As a French tutor and also the founder of French à La Carte, the question related to the number of hours, months or even years required to speak French fluently is very frequently asked by students. Unfortunately, there is no single correct answer to this question. Learning a foreign language depends on each student, as some may find it easier than others.

Furthermore, speaking French depends on many factors such as: your age, your first language, the environment, your motivation and the time you can dedicate to learning French.

It is possible to estimate the number of hours it will take, but this is just an average that will fluctuate depending on many factors that we will dive into in this post.

In this week’s post, let’s have a close look at the 9 key points that will help you estimate how long it will take you to speak the language fluently.

1.What are your linguistic goals with the French language?

Not all French learners have the same language learning goals.

In order to learn efficiently, you need to set yourself a clear goal ahead of time. Would you like to learn French language to:

-Get by when travelling in the country. Your goals are to feel comfortable when you interact with locals in specific situations: whilst shopping, using greetings, taking a taxi, having small conversations.

- Feel comfortable in your professional exchanges with Francophone colleagues or clients. In this situation, the linguistic goals and the objectives will be task orientated: making an appointment, writing an e-mail with the correct level of language, making a presentation, negotiating, giving instructions to your team, selling a product, etc.

-Be able to read novels or press articles in French.

-Have deeper conversations with Francophones on topics that interest you.

These are only a few examples but each one will require different amounts of work and time.

2. Language attainment levels and time estimates (CEFR)

One of the most commonly used scales of language attainment is the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) which runs a scale from A1 (beginner) to C2 (mastery or proficiency).

In the US, another widely used yardstick is the Interagency Language Roundtable Scale which runs from Level 0 (no proficiency) to level 5 (native/bilingual proficiency).

Some people may only want a “tourist” grasp of a language.

1 - Tourist level

That’s A1 on the CEFR for Languages (maybe Level 0+/1 ILR). If that’s the case, you maybe need 80 to 100 hours for a “tourist level” grasp. With lessons on a one-on-one basis this amount of time can be divided by two.

2 - Working knowledge

If you are looking for “working knowledge” to “get by” in most concrete situations, you want to aim for A2 or B1. We can estimate around 200 to 400 hours for this level (bottom of A2 to top of B1) or upper beginner/lower intermediate “working knowledge”. Just like for the A1 level, you can divide this amount by two depending on the format of your lessons: private or group lessons.

3 - Higher level of fluency

A higher level of fluency – top B2 (upper intermediate) into C1 (advanced/operational proficiency) (ILR 2+ to 3+) is said to take 550 to 900 hours, two times less on a one-on-one basis.

We’re giving hour ranges here because we have been looking at a band of attainment (e.g. somewhere in A2 to top of B1/upper beginner to mid intermediate) and because different educational bodies have given different estimates for the language(s) they are involved with.

3 - Times estimate according to FSI (Foreign service estimate)

French is classified in category 1

The Foreign Services Institute (the US State Department’s agency for training US diplomats) ranks languages by difficulty, taking both the linguistic and cultural gap between English and the target language. They use five categories; French is classified in category 1 (languages similar to English).

If you are an English speaker, learning French requires 575-600 hours of study (or 23-24 weeks full- time). It is the same for other European Romance languages (French, Italian, Spanish etc) and the Germanic ones (Danish, Swedish, Dutch/Afrikaans Norwegian – not German).

4. What is your native language?

Some languages are closer to French than others: eg. Spanish, Italian which are Romance languages. Learning French will be easier if your native language shares the same alphabet and other grammatical structures.

If you are Italian, learning French should be easy. Both languages share many similar characteristics due to their Latin heritage and the lexical similarity is 89%.

If you are a native English speaker, learning French should not be too hard, as English partly takes its roots from French.

If you are a native speaker of Chinese or Japan for example you will first have to get familiar with the alphabet.

5. How old are you?

Although children under 18 tend to acquire a language much faster than adult learners, adults have a better understanding of the depth of a language: there is a notable difference between language acquisition (passive) and language learning (active).

However, if you are over 50 years old and are monolingual, you must be aware that mastering French will require more time. As we get older, most of us experience an age-related decline in mental functions such as attention and memory.

Out of the hundreds of students I have taught at French à La Carte, older people tend to memorize more slowly and get more easily confused with complex grammatical points.

6. How many foreign languages to you speak?

If you speak any other foreign languages, you have already gone through the process of learning another language. Your brain is trained to cope with complexity, system of rules, new patterns, and lexis. Learning French should be much easier.

If you already speak three languages or more, adding French to your current languages should be much easier, especially if the other languages you speak share the same alphabet.

7. Do you have a good capacity to learn languages?

Some students tend to have superior capacities to learn languages, just like others are good at maths.

From my experience as a French tutor, I have noticed that learning French is much easier for people who understand English grammar well. I have also noted that some students who are in certain professions, eg. engineers or lawyers are demanding and precise in terms of grammatical structures. These students have more facilities to learn the language.

Young students (children/ teenagers) are often like sponges: learning comes easily to them and their memory is exceptional.

Another point I have noted is that French learners who are musicians have a talent for reproducing sounds.

However, when it comes to personal work in addition of the lessons, there is no secret, and disciplined students who are ready to study on a regular basis will have a better chance at mastering French.

8. How much time can you dedicate to learning the French language?

The answer to this question should be : as much time as you can afford. Time management is essential to keep up the efficiency of the learning process: stick to a regular basis. All depends on how far you want to go with the proficiency. Spending at least 15 minutes a day on a language is a good idea if you want to attain a basic level, for example, engaging in simple conversations while traveling.

Here is an estimate:

3-6 months. This is for people who speak similar-ish languages like English and who spend hours studying every day (probably 3+ hours per day)
1 year. For people who spend one hour per day studying French for an entire year.
2-3 years. For people who study 15 minutes per day.

9. Will you learn by yourself, in a group or on a one-on-one basis?

Learning at school, university or in a language school

Some students learn French at school, high school, university or in a language school.

Although the interaction in a classroom is beneficial for some students and this is usually how you have your first exposure to the language, if the class is too large or has people of different knowledge levels, the learning process is slower. It’s important to keep your study group to a small number of people (6 students maximum is better) when possible.

One on one lessons with a French tutor

Educational professionals agree that one-to-one learning is often more effective and beneficial. In a one-one-one situation, the tutor can gauge what kind of learning works best and tailor the lesson accordingly. Time can also be allocated according to the individual student’s needs, meaning more time is spent on the areas where they need help. The learning process is optimized, and you will save time.

Using digital learning material

Nowadays foreign language learners have access to a wide range of versatile tools and online resources, and benefit from the proliferated use of digital technologies. Modern IT devices and various apps to learn French have considerably facilitated language teaching and learning for
different purposes, e.g. finding information, interaction, spell checks, etc.

The online language school Lingoda also recently conducted a survey about speaking confidence after taking online classes. Of students who reported feeling more confident, around half said they felt comfortable speaking after fewer than 20 classes.

10. Learn French faster with French à La Carte

Why would you struggle learning French for years when you can learn faster with French à La Carte?

We deliver a pragmatic teaching approach based on each student’s linguistic needs. Time is allocated according to each individual student’s linguistic goals, and you won’t waste time working on skills or topics that are not relevant to you.

Since 2012, in Paris or online, our team of tutors have been providing high quality tuition. Do not hesitate to contact us for more information.

How long does it take to speak French fluently?