Italian vs Portuguese: which should you learn?

Estimates for a native English speaker, following the US Foreign Service Institute’s groupings. Languages the Institute does not rank are placed beside their closest relatives. Your own pace will differ.

• You want music, food, art and travel in Italy, with a spelling system that matches how words sound.
• You will use it in Italy, Switzerland and San Marino, with communities around the world.

Watch out for: double consonants and verb forms need steady practice.

• You want Brazil's huge market and culture, and a strong base for reading Spanish.
• You will use it in Brazil, Portugal and several countries in Africa.

Watch out for: nasal vowels and the difference between Brazilian and European pronunciation.

Italian. Fairly friendly for English speakers. Pronunciation follows the spelling closely. Verb forms and prepositions are the long part, and they stick better when you meet them in full sentences.

Portuguese. Easier if you already know Spanish or French. Pronunciation is the harder part, especially the nasal vowels and the way unstressed vowels shrink.

In both, the quickest fix for pronunciation is the same: hear a whole sentence, say it out loud and check how close you were. That is the loop 4ToSpeak runs on every sentence.

Italian and Portuguese are close relatives, so a lot carries over. Learn one, and the second takes noticeably fewer hours than starting from scratch. Start with whichever you will use sooner.

If you cannot decide, start both for a week at 15 minutes a day. After seven days you will know which one you look forward to, and motivation matters more than the difference in hours.

Start Italian or start Portuguese, both free with no card.

• Spanish vs Italian
• French vs Italian
• German vs Italian
• Spanish vs Portuguese
• Portuguese vs Catalan