Hearing a language is one of the hardest parts of the language learning process. And listening to podcasts in English is one of the best ways to do so in any situation. You can even download them and listen to them on a plane…

Listen as many times as you need, or even download the transcripts to make sure you are picking up every single word.

However, we understand that it might be difficult to find the right one. Maybe you’re looking for a specific accent, topic, or level. And there are thousands of options. That’s why we have put together a useful list of our 10 favorite podcasts to learn English, specifying the country, level, topic, etc. Follow along! 

The English We Speak

Provider: BBC

Country: UK

When: Weekly

Duration: 3-4 minutes

Level: Intermediate

Topics: Varied

Notes: Learn must-have sentences with these short episodes. If you’re a busy person with no time looking to improve your conversational English quickly, this is your podcast. 

Walk someone through The English We Speak

TRANSCRIPT Find a full transcript for this episode and more programmes to help you with your English at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/the-english-we-speak_2024/ep-240325FIND BBC LEARNING ENGLISH HERE: Visit our website ✔️ https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish Follow us ✔️https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/followusLIKE PODCASTS? Try some of our other popular podcasts including:✔️6 Minute English ✔️ News Review ✔️Office English They're all available by searching in your podcast app
  1. Walk someone through
  2. Brick by brick
  3. Read the room
  4. Cook up an idea
  5. Rinse repeat

Elementary Podcasts

Provider: British council

Country: UK

When: Weekly

Duration: 10 minutes

Level: Beginner – Intermediate

Topic: from fictional drama and jokes to quizzes and language advice.

Notes: This podcast is perfect for those of you who are starting to listen to English. Get ready for some perfect English accent. 

ESL Pod

Provider: British council

Country: Not specified 

When: Daily

Duration: 15-30 minutes

Level: Intermediate-Advanced 

Topic: this service is not free. But if you are looking for a more intensive and curated content, you might be interested on the site. 

What If World

Provider: Mr. Eric

Country: UK

When: Weekly

Duration: 20 minutes

Level: Beginner – Intermediate

Topic: General knowledge, crazy facts

Notes: Made for children but suitable for everyone! Each week, Mr. Eric takes a “What if?” question from a kid and spins it into a story for all of you. 

This American Life

Provider: Public radio

Country: US

When: weekly

Duration: 1 hour

Level: Advanced

Topic: Each week they choose a theme and put together different kinds of stories on that theme.

Notes: This is one of the most famous and interesting podcasts out there, especially if you are interested in American life and culture. Definitely challenging to understand.

Overheard at National Geographic

Provider: National Geographic

Country: US

When: Weekly

Duration: 30 minutes

Level: Advanced

Topic: Nature, adventure and science

Notes:  follow explorers, photographers, and scientists to the edges of our big, weird, beautiful world.

The Writer’s Voice

Provider: The New Yorker

Country: US

When: Weekly

Duration: 40-50 minutes

Level: Advanced

Topic: Literature and culture

Notes: The New Yorker is definitely one of my favorite magazines, especially since I moved to New York. If you are interested in culture and personal stories around it, this is the best podcast for you. Also, this is the perfect opportunity to put your New York slang into play!

Here’s the Thing

Provider: WNYC Studios

Country: US

When: Weekly

Duration: 30-70 minutes

Level: Advanced

Topic: Creativity, gossip

Notes: Join Alec Baldwin into the lives of artists, policy makers and performers.

The Women of Heart Rock On: Ann Wilson Here's The Thing with Alec Baldwin

The sound of the band Heart is unmistakable: powerful guitar riffs, intricate melodies and soaring vocals. Since 1975, the group fused hard rock, pop and folk to produce 20 Top 40 hits, earn four Grammy nominations and sell over 35 million records. They also made rock history as the first female-fronted hard rock band – and one of the longest lasting and most commercially successful bands of all time. Now, they are heading out on a world tour.  In this two-part episode, host Alec Baldwin speaks with the two women at the beating center of the band, sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson. In this episode, Alec talks with lead vocalist Ann Wilson about how she discovered she had “the voice,” what it was like coming up as a young woman in the music industry in the 70s, and how Heart managed to produce a sound that was both hard and soft, being anything it wanted to be.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
  1. The Women of Heart Rock On: Ann Wilson
  2. The Women of Heart Rock On: Nancy Wilson
  3. Richard Kind is the “Costco of Acting”
  4. Daniel Roher's Oscar-Winning Film Celebrates the Late Navalny
  5. Carolyn Marks Blackwood’s Eye for Beauty

TED Radio Hour

Provider: NPR

Country: US

When: Weekly

Duration: 40-60 minutes

Level: Advanced

Topic: Life and challenges

Notes: TED Radio Hour investigates the biggest questions of our time with the help of the world’s greatest thinkers.

A More Walkable World: Ideas to get us moving TED Radio Hour

We know walking is good for our bodies, our communities, and our planet. But our car-centric cities and screen-filled lives keep us sitting. Can we change? This hour, ideas to get us moving. Guests include author Vybarr Cregan-Reid, computer historian Laine Nooney, exercise physiologist Keith Diaz, urban planner Jeff Speck, activists John Francis and Vanessa Garrison. TED Radio Hour+ subscribers now get access to bonus episodes, with more ideas from TED speakers and a behind the scenes look with our producers. A Plus subscription also lets you listen to regular episodes (like this one!) without sponsors. Sign-up at: plus.npr.org/tedLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
  1. A More Walkable World: Ideas to get us moving
  2. Audacious Solutions
  3. Natural Intelligence: What we and AI can learn from nature
  4. Memory And The Brain
  5. Retracing Their Steps

Stuff You Missed in History Class

Provider: Stitcher

Country: US

When: Biweekly

Duration: 30-40 minutes

Level: Advanced

Topic: History

Notes: Great vocabulary… and amazing content. Suitable for all ages! You could learn incredible facts such as these ones about Brooklyn…

Henry Martyn Robert’s Rules of Order Stuff You Missed in History Class

Henry Martyn Robert was connected to multiple historical events, but his most lasting legacy is the set of guidelines he created that offered a standardized way to run meetings. Research:  "Henry Martyn Robert." Encyclopedia of World Biography Online, vol. 21, Gale, 2001. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1631007677/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=a6a24976. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024. Doyle, Don H. “Rules of Order: Henry Martyn Robert and the Popularization of American Parliamentary Law.” American Quarterly , Spring, 1980, Vol. 32, No. 1 (Spring, 1980). https://www.jstor.org/stable/2712493 Fishman, Donald. “The Elusive Henry Martyn Robert: A Historical Problem.” National Parliamentarian. Second Quarter 2012. Hansen, Brett. “Weathering the Storm: the Galveston Seawall and Grade Raising.” Civil Engineering. April 2007. Hendricks, George Brian, "Rules of Order: A Biography of Henry Martyn Robert, Soldier, Engineer, Churchman, Parliamentarian" (1998). Legacy ETDs. 755. https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd_legacy/755 Kline, Charles R. “Robert, Henry Martyn.” Texas State Historical Association Handbook of Texas. 6/1/1995. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/robert-henry-martyn , Ben and Clio Admin. "Henry Martyn Robert Historical Marker." Clio: Your Guide to History. January 18, 2023. Accessed March 13, 2024. https://theclio.com/entry/163000 National Park Service. “Henry Martyn Robert.” https://www.nps.gov/people/henry-martyn-robert.htm National Park Service. “The Redoubt.” https://www.nps.gov/sajh/planyourvisit/the-redoubt.htm Pillsbury, Avis Miller and Mildred E Hatch. “The genealogy of the First Baptist Church of New Bedford, Massachusetts.” Reynolds-DeWalt Printing, Inc. 1979. https://archive.org/details/genealogyoffirst00avis/ Robert, Henry M. “Robert’s Rules of Order for Deliberative Assemblies.” Chicago: S. C. Griggs & Company. 1876. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/9097/pg9097-images.html Saunders, R. Frank, and George A. Rogers. “Joseph Thomas Robert and the Wages of Conscience.” The Georgia Historical Quarterly, vol. 88, no. 1, 2004, pp. 1–24. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40584703. Accessed 14 Mar. 2024. Smedley, Ralph C. “The Great Peacemaker.” Toastmasters International. 1955, 1993. https://archive.org/details/greatpeacemaker0000ralp/ S. Army Corps of Engineers. “Historical Vignette 038 – An Army Engineer Brought Order to Church Meetings and Revolutionized Parliamentary Procedure.” 11/2001. https://www.usace.army.mil/About/History/Historical-Vignettes/General-History/038-Church-Meetings/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
  1. Henry Martyn Robert’s Rules of Order
  2. The Inventive Mind of Margaret E. Knight
  3. SYMHC Classics: James G. Fair
  4. Behind the Scenes Minis: Divorce, Marriage, and Manners
  5. Six Impossible Episodes: Etiquette Manuals

You can find more podcast ideas on fluentu’s website. And if you are looking for some other ideas to try at home, check these tips to avoid getting crazy at home, or practice your reading with these amazing books set in NYC.

And check our Adult English courses for an in-depth learning experience with the best language school in New York

And if you are tired of listening and cannot wait to start speaking… join our Live in NY Conversation class, fully online!