Free Catalan pronunciation checker
Free Catalan Pronunciation Test: check every word you say
Read five short Catalan sentences aloud or type any word you want to check. You get a score for every word, an overall score with accuracy, fluency and completeness, and a list of words to practise first.
Read this aloud:
La meva mare canta cançons a casa.
Listen for: The neutral vowel (mare, canta, cançons)
Tap to record
Your recording is sent securely for scoring and is not stored by Flalingo.
Scores come from a standard native-speaker model for this language, so regional accents may score a little lower.
How to check your Catalan pronunciation
Each sentence in this Catalan pronunciation test is built around something learners find hard: the neutral vowel, open and closed e and o, ll and ny, the x sounds and the ela geminada (l·l). Read it aloud and a speech model trained on native Catalan speakers compares every word you say with the text.
You get an overall score from 0 to 100, plus accuracy, fluency and completeness. Every word gets its own score, so you can see which ones sound off and start there. You can also type your own Catalan text, up to 160 characters, and check it the same way.
How the test works
Read five sentences aloud
Each sentence is short and built around sounds that learners of this language find hard. You can also type your own text, up to 160 characters, or tap one of the hard words to try.
AI scores every word
A speech-assessment model trained on native speakers compares what you say with the text. It scores accuracy, fluency and completeness from 0 to 100, and gives every word its own score.
Get your report
Each word is coloured by how close it was, and you see a short list of words to practise first. Record a sentence again to check your progress, then share your score with a friend.
The hardest Catalan sounds for learners
The neutral vowel
In Central Catalan, unstressed a and e are both said as a short, relaxed 'uh' sound /ə/: mare sounds like 'ma-ruh' and casa like 'ca-zuh'. Unstressed o turns into u, so portar sounds like 'pur-ta'. Only the stressed syllable keeps its full vowel, so finding the stress is the first step.
Open and closed e and o
Stressed e and o each have an open and a closed sound. Open e and o are said with the mouth wider, closed e and o with it more closed. Written accents help: è and ò are open (cafè, què, això), é and ó are closed (també, cançó). Some pairs differ only in this: dona (woman) has an open o, dóna (gives) a closed one.
Ll and ny
Ll is one sound, like the lli in 'million' said as a single consonant: Guillem, llentilles, Lleida. Ny is the same idea for n, close to the ni in 'onion' or Spanish ñ: companya, Catalunya, any. Don't split them into l + y or n + y.
X, ix and tx
At the start of a word, x usually sounds like English sh (xocolata, Xavier). The spelling ix is also sh, and the i is silent (deixar, caixa, peix). Tx sounds like English ch (cotxe, fletxa). These spellings are very common, so learning them makes reading aloud much easier.
L·l, tj and tg
The ela geminada, l·l, is a long l, held a moment longer than a single l: col·legi, il·lusió, paral·lel. Many speakers say it as a plain l, and that is understood, but a slightly longer l sounds more careful. Tj and tg before a vowel sound like the j in 'judge': platja, viatge, metge.
What your pronunciation score means
| Score | Level | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 90–100 | Excellent | Your words are clear and close to a native speaker. Try longer or harder sentences to keep improving. |
| 75–89 | Good | Easy to understand. A few words still stand out, so practise them one at a time. |
| 60–74 | Fair | Mostly understandable, but people may ask you to repeat some words. Start with the words in your practice list. |
| 0–59 | Needs work | Some words may be misunderstood. Slow down, practise the flagged words on their own, then say them in short phrases. |
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is this Catalan pronunciation checker?
It uses a speech-assessment model trained on native Catalan speakers. The model lines up your recording with the text, scores every word for accuracy and rates your fluency and completeness. It is a good guide to which words sound off, but it is not a teacher, so look for words that get flagged again and again rather than worrying about one low score.
Which Catalan does the test use?
Scores are based on standard Catalan as spoken in Catalonia, close to the Central Catalan of Barcelona. Valencian and Balearic Catalan keep more full vowels and use some different sounds, so if you learned one of those varieties, a few words may score a little lower even when they are correct where you learned them.
How can I improve my Catalan pronunciation?
Find the stressed syllable of each word first, then relax the other vowels into the neutral 'uh' sound. Practise ll, ny and the x spellings until you can read them without thinking, and learn whether common words have an open or closed e and o. Read aloud daily and retake the test to see which words improve.
Is the Catalan pronunciation test free?
Yes. The test and the word checker are free and you don't need an account. To keep it free for everyone, there is a small daily limit on checks.
Is Catalan pronunciation hard?
Catalan is not hard for most learners, especially if you know Spanish, French or Italian. The things to watch are vowel reduction in unstressed syllables, open and closed e and o, and sounds like ll, ny, x and l·l. Catalan also drops some final consonants: the r of most infinitives (cantar) and the t after n or l (sant, molt).
How is the Catalan l·l (ela geminada) pronounced?
It is a double l: hold the l a little longer, as if one syllable ends with l and the next starts with l: col-legi, il-lusió. It is not the same as ll, which is a different sound, like the lli in 'million'. Compare col·lecció (collection) with colla (a group of friends).