Yes, you can learn Portuguese for free, and it goes faster than most people expect: the US Foreign Service Institute counts it among the quickest languages for English speakers. Many words, such as hotel, animal and capital, are written exactly as in English, and the grammar follows clear patterns; the real challenge is the sound, above all the nasal vowels. This guide covers what is easy and hard, Brazilian or European Portuguese, the best free resources, a 12-week plan at 20 to 30 minutes a day and an honest timeline.
Is Portuguese hard for English speakers?
Less than you'd think. The FSI puts Portuguese in its easiest category and estimates 24 weeks of full-time classes, about 552 class hours, for an English speaker to reach professional working proficiency in speaking and listening. That's the lowest figure on its list, and lower than the 30 weeks it gives Spanish and French. Your ears will need longer than your eyes, though.
| What comes easily |
What takes work |
| Thousands of words shared with English |
Nasal vowels: ão, ãe, õe |
| Three regular verb patterns |
Two verbs for "to be": ser and estar |
| Only two genders: o and a |
Small words that merge: em plus o makes no |
| Reading, long before listening |
Vowels that shrink or vanish, especially in Portugal |
What is easy about Portuguese?
Vocabulary follows patterns. English -tion becomes -ção (nação, informação), -ty becomes -dade (cidade, city; universidade), and -ly becomes -mente (rapidamente, quickly). Regular verbs fall into three groups, -ar, -er and -ir: learn falar (to speak) and you can conjugate morar (to live), trabalhar (to work) and estudar (to study).
Even politeness has a logic. Obrigado (thank you) literally means obliged, so a man says obrigado and a woman says obrigada, matching the speaker, not the person being thanked.
What makes Portuguese hard?
Nasal vowels. Não (no), mãe (mother), irmã (sister) and bom (good) push air through the nose, and English has no sound to borrow. Practice them from the first day rather than fixing them later.
Vowels that change. In Portugal, unstressed vowels shrink so much that telefone (phone) can sound like "tlfon". In Brazil, a final e often sounds like an i, and in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo t and d before that i sound turn into "ch" and "j": leite (milk) sounds like "lay-chee", dia (day) like "jee-a".
Ser and estar. As in Spanish, two verbs mean "to be": ela é simpática (she's nice) describes her, ela está cansada (she's tired) describes how she is right now.
Merged words. Prepositions fuse with articles: em plus o makes no, de plus a makes da. So it's no Brasil (in Brazil) and a casa da Ana (Ana's house).
False friends. Puxar means to pull, which matters on doors marked puxe. Esquisito means strange, not exquisite, and a livraria is a bookshop, not a library.
Should you learn Brazilian or European Portuguese?
Learn the variety spoken where you'll live, work or have family. If nothing pulls you either way, Brazilian gives you far more to listen to, since most of the world's Portuguese speakers live in Brazil. The differences lie in pronunciation, a set of everyday words and how you say "you".
| English |
Brazil |
Portugal |
| you (informal) |
você |
tu |
| bus |
ônibus |
autocarro |
| train |
trem |
comboio |
| breakfast |
café da manhã |
pequeno-almoço |
| I'm speaking |
estou falando |
estou a falar |
Qlango teaches both, each from A1 to B2. Our guide to Brazilian vs European Portuguese has the full comparison, and if you already speak Spanish, read learning Portuguese as a Spanish speaker first.
How do you start Portuguese in Qlango?
Download Qlango on Android or iOS, or open it on the web, choose English as the language you learn through and add Brazilian or European Portuguese. The app is free to download and your first lessons are free; the first A1 lesson takes about five minutes. The languages page lists every course and level.
Answers move from picking one of four to building sentences to writing Portuguese yourself, which is where no, na, do and da start to come out right without thinking. Spaced repetition brings each word back right before you would forget it, flashcards keep vocabulary moving, and games such as Word Duel, Wordle and MinuteRush fill a spare five minutes. You can chat with other learners, with message translation and AI help to write your reply, and streaks, a weekly plan and statistics keep the habit going. Premium adds an AI teacher and offline learning.
Where can you learn Portuguese for free? The best resources
Public broadcasters and universities in Portugal and Brazil put a lot of real Portuguese online. These are the free resources that fit a beginner best, and with them you can learn Portuguese for free well past your first months.
- RTP Play. Portugal's public broadcaster streams its channels, series and radio free on RTP Play. Outside Portugal, part of the catalogue is blocked for rights reasons. It's the easiest way to train your ear for European Portuguese.
- Agência Brasil. Brazil's public news agency publishes news in Portuguese and also has an English edition, so you can sometimes read a story in English first and then in Portuguese. Try one short article a day from week 8.
- Acervo Celpe-Bras. The Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul keeps a free archive of every edition of Celpe-Bras, Brazil's official proficiency exam, with question booklets, audio and video. The tasks are intermediate and up, so save them for later listening practice.
- Tá Falado. If you speak Spanish, this University of Texas podcast teaches Brazilian pronunciation by contrasting it with Spanish. The site was archived in March 2026, but its lessons are still online.
- Your library and a language exchange. Libraries lend Portuguese course books with audio, and a Brazilian or Portuguese speaker who wants to practice English costs you nothing but half your conversation time.
What does a free 12-week Portuguese plan look like?
Plan 20 to 30 minutes a day, six days a week: about 15 minutes of Qlango lessons and reviews, then 10 minutes of listening or reading from the list above. Say every example out loud, because the sounds are where Portuguese takes the most practice.
| Week |
Focus |
Say it like this |
| 1 |
Nasal vowels, ç, lh and nh, greetings, numbers to 20 |
Olá, sou a Emma. Sou de Sydney. |
| 2 |
ser and estar, o and a, obrigado and obrigada |
Ela é simpática, mas hoje está cansada. |
| 3 |
Present tense of -ar verbs, questions with onde and o que |
Onde você mora? (Brazil), Onde moras? (Portugal) |
| 4 |
-er and -ir verbs, numbers to 100, ordering |
Um café, por favor. Quanto custa? |
| 5 |
Merged words: no, na, do, da |
Moro no Rio. A casa da Ana é perto. |
| 6 |
ter, ir, fazer, querer, poder, the near future |
Vou jantar com a minha família. |
| 7 |
What you're doing right now, the Brazilian and the European way |
Estou trabalhando (Brazil), estou a trabalhar (Portugal) |
| 8 |
gostar de for likes; first Agência Brasil article |
Gosto de café e gosto muito de praia. |
| 9 |
Past tense of regular verbs |
Ontem falei com a minha mãe. |
| 10 |
Irregular past tenses |
No sábado fui à praia e tive um dia ótimo. |
| 11 |
The imperfect for habits |
Quando era criança, eu jogava futebol. |
| 12 |
Review, messages to other learners, a short RTP clip a day |
No ano que vem quero visitar Lisboa. |
By week 12 you can introduce yourself, order, say where you live and tell a short story about your weekend, and the nasal vowels will feel less like a party trick.
How long does it take to learn Portuguese?
Cambridge English estimates about 180 to 200 guided learning hours to reach A2, 350 to 400 for B1 and 500 to 600 for B2. Those figures are for learners of English, but they're a fair yardstick for Portuguese. At 30 minutes a day you study about 180 hours a year, enough for A2, simple everyday conversations, after about a year and B1 after about two.
The FSI's 24 weeks mean 23 hours of class a week plus self-study, for native English speakers, so treat them as a sign that Portuguese is quick, not as your timetable. Spanish speakers move much faster still. Our guide to how long it takes to learn a language shows how to turn your own week into a date.
FAQ
Can I learn Portuguese for free?
Yes. RTP Play, Agência Brasil and the Celpe-Bras archive cost nothing, and Qlango is free to download, so you can begin structured lessons in Brazilian or European Portuguese today.
Is Portuguese easier than Spanish?
By the FSI's numbers it's slightly quicker, 24 weeks against 30. Spanish is easier to pronounce, though, so many learners find its first weeks smoother. If you're still deciding, see our guide on how to learn Spanish for free.
How long does it take to learn Portuguese?
About a year to A2 and two years to B1 at 30 minutes a day, and roughly half that at an hour a day.
Can I learn Portuguese if I already speak Spanish?
Yes, and much faster: most of the vocabulary and grammar carries over. The work is in the sounds and in false friends such as esquisito. Choose Portuguese in Qlango and pick the variety you need.
Practice não, mãe and obrigado out loud tonight, add Portuguese in Qlango with English as the language you learn through, and do your first lesson before the week is out.
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