· 6 min read
Learn Polish for Free: Official Resources
By Language Lab editorial team
Learn Polish for free: three free university courses on the Polish platform NAVOICA, the BBC's archived Polish guide with audio, and official past exam papers.
Free Polish comes in three official layers. For first steps, the BBC's archived Guide to Polish gives ten facts about the language, the 33-letter alphabet with audio and 20 key phrases. For learners at A2 and B1, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań has published three free online courses on NAVOICA, a Polish platform for open online courses: a B1 course with elements of entrepreneurship, a course for transport and logistics at A2/B1, and a course for trade and services. Each takes about 18 hours and gives a certificate at a final result of 60% or more. For exam practice, the State Commission that certifies Polish publishes sample tests and papers from previous years. The gap is a full beginners' course: the university courses start above absolute-beginner level.
The free resources at a glance
| Resource | Who makes it | Level | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Guide to Polish | BBC (archived) | Beginner | Ten facts, the alphabet with audio, 20 key phrases with audio |
| Polish with elements of entrepreneurship | Adam Mickiewicz University, on NAVOICA | B1 | A free online course of about 18 hours |
| Polish for transport and logistics | Adam Mickiewicz University, on NAVOICA | A2/B1 | A free online course of about 18 hours |
| Polish for trade and services | Adam Mickiewicz University, on NAVOICA | Specialist | A free online course of about 18 hours |
| Sample tests and past papers | State Commission for the Certification of Proficiency in Polish as a Foreign Language | Exam levels | Official examination material for practice |
The free university courses on NAVOICA
The three courses come from a project called Polish for everyone, run by Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań and funded through Poland's National Centre for Research and Development. The Centre describes them as innovative and free of charge massive open online courses of Polish as a foreign language, placed on the NAVOICA platform. They were written for foreigners who work or plan to work in Poland and want to learn quickly, at hours that suit them.
- Format: each course is built on a series of animated films with a storyline, with charts of new vocabulary, diagrams and exercises.
- Approach: general Polish combined with specialist vocabulary.
- Time: about 18 hours to complete one course.
- Certificate: a participant who reaches a final result of at least 60% receives a certificate of completion.
- Access: you create an account on NAVOICA and log in. Teachers can use the materials too.
Where a complete beginner starts
With sounds and letters. The BBC's guide is direct about it: Polish pronunciation is a bit on the tricky side. The alphabet has 33 letters, all the letters of the English alphabet plus special ones with tails, dots or slashes: ą, ę, ć, ł, ń, ś, ż and ź. The letter ł sounds much like the English w in William, and ą and ę are nasal sounds. Then come letter groups such as cz, rz, sz and szcz, all of them hissing sounds. Two facts make it manageable: the consonants sound pretty much as they do in English, and the stress of a word is always on the second-last syllable.
First phrases, free from the BBC
| Polish | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Dzień dobry | Hello |
| Dziękuję | Thank you |
| Proszę | Please |
| Tak | Yes |
| Nie | No |
| Nazywam się ... | My name is ... |
| Nie rozumiem | I don't understand |
| Przepraszam | I'm sorry |
The guide warns learners not to mix up the first two rows: say dzień dobry when you mean dziękuję and you wish a good day to everyone who offers you food.
Free exam material
If you are heading for the state certificate, the State Commission for the Certification of Proficiency in Polish as a Foreign Language publishes sample tests, examination papers from previous years and collections of tasks, along with a self-assessment page and advice for candidates. Past papers show you the four written modules, listening, reading, grammar and writing, exactly as they are set.
A free weekly plan
- Weeks one and two, daily: the alphabet and its sounds with the BBC's audio, a few letters a day.
- Every day, 5 minutes: BBC key phrases aloud.
- Once you can follow simple Polish: one NAVOICA course at about two hours a week, which covers its 18 hours in nine weeks.
- Twice a week: recall the vocabulary of the last film before watching the next.
- Before an exam: one official past paper under timed conditions.
The plan relies on practice testing and distributed practice, the two techniques a 2013 review of learning research rated as high utility. Rereading and highlighting were rated low.
How far free takes you
Polish is a long course: the US State Department places it in Category III, hard languages, at about 44 weeks or 1,012 class hours for English speakers. The free official material is strongest at the two ends, first contact and exam practice, with specialist courses in the middle. A structured path from zero to A2 is the part you will have to add. Language Lab's Polish course is built around voiced real-life scenarios with an AI tutor, which also supplies the spoken practice that reading and video cannot.
Frequently asked
Can I learn Polish for free?
Partly. The BBC's archived Guide to Polish covers first steps, and three university courses on the Polish platform NAVOICA are free of charge for learners at about A2 to B1. A full free beginners' course is harder to find among official sources.
What is NAVOICA?
A Polish platform for massive open online courses. It hosts three free courses of Polish as a foreign language from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań.
How long do the free NAVOICA Polish courses take?
About 18 hours each. A final result of at least 60% earns a certificate of completion.
Where can I find free Polish exam papers?
On the site of the State Commission for the Certification of Proficiency in Polish as a Foreign Language, which publishes sample tests and papers from previous years.
How many letters are in the Polish alphabet?
33, by the BBC's guide: the letters of the English alphabet plus special letters such as ą, ę, ł and ż.
Is Polish hard for English speakers?
The US State Department classes it as a hard language. The BBC's guide lists the reasons, among them seven cases and difficult pronunciation, and two consolations: familiar consonants and fixed stress.
Sources: National Centre for Research and Development (gov.pl), Polish for everyone! Open courses to support learners of the Polish language as a foreign language; BBC Languages, A Guide to Polish: 10 facts, Key phrases and The Polish alphabet (archived pages); State Commission for the Certification of Proficiency in Polish as a Foreign Language (certyfikatpolski.pl, read on 13 October 2026); US Department of State, National Foreign Affairs Training Center, Foreign Language Training; Dunlosky et al., Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 2013. Checked on 13 October 2026. Photo: The walls of Malbork Castle, Diego Delso / CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons).
