Once you’ve decided to learn Spanish, the next question pops up: “How long does it take?” Like, will I be chatting with a Spaniard in a month, or does it take a year? The answer: both yes and no. It depends on how you learn and what for. There’s an official scale — CEFR, which breaks language into levels: A1, A2 — beginner, B1, B2 — intermediate, C1, C2 — almost native. But honestly, these letters don’t mean much until you understand that at A1 you can say your name, and by B2 you can argue about the show “Élite.” If you study regularly, say an hour a day, A1 can take around 1.5 months. A2 — about 2 more months. B1 needs more effort — roughly half a year. B2 is harder — you need to immerse yourself in the language: watch shows without subtitles, text people, talk with native speakers. Personally, I went from A1 to B1 in about 9 months. No teachers. Just YouTube, podcasts, apps, and some grammar on weekends. My method was simple: mornings — vocab, daytime — listening, evenings — shows. Not academic, but effective. Here’s the thing: learning Spanish quickly isn’t about some magic trick. It’s about rhythm. If you study daily — even a little — you’ll improve. But if you dive in for two weeks and then quit for a month — progress is gone. Some people reach conversational B2 in 6 months. But they study every day, make no excuses, and Spanish is everywhere in their life: headphones, phone screen, sticky notes. That’s what effective Spanish learning looks like. Not sprinting — just steady, consistent steps. And most importantly — don’t obsess over your level. It’s way cooler not to know your exact level but be able to order food, understand a song, and not panic in a convo. That’s real progress — not letters on a certificate.