The best way to learn Croatian is a mix: mostly Croatian you can understand, plus review and real conversation, with the balance set by your goal. Croatian you can mostly understand is called comprehensible input. Below, you'll see what each way of learning builds and the mix that suits six common goals.
Which Ways of Learning Croatian Work Best?
Reading and listening to Croatian at your level works best, and each other method adds one skill on top of it.
| Method | What it builds | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Reading and listening at your level | Words, grammar and listening | Most of your time |
| A structured course | An order for the basics | Your first months |
| A tutor or conversation partner | Speaking and quick replies | Using what you know |
| Flashcards or other review | Words that stay with you | A few minutes each session |
| Shows, podcasts and the news | Natural, everyday Croatian | Fun, once you follow most of it |
| Grammar study | Why a sentence works, such as which case ending to use | Patterns that confuse you |
Input is the base of the mix: a 2016 review of 49 studies in Reading in a Foreign Language, a University of Hawaii journal, found that reading a lot of easy material improves reading in a new language.
What Is the Best Way to Learn Croatian for Your Goal?
For every goal, the best way is the same base of reading and listening, with the rest of your time on the skill that goal needs most.
- Talk With Family or FriendsRead and hear lots of everyday conversations, and spend the rest of your time talking with them. If you grew up hearing Croatian at home, try Ćakula Café, a slow podcast made for you.
- Travel to CroatiaSpend most of your time on short dialogues about ordering food and getting around, and say each one out loud.
- Pass a Croatian Language TestRead and listen at your level most of the time, and try the sample B1 test on Croaticum's official test page as the test gets close.
- Move to CroatiaRead and hear Croatian about everyday life most of the time, and join a course at Croaticum, the University of Zagreb's center for Croatian, once you arrive.
- Follow Croatian News and TVPut most of your time into listening, starting with Lagani hrvatski from SBS and moving on to HRT shows on HRTi.
- Work in CroatianRead and hear Croatian about your field most of the time, and practice with a tutor when to use the polite Vi and when to use ti.
To see how many hours each stage takes, read how long it takes to learn Croatian.
What Are the Best Resources for Each Part?
Each part of the mix has a good free option, such as A1.HR for a first course or Anki for review, and an app or service for when you want more. Bubblegum, which appears in a few rows, is a language app where Poppy, an AI tutor, writes Croatian lessons at your level about things you like.
| Part | Free option | App or service |
|---|---|---|
| A first course | Croaticum's free A1.HR and A2.HR courses | Ling, whose course goes from A1 to B1, or Pimsleur for audio lessons |
| Reading and listening at your level | The audio dialogues in Tako Lako, a free textbook | Bubblegum, LingQ's Mini Stories or the short novels from Croatian Made Easy |
| Shows, podcasts and news | Lagani hrvatski from SBS for news, HRTi for TV | Language Reactor for YouTube videos, or Readlang for web pages you choose |
| Review | Anki, free on computers and Android | Bubblegum's Regenerative Review™, which brings saved words back in new lessons |
| Conversation | A language exchange on HelloTalk | A tutor on italki or Preply |
| Grammar | The grammar pages in Tako Lako | Mango, whose lessons come with grammar notes |
What Should You Avoid?
Avoid anything that keeps you from reading real Croatian sentences you can follow.
- Dropping the Marks on LettersLetters like č, š and ž are separate letters with their own sounds, so learn and type each word with its marks, as in kuća (house).
- Lists With No SentencesSave words from lines you have read, so each noun comes with an example of how its ending changes.
- Shows You Can't Follow YetSave HRT shows for when you can follow most of an episode, and listen to Lagani hrvatski before that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it better to learn Croatian with an app or a teacher?
Use an app for the hours of reading and listening, and a teacher for speaking and corrections. Lessons with a tutor on italki or Preply are paid, so spend that time talking, and do your reading and listening on your own.
Should I learn Croatian grammar first?
No. Learn grammar from the Croatian you read and hear, and look a pattern up when it confuses you. A rule is easier to learn once you have seen it a few times: after Živim u Zagrebu (I live in Zagreb) and Radim u Splitu (I work in Split), the -u ending on a city after u (in) is easy to spot.
Which Croatian should I learn?
Learn standard Croatian, which schools and the media use and which is based on the Štokavian dialect, according to UCLA's Slavic department. You will also hear Kajkavian around Zagreb and Čakavian on the Dalmatian coast and islands. If your family speaks one of these, learn the standard first and pick up their words as you talk.
Which Croatian app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Croatian, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. Our Croatian app comparison covers courses, tutors and speaking apps too.
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 your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Jeon and Day (2016), The effectiveness of ER on reading proficiency: A meta-analysis, Reading in a Foreign Language 28(2), University of Hawaii
- Croaticum, University of Zagreb: Croatian language tests (with a sample B1 test)
- Croaticum: Free Online Tools to Learn Croatian (A1.HR and A2.HR)
- UCLA Slavic Department: Background Information (Croatian) (standard based on Štokavian; Kajkavian around Zagreb; Čakavian on the coast and islands)
- Tako Lako, a free online Croatian textbook with audio dialogues and grammar pages
- Anki, official downloads (free computer version and AnkiDroid)
- HelloTalk, learn Croatian (free language exchange)
