20 Best Podcasts To Learn Arabic (All Dialects + Levels)
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Podcasts have risen in popularity in recent years.
It might surprise you to know that podcasts have become very popular as a learning tool for languages like Arabic too.
There’s a simple reason for this:
Podcasts are usually casual and short. They offer a bite-sized and easy-to-understand lesson that’s often very easy to digest for most learners with busy lives.
There are loads of Arabic podcasts aimed at pretty much all levels and most dialects.
I’ve listed my personal favorites for you below (also check out our Levantine Arabic listening resources for more on that specific dialect).
Arabic podcast courses (all levels)
Dialect: Egyptian, Levantine, Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Saudi, Iraqi and Sudanese
We’d be wrong not to include our own podcast resource in this list! :)
Talk In Arabic is a multifaceted resource for 8 major dialects of Arabic, which includes (among other things) podcast-style lessons.
The podcast lessons focus on specific grammatical, conversational or listening topics at all difficulty levels.
This is the only resource of its kind and it is solely aimed at teaching spoken Arabic dialects.
2. ArabicPod101
Dialect: Moroccan, MSA and Egyptian
ArabicPod101 is arguably the best podcast course so it’s worth including here. Although it’s not a free resource, ArabicPod101 provides loads of free podcast and YouTube content.
It caters to all levels, although beginners and absolute beginners may find it more useful than advanced students.
Dialects are a bit scattered - it’s primarily a Moroccan and MSA resource, with some Egyptian content in there as well. Unfortunately, this is not always categorized clearly. They would have been better to focus on one dialect or separate them into individual courses.
Overall, ArabicPod101 is an excellent podcast resource and very inexpensive if you choose to join.
Use the code MEZZOGUILD for a huge discount when signing up.
Arabic podcasts aimed at beginners
Dialect: Egyptian
Probably my favorite free podcast series on this list.
Sondos, the Egyptian host, has produced more than 50 episodes so far on a range of topics related to Egyptian Arabic. Some are grammar-focused, while others are more thematic like teaching phrases or conversation.
The episodes are very short which is great if you’re just looking for a quick bite to learn.
**Dialect: **Egyptian
This is a free, multi-language podcast resource that offers podcast lessons (usually several dozen) for most major languages.
Egyptian Arabic is one of them.
It kind of has a Michel Thomas feel to it (student interacting with a teacher) and is quite good for a free resource.
Dialect: Jordanian
Hosted by two Jordanian women, Dalal and Amani, they’ve produced close to 50 episodes so far on Levantine Arabic.
What’s unique about this excellent podcast is that they present short, easy-to-hear dialogues, and then accompanying worksheets on their website to go along with them.
They’ve put a lot of work into their lesson worksheets too.
I highly recommend this Arabic podcast for Levantine Arabic learners.
6. ArabicPod
Dialect: MSA and Quranic
This one hasn’t been updated in years and the website is ancient, but there’s quite a lot of content on there for Modern Standard Arabic and Classical.
The podcast covers many different topics, but the audio isn’t the best quality.
Transcript PDF’s and many of the higher difficulty lessons require a paid subscription.
Dialect: Levantine
This one is excellent for Levantine Arabic learners and quite unique in its method.
It uses slowly-spoken short stories to help you improve your listening skills, and then explains the vocabulary. In order to access the lesson material, you need to support them on Patreon, however.
At the time of this writing, there are only 10 episodes but it seems quite new so I expect (hope for) more to come.
Dialect: Classical
Produced by a British non-native speaker of Arabic with ‘average’ pronunciation, this podcast is primarily religious in nature.
Sam, the podcast producer, covers a lot of topics related to the Quran and Hadeeth, and most of it is in English. It’s still quite informative but I find he races through the episodes too quickly and needs to slow down.
Dialect: Syrian
There isn’t a whole lot available with this podcast which is unfortunate because it’s very good.
For anyone starting out with Syrian Arabic, you’ll enjoy what you get here. It’s part of a paid product from LinguaBoost so in order to get the rest, you’ll need to sign up.
Arabic podcasts for intermediate to advanced
10. Real Arabic
Dialect: Syrian
A podcast out of Beirut run by an Irish woman and Syrian national that’s focused on Levantine Arabic.
There are some interesting topics covered and useful Levantine material for listening practise, but keep in mind that it’s another overtly political podcast that may only interest a small cliche of listeners.
11. Bilmasri
Dialect: Egyptian and MSA
One of my favorite podcasts on this list and one of the most interesting for intermediate learners or people coming over from MSA to Egyptian.
The host Nesrin covers a range of topics taken from Modern Standard Arabic news articles and uses them to teach Egyptian Arabic.
It’s also regularly updated.
12. El Bulbul
Dialect: Jordanian
Produced by Harilyn from theLevanTongue, who has guest posted on this blog several times, this is a 30 episode podcast aimed at high intermediate learners of Jordanian Arabic.
The episodes feature conversations in natural Jordanian Arabic and the lesson transcripts/notes are available for purchase on her website.
Dialect: Jordanian
A podcast for Levantine Arabic learners run by a native and non-native speaker.
It hasn’t been updated in quite a while which is a shame because it would have been a great resource to continue. They include vocabulary notes with each podcast episode.
What makes this one unique is that you get to hear a higher level learner engage with a native speaker.
Dialect: Levantine
Carol Haidar, a Lebanese native, has produced this podcast for Levantine Arabic students where she interviews people in Arabic on a range of topics. It’s definitely suited for intermediate to advanced learners of Arabic.
As a language learning tool, it’s quite useful. Just bear in mind that it’s full of political activism.
Dialect: Levantine
This is another Arabic podcast that I wish was more consistent in its episode releases (unfortunately seems to have stopped).
Livi has put together an excellent intermediate-level podcast for Shami dialect students, where she speaks in slower Arabic and covers a range of useful topics.
If it were more consistent, it’d be at the top of my list for sure.
16. Sowt (صوت)
Dialect: Jordanian
More activism and politics (yawn).
Sowt is actually a collection of podcasts on various political and activist issues, which may interest advanced-level Levantine Arabic students. It’s a high quality resource if you’re looking for something advanced to practise listening with.
17. الكون بودكاست
Dialect: Kuwaiti
Called “The Universe Podcast”, this one is interesting and worth including because of how unique it is on this list.
It’s a scientific podcast in a Gulf dialect and an excellent listening resource for advanced level Arabic learners who want to expand their specialized vocabulary.
18. SBS Arabic
Dialect: Multiple
The Australian government has put an enormous amount of resources into providing multilingual services to migrants, including through its SBS TV/Radio service.
SBS Arabic has loads of different shows and episodes that cater to Arabic speakers from different countries, so you get a good amount of exposure to different dialects.
All free to listen to on their main website.
Dialect: Multiple
This is an interesting one for anyone interested in the arts or specifically, music.
It’s definitely only suitable for very advanced-level learners of Arabic, but “episodes” are in different dialects and there are detailed notes attached to each one.
20. فناجين
Dialect: MSA
For advanced students of Modern Standard Arabic, check out Fanajeen.
It's basically a podcast where each episode is a short book review or summary of a bestseller (covers non-Arabic books).
As a high-level MSA listening resource that isn't political, this is actually one of my favorites.
Podcasts are great tools to help you learn Arabic
Take advantage of the enormous and growing amount of free podcast material out there for Arabic.
Even if it’s just a 2 minute episode teaching you one new expression for the day, it’s a worthwhile use of your time, especially on a commute.
Also, take a look at our list of the best apps for learning Arabic.
