Cuban Spanish is the Spanish of Cuba and of many Cubans abroad, about 11 million speakers in all. People often weaken the s at the end of a syllable, and a Cuban bus is a guagua. Babbel's Spanish courses are Mexico and Spain, so a Cuba course takes some looking. That leaves a few Latin American courses, two small apps with Cuban words, and one paid course made with Cuban speakers. For podcasts, radio and tutors, see our Cuban Spanish guide. Our Spanish app comparison covers Spanish in general.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Spanish. You learn from Spanish you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, your level and what you like, and she writes your Cuban Spanish lessons. If a sentence is hard to follow, ask Poppy to explain it.
With Regenerative Review™, words you save show up again in new lessons, so that you can review words in new contexts without having to use flashcards.
Try asking Poppy what guagua means in a lesson about getting to work.
Bubblegum is built for reading and listening, and its AI voices are not Cuban speakers. For Cuban voices and speaking practice, use the resources below.
- Lessons are written in Cuban Spanish, with everyday words like guagua for a bus.
- Friends say tú to each other, and a question can put tú in the middle, as in ¿Qué tú quieres?.
- Regenerative Review™ brings saved words back in new lessons, and you can export them to Anki.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- The lessons keep standard spelling, so you won't see speech written the way it sounds.
- Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
BoricuaSpeak: Learn Spanish started with Puerto Rican Spanish, and its App Store page now lists 11 regions, Cuba among them. You hear a phrase, say it back, and get a pronunciation score. It also lists spaced-repetition review and a chat with an AI tutor from the region you choose. The app is free to download with paid plans, and it has only 4 ratings so far. Find it on the App Store.
Cubaneo: Cuban Word Guessing is a game, and it does not teach lessons. Its App Store page lists 482 Cuban words in 26 themed chapters, a daily crossword and live dominoes. The clues are in Spanish, so it suits someone who already reads some Spanish. It is free to download and has no ratings yet. Find it on the App Store.
Entiende: Spanish Dialects compares phrases across five countries (Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Puerto Rico and Colombia), so it has no Cuban option. BoricuaSpeak and Cubaneo are built around phrases and words, so add a course for grammar.
Cuban Spanish 101 from Spanish con Salsa costs $79 and has a 30-day money-back guarantee. It has 12 recorded dialogues between speakers from Cuba, each with a slow version, plus line-by-line transcripts with English translations and flashcards. Its page lists no free lessons, but it is the one course we found built around Cuban speech.
Pimsleur
Pimsleur is a good way to get speaking early. You can add Cuban audio later.
- Five levels, with audio lessons of about 30 minutes.
- You answer aloud after each short conversation.
MobileWeb
Mango Languages
Ask your library whether it offers Mango before you pay.
- Native speakers say every word in the Latin American Spanish course.
- Many public libraries offer Mango to their cardholders at no cost.
- Flashcards
MobileWeb
Duolingo
Duolingo covers the core Spanish that Cuba shares with the rest of Latin America. Cuban words like guagua come from other sources.
- A free Spanish course for English speakers.
- Lessons are short and easy to fit around work or school.
MobileWeb
uTalk
uTalk turns each topic, such as food or travel, into short games. It suits a spare five minutes.
- Words come in more than 60 topics, each with games.
- You can record yourself and compare your pronunciation with native speakers.
MobileWeb
Dreaming Spanish
Dreaming Spanish trains your ear on clear Spanish from other countries. For Cuban voices, use the podcasts and radio in our Cuban Spanish comprehensible input guide.
- Videos made for learners, from Superbeginner up to native content.
- Each guide is marked with a country flag.
MobileWeb
Language Reactor
Open a video by a Cuban creator and replay a line when a softened s hides a word.
- Dual subtitles and a popup dictionary on Netflix and YouTube.
- Replay one line as many times as you need.
Browser extension
| App | Free? | What's Free |
|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | Free version | Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read. |
| Pimsleur | Free trial | You can try Pimsleur free for 7 days. After that, you pay for one language or for all of them. |
| Mango Languages | Some lessons free | The first lesson of every language is free, and many public libraries give their members full access at no cost. The paid plans start with a free trial. |
| Duolingo | Free | Every Duolingo course is free. Super Duolingo removes ads and adds extras such as Unlimited Energy, and you can try it free for 14 days. |
| uTalk | Some lessons free | Every language has free starter words, and getting full marks in the games opens one more topic for free. For the rest, you subscribe or buy a language or topic. |
| Dreaming Spanish | Free version | The free plan lets you watch free videos, track your progress and save videos. Premium adds thousands of extra videos and offline watching. |
| Language Reactor | Free version | The main tools are free, such as Netflix subtitles and a basic AI dictionary. Pro Mode adds tools such as speech recognition and machine translations. |
Try a lesson in your language before you pay, to check that it works for you.
| App | Languages You Can Use It In | Full List |
|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | 76 | Supported language pairs |
| uTalk | 140+ | Full list |
Which Cuban Spanish app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Spanish, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. Or start with Pimsleur if you'd like to hear and answer in Latin American Spanish from the first day.
Is a Latin American course enough for Cuba?
It gives you the shared grammar and most everyday words. Cuba adds words such as guagua and jaba, a nylon shopping bag, and a way of speaking where the final s is weak. Add Cuban audio early so those sounds are familiar.
Does Babbel teach Cuban Spanish?
Babbel's Spanish page offers Spanish (Mexico) and Spanish (Spain), and no Cuba course. If you use Babbel, the Mexico course is the Latin American one. Add Cuban audio on top.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read. Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Cuban Spanish (about 11 million native speakers, guagua for bus, weak final s, final r like l, no vosotros)
- Bubblegum: Cuban Spanish lessons
- BoricuaSpeak on the App Store (free, 11 regions including Cuba, AI tutor, pronunciation score)
- Cubaneo: Cuban Word Guessing on the App Store (482 words, clues in Spanish, free)
- Entiende: Spanish Dialects on the App Store (five countries, none of them Cuba)
- Spanish con Salsa: Cuban Spanish 101 course
- Pimsleur: Latin American Spanish (five levels, 7 days free, names Cuba among countries where Spanish is official)
- Mango Languages: Latin American Spanish (native speaker audio)
- Mango Languages: pricing (first lesson free, library access)
- Mango Languages: home page (free through many libraries)
- Babbel: Learn Spanish (Spanish (Mexico) and Spanish (Spain))
- Duolingo blog: what is vosotros (the course teaches ustedes)
- Duolingo on the App Store (free offer)
- uTalk: Latin American Spanish (voice artists from Mexico and Honduras)
- uTalk on the App Store (free starter words)
- Dreaming Spanish: guides listed by country
- Dreaming Spanish: premium plan
- Language Reactor: Chrome Web Store listing (dual subtitles and popup dictionary on Netflix and YouTube)
- Language Reactor: home page (free features)
- Language Reactor: Pro mode
- OnCuba News: La inseparable jabita (jaba, a nylon shopping bag)
- Bubblegum
- Duolingo
- uTalk
- Language Reactor
