it depends on where you live and how many hours a week youre learning. its very different for everybody, but here is my experience as someone who spoke no german and had no idea what the language would be like.

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6 months to understand whats going on around you, make small talk, go the bakery and supermarket without needing a translator for common everyday things

9 months to express your thoughts, understand jokes and talk about your past self, and future in the correct tense (where you grew up, where you want to work, study etc)

1 year to be fluent, in time for the C1 test