Polish is the official language of Poland, and it’s also a fairly common language in several other countries, including Lithuania, Germany, France, Canada, and the United States. Overall, there are about 50 million Polish speakers in the world.
Online tutoring services are a very effective way to learn this language. With this method, you will receive more in-depth and customized assistance than pre-recorded lessons, and you will not have to commute to in-person classes. This guide provides information on the leading Polish tutoring providers and helps you determine which option makes the most sense for your needs.
How to Pick an Online Polish Tutoring Service
When choosing a language learning provider, consider what your specific objectives are. Otherwise, you might spend a considerable amount of time and money on a service that does not meet your needs.
Learning a new language for travel
Do you want to learn this language because you plan to travel to Poland or another Polish-speaking community? If so, there’s no need to become completely fluent in Polish. You can save money by choosing one of the most affordable providers, such as PolishPod101, even if it is somewhat limited – an upper-beginner to intermediate understanding of Polish should be more than enough to get you through a short trip.
Learning Polish for work
In order to learn Polish for work, you will need to reach a much higher level of fluency than if you were learning the language for short-term travel. Transparent Language offers advanced classes for those who wish to converse with Polish-speaking clients, understand Polish contracts, and so on.
Help with studying Polish for school
Marketplace-style platforms such as Italki are an excellent choice for those who need to learn Polish for school. There are so many tutors available on these platforms that you should be able to find someone who already has experience teaching for your exact grade level.
How We Picked the Best Online Polish Tutoring Services
Our first step in developing this guide was creating a list of the most popular Polish tutoring services. Then, we narrowed down these options by only focusing on providers that offered notably low pricing or impressive features. We also prioritized services that had the best customer reviews. Finally, we tested these platforms to ensure that each option featured in this guide is well-designed and user-friendly.
The 4 Best Online Polish Tutors
No matter your budget, availability, or reasons for wanting to learn Polish, you’ll likely find that at least one of the providers listed below is an excellent fit for your needs.
Italki
This freelance marketplace allows you to use filters for lesson price, lesson type, and other factors to quickly find a good fit for your needs. Each instructor profile displays their number of completed lessons, response rate, and attendance rate. Using their information, you can find out which tutors have a proven track record of being reliable.
We also found that Italki has a very positive reputation among both its former and current users. For example, in a recent post titled “Looking for a private polish teacher” in the r/learnpolish subreddit, the most popular comment recommended Italki.
| Price | $6 – $35 per hour |
| Free trial | Reduced rate for trial lessons |
| Device | Desktop, mobile device |
| Format | Video chat |
| Certificate of completion: | No |
| Knowledge level | Beginner to advanced |
Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone provides:
- Personalized learning plans
- On-demand audio lessons
- Speech recognition technology that will help you improve your pronunciation
They also offer a live tutoring service that will allow you to work on your listening and speaking skills through real-time conversations with a native speaker. Rosetta Stone has an average rating of 4.1 out of 5 on Trustpilot, though some users have voiced concerns about the quality of their customer support.
It’s worth noting that Rosetta Stone has their own custom mobile app, making it especially easy to use this platform on a smartphone or tablet (the Rosetta Stone app is available for iOS and Android devices). This is a great option for those who plan to study Polish while away from home.
| Price | Three months: $35.97
12 months: $143.88 Lifetime: $299 |
| Free trial | Free trial available |
| Device | Desktop, mobile device |
| Format | On-demand lessons and exercises, live video chat |
| Certificate of completion: | Yes |
| Knowledge level | Beginner to advanced |
Learn more about Rosetta Stone.
Transparent Language
Transparent Language offers a variety of on-demand resources for learning Polish, including alphabet lessons, vocabulary-building exercises, and pronunciation practice. This online platform will automatically track your progress as you learn new words and phrases.
Transparent Language provides a couple of options for live tutoring. With their Transparent Connect Tutoring service, you can purchase sessions with an experienced instructor as needed. They also offer a more structured course, Transparent Connect Capstone, which combines 36 hours of self-study exercises with 12 hours of one-on-one tutoring sessions for a total of 48 hours of instruction. But note that these services are relatively expensive compared to most of your options for online Polish tutoring, so anyone on a tight budget should use one of the other providers featured in this guide.
| Price | Transparent Connect Tutoring: $79 for two-session package or $299 for eight-session package
Transparent Connect Capstone: $1,899 |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial |
| Device | Desktop, mobile device |
| Format | On-demand exercises, live video chat |
| Certificate of completion: | Yes |
| Knowledge level | Beginner to advanced |
Learn more about Transparent Language.
PolishPod101
PolishPod101 primarily uses short audio/video lessons, word lists, slideshows, and flashcards to teach its users Polish. Also, voice-recording tools will allow you to compare your pronunciation to native speakers.
If you decide to use this provider, we recommend upgrading to PolishPod101’s Premium Plus plan. This option provides you with a dedicated Polish teacher who will send you weekly assignments and regularly assess your performance (they’re also available on PolishPod101’s messaging tool for any questions you may have throughout the learning process). But even the Premium Plus plan doesn’t offer as much interaction with a live tutor as video chat-based platforms like Italki.
| Price | Basic: $8/month
Premium: $25/month Premium Plus: $47/month |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial |
| Device | Desktop, mobile device |
| Format | On-demand lessons and exercises, live messaging with an expert instructor |
| Certificate of completion: | Yes |
| Knowledge level | Beginner to intermediate |
Learn more about PolishPod101.
Other Polish Tutoring Services to Consider
The providers listed above are all focused entirely on language tutoring. However, there are some other options that you may want to consider. For example, Wyzant provides tutoring on subjects such as math and science in addition to foreign languages. They also offer some of the most qualified Polish instructors you’ll find anywhere online (Wyzant tutors tend to charge relatively high rates, so anyone particularly concerned about their budget should probably look elsewhere).
What to Expect When Using an Online Polish Tutoring Service
Your experience with online Polish tutoring will depend on which provider you select. Some services offer live video chat sessions with a personal tutor, while others only allow you to exchange audio and text messages with your instructor.
Also, you may be given assignments to complete on your own time. This is a good option for those who want to learn Polish as quickly as possible, but it might not work for anyone who already has a busy schedule.
What You Need to Learn Polish Using an Online Tutor
It doesn’t take much equipment to attend online Polish classes, as you only need a high-speed internet connection and a reliable computer or mobile device. It would also be a good idea to convert one of the quietest rooms of your home into a study area to remove yourself from potential distractions.
You should also dedicate at least one hour per week to studying Polish. Unless you proceed at a reasonable pace, you will not be able to accomplish your goals. If you can’t currently make such a time commitment to learning Polish, we recommend that you put off this goal until you have more room in your schedule.
Free vs. Paid Online Polish Tutors: What’s the Difference?
Plenty of free resources are available online for learning Polish, so you may be tempted to learn this language without spending any money. You can, however, only get so far with self-study resources such as recorded lessons and on-demand exercises. An experienced instructor will be able to identify and correct all the mistakes you may be making in your speech or writing. Expert assistance usually requires some investment, but it is worth it in the long run.
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