Online German Courses A1 to C1
One structured path from your first word to real fluency. Ten courses, every tool, one membership. Built and taught by one teacher with over 25 years of experience.
Built for people who need German
You live in Germany
Work, letters from the Amt, small talk in the hallway. You need German that works in real life, on your schedule, without classroom evenings. Every course explains German in plain English and gets you speaking from lesson one.
You want the passport
German citizenship requires B1. The course path takes you there step by step, and the B1 exam prep course gets you through the test itself. No detours, no filler.
You are getting ready to move
Start before you land. Arrive able to register your address, open a bank account, and understand the person behind the counter. Your future self will thank you at the Bürgeramt.
How it works
Check your level
Take the free 20-minute level check. It covers reading, listening, pronunciation, speaking and writing, and places you in the right course. No guessing, no starting over at zero.
Try everything for 7 days
The free trial includes all ten courses and every tool. Test the method on your own material and your own schedule before you pay anything.
Follow the path
Each lesson builds on the last. Grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, listening and writing in one place, in one order that works. No app-hopping.
Beginner's German
Start from zero. Learn how the German language works, build your first vocabulary, and have your first guided mini-conversations.
Elementary German
Deepen and expand your foundation. Move step by step towards becoming fluent. Grammar starts to feel logical rather than arbitrary.
Intermediate German
The level where things fall into place more and more. Know your way through common situations and feel first signs of a language learning routine.
Upper-Intermediate
This is your time to achieve true fluency. Learn to express yourself without hesitation, and to handle work situations in German.
Advanced German
This is a native-like level. Nuance, precision, cultural depth. Understand the news, read literature, work in German environments.
A1 Exam Prep
Prepare for the Goethe A1 or Start Deutsch 1 exam. Structured practice, exam format familiarity, and targeted vocab.
B1 Exam Prep
Prepare for Goethe B1, OSD, or telc B1. Full mock exam practice and systematic grammar review.
DSH Exam Prep
University entrance German exam preparation. Academic writing, reading comprehension, and oral exam practice.
German Grammar Genius
The deep logic of German grammar - from the basics to advanced structures. Taught by Alessio Bona.
Hack the German Articles
Stop guessing der, die or das. A focused course that teaches you how to predict the article for any German noun.
Tandem Training
Get more out of your tandem partnerships. Practical frameworks for learners who want to speak, not just chat.
Milk
A sci-fi short story written specifically for German learners. Compelling enough to actually finish. Includes audio narration.
Raumstation Hyama
A dark sci-fi novel for learners at the edge of fluency. More complex vocabulary, longer sentences, richer narrative than Milk.
Apps, Integrationskurs, tutoring: how this compares
Apps
Apps are great for daily contact with the language, and streaks keep you coming back. What a flashcard format cannot do on its own is build the whole language: grammar that stacks, pronunciation, writing, real listening. My courses cover all of it in one sequence. Keep your app for vocab on the bus, and build the language itself here.
Integrationskurs
The Integrationskurs is state-subsidized, taught entirely in German, and moves at the pace of the class. For many people the classroom and the group are exactly right. My courses are the other model: set your own pace, repeat any lesson as often as you need, and everything is explained in plain English. Before you build a citizenship timeline on any single route, the official B1 pass rates are worth knowing. I break down the BAMF numbers here.
Private tutoring
A good tutor answers the stubborn questions, corrects you personally, and tailors your homework to exactly what you need. That is valuable and priced accordingly. The courses give you the structured base, so your tutor hours go into the things only a human can do for you.
One teacher, start to finish
I am Michael Schmitz. I have taught German for over 25 years and hold a DaF degree. I created most of these courses myself, and shaped the few I did not build closely with the teachers who did. No anonymous content team. If something in a lesson is unclear, tell me and I fix it.
Not sure where
to start?
Take the free 20-minute level check and begin in the right course.
Check my German levelQuestions, answered
No. Beginner's German starts from zero and explains everything in plain English.
That depends on your time, not on a trick. With regular practice most learners need several hundred hours from zero to B1. The courses are structured so that none of those hours are wasted.
B1 is the standard language requirement for naturalization. The Intermediate German course takes you to B1 and the B1 Exam Prep course prepares you for the certificate exam itself.
Yes, anytime, in your account. You keep access until the end of the period you paid for.
The 7-day free trial exists so you can test everything before paying. Cancel within the trial and you pay nothing.
