How many people speak French?

French is one of the most important languages you can learn. It’s a global language of commerce and diplomacy, recognised as an official language in the UN, EU and NATO as well as 29 countries worldwide, from Switzerland to Haiti - and its importance is only growing.

Of course we’re a little bit biased, but the numbers speak for themselves. In fact, every four years the International Organisation of Francophonie releases a report on the status of French worldwide, and last week it released its 2026 report. The results are instructive.

According to the report, French has risen from 5th to 4th place in the hierarchy of languages with the most speakers, behind English, Chinese and Spanish. In raw numbers, close to 400 million people speak French, nearly two thirds of whom live in Africa.

Interestingly, French is also the second most studied language in the world, behind only English, with 170 million people learning French (and more than 2 million of them are subscribed to our YouTube channel!).

The report also mentions that the number of speakers is expected to skyrocket to nearly 600 million by 2050 - although other reports have put the number at 750 million - with most of this growth taking place in Africa.

With the number of French learners due to increase dramatically over the decades, now is the perfect time to learn French. Doing so will give you an advantage in incredible international travel and business, as well as a headstart over the many millions more learners who will seek to learn French as it becomes a more important language on the global stage.

There’s more than one way to learn French, and at Learn French With Alexa we cater for all types of learners and language goals.

To improve your spoken French

Our Speaking Practice Classes and Conversation Club sessions are special online classes designed to help you develop your French speaking skills in a relaxed environment, alongside a small group of other learners and the guidance of a native French teacher. Sessions are available on a weekly or daily basis(intensive) basis.

To get better at reading

Introduce yourself to French literature. The French book industry is always thriving, with excellent new titles released each year, but there’s a massive backlog of French classics too! A good idea is to highlight or underline words or phrases you aren’t familiar with as you read, and come back to them later.

French is also one of the few languages for which it’s easy to find bilingual books, that is, books with an English translation on the facing page. These make reading French achievable and less daunting even at a lower level.

To learn more vocab

Members of Alexa’s Complete French Course get access to extensive verb and vocabulary lists. In addition, check out our blogs for handy vocab on all sorts of topics, from seasonal vocab to common phrases, as well as tips on how to remember French words.