As a native Spanish speaker, I get asked the same question all the time: Which type of Spanish should I learn? It comes up constantly, especially from learners who are just getting started.

Many people assume there must be one version of Spanish that’s better, clearer, or easier than the rest. But that’s not really the right way to think about it. Spanish, like English, changes from place to place, and those differences are part of what makes the language interesting, not intimidating.

Whatever variety of Spanish you’re learning, digital flashcard apps such as Memrise or Brainscape are of the fastest ways to learn. They compel you to actively recall vocabulary and grammar from memory, leading to stronger and longer-lasting learning than passive review.

Digital flashcard apps also automate spaced repetition, which means that concepts are reviewed at carefully timed intervals instead of all at once, improving your learning efficiency. Plus, the personalized algorithms of apps such as Anki and Brainscape show you flashcards just at the edge of your comfort zone, which maximizes your learning speed. Together, these principles make flashcard-based study the most efficient way to learn new words, no matter which Spanish dialect you choose.

In this article, we’ll break down the major differences between Spanish dialects so you can understand what actually matters and stop worrying about choosing the “wrong” Spanish.

Which Spanish Dialects Are Useful to Learn?

The truth is that it doesn’t matter where or from whom you learn Spanish, as long as you do it properly and in a formal way. Wherever I'm writing or speaking Spanish, from Spain to Mexico, through Central America to the last tip of the South American corner in Argentina, everybody who knows Spanish should able to understand me, because I tend to speak in a proper "educated" Spanish without too much slang.

The important issue here is to understand that while there are different accents, commonly-used terms, slang, and some vocabulary words (which by the way aren’t so extreme and difficult to understand), proper educated Spanish is universal, and its correct use should not be mistaken with certain local regional expressions or slang. Therefore, when you hear educated people from different Spanish speaking countries, if they speak formal educated Spanish, they should be able to understand each other.

It's the same in English: Well-educated American English speakers are able to understand and communicate seamlessly with well-educated British, Australians, Irish, and Canadians, but less-educated rural people in the Scottish Highlands might have a hard time conversing with their counterparts in deep Alabama.

What Are the Main Types of Spanish Dialects?

Of course this does not imply that there aren’t some differences in some frequently used terms in formal Spanish, which are still important to take into account. For example, the words “computador,” “computadora,” and “ordenador” all refer to the same thing (“computer”), and they are all correct forms of saying the word. Similarly, in English , the British may refer to waste material as “rubbish” whereas Americans call it “garbage” or “trash”, but all these words are correct and understood in either country.

Nevertheless, despite these acceptable regional variations, I continue to hear comments like, “Latin Americans have contaminated the purity of Spanish by using improper words and making it difficult to understand, which is why only in Spain you will find the purest and most proper Spanish, just because Spanish was born there.” This is absolutely FALSE.

Is "Pure" Spanish a Myth?

Latin Americans can also speak very good and proper Spanish that is not “contaminated” In fact, Latin American Spanish is often very clear, easy to understand, and compliant with all correct verbs and intonations. In fact, many translations of movies and books are done in Latin America instead of Spain and are understood perfectly by Spaniards. Colombia’s recording industry is particularly prosperous due to its clarity and proper use of Spanish.

The error in thinking that Spanish from Spain is the only pure and real Spanish would be just as mistaken as saying that only in England will you hear proper English, because their colonies have “contaminated” the language. Try telling that to Mahatma Gandhi, Margaret Atwood, Mark Twain, Chinua Achebe, or Emily Dickinson. Just as great English speakers can come from a variety of countries and dialects, great Spanish speakers can come from many places as well.

We should keep in mind that even the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language from Spain has said that in Latin American cities such as Bogotá there is a better Spanish than the one in Spain.

If your goal is to learn Spanish effectively, it doesn’t matter where it comes from, as long as you emphasize learning it correctly, differentiate proper Spanish from slang, and remember that there are many differences in the way that Spanish is often used. “Correct” Spanish should be thought of as a single global system that can and does have many acceptable forms and styles.

As a learner, all you need is the right tools! Immerse yourself in spoken and written texts in your chosen variety of Spanish, and use digital flashcard apps like Quizlet or Brainscape to lock all that new information into your memory quickly. For more tips, check out our FREE Spanish learning resources!

Additional Reading

References

Caracol Radio. (2007, January 18). En colombia se habla UN buen español, dice la real academia de la lengua. https://caracol.com.co/radio/2007/01/18/entretenimiento/1169114280_380061.html

Kang, S. H. (2016). Spaced repetition promotes efficient and effective learning. Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 3(1), 12–19. https://doi.org/10.1177/2372732215624708 

Karpicke, J. D. (2012). Retrieval-based learning: Active retrieval promotes meaningful learning. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 21(3), 157-163.

McLeod, S. (2024) Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development, Simply Psychology - Vygotsky’s Zone Of Proximal Development. Available at: https://www.simplypsychology.org/zone-of-