Stories, audio, and videos can all help you learn Afrikaans when you can follow what they mean. That is the idea behind comprehensible input: learning from Afrikaans you can mostly understand. Easy Afrikaans can be hard to find, and a learner on Reddit who has looked for years says finding learning materials in Afrikaans is not simple.
These apps and free sites give you Afrikaans at your level, or help you follow the Afrikaans you pick yourself. For courses, speaking practice, and tutors, see our Afrikaans app comparison.
Custom Lessons Made for You
Bubblegum
Bubblegum gives you Afrikaans to read and listen to at your level. Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, what you like and why you want to learn, and she writes lessons for you. News and stories give you more Afrikaans to read about music, food, family, and other things you care about.
If a sentence is hard to follow, just ask Poppy to explain the words or the grammar.
The trade-off is that Bubblegum can't help you read or watch Afrikaans you found yourself. For a news story or a show you already picked, the tools in Read and Watch Afrikaans You Choose are the better fit.
- Read and listen to lessons, news, and stories about things you like.
- New lessons fit your level, interests, and goals.
- Regenerative Review™ brings saved words back in new lessons, so you review them by reading instead of using flashcards.
- Ask Poppy for help as you read.
- Lesson audio uses AI voices, not recordings of Afrikaans speakers.
- You cannot bring in your own books, articles, or videos.
- A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so you can ask Poppy for a free one, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
Read and Listen to Stories for Learners
LingQ
LingQ lets you read and listen to Afrikaans from its library or from things you bring in. Its Mini Stories help adult beginners practice the basic patterns of Afrikaans. LingQ highlights the words you have not met yet and the ones you are still learning.
- A Mini Stories course for beginners, with more than 60 lessons to read and listen to.
- Bring in Afrikaans YouTube videos, books, and songs as new lessons.
- Flashcards
MobileWeb
Watch and Listen to Lessons for Learners
AfrikaansPod101
AfrikaansPod101 teaches through recorded dialogues that a teacher explains. All Language Resources lists it as the podcast to start with as a beginner, and people on Reddit suggest it to new learners too.
- Short audio and video lessons built around real Afrikaans conversations.
- Teachers slow down and explain every word and phrase.
- Lesson notes explain the words and grammar in each dialogue.
- Flashcards
MobileWeb
Listen to Afrikaans Radio and Read the News
RSG
People on Reddit often suggest RSG to learners. One says its presenters speak standard Afrikaans, which makes it easier to learn from, and a learner likes that it is mostly talk, not music.
- Listen live to RSG, the Afrikaans radio station of South Africa's public broadcaster.
- Catch up on podcasts, including radio dramas and books read aloud.
- Hear short news bulletins in Afrikaans.
- Its programs are made for people who speak Afrikaans, so they suit learners who know the basics.
MobileWeb
Maroela Media
Maroela Media is a South African news site and app in Afrikaans. Lindie Botes, a polyglot language coach, lists it as a place to read South African news in Afrikaans.
- Free news in Afrikaans, in the app or on the website.
- Sections on sport, food, farming, entertainment, and the Afrikaans language.
- Some stories come with a video or audio clip.
- The news is written for people who already speak Afrikaans, so it suits intermediate and advanced learners.
MobileWeb
Read and Watch Afrikaans You Choose
These tools help you learn from web pages and videos you pick yourself, such as the news above. They suit learners who know the basics.
Readlang
Readlang helps you read Afrikaans on the web. On a Premium plan, you can also upload Afrikaans audio and read along with its transcript.
- Tap a word or short phrase on an Afrikaans web page to see what it means.
- Read short Afrikaans stories that other learners share in its library, such as Die Drie Varkies.
- Save new words and review them with flashcards.
- Flashcards
WebBrowser extension
Language Reactor
Language Reactor adds learning tools to YouTube and Netflix in Chrome. People on Reddit suggest watching Afrikaans shows with subtitles, and this is one way to do that. It is free to install, with paid extras.
- See Afrikaans subtitles beside a translation on YouTube and Netflix.
- Look up words in a pop-up dictionary.
- Replay one line when it goes too fast.
Browser extension
Free Books, Videos, and Music
Picture books are an easy first step, because the pictures help you follow the story. African Storybook has more than 200 free storybooks in Afrikaans at five reading levels, which you can read online or download. South Africa Reads, part of the Global Storybooks project, has 40 of its stories with Afrikaans audio, and you can see each line in English too. Nal'ibali, a South African reading campaign, also shares free children's stories in Afrikaans.
For video, several learners on Reddit recommend ET Afrikaans, a channel with lessons and comprehensible-input videos, such as listening practice for total beginners. Learn Afrikaans tells short stories with the words on screen, and Aspetat tells fairy tales for children in Afrikaans. People on Reddit also suggest kids' shows on YouTube, because they are spoken slowly and clearly. Sterrejag makes videos about the stars, and a Reddit user says it uses very clear Afrikaans, with Afrikaans and English subtitles.
Learners and Afrikaans speakers on Reddit also suggest Afrikaans music, such as Koos Kombuis and Fokofpolisiekar. One learner says translating the lyrics has helped a lot.
Learn Afrikaans in Your Language
These counts cover menu-language choices, including script variants. Other apps’ counts and full lists come from their iPhone listings, except Language Reactor (Chrome Web Store) and Readlang (its help forum). Word meanings, lesson explanations, and other platforms may differ.
| App | Supported Display Languages | Full List |
|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | 74 | Full list
|
| LingQ | 17 | Full list |
| AfrikaansPod101 | 1 | Full list |
| RSG | 1 | Full list |
| Maroela Media | 1 | Full list |
| Readlang | 1 | Full list |
| Language Reactor | 27 | Full list |
Other Apps We Looked At (10)
- Lees-en-luisterA free app from VivA, the Virtual Institute for Afrikaans, with stories read aloud while the text lights up, in levels from first words to longer short stories.
- StoryWeaverA free library of children's picture books from Pratham Books, with more than 100 books in Afrikaans.
- FluentFiction - AfrikaansAfrikaans stories as a podcast. Each story is followed by a retelling that switches between Afrikaans and English, with a transcript and a word list.
- Learn Afrikaans with FexingoA free podcast of short beginner lessons with hosts Lucas and Luna, with slow stories, everyday phrases, and lots of repetition. It is new and growing.
- Netwerk24The online home of Afrikaans newspapers and magazines such as Die Burger, Beeld, Huisgenoot, and Weg!, with a voice that can read articles aloud.
- Schink StoriesAfrikaans audio stories for families, with free and subscription stories you can save to listen offline. It is new and growing.
- Die BiblioteekAn Afrikaans e-book app with novels, stories, and poems that you can download to read offline. It is new and growing.
- BabbelkousA streaming app for children, with Afrikaans shows, stories, and audiobooks.
- Afrikaans - Listening SpeakingVideo lessons built from Afrikaans videos, where you tap any word to see what it means. It is new and growing.
- Learn Afrikaans LanguageAfrikaans words, sentences, and short stories with English translations, plus quizzes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I understand Afrikaans if I speak Dutch?
It helps a lot. Stellenbosch University calls Afrikaans a sister language of Dutch, and a Dutch speaker on Reddit says they understood Afrikaans right away and have read novels in it. Watch for false friends, though: Stellenbosch points to words such as amper and vaak, which mean different things in the two languages.
Which Afrikaans shows can I watch?
Learners and Afrikaans speakers on Reddit often suggest the soap opera 7de Laan. One says its actors speak standard Afrikaans and its subtitles are mostly accurate. Others suggest Vetkoekpaleis and films such as Semi-Soet and Fiela se Kind.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so you can ask Poppy for a free one, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- r/afrikaans: Afrikaans music to learn (a learner on how hard Afrikaans learning materials are to find)
- All Language Resources: The 7 Best Podcasts to Learn Afrikaans
- r/afrikaans: help me learn afrikaans (AfrikaansPod101, and Afrikaans kids' shows on YouTube)
- r/afrikaans: Best podcast/listening to absolute beginners (RSG's standard Afrikaans)
- r/afrikaans: Any recommendations on how to learn Afrikaans? (a learner on RSG as a talk station)
- Lindie Botes: Afrikaans resources (Maroela Media for South African news in Afrikaans)
- African Storybook: open picture storybooks in the languages of Africa
- South Africa Reads: 40 stories with text and audio, part of Global Storybooks
- Nal'ibali: free stories in South Africa's languages
- r/afrikaans: What are the most effective online resources for learning Afrikaans? (ET Afrikaans)
- r/afrikaans: English speakers who have learned Afrikaans, what resources have you used? (ET Afrikaans and Afrikaans music)
- r/afrikaans: Who are some good YouTubers to learn Afrikaans? (ET Afrikaans and Sterrejag)
- Stellenbosch University Language Centre: Afrikaans language and culture for Dutch-speaking exchange students
- r/afrikaans: Should I learn Afrikaans first then Dutch? (a Dutch speaker on reading Afrikaans)
- r/afrikaans: How can I learn Afrikaans effectively? (7de Laan's standard Afrikaans and subtitles)
- r/afrikaans: How do I learn Afrikaans (Afrikaans films and series)
- Bubblegum
- LingQ
- AfrikaansPod101
- RSG
- Maroela Media
- Readlang
- Language Reactor
Checked on October 8, 2026 against each app's own pages.
