Courses of language schools with the school's own price per week and the terms of each course. Plan the course from your university application deadline backwards, not the other way round.
339 German courses in 13 schools, 38 cities. A week of an intensive course from €145. 172 courses fit a language-course visa (in person, from 18 lessons a week). Prices are the schools' own; you pay the school directly.
Language is a step that takes time. From scratch to B2 at 20 lessons a week takes about 6–8 months, to C1 8–12 months. How long it takes you depends on intensity and format: three sessions a week at home, a couple of hours each, mean 2–3 years to the same level; an intensive school in Germany with up to 30 lessons a week, a few months. That is why language is planned backwards from the application date.
Pick the one that matches your goal — then you see only courses of that type
Group lessons every weekday — the fastest way to raise your level.
Preparatory courses run by universities: an application within deadlines instead of a booking, often an entrance test.
German, often with maths, for the entrance test of a Studienkolleg — for school leavers whose certificate does not give direct access to a university.
For a specific format — TestDaF, DSH, telc, Goethe, ÖSD: the tasks of the exam and its timing.
Summer sessions of 2–5 weeks: German, accommodation, meals, supervision and the leisure programme in one price.
Programmes for children and teenagers: German in a group of the same age. Accommodation and the daily programme are in the terms of each course.
When you need the level, not the move: group and one-to-one lessons online. Not suitable for a student visa.
Courses for doctors, nursing staff and other professions: the language of the job and the preparation for its exams.
Lessons one to one with a teacher — at your pace and for your goal.
The total cost depends on the city as much as on the school: accommodation usually costs more than the course itself. Choose the city after the goal.
Austria has its own visa requirements and its own exams — ÖSD instead of TestDaF. This is noted on the pages of Austrian courses.
The cities with the most courses: how many courses and schools each has and what a week of a course costs there.
| City | Courses | Language schools | Price per week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin | 64 | 5 | €70–€3,740 |
| Munich | 39 | 6 | €200–€1,490 |
| Hamburg | 30 | 4 | €49–€1,300 |
| Heidelberg | 19 | 2 | €205–€885 |
| Nuremberg | 18 | 2 | — |
| Frankfurt am Main | 16 | 2 | €200–€1,300 |
| Cologne | 15 | 4 | €330–€1,540 |
| Düsseldorf | 15 | 3 | €1,540 |
| Konstanz | 12 | 1 | €395–€3,740 |
| Leipzig | 8 | 2 | — |
| Vienna | 8 | 3 | €1,540 |
| Augsburg | 7 | 2 | — |
| Stuttgart | 6 | 2 | — |
| Braunschweig | 5 | 1 | — |
| Lindenberg im Allgäu | 5 | 1 | €1,460–€3,070 |
Prices from the schools' current price lists, according to the StudyInFocus catalogue.
Partner schools first, then by price
All courses with filters →Such courses have no booking and no price per week: a fixed fee per semester or module, an application, often an entrance test. Some enrol you as a student — with a student card and the Semesterticket. What a course gives exactly is on its page.
Partner schools first
Sprachschule AktivAachen, Augsburg +23
did deutsch-institutAugsburg, Berlin +5
Deutsch AkademieBerlin, Cologne +6
Humboldt-InstitutBad Schussenried, Berlin +7
BWS GermalinguaBerlin, Cologne +1
GLS Sprachschule in BerlinBerlin, Heidesee +2
PRIMUS FremdsprachenNuremberg
alpha aktivHeidelberg
Studienkolleg DüsseldorfDüsseldorf
German Courses at the University of Munich (DKFA)Munich
TANDEMHamburg
Friedrich Schiller University JenaJena
Justus Liebig University GiessenGiessen
Three questions settle most of the choice. Answer them and only a few courses remain.
A study visa needs an intensive in-person course and a confirmation from the school. A university needs a certificate in a specific format. For work or moving, level B1–B2 is often enough, sometimes without an exam. These are different courses.
One level takes roughly 6–8 weeks at 20 lessons a week. If less than half a year is left before the application, an intensive course in Germany is much faster than an online course at home.
A study visa requires an in-person course, proof of payment and accommodation. An online course does not qualify for a visa — the most common mistake when choosing on your own. The exact requirements are set by the consulate.
A PDF for your application date: how many weeks you need to reach the required level, when to take TestDaF or DSH, where a course is cheaper for the same result and what a student visa requires. A consultant prepares it for you.
There are no reviews or star ratings of our own in this section: they cannot be verified. Instead — membership in networks, quality labels and exam-centre status, which schools and networks publish openly.
In 30 minutes we will look at your application date and tell you which level you can realistically reach, with which course and for how much. If you can manage on your own, we will tell you that too.
