Best All Rounder - Rocket French

I tried Rocket French years ago when it was a simple audio course, and it was good then, but I'm amazed at how it has developed since then. Updated for 2018, Rocket French now takes the audio course format and combines that with lots of other great resources like practice games, vocabulary builders, an innovative feature which records and assesses your pronunciation and a convenient mobile app. It offers different ways to learn for many different learning styles, so works well for almost anyone.

What's Included?

• Audio lessons
• Grammar course
• Practice games and quizzes
• Pronunciation checker
• Mobile app

Pros

You get a LOT of content for the money. It combines the benefits of audio courses with loads of supplementary tools and materials. It caters to all learning styles, and importantly, it's fun. It's great value when you consider how much more you get with this compared to just a few lessons with a tutor.

Cons

The single up front purchase might put off some people who prefer a monthly subscription model - but in my experience this makes it more likely you'll complete the whole course and get the full benefits you are looking for from it.

Try Rocket French for free or read our full review.

Best for real world speaking practice - Italki

Learning a language through an online course is great, but at some point you need to start talking to real people, after all that's the point of learning, right?  

On Italki you can find conversation partners from all over the world at a very affordable price. You can either have one to one lessons with teachers, or have just informal speaking practice with tutors from the community.

What's included?

• 1-on-1 online lessons from native language teachers
• A community of language exchange partners
• Arrange sessions when it suits you
• Just pay for the lessons you take
• Lessons from $5 an hour

Pros

The best way to get affordable speaking practice without actually leaving your country. Good for intermediate and advanced learners.

Cons

For what it does, I can't think of any.

Go to the Italki website for more information or read our full review here.