Learn Portuguese by being in Lisbon
If you have Spanish, Portuguese looks reassuringly close on the page, and you catch a lot of it. But the sounds are their own thing, the vowels and the nasal endings especially, and comprehension runs well ahead of what you can actually say. When it's your turn, the words won't quite come, or they come out sounding like Spanish.
Closing that gap takes time inside the language, not more reading: Portuguese sentences with Portuguese sounds, somewhere Spanish isn't an option, until they stop borrowing and stand on their own. PathGlot gives you a private version of exactly that, where sounding a little off is expected and fixed on the spot.
Two free quests, no credit card. Runs in your browser.
Two minutes with Ana
Pick Lisbon and you arrive on Avenida da Liberdade in Street View, the grand tree-lined avenue climbing through the center of the city. Ana, your guide, greets you in Portuguese and asks where you'd like to go. You answer out loud, and this is where your Spanish habits meet real Portuguese sounds.
You say you want to find a pastelaria for a coffee. Ana asks whether you want a bica and something sweet, and you answer in a full sentence. A Spanish word slips in, she gives you the Portuguese one and the right sound, and you say it again until it lands.
A couple of minutes in, you've asked a question, ordered something, and produced sentences that sound like Portuguese instead of Spanish with a Portuguese coat of paint. That separation only happens when you speak, out loud, and get corrected in the moment.
The cities for this language
European and Brazilian Portuguese sound strikingly different. PathGlot lets you practice both.
Lisbon
PortugalAv. da Liberdade
Walk Avenida da Liberdade for European Portuguese: the clipped, closed vowels and distinct rhythm of Lisbon. A great base if the Portugal accent is your goal.
São Paulo
BrazilAvenida Paulista
Cross the Atlantic to Avenida Paulista in São Paulo for Brazilian Portuguese, with its open vowels and musical cadence. Hearing both makes clear just how different the two can be.
Who it's for, and who it's not
A good fit if
- You understand Portuguese, maybe via Spanish, but can't produce it cleanly
- You want your Portuguese to stop leaning on Spanish sounds
- You're fine being corrected on pronunciation and trying again
Probably not yet if
- You're starting from zero with no Portuguese or related language
- You want grammar drills instead of speaking practice
- You have no microphone or a poor connection
Questions, answered
Can I practice European and Brazilian Portuguese separately?
Yes. Choose Lisbon for European Portuguese and São Paulo for Brazilian Portuguese. The accents, vowels, and some vocabulary differ a lot, and the guide follows the city you pick, so you can focus on the one you want.
My Spanish keeps interfering. Is that a problem?
It's normal at the start, and speaking is what fixes it. When a Spanish word or sound slips in, Ana gives you the Portuguese version and lets you repeat it. Doing that out loud, over and over, is what finally separates the two languages.
Is the city real imagery?
Yes. It's real Google Street View of Lisbon and São Paulo, actual streets you look around and move through. It's still imagery rather than live video, and the guide reacts to where you are as you walk.
Is it free, and what does it cost after that?
You get two free quests and no credit card, in any language and city, and there is no clock on them. After that, plans start at $14.99 a month (or $10.00 a month billed annually), sized by how many quests you want each month. Explorer, the most popular plan, is $24.99 a month. You subscribe in the app when you're ready.
How PathGlot compares
Spend your next ten minutes in Lisbon
Land on Avenida da Liberdade and Ana starts talking. A few minutes a day gets the sounds off the page and into your mouth.
Two free quests, no credit card. Runs in your browser.