How do I start learning Spanish from zero?

By Mert Yerekapan 路 Updated

Start with three small things: learn how Spanish sounds, learn the few hundred most common words, and learn the present tense. Then add a little listening to very simple Spanish every day. Keep your sessions short, 15 to 30 minutes, and do them daily. That's enough to get moving in your first month.

Step 1: Learn the sounds

Spanish is wonderfully consistent. Each vowel has basically one sound (a, e, i, o, u), and words are pronounced pretty much as they're written. An afternoon with a pronunciation guide, plus repeating audio out loud, pays off for months.

Don't aim to sound perfect. The goal is to know what the letters sound like, so you can read aloud and recognize words when you hear them. A few sounds take longer, like the rolled r, but they can wait. There's a page on the hardest sounds for English speakers when you get there.

Step 2: First words and phrases

Focus on useful, high-frequency stuff:

  • Greetings and polite phrases (hola, gracias, por favor, perd贸n)
  • Numbers, days, basic questions (驴c贸mo?, 驴d贸nde?, 驴cu谩nto?)
  • Common verbs like ser, estar, tener, querer, ir
  • Everyday nouns around food, home, travel and family

Learn them in short phrases, not alone. Quiero un caf茅 (I want a coffee) teaches you a verb and a noun together and gives you something to say.

Step 3: Pick one main resource

You need something that tells you what to study in order. A beginner course, a textbook or an app all work. Which one matters less than sticking with it for a couple of months.

Be a bit wary of relying on it alone, though. Beginner courses are good at teaching patterns and not great at preparing you for real speakers. That's why the next step matters.

Step 4: Listen from week one

This is the step beginners skip, and I think it's a mistake. Even when you understand 20% of what you hear, your ear starts getting used to the rhythm and the sounds. Choose material made for beginners: slow, simple, with a transcript or subtitles you can check.

Short stories and learner podcasts are ideal because they're made to be understood at your level. The reasoning is covered in what comprehensible input is.

Langtok is one option, and I'm biased since I built it: short Spanish stories you swipe through, with every word highlighted as it's spoken and a tap for the translation.

Step 5: Build a tiny daily routine

Something like this is plenty at first:

  1. 15 minutes of your main course
  2. 10 minutes of listening or reading something simple
  3. 5 minutes reviewing words you've already met

If you can only manage 15 minutes in total, that still beats a two-hour session once a week. Daily contact is what builds the habit, and the habit is what gets you through the slow weeks.

What to expect

After a month you should be able to introduce yourself, ask simple questions and follow very slow, clear speech. After three or four months, short conversations become realistic. For a fuller timeline, see how long it takes to learn Spanish.

Don't overthink the start

Most people stall because they spend a week comparing resources. The first resource doesn't have to be perfect. Pick one, start tonight, and fix the routine as you learn what you like.

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