TV5Monde Apprendre or Français Prep?

TV5Monde's learning site is free, made by a public broadcaster, and better than most paid material. Our own course lessons point students at it. This page exists to say what it is for and where it stops.

This is not really a competitor and we are not going to pretend it is. It is the best free listening and reading resource available to a French exam candidate, it costs nothing, and you should use it. What it cannot do is read something you wrote.

Side by side

TV5Monde and Français Prep, compared honestly

TV5Monde and Français Prep, compared honestly: TV5Monde / Français Prep
What you are comparing	TV5Monde	Français Prep
What it is	A free public-service learning site with authentic video and audio graded by CEFR level, with exercises.	Paid preparation for one exam, on a deadline.
PriceTheirs wins outright, and it is not close.	Free. No account needed for most of it.	Paid, with several free tools on this site.
Listening and reading	Excellent. Authentic material at natural pace, which is exactly the constraint the exam tests.	Covered, but we send students to free authentic audio for volume.
Writing and speaking	Not marked. There is nobody on the other end.	Every task marked by hand in both live tiers.
Exam format	Not exam-specific. It teaches French, not the TCF Canada.	Built around one exam's timing, tasks and marking.
Deadline	None. Study as long as you like.	Planned backwards from your test date.

Français Prep is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or partnered with any organisation named on these pages. We describe them only in general terms that are publicly documented, and we do not quote their prices, because those are set independently and change. Verify anything that matters to your decision with the provider directly.

Scroll the table sideways to see both columns.

Choose TV5Monde if

You need listening volume, which is most candidates, and you need it free.
You are more than a few months out and building general comprehension.
You want authentic French at natural pace rather than material recorded for learners.
You are not ready to spend money yet, which is a legitimate position.

Choose Français Prep if

Your writing or speaking needs a reader, which is the one thing free material cannot supply.
You have a date and need the exam's specific timing and task structure.
You have consumed a lot of free material and stopped improving.
You need an honest answer about whether your target level is reachable by your date.

If that points to us

What preparation here costs

Prices are in Canadian dollars and the same wherever you are sitting the exam.

Self-paced
The full lesson library plus timed practice tests for all four sections, worked on your own schedule.
CA$149one-time
One payment, no subscription. Lifetime access to the self-paced course.
Start self-paced
- Lesson library for all four exam sections
- Timed full-length practice tests
- Model answers for every writing and speaking task
- NCLC score tracker
Most popular
Small-group live
Weekly live classes with Adèle, in groups small enough that everyone speaks, plus marked writing and speaking.
CA$449per 8-week block
Covers all eight weeks, about CA$56 a class.
Join a small group
- Everything in self-paced
- Weekly live class with Adèle
- Marked writing submissions every week
- Marked speaking recordings every week
One-to-one tutoring
Private sessions scheduled around your test date, with a study plan built from your diagnostic results.
CA$950per 10 sessions
CA$95 a session, booked around your test date.
Book one-to-one
- Everything in small-group live
- Private sessions scheduled around your test date
- Study plan built from your diagnostic test
- Unlimited marked writing and speaking during your block

Not sure which tier fits? Book a free 15-minute video call.

Prices are in Canadian dollars and include any tax that applies. Exam registration fees are paid directly to your test centre and are not included in any tier.

Questions

About TV5Monde

Can I pass the TCF Canada using only TV5Monde?

For the two comprehension sections, you can get a long way, and some candidates do. For expression écrite and expression orale, no, and not because the material is weak. There is simply nobody to read what you wrote or listen to what you said, and those are the sections that most often hold a file below the line.

Do you actually recommend it?

Yes, and we do so inside the paid course, not only here. Our listening lessons send students to free authentic audio including TV5Monde, because volume of real French at natural pace is the thing that fixes comprehension and there is no reason to charge for it.

Is it exam preparation?

No, and it does not claim to be. It teaches French. The TCF Canada tests French under a specific set of constraints: one playback, a fixed clock, a marking grid. Good French is necessary and not sufficient, which is why exam-specific work exists at all.

Why would you send people to a free alternative?

Because it is true, and because a candidate who wastes three months on the wrong thing is not going to become a customer anyway. We would rather be right about what you need than sell you something you do not.

Are you affiliated with TV5Monde?

No. We have no relationship with them and nothing here is endorsed by them.

The other options

NEXT STEP

Find out where your French actually stands

Book a short assessment with Adèle: one writing task, one speaking task, and an honest plan for the weeks you have left before the exam.

Book an assessment See the course tiers