How to learn Luxembourgish online: free and paid options compared

You can learn Luxembourgish online, and much of it for free — from the same institutions that run the language test for nationality. What each option is good for, what it costs, and how to combine them into a plan that gets you to the Sproochentest.

Updated November 1, 2026 · 7 min read

Luxembourgish is a small language, so anyone searching for a way to learn it online finds a scattered picture: an official platform, a dictionary, courses, private teachers and a few apps. They are not competitors so much as pieces of one plan. Here is what each piece does, from the free ones up.

Start free with the official tools

LLO.lu — the official self-study platform

LLO.lu (*Lëtzebuergesch léiere online*) is "an initiative of the Institut National des Langues Luxembourg and the Ministry of National Education", built for learning Luxembourgish for free, open "to everyone, everywhere in the world" (LLO.lu — the project). Its lessons follow a complete A1 programme in numbered units (LLO.lu — learn). It is the natural first stop: structured, official and free.

LOD — the dictionary with native recordings

The Lëtzebuerger Online Dictionnaire (lod.lu) is free, translates into German, French, English and Portuguese, and is the official reference for spelling. Its example sentences are recorded by native speakers, and its data is published as open data under CC0 (data.public.lu). Look up every new word there and listen to it: Luxembourgish spelling only makes sense once you have heard it.

Take a course: the INL, online or in class

The Institut national des langues Luxembourg (INL) teaches Luxembourgish at every level of the European framework, "from A1 for absolute beginners to C2" (INL — Luxembourgish). Besides classroom courses it runs e-learning courses — two to three online classes a week of 100 minutes, for one semester — as well as hybrid and blended formats (INL — courses).

Each course has a registration fee, shown in the course offer on MyINL; under certain conditions it is reduced to €10. Books and materials are not included (INL — courses).

Get paid time to learn: the language leave

If you work in Luxembourg, you may not have to learn only in the evenings. The language leave (*congé linguistique*) gives up to 200 hours to learn Luxembourgish, in two stages of 80 to 120 hours; the second stage needs the certificate from the first (Guichet.lu — language leave).

• Employees of any nationality qualify after 6 months with the same employer in Luxembourg. The employer pays the benefit; the State refunds the employer 50 % of it and of the employer's share of social contributions.
• Self-employed people and liberal professions qualify after 6 months of activity in Luxembourg; their benefit is 50 % of a reference amount based on the previous year's income.
• There is no age or residence requirement, so cross-border workers employed in Luxembourg can apply too.

Private teachers and online schools

Private schools and tutors in Luxembourg teach online too, often with a course built around the Sproochentest. They cost more than the INL but fit your timetable and, above all, make you speak — the one thing no app or dictionary can do for you. One or two conversation sessions a week alongside self-study is a good use of the money, especially in the weeks before the test.

Edluxio — 1-to-1 lessons with a native teacher

Edluxio is an online marketplace of independent teachers for 1-to-1 lessons, among them native Luxembourgish speakers based in Luxembourg. You compare teachers, look at their profile and introduction video, and book a time that suits you; each teacher sets their own hourly rate, and you can pay in your own currency.

The easy way in is a trial lesson — and if you are not satisfied with your first lesson, you get a full refund. Cancel up to 24 hours ahead and you keep the full credit, which helps when work gets in the way. A native teacher is exactly what the speaking part of the Sproochentest calls for: ask for conversation on everyday topics. Edluxio also has teachers for French and English, handy in a country that runs on three languages.

Where 16Word fits

16Word covers the part every course leaves to you: remembering. You learn 16 items at a time — words, sentences and dialogues — by recalling them, with spaced repetition bringing back what you are about to forget and a short game break between answers. The Luxembourgish recordings are native speakers' recordings from LOD — thousands of words and hundreds of sentences.

You can learn from any of 36 languages — the prompts appear in the language you speak, whether that is English, French, Portuguese, Arabic, Persian, Tigrinya or Kurdish. Content goes from A1 to B2. It does not replace a teacher for speaking practice; it makes the hours with a teacher count, because you arrive knowing the words.

The options side by side

A plan that works

1. First month: work through the LLO.lu A1 units and learn 16 words a day; look up and listen to new words in LOD.
2. From A2: join an INL course, online if your week is full — and ask your employer about the language leave.
3. Every day: five minutes of recall keeps the words from the course alive between lessons.
4. Before the Sproochentest: speak as much as you can — with a native teacher on Edluxio, colleagues or neighbours — and try the INL's practice test.

What the Sproochentest asks

For Luxembourgish nationality the Sproochentest has two parts on the same half-day: speaking at A2 (about 10 minutes of conversation) and listening at B1 (35 minutes of multiple-choice questions on a tablet). There is no reading or writing. The fee is €75, refunded once you file your nationality application (INL — Sproochentest; INL — FAQ). Our Sproochentest guide (in French) explains both parts and the exemptions.