The best Traditional Chinese courses

Four volumes of systematic grammar, dialogues and character work, used by most North American college programmes, with workbooks, audio and a web app for exercises. If you want a spine for self-study with a clear sequence and available answer keys, this is the safest choice. It is expensive, the dialogues are dated and campus-centric, and it is written for classroom use — self-learners need to supply their own speaking practice.

Founded in 1956 at National Taiwan Normal University, the MTC is where a large share of foreign diplomats and students have learned Mandarin in Taiwan, and it teaches in traditional characters throughout. Terms are three months, small classes, and there are online options if you are not in Taipei. It is a paid, full-time-ish commitment rather than something to dabble in — listed here because the Taiwanese-Mandarin end of the catalogue is otherwise all self-study.

Built by National Taiwan University with Taiwan's Ministry of Education and taught in Mandarin from the first lesson, using everyday scenes, comics and animation to carry meaning without English. Traditional characters and Taiwan pronunciation throughout, which is what makes it worth naming separately: nearly every other beginner MOOC teaches simplified. Coursera's audit track covers the videos; the certificate and graded work are paid.

TLI has taught Mandarin to foreigners since 1956 and now runs one-to-one and small-group classes both in Taipei and over video, in traditional characters. Being a school rather than a product, the pace and syllabus are negotiated with your teacher, which suits people who already know what they need and badly suits people who want a path laid out for them. Paid, priced per hour, with a free trial lesson.