English classes and ESL programs in New York City

Compare in-person English classes in New York City by borough, level and program type. See intensive programs in Manhattan, part-time and evening classes in Queens and the Bronx, free CUNY adult ESL and free conversation groups at public libraries.

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English classes and ESL programs in New York City 2026

Each program is listed separately with its address, schedule, who can join and how to apply, the price where it is published, and its Google rating where the program has its own listing.

Top pick

New York Language Center – Bronx

Bronx (Fordham)

2488 Grand Concourse, Suite 220, Bronx, NY 10458

Adults · two days a week (Mon/Wed or Tue/Thu) or one day a week (Fri or Sat), morning or evening

Price on request

Pros

Part-time classes that fit around work: 6 hours a week over two days, morning or evening.
A one-day-a-week option on Fridays or Saturdays (4 hours, 10 weeks).
On the Grand Concourse near Fordham Road.

Limitations

Tuition is only shown through an online calculator.
21 of 243 Google reviews are 1-2 stars (about 9%).

9.2

Positive (4-5★): 219
Neutral (3★): 3
Negative (1-2★): 21

Part-timeEveningWeekendAdults

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No. 2

New York Language Center – Jackson Heights

Queens (Jackson Heights)

37-66 82nd Street, 2nd Floor, Jackson Heights, NY 11372

Adults and F-1 students · intensive, semi-intensive, part-time and weekend, morning or evening

Price on request

Pros

From 20-hour intensive weeks to 4-hour Saturday classes.
Morning or evening groups for the intensive, semi-intensive and part-time programs.
Intensive program accepted for F-1 student visas.

Limitations

Tuition is only shown through an online calculator.
26 of 299 Google reviews are 1-2 stars (about 9%).

9.1

Positive (4-5★): 265
Neutral (3★): 8
Negative (1-2★): 26

IntensivePart-timeEveningWeekendF-1

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No. 3

EC New York – Times Square

Manhattan (Times Square)

1501 Broadway, Floor 11 (entrance on West 43rd Street), New York, NY 10036

International students and adults aged 16+ · morning and afternoon classes

General English 20: from $500 per week · 30 lessons: from $565

Pros

Published weekly prices: from $500 for 20 lessons a week.
New classes every Monday, all year, in Times Square.
Average class of 11 students (maximum 15).

Limitations

No evening classes: lessons run in the morning and afternoon only.
22 of 146 Google reviews are 1-2 stars (about 15%).

8.7

Positive (4-5★): 123
Neutral (3★): 1
Negative (1-2★): 22

IntensiveGeneral EnglishInternational students

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No. 4

Columbia American Language Program

Manhattan (Morningside Heights)

203 Lewisohn Hall, 2970 Broadway, New York, NY 10027

Adults (A2-C2) · full-time intensive, or part-time courses for local residents (B2-C2)

Price on request

Pros

University-level intensive English: 18 hours a week over a 14-week fall or spring session.
Part-time writing, listening and pronunciation courses open to local residents.
Summer options from 3 to 12 weeks, including business and legal English.

Limitations

Tuition is not shown on the program page.
Part-time courses start at B2; no Google reviews for the program itself.

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Score
under review

UniversityIntensivePart-timeAcademic

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No. 5

Brooklyn College Adult Literacy Program

Brooklyn (Midwood)

0304 James Hall, Brooklyn College, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210

New York State residents aged 18+ · daytime or evening, levels 1-5

Free (tuition-free for NYS residents)

Pros

Free ESOL classes for New York State residents aged 18 and over.
Daytime (2 days a week, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.) or evening (2 days a week, 6-9 p.m.) classes.
Part of CUNY Adult Literacy, which runs free classes on 14 campuses in all five boroughs.

Limitations

High demand: applicants go on a waitlist and must attend an info session and placement test.
International students are not accepted; schedules can change each term.

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Score
under review

FreePublicEveningAdult ESL

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No. 6

We Speak NYC – Bronx Library Center

Bronx (Kingsbridge)

NYPL Bronx Library Center, 310 East Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10458

Adult English learners · free conversation practice on Fridays and Sundays

Free

Pros

Free City of New York conversation classes at the public library.
Sunday groups 1-3 p.m. and 3-5 p.m. need no registration.
Dozens of other We Speak NYC sessions run in libraries across the Bronx, Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Limitations

Conversation practice, not a full course with levels and a certificate.
The Friday group (12-2 p.m.) needs advance registration; sessions follow fixed terms.

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Score
under review

FreeConversationPublicWeekend

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Map of English classes in New York City

Find the programs in Manhattan, Queens (Jackson Heights), the Bronx and Brooklyn, and compare how far they are from home or work.

Manhattan Queens Bronx Brooklyn

District links are general map searches and do not point to a specific school.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find in-person ESL classes near me in NYC?

In Manhattan, EC New York is at Times Square and Columbia’s American Language Program is in Morningside Heights. New York Language Center has centers in Jackson Heights (Queens) and on the Grand Concourse (Bronx), Brooklyn College runs free CUNY adult ESL, and We Speak NYC holds free conversation classes in public libraries across the city.

Which English programs have classes in Queens or the Bronx?

New York Language Center runs intensive, part-time, evening and Saturday classes in Jackson Heights, and two-days-a-week or one-day-a-week classes in the Bronx. In the Bronx, We Speak NYC also holds free conversation classes at the Bronx Library Center on Fridays and Sundays.

How do I apply for adult ESL or an intensive English program in New York City?

For free CUNY adult ESL, contact a campus program: at Brooklyn College you email, apply, attend an info session and take a placement test, and you must be a New York State resident aged 18 or over. Private schools such as EC and New York Language Center enroll directly, and F-1 visa students need a full-time intensive program such as NYLC’s 20-hour program or Columbia’s Intensive Academic English Program.

How do we rank the schools?

Proposed criteria: teaching model 25%, program transparency 20%, quality and recency of reviews 20%, location and access 15%, clear prices and enrolment terms 10%, flexibility 10%. Programs without their own Google listing are shown last. The final order is set after editorial review.

Last updated: pending. The Google rating is shown separately from the editorial score, and schools with a commercial agreement are labelled "Ad" on their card.

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