Talk To Me In Korean review: is it worth it?

Talk To Me In Korean, TTMIK for short, started in 2009 as a free podcast and has grown into a full Korean curriculum with video lessons, an app and a shelf of books. In Kungfucius's judgement it is by far the largest institution and tool for Korean learners out there.

The company's own figures support the size of it. Its course site states more than 2 million learners, more than 1,700 lessons, more than 2.1 million YouTube subscribers, and 48 published books with over a million copies sold. These are self-reported numbers, but nobody else in Korean teaching publishes anything similar.

One thing has changed that older reviews miss: the structured courses now need a subscription. More on that below.

Who is behind TTMIK

The founder is Hyunwoo Sun (선현우, Seon Hyeon-u), who still fronts many of the lessons. He studied French at Korea University, speaks several languages himself, and taught English on Korean educational television before building TTMIK.

Kungfucius has observed that Hyunwoo Sun has recently expanded his network with universities, with plenty of speaking engagements at universities in Korea and in the region. Two examples from 2026 can be checked. By his own account he gave a special lecture for the 40th anniversary of Korea University's Korean Language Center, and The Korea Times listed him as a session leader at the World Korean Language Educator Conference in Seoul in July, an event organised by four government bodies.

What level is Talk To Me In Korean for?

The core is the Essential Curriculum of ten levels, grouped by TTMIK as follows:

Tier	Levels	What you get
Beginner	1 to 3	Hangul, numbers, basic sentence structure, first conversations
Intermediate	4 to 7	Particles, helping verbs, listening series, pronunciation, idiomatic expressions
Advanced	8 to 10	Longer natural conversations, four-character idioms, news reading aimed at TOPIK

Each level has a Core Grammar course and a Speak & Write course, plus two themed courses. Lessons are short: usually one grammar point, explained in English.

It suits complete beginners well. If you cannot read Hangul yet, start there; it takes days, not months, and the Hangul guide explains why. At the top end, be realistic. Level 10 gives you a solid upper-intermediate base, but learners aiming at the higher TOPIK levels will need a lot of native reading and listening on top.

Is TTMIK free?

Less than it used to be. For years the grammar lessons were free on the website and only extra courses were paid. In November 2026 the lessons live on a separate course site, and full access needs a subscription. What remains free is the YouTube channel, the podcast feed, a single sample lesson and a seven-day trial.

So there is still plenty of free TTMIK material, but the structured curriculum is now a paid product.

What the subscription costs

Prices from the official pricing page, before tax:

Plan	Price	Trial
Monthly	US$16.99 per month	7 days
Standard	US$122 per year	7 days
Smart Save	US$85.40 per year	None

All three give the same access: every course, the mobile app and the community. If you held an account on the old website, note that the new course site runs on a separate system and asks existing members to migrate.

The books

Every level of the Essential Curriculum has a textbook and a workbook, and there are many separate titles besides. The books are well designed and are sold through TTMIK's own online store and through general booksellers.

Kungfucius's view: if you learn better from paper, the Level 1 to 3 textbooks with their workbooks are a perfectly good alternative to the subscription. TTMIK has in the past offered the audio for its books free of charge; check that this still applies to the title you want. Buying both the books and a subscription for the same levels is paying twice for the same grammar.

Strengths and weaknesses

What TTMIK does well:

• Grammar explanations that are clear, short and friendly, with none of the fog of a traditional textbook.
• A complete path from zero to upper intermediate under one roof, so you never have to wonder what comes next.
• Natural, modern Korean, including how people really shorten and soften things.
• Sheer volume, plus the TTMIK Stories reading app for later stages.

Where it falls short:

• A lot of English. Hearing Korean explained is not the same as hearing Korean. Add real listening early, as described under comprehensible input.
• No one checks your speaking. The Speak & Write courses give prompts, not feedback. A weekly tutor on italki fills that gap.
• The free tier has shrunk, and long-time members have to move their accounts to the new course site.

Kungfucius says: TTMIK will explain every ending in Korean to you. Saying them aloud to a human remains your department.

What to do next

1. Watch three or four free TTMIK grammar videos on YouTube to see whether the teaching style suits you.
2. Take the level test on the course site if you are not a beginner.
3. Start the seven-day trial on the Standard plan and work through one level's Core Grammar at a steady pace.
4. Compare the alternatives in the list of best apps to learn Korean before committing to a year.