, you find the holes in your vocabulary. You then find the words you need to learn in order to express what you want to say (either in your textbook, course, or by some other means). 

You rinse and repeat this process and continue to learn new grammar and words as you progress through the language.

In this method you simply learn stock Korean phrases and words that you think will be useful for you. Then you go right ahead and starting using them with native speakers. 

Ideally the native speakers correct you, and over time you make enough mistakes and are corrected to the point that you start to internalize Korean grammar.

Needless to say it's very important to get good feedback and corrections from native speakers if you use this method. 

Of the three method this one is the least structured. It's a sort of "make it up as you go" style or learning. 

That all depends on you. The most important factor in learning Korean is pushing yourself to consistently learn the language. If you do that it won't matter as much which method you use. 

Different people have had success with different methods. There really is no one size fits all approach to learning Korean (despite what advertisers and marketers might tell you). 

You can even switch methods if you so desire. Again, there's no rules here. You call the shots. Feel free to experiment. 

Here we talked about just three methods. There are likely a lot more out there. 

Teaching yourself a foreign language can seem daunting. However it can also be very exciting. I guess it all depends on how you look at it. 

Learn to relish the freedom and flexibility that learning by yourself gives you. Most all of have fun learning the Korean language! If you do that you're likely to succeed no matter which method you use. 

Before you dive into the Korean language it's vitally important that you have realistic expectations. Many a Korean learner has started out with loads of enthusiasm and stars in their eyes, dreaming of the day they can speak freely with native speakers. 

Only when that day doesn't come, after a few weeks of study, they get discouraged and quit. 

Let's be clear here. You're not going to become fluent in Korean in a day, a week, a month, or probably even 6 months. It takes a great deal of consistent effort over a long period of time, in order to see your abilities in a foreign language improve. 

While fluency takes a long time, being able to make conversation in Korean doesn't have to take nearly as long.

For most foreign languages, dedicated practice and study will allow you to hold an extended basic conversation well within 6 months; though it depends widely on the language and the learner. 

When most people start learning a foreign language, they realize how far off fluency is, and they mistakingly think that it will take just as long for them to start speaking the language. 

In this post we'll focus on an approach that will get you speaking Korean as quickly as possible.

If you follow this approach, you will speak faster than students who use more traditional methods, like solely learning from textbooks or in a classroom setting. 

Those methods aren't bad, they just aren't the quickest way to bring your conversational skills to a functional level

The first step we recommend you take to learn Korean is to learn correct pronunciation.

This might seem a little counter intuitive for some people. The truth is that pronunciation is a large part of the glue that cements a new language into your brain. 

Developing a good accent while learning a foreign language has long been a technique used for opera singers as well as missionaries. 

When you can physically make the correct Korean sound, you brain will have a MUCH easier time recognizing it and remembering it.

 When you learn a foreign language's sound system, the language starts to lose its foreignness, and you will more easily remember them after having read or heard them. 

How to learn pronunciation

Break the language into its individual sounds (see videos below). Focus on the Korean sounds that are the most difficult, and don't be afraid to practice the heck out of them.

Pronunciation is like a physical workout for your tongue (which is a muscle by the way). Sometimes your tongue has to build up flexibility, muscle memory, or endurance. So you if you get stuck on a specific sound don't give up!

Once you're comfortable with individual sounds, start combining them to form Korean words. One you're comfortable with words move on to entire phrases. 

Always listen to native speakers (either in real life or through audio), and compare your pronunciation to theirs. Try to find video or audio of native speakers and mimic the way they say their phrases, matching their voice inflections. 

Easy Korean is a great Youtube channel you can use to practice imitating native speakers

To some this might seem tedious, to others (like me) it might seem fun. Either way this exercise will tune your ear and your mouth to the nuances of normal Korean speech, which will be invaluable later on.

Early on, when you start practicing pronunciation, it's not as important that you know what the meaning of a Korean word or phrase is. At this phase we're more concerned that you can pronounce it correctly. 

Learning what the words actually mean (aka vocabulary), will come a little later. Think of pronunciation as part of the foundation, upon which you'll build your Korean vocabulary (because that's what it is!). 

Now that you have a handle on the sounds of Korean, it's time to focus on the writing system: hangul. 

A brief intro to the Korean writing system

Though it may look intimidating, don't let hangul scare you. It was literally design to be easy to learn. It's not nearly as intricate as the Japanese writing system, and you don't have to worry about memorizing logographic characters like you do in Mandarin.

The system is markedly different from English; but once you learn the logic behind it, it really isn't that difficult to learn. You should be able to knock out this important part of learning Korean in a week or two. 

Now that you've learned correct pronunciation, and how to read Korean, it's time to learn some actual words! 

Most people don't know this, but linguist have spent enormous amounts of time and energy figuring out which words are used most often in a given language. They often publish their findings in frequency dictionaries, which are essentially huge and expensive word lists.

Luckily for you, it's not that hard to find a modified  frequency word list on the web. This is huge! Use a spaced repetition system like Anki or Memrise to commit the 500+ or so most common words in Korean. 

Once you do this you'll be able to understand around 70% of what you read, and also a significant amount of what you hear! 

Focus on learning nouns, adjectives, and verbs. For now stay clear from other types of words like conjunctions or prepositions. 

You can find a word list of the top 625 Korean words here. 

By this point you should have a very basic level Korean and be able to point things and yell their name in the language (not unlike a small Korean child). 

Now it's time to put all the pieces together. This is where your hard work pays off. Pick up a course, textbook, etc and work through the grammar concepts one by one. 

An intro to the basics on Korean grammar

As you learn simple things like present tense, or how to say basic phrases; suddenly all those words you learned in the last step will skyrocket your abilities. 

As you pick up the patterns of grammar you'll be able to mix and match all those verbs, nouns, and adjectives you already know. 

Your reading and pronunciation skills will also help you remember new words, as well as surmise their meaning based on context (this is huge). 

Here's the funnest part, practice what you've learned! Write and speak Korean using the grammar and vocabulary you've learned. If you feel like you're expressing yourself will the skill of a three year old. That's okay!

Don't be afraid to make mistakes or be misunderstood. It's all part of the process! 

This method works well because it incorporates all aspects of the language (speaking, listening, reading, writing) from the very beginning. When you learn Korean this way you remember a word, not just because you read it in a textbook...

You remember it because you heard it, saw how it was spelled, spoke it correctly, and used it to communicate. This way, your brain has a lot more material to grab onto the next time you try to recall the word. 

In this list we feature a few resources that will help you learn Korean efficiently. They all focus on using the language through speaking, reading, writing, and listening.

If you're serious about learning Korean quickly you should definitely check them out!

There are no shortcuts to fluency, but there can be shortcuts to speaking a language and being conversational.

Use these tips, techniques, and resources to jumpstart your Korean learning and start using the language as quickly as possible!

To save you some trouble, and to keep you from wasting your precious time and money on a bad program, we made a list of the top 5 programs for learning Korean:

​​​​​...But before we get into why we chose these programs and not others, it's important to talk a little bit about what exactly makes a Korean course "good"...

Below are the three attributes a great Korean program should have. 

Like many other asian languages Korean's grammar is very different from that of English. Some of Korean's unique features include a subject-object-verb word order, a system of honorifics (aka politeness levels), and a complex system of tense, mood, and aspect for verbs. 

Here's a brief intro to some of the difference between English grammar and Korean grammar

There are a lot of companies out there who slap a "Learn Korean" sticker on their Spanish course. Unfortunately the way you learn a language close to English (like Spanish), will not necessarily carry over to the way you learn Korean.  

A good Korean software or program will teach the language on its own terms. 

We mentioned the levels of politeness in Korean in our last point, as it is an important part of grammar. However a common problem among Korean courses is that, if they teach honorifics, they only teach the most formal level of the language. 

Brief intro on the basics of Korean honorifics

This becomes a problem if you plan on speaking Korean conversationally, as most situations won't require overly polite language. A good Korean course will help you understand the difference between the different levels and when to use them.

A lot of Korean courses simply don't address the Korean writing system. While the Korean writing system isn't nearly as complex as some other languages (most notably Japanese), it is very distinct from the writing system of the English language. 

More info on the Korean writing system and how it works

It's a shame that some courses ignore this distinct, yet beautiful (I think) part of the Korean language. A great Korean course should teach you how to read and write in Korean, as well as how to speak it. 

Because of how different it is to English, Korean sometimes gets the short end of the stick when it comes to language courses. It can be hard to find a program, course, app, etc for this language. 

Still, if you know where to look you can find some solid options. I hope you found this list helpful. Don't let a lack of good learning programs keep you from learning Korean!

 In the end persistence, consistancy, and a genuine love for the language will be the keys to your success, not a particular method or course!

The best way to learn Korean is immersion. 

Immersion is when you are surrounded by the language and have to perform most (if not all) of your day to day activities in the language. This is ideally done in a Korean speaking country. 

Most agree that immersion really is the most efficient and effective way of learning a foreign language.

But don't let that fool you into thinking it's the easiest. Many people incorrectly assume that immersion happens like magic, and that you simply absorb the language around you.

True immersion is very demanding. You essentially have to relearn how to communicate. Still if you want to learn Korean, you're up for the challenge and you have the opportunity, go for it!

As awesome as immersion is, it isn't always practical. You may want to learn Korean, but doesn't mean you can spend a year in Seoul just to immerse yourself. Does that mean you're out of luck?

Not at all!

It's completely possible to create your own personal Korean learning program and immerse yourself in the language no matter where you live.

Now it might not be a "true" immersion experience (it probably won't be as intense either), but it can still be a super effective way to learn Korean fast.

There are more resources to help you learn Korean than ever before. While there is no one size fits all approach, if you know your level and personal needs it shouldn't be hard to find which resources are right for you. 

In this post we'll take a look at what kinds of resources Korean learners should use based on their ability in the language.

We'll also make some recommendations on our favorite resources to give you an idea of where to start looking. 

But first...We should probably talk a little about inputs and outputs. 

There are four aspects of language learning: reading, listening, writing, and speaking. 

But the biggest difference is probably that instead of being written sequentially (like the latin alphabets of English, Spanish, and French); the Korean alphabet is written in blocks which represent syllables. 

A brief introduction to the Korean writing system

Each block is made up of consonants and vowels (individual Korean letters). Each consonant letter in hangul represents a sound and has its own name (not unlike English letters). 

There are some letters that can represent different sounds, depending on whether they are at the beginning or end of a Korean word.

Curiously enough vowels in the Korean alphabet don’t have names. They simply represent simple sounds. One thing that can make Korean pronunciation a tad bit difficult is that many vowels have similar sounds, and you have to train your ears to hear the difference. 

At the earliest stages of learning inputs are extremely important. This is because Korean is completely new to you. It's essential to learn relevant vocabulary and basic grammar at this phase. 

After all it would be kind of hard to practice writing and speaking Korean if you haven't already learned some the language.

Speaking and writing Korean still have important roles at the beginner level (you should definitely practice both as you progress), but they're simply not as important as inputs. 

Because most courses and tools are aimed at beginners, new Korean students have a lot of options to choose from.A good beginner Korean course will walk you through foundational grammar and vocabulary, and it should also introduce you to hangul.

Rocket Korean

If you want to learn Korean at the intermediate stage you should increase your practice of speaking and writing. Still, reading and listening will take up the majority of your focus.

Make sure you keep stretching your skills by increasing the level of difficulty of what you read and listen to. At this phase you want to guard against plateaus. This is why you want your level of input practice to be just a bit higher than your output practice.

Otherwise you run the risk of using the same vocabulary over and over again without learning much new material.  A great way to do this is to dive into Korean culture. There’s a plethora of Korean dramas, music, movies, and videos available on the net.

As long as you find content that pushes you out of your comfort zone in the language, and you make an effort to learn any new Korean words or phrases, you will see your skills improve.

As an intermediate student you also want to start practicing your conversational skills. Your level in Korean probably isn't high enough yet to allow you jump into any conversation on any topic. 

This is why it's a good idea to practice speaking with an experience Korean tutor or teacher (or a really patient friend!). T

hey can use their experience with new Korean learners to help push your skills in a way that's challenging but not overwhelming.

You can find teachers, tutors, or native speakers to help you practice Korean online or in person.

At the advance level your Korean skills should be at, or at least close to, a functional level. This is where the language really starts to open up. Any use of the Korean language is fair game now (especially if it's challenging).

Keep everything in Korean as much as possible. Conversations with Korean speakers are especially valuable at this level. Do your best to talk every day about as many different topics with as many different people as you can. 

Also don't be afraid to dive deep into Korean media, movies, news, and music (yes that includes Kpop). After all, the best way to learn a new language is to have fun doing it. 

It's also not a bad idea to study Korean with a professional teacher every so often. They can help you to fine tune your Korean abilities (especially speaking).

Often a teacher can point out blind spots in pronunciation, slang, idiomatic expressions, and other parts of the language that aren't always easy to pick up on. 

There are many ways to start learning a new language. For each student, the best way to learn Korean is determined by their level and individual needs as a learner.

Hopefully this post helped clear up some of the mystery behind learning Korean, and helped you find which approach is best for you!

Updated December 18th, 2023

It doesn't matter which foreign language you want to learn, if you've searched the web at all you've likely heard of Rosetta Stone. It's not hard to figure out how well Rosetta Stone can market its courses, because everyone's heard of them.

What's a little more difficult is trying to figure out whether their courses are worth the time and money required to use them. In this review we take a look at Rosetta Stone Korean. 

Specifically we look at the Korean language and how well (or not) Rosetta Stone teaches it. We don't cover the ins and outs of the Rosetta method and course in general. You can check out all of that information in our Ultimate Rosetta Stone Review.

Is Rosetta Stone Korean right for you?

Yes if you're new to the language

Rosetta Stone markets and designs their courses for beginners. If you have little to no experience in Korean then Rosetta Stone is a notable option.

Yes if you're a casual learner

If your language learning mantra is "slow and steady wins the race", then the Rosetta Stone method will appeal to you. It's designed to teach the language in what are essentially baby steps. Little by little you'll gain traction in the basics of the language. 

No if you're lower intermediate or higher

As we said before Rosetta Stone is designed for beginners. If you're at a lower intermediate level of proficiency or higher, you should consider a different option.

No if you like a more intense approach

If you like to dive into a foreign language versus just dipping your toes then Rosetta Stone is not for you. The coddled approach will probably seem too slow, if not boring for you.

No if you want to speak Korean immediately

There is some debate in the language world as to whether or not you should start speaking a new language from day one or attain a foundational grip on grammar first. Rosetta Stone is for those who ascribe to the latter option, as their courses simply don't do much to develop your conversational abilities. 

Pros

Rosetta Stone's approach works well for helping you to intuitively learn basic Korean grammar and vocabulary. As long as the concepts and sentence structures aren't too involved you should be able to effectively learn and internalize them. 

The no translation method doesn't work well for Korean Grammar

Korean grammar differs widely from English. When your course doesn't use any English to explain the intricacies of what's going on within a Korean Sentence, this can create problems. 

Korean uses a different word order than English. English uses a Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) word order (The boy eats the apple), while Korean typically uses a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) structure (The boy the apple eats). 

More info on the basics of Korean grammar

Korean also uses a system of honorifics, meaning that words will change based on your relationship to the person you're talking with or about. This is immensely difficult to learn without explicit explanations in English.

There are a total of 7 levels of politeness in Korean, here's a video with more info on them

Rosetta Stone also doesn't do a great job of exposing you to the different levels of politeness and teaching when you should use them. More often than not you'll only be using the more polite levels of speech.

The Rosetta courses typically gloss over writing systems. They work better with languages that use a Latin based alphabet similar to English, but they struggle to adequately teach writing systems that are further removed. Their courses have always emphasized repeating spoken vocabulary over being able to interpret texts.  

Rosetta Stone doesn't do great with the Korean writing system

Many would say that the Korean writing system isn't hard so much as it's just very different from English. Korean's writing system combines a letter/alphabet system with a block method of conveying syllables. 

Once you get the hang of it the system proves to be very logical. The problem is that Rosetta Stone has never been known to really focus on writing or reading very much. 

More info on the Korean writing system

The focus of their courses is typically to get you to hear or see and then repeat. Couple this with the fact that there are no English explanations to help you figure out how Korean's writing system works, and you have a missed opportunity to learn to read and write Korean. 

If I'm honest Rosetta Stone Korean wouldn't be my first choice for a Korean course. The method simply doesn't do the language justice. But if you're a curious beginner I suppose there could be some value in the course.