Learning Chinese, Learn to Speak Chinese

Learning Chinese can seem intimidating at first, particularly if you intend to acquire written skills as well. However, you can learn to speak Chinese with the aid of online programs and tools. Tackle spoken Chinese first, then worry about the written form. The first question when learning Chinese is which version or dialect.China is a vast country, only now modernizing, so there are many dialects to choose from. Mandarin Chinese is the official language of the country, so that is what we recommend. We have reviewed most of the learning Chinese courses available, assigning a rating of 1-5 stars.We present reviews on any Chinese course which scores more than 3 stars during our review process, with the highest-scoring program presented first. We choose not to present any program which scores 3 or less, as our goal is to help you find great programs which will meet your objectives and help you learn conversational Chinese in the fastest time. We want to help find the best Chinese software to help you to learn to speak Chinese fast. See Our Most Highly Recommended Learning Chinese Program

	Review Summary:
Program	Rating	Price

Rocket Learning Chinese Premium®		$99.95 (limited time) Detailed Review

Fluenz Mandarin F-2 (L1-2)®		$323.00 Detailed Review

Transparent Learning Chinese Complete Edition®		$179.95 Detailed Review

Rosetta Stone Learning Chinese 3 (L1-3)®		$485.10 Detailed Review

Pricing subject to change


Top Ranked Program Rocket Learning Chinese Premium®		Our Rating: (5 / 5)

The best way of learning Chinese is through “immersion”, and Rocket Chinese Premium®is the closest we have found to achieving that! The powerful and unique MegaVerb(TM), MegaVocab(TM), and MegaAudio(TM) tools make it easy to learn conversational Chinese on-line fast in a fun and easy way! This program covers all the bases, is available for immediate download, and includes access to a Private Learning Chinese Forum and lifetime membership to the Rocket Learning Chinese Lounge(TM). Lifetime upgrades are included also. The interactive tools are first rate, and the focus is on getting you conversational as fast as possible so you can use your new language to learn it, instead of learning your new language to use it – an interesting approach that works! It also has the lowest price of any of the programs presented here, which is an added bonus. Overall, an extremely well put together course, with attractive pricing, which comes with our highest rating.

Review Highlights: Interactive audio course – 32-lessons will quickly get you speaking confidently, fluently, and naturally. A lot of thought has gone into the content and context Custom grammar lessons – over 100 hours of comprehension lessons. These do work quite well, and in our opinion are structured better than any of the other courses we have reviewed MegaVocab(TM) software tool – a unique tool which really accelerates learning and expands your vocabulary at amazing speed MegaAudio(TM) software tool – this simulates immersion – the fastest and easiest way to learn any language MegaVerbs(TM) software tool – will help you quickly master verbs and tenses, even with irregular verbs Private Learning Chinese Forum, available 24 hours a day – something you might find useful as it can be quite motivational to track your progress against others Lifetime membership to the Rocket Learning Chinese Lounge(TM) 60 Day 100% satisfaction guarantee means you can try the program absolutely risk free
	Summary of Reviews

Current Pricing: $99.95 (reduced from $299.95 for a limited time)


FREE 6-Day Introductory Learning Chinese Course: One of the things we really like about Rocket Languages® is that they provide a totally free 6-Day course, delivered daily via e-mail, which really allows you to evaluate their learn to speak Chinese with no obligation. That’s a sign of real confidence in their product. If you would like to get the free 6-day course, just click the blue button on the right.


Other Ranked Programs Fluenz Mandarin F-2 (L1-2)®		Our Rating: (4 / 5)

The Fluenz®program is based on sessions led by an on-screen tutor, so it very much tries to simulate the classroom approach. It recognizes that adults learn differently than children, and we concur with that logic. The program endeavors to explain the language in a way which makes sense to English-speakers. The Fluenz®approach is based on getting learners to understand how to structure relevant sentences rather than relying on the association of words and images to learn how to say words. Fluenz® builds steadily from useful structures like questions and commands and useful vocabulary (related to restaurants, transportation, directions, etc.) to more complex situations. The classroom approach is not for everybody, although we do like this program. However, it is difficult for us to see the justification for the significantly higher price compared to the program reviewed above.

Review Highlights: Classroom approach – very much a teacher / student approach which is not for everybody. The screen tutor is clearly an expert Focus on sentence structure – the program really focuses on sentence structure as opposed to individual words, which we like Cultural nuances – they spend a lot of time going into cultural nuances as a way of explaining things like sentence structure. Informative, but at the risk of getting side-tracked from the main goal of getting conversational in the language Supplemental podcasts – Fluenz®offers supplemental podcasts. Their main program is very much CD / DVD based, so perhaps this is their way of moving towards a more interactive solution Challenging workouts – they certainly do dig deeply into analysis of sentences during each session, perhaps a little too much Fluenz® navigator(TM) – assists with cultural and travel information. Not necessary, but nice to have Satisfaction guarantee – 30 days
	Summary of Reviews

Current Pricing: $323.00 (Amazon discounted price)



Other Ranked Programs Transparent Learning Chinese Complete Edition®		Our Rating: (4 / 5)

Transparent’s approach is to provide you with a full range of multi-media tools – programs, online resources, mp3 files, audio lessons, virtual environments, immersion videos. Their view is that everybody learns differently, and they are trying to cover all the bases. Honestly, we found it a little bewildering, but you certainly have choices! Their Byki® tool is very interesting. It’s memory algorithm technology is claimed to tailor learning based on the user’s strengths and weaknesses. Interesting stuff!! Transparent Languages have been around a long time, and unlike some of the other older competitors, they have spent the time updating their courses to take advantage of new technologies. We applaud them for that, as they are not treating their product as a cash-cow, instead they are continually investing to make it better. No question, this is a comprehensive learn to speak Chinese course, with lots or resources. And because immersion is so important, we liked their 30 virtual reality scenarios. Overall, a strong course!

Review Highlights: Online resources – Transparent Languages® are pretty good at updating resources on their website regularly, so you can always expect updated learn to speak Chinese resources Everywhere audio lessons – lots of mp3 resources, so you can take your learn to speak Chinese lessons with you anywhere better than any of the other courses we have reviewed Byki(TM) tool- a unique tool which claims to tailor learning based on individual strengths and weaknesses, based on memory algoritm technology Linguamatch(TM) tool – this simulates immersion – with 30 virtual reality scenarios – we liked this a lot Lexicon(TM) translation dictionary – access to full dictionary so that, as you come across new words, you can instantly look them up Written skills – dealt with in the course also, many courses focus just on conversation, or spoken vocabulary – this course takes it a little further to focus on the written language. Nice – if that’s what you’re looking for but not essential to learn to speak Chinese! Satisfaction guarantee – 6 months
	Summary of Reviews

Current Pricing: $179.95



Other Ranked Programs Rosetta Stone Learning Chinese 3 (L1-3)®		Our Rating:(3.5 / 5)

The Rosetta Stone® approach to learning Chinese is based on an immersive environment, and a sequence of learning which they have thought through quite well. They use combinations of words and images in a manner which is designed to assist with memorization. They do not use translation or grammar rules, which we found a little strange if one truly intends to learn to speak Chinese conversationally. You will hear, write and pronounce a lot of words. Their voice recognition tool needs a bit of work, although it has improved. The whole program, which they refer to as adaptive immersion(TM), feeds you many words and phrases, along with images. You will learn many words and expand your vocabulary. You won’t get much help on tenses and conjugation, which we feel is an integral part of learning any language to conversational level. Their thesis is that an adult can learn a language in the same manner as an infant, which we do not agree with, as an adult is already thinking in their native language, whereas an infant has no language until they absorb their first one! You will expand your vocabulary significantly with this program. You will learn many Chinese words with this program, but you won’y truly learn to speak Chinese. Pricing is not competitive at all – this is an expensive course for what you get.

Review Highlights: Dynamic Immersion(TM) – eliminates translation and grammar explanations. This will help you learn many new words, but it doesn’t really get you there with respect to complete sentences, particularly in tenses other than the present tense High graphics interaction – you are presented with lots of images, along with written and verbal meanings, great for memorizing individual words in your new language Adaptive review – this feature adjusts the timing of review activity for lessons based on your performance in first review of the lesson, and is quite well done Satisfaction guarantee – 6 months for CD version, but only if you purchase through the company’s website (which costs more!)
	Summary of Reviews

Current Pricing: $485.10 (Amazon discounted price)


Rocket Languages®, Fluenz®, Transparent Languages®, and Rosetta Stone® are trademarks or registered trademarks. All trademarks, trade names, or logos mentioned or used are the property of their respective owners. Every effort has been made to properly capitalize, punctuate, identify and attribute trademarks and tradenames to their respective owners.

We hope you have found these reviews useful in your quest to find the best tools for learning Chinese, and we wish you success as you beging your journey to learn to speak Chinese. We are not associated with or endorsed by any of the programs we review on our site. While in some cases we may receive compensation for referrals we do not allow that to influence our recommendations. We have reviewed all of the courses we feature to the extent necessary to evaluate the features and qualities of each program. Accordingly, we would classify ourselves as reviewers of the programs rather than bona fide users. We welcome your feedback.