My recommended YouTube channels for intermediate Spanish learners

Textbook Spanish is clear, slow, and carefully scripted. Real Spanish blurs words together, drops syllables, and throws in slang without warning. If you're an intermediate learner, the fastest way I know to bridge that gap is to spend more time with native speakers on YouTube. This is why I highly recommend you check these channels out to get your ear familiarized with different ways of speaking, varying topics, and different speeds.

This is not a definitive list of the YouTube channels I follow for learning Spanish, but I tried to pick some variety for different needs. These are also not in any particular order.

Lucía a.k.a Erre que ELE

At a glance: Spain · natural speed · humour and everyday Spanish

The author, Lucía, is from Spain and I love the cheeky humour throughout her videos. The topics range from grammar to colloquial expressions and everyday life (I remember her sitting in a car explaining driving in Spanish, for example). Articulation is clear - not in the manner of look-I'm-teaching-the-language-for-dummies but rather natural speed and clarity.

Instead of me spoiling where the channel name comes from, go and see for yourself:

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César a.k.a Spanish Language Coach

At a glance: Spain · easy to follow · society, politics and calm listening

César is also from Spain. There is a lot of variety on this channel, though the topics are sometimes more serious than on the other channels, especially the videos about society and politics. He has a soothing voice that makes watching his videos almost like a mindfulness exercise. Again, good natural articulation and an easy-to-follow speed. His explanations of less common words and expressions that pop up during videos are always spot on.

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Elena a.k.a Linguriosa

At a glance: Spain · fast · language trivia and history

OK, this is a tough one. As an etymology nerd I can't get enough of Elena's language-related trivia, but the speed is sometimes a bit much for B1-B2 level speakers like yours truly. The videos are extremely well produced, which explains how she has managed to reach almost a million subscribers at the time of writing.

I wholeheartedly recommend her channel, but if you are an intermediate level Spanish speaker, don't get disappointed if you fall off the wagon in the middle of the ride; just put on the subtitles (in Spanish, of course) and be prepared to take notes about the expressions and unknown words that pop up left and right.

Here's a history blast at full throttle by Elena, por favor:

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BBC News Mundo

At a glance: mixed accents · varies by presenter · current affairs and documentaries

BBC News Mundo gives you short daily doses of current affairs as well as full documentaries for your pleasure. The accents vary between the presenters, which is perfect if you want to train your ear for more than just Peninsular Spanish ("Castellano").

Having said that, I happened to pick a video with a presenter who has a Peninsular Spanish accent here, but you do you and start following the channel:

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Español con Guada

At a glance: Spain · easy to follow · real, natural Spanish and learning tips

Guada is a Spanish teacher from Cáceres (Spain) who teaches adult learners, and her stated goal is to help you speak about the same topics you would in your own language, without fear. That's exactly the kind of Spanish this list is about. She has a distinctly Peninsular accent, but her articulation is clear, and she speaks at an easy-to-follow speed. Fair warning: spending time with her might also be therapeutic, as she's a really cheerful personality.

Check out her recommendations on what to read, watch, and listen to in order to learn Spanish here:

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Brenda a.k.a Hola Spanish

At a glance: Argentina (neutral accent) · easy to follow · beginner-friendly, wide range of topics

Brenda is a qualified Spanish teacher from Argentina who lives in Sydney, Australia. As someone who spent years on Duolingo, I find her the easiest of these creators to understand. She teaches Spanish as a second language with a focus on both Latin America and Spain, so her Spanish is fairly neutral and international rather than heavily regional, which makes her a good first step outside Spain. Her videos lean beginner-friendly, but they still cover a wide range of topics.

If you take a look at her channel, you'll notice a pattern in the cover images, no? Maybe the channel could be renamed "Brenda pointing at things"? Joking aside, watching her videos hardly ever requires me to put the subtitles on, and it still doesn't feel like I'm watching beginner content.

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Did you find your new favourite Spanish channel from these recommendations? Do you have others I should check out too? I'd especially love recommendations for Mexican or Colombian channels, since I could really use some variety. Please add comments below and I might update the post accordingly!

¡Hasta la próxima!

-Juha