Several websites record you saying a word or sentence. Then they analyze it and give feedback in a score, and often a graph. The approach allows you to practice repeatedly and improve your accent. The programs work by comparing your recording to the model recording in the program, after adjusting for any basic difference in pitch.The programs vary widely in what they offer. Items 1-3 are excellent and worth getting.

1. Transparent gives the most detailed graphs to show how well you pronounce. Each time you say a word or phrase, you can see an overall score, and graphs on how the vowels, consonants, pitch, etc. sounded in 76 languages.
   
2. Passport to Languages / Learn to Speak has a simple pronunciation score in 6 languages, without detailed graphs, but they have more vocabulary than Transparent. Any of these first programs costs $20-$40 for permanent ownership of courses and scoring.
3. Pronunciator is $30 per month, has good scoring in 72 languages, and is easier to use than Transparent, though its graphs are not as detailed as Transparent's. It has at least as much vocabulary as Learn to Speak. It offers free samples of the pronunciation scoring, which most do not. 
4. Two more are expensive and hard to use, according to reviews: Tellmemore and Rosettastone. Tellmemore scores pronunciation generously. I got undeservedly high scores in Spanish. A graph shows volume and an extra line for pitch to help you learn intonation. This would be especially good for Mandarin, which is one of the languages they teach. Reviewers say that in sentences, you must speak each word separately to get a good score.
5. Babbel gives you too little feedback about pronunciation and then moves on to reading and writing. It scores good pronunciation on a scale 50-100, but gives you no score or feedback on poor pronunciation and goes on to the next screen before you get the pronunciation right. They let you say each word just once each time through a lesson.
   
6. Two others are free, but only teach intermediate English: EnglishCentral and GoEnglishMe.
7. Berlitzonline is expensive, and no samples or reviews are available.

Next: Time Needed to Learn Languages

Review of Passport to Languages, from eLanguage.com
Words+pictures, Pronunciation scored, Cheap, ★★★★

They teach 35 languages in a combined package ($20). All languages let you record and compare yourself to their native speaker. They earn 4 stars for scoring your pronunciation in US English, French, German, Italian, and Latin American Spanish. They earn 3 stars for other languages. Their scoring of your pronunciation can be set from generous to strict.

They lose a star because their software seems to need Windows 95/98, ME, 2000 or XP. They told me they have a version compatible with Windows 7 and Vista, but when I bought it, directly from their website, it did not work on Windows 7. I tested it with an old laptop running XP. It is an excellent 5-star program if you have access to one of the older operating systems.

They explain lessons in Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, or Spanish, though a few buttons and the installation instructions remain in English.

The pronunciation scoring is under "Learn by Subject," not "Pronunciation."  They say each word, and show spelling and a picture, You choose whether they provide a translation into your own language. They say the word as often as you wish, and you can get scoring of your pronunciation as often as you wish. Sound quality varies but is reasonable.

They cover a lot of vocabulary. In health terms, they have detailed words for different bones, blood and breathing systems, major organs, parts of the head, mouth, eyes, arm, hand and foot, as well as a modest range of health office terms. They teach a charming sequence of 14 emotions with pictures of a mime. They have different health words from Pronunciator, and more than Transparent, though Transparent has helpful detailed pronunciation  graphs besides the summary score.

They explain grammar, but offer no drills or practice.

ELanguage also has more detailed packages in English, French, German, and Spanish, reviewed separately.

Review of Transparent.com, Byki.com
Desktop+online+MP3+app, Pronunciation scored, Cheap, ★★★★★
Transparent and Byki (Before You Know It) are the same company, and have several versions of language courses on their 2 websites. Version 1 is highly recommended for beginners, because of its pronunciation scores and graphs. Version 2 costs some more, and also gives you MP3 files to download and listen offline:

1. $25-$40 for a desktop package of 76 languages, 1,500+ words each; good graphs and scores to improve your pronunciation (title: 101 Languages). Use the instructions below. ★★★★★
2. $70 for desktop and MP3 in any one of 72 languages, 1,000+ words; same graphs and scores to improve your pronunciation as version 1 (title: Byki Deluxe) ★★★★★
3. $180 for desktop and MP3 in any one of 8 languages, 2,000+ words; seems to have the same graphs and scores as version 1; may have more video (title: Transparent Language Complete Edition) ★★★★★
4. $30 per month online, (cheaper for longer terms) in any one of 55 languages, 2,000+ words; seems to have the same graphs and scores as version 1; may have more video (title: Transparent Language Online) ★★★
5. $50 for 5 audio CDs or MP3 downloads in any one of 10 languages; does not score your pronunciation (title: Everywhere Audio Course) ★★★
6. Free desktop version with 150 words or phrases in each of 72 languages; does not score your pronunciation (title: Byki Express) ★
7. $8 per language for Android or iPhone apps, 1000+ words in each of 25 languages; does not score your pronunciation ★★★
8. $99 per 90 minutes for private tutor or $300 for 8 classes, by web, though they do not say how many are native speakers, or class size. You may find less expensive sources.
   

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CHEAP AND EXCELLENT APPROACH:

Versions 1 and 2 are excellent places to start, since they hear you and score your pronunciation while you learn. Beginners do well to take advantage of this pronunciation scoring, so you build good habits. Bad pronunciation is hard to fix later and is a barrier to people ever understanding you. The main competitor which has pronunciation scoring is Pronunciator ($30/month for 47 languages). It costs more than version 1, and has much less detailed feedback on pronunciation (just an overall rating and pitch), but it lets you start with very simple words like numbers, which are easier for learning good pronunciation than the complicated artificial conversations which Version 1 teaches. Try either or both.
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Instructions: Version 1 teaches individual words and phrases, but its instructions are too cryptic, so try these:

1. During installation choose which languages to install; go back later to install more. Besides the target language(s) you want to learn, install one you know, such as English (it is aimed at Spanish speakers), so you can learn how the program works in a language you know. Keep the CDs handy, since the program sometimes asks for them.
   
2. After installation, the opening screen lets you double-click any installed language.
   
3. They call each line of text a segment. In some languages the 3rd-10th segments (lines) are a table of contents showing the segment (line) where each topic starts: 12, 68, 116, 184... However this is in the target language, not very useful for beginners, which is why step 1 suggested installing a language you know. Different languages have different lessons, but similar approaches.
   
4. Click the Pronunciation tab, then "Listen+Speak" then "Start."
5. Scroll down past the explanatory text to simple phrases. Double-click any word to hear it spoken. The meaning of the word and its sentence will appear below the text. Click the turtle to toggle between normal speed and slower.
   
6. Hold down the left mouse button on the "Record Your Voice" button, while you say the word. Graphs compare you to the native speaker, and a half-circle graph gives you an overall score (green is best).
7. If you find a section you want to go back to, write down its segment (line number), which is in a small rectangular box under the display of words in the target language. In future you can click that box and enter the number you want to go back to.
   
8. Numbers are taught in different places in each language. For example numbers 0-100 are taught near the end in most languages, but some languages only teach numbers 1-10, and they start in segment 23.
   
9. Repeat, with more words each day, and later advance to full sentences and the other tabs.

Version 1 has 76 languages with pronunciation by native speakers, and another 25 with 750+ words each but not pronunciation, hence its title "101 Languages of the World." Our index shows the languages which lack pronunciation as "Thans silent." Version 1 converts all spelling to the Roman alphabet. Amazon reviewers say it is a good introduction for people going to multiple countries, or who want to hear common words in some rarer languages.

Version 2 teaches 66 of the first 76 languages, and 17 others. Most are also in version 4. The 17 which are not in version 1 are: Altai, Armenian, Bashkir, Buriat, Chechen, Dari, Georgian, Hausa, Kazakh, Macedonian, Mirandese, Mongolian, Pashto, Tajiki, Turkmen, Tuvan, Uzbek.

FREE, NOT SO GOOD APPROACH:

By contrast with the thorough teaching in the low cost Version 1, the free Version 6 only has vocabulary flash cards. It shows spelling in English (optionally also in target language), and a native speaker says the word or phrase.

A problem with Version 6 is that even the first lesson is full of phrases which are too long for beginners. They range up to 5 syllables and average 3 syllables per word in the first lesson, in both English and Chinese. The turtle button lets you toggle between normal speed and slightly slower, but it is still very hard for total beginners to pick up the sounds of long phrases.

You could start instead with numbers. Version 6 shows zero through ten, in random order.

Ttansparent and Byki do not teach business phone conversations. Version 6 is clearly aimed at travelers, with 30 long phrases on taxis, though no lessons to understand drivers' answers. Version 1 includes similar phrases on taxis along with a few possible answers. It also has conversations on changing money at banks, and checking into hotels.

OTHER DISTINCTIONS:

Version 2 and perhaps others too, will display words/phrases which are hard for you, more often, until you learn them. In all versions you can click to repeat anything.

Only the MP3 files (Versions 2, 3 and 5) let you learn alone in the car, since the apps make you look at the screen.

For intermediate students Transparent/Byki have strengths and weaknesses. They do not conjugate verbs, and do not cover as much vocabulary as Pronunciator. However they cover grammar in a way Pronunciator does not. Version 1 (and probably 2-4) lets you click any word in the lesson on the Reading tab, and then shows you links to grammatical explanations for how that word is used. Version 1 is thus an inexpensive way to learn basic grammar if you cannot find a printed grammar for your target language. Pronunciator does not have these grammatical explanations, though Pronunciator conjugates 100 verbs in past, present and future tenses.
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All versions are taught in English, except English itself which most versions teach in Spanish and/or Portuguese. Apps (version 7) teach English in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish.
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Versions 2 and 7 have over 1,000 words/phrases according to reviews of the desktop and the app, or "thousands" according to the website, with some of these contributed by other learners.

_Review of PRONUNCIATOR.com
Web, MP4, App, Pronunciation scored, Cheap for 1-2 months, ★★★★★
Pronunciator has words spoken by native speakers in 72 languages. Beginners in each language can choose easy subjects (like numbers or animals), and the site slowly speaks numbers 1-30, then by tens to 100, or names the animals, and pauses for you to repeat, while showing pictures so you know what each foreign word means. Explanations to learn any of the languages are available in the other 71 languages. Pronunciator is $30 per month for US customers, other prices in other countries. It is free through some libraries, so ask your library.

Under Drills/Pronunciation Analysis, the site can listen and score your pronunciation. I recommend students start here, specifically with the drop down menus for Core Vocabulary and Numbers. Click the spelling on the screen to hide it, and just listen, wait for the red light, then repeat. Your rising scores encourage you to continue. The system gave me appropriate low scores in Arabic, which I do not speak, until I practiced enough to get middling scores, so it can help and motivate beginners. It gave me an occasional 100% for my intermediate Spanish accent, so its standard is not strict, and it may not help you polish an intermediate accent to an excellent one.

Pronunciator has a very attractive graph of pitch, as musical notes; it is under a triangle ► at the far right of the Drills tab . Transparent has a variety of graphs on pitch, vowels, consonants, etc, which may give you more guidance, but Pronunciator lets you choose topics you want, so if you can afford both, get them.

Pronunciator is a good site for beginners and intermediate learners, because of the pronunciation feedback and the range of topics. Beginners do best to start with topics where pictures clearly show the meaning, and spellings can be hidden (by clicking the spelling on the screen): numbers, animals, colors, eating utensils, furniture, home appliances, bathroom, kitchen, insects, light sources, musical instruments, nationalities, shapes, tools, vehicles. Spelling normally distracts you from good pronunciation, since your mind tries to pronounce letters as they would be pronounced in your language. However the spelling is available to clarify whether the speaker is saying b, p, v, etc. Even for Chinese there is a Pinyin option, giving Roman letters which help with consonants, and accents which show tones (explained in free FSI and BBC courses and graphed in Transparent and Tellmemore courses).

While subscribing you can download an hour per month of sound files to listen on the go, which you then own even if you drop the subscription.  These audio files have a large amount of English explanation, since the lessons are not designed with sound effects to show what the words mean. Thus the sound files make your brain switch constantly between English and the target language, which unfortunately makes it harder to learn and develop a good accent. After you choose a lesson from the drop down menus in Pronunciator, you can go to the Audio tab to download that lesson. It comes with .m4a extension, which means an audio MP4 file. If your player recognizes .mp4, but not .m4a, you can change the extension; the internal coding is the same.

Pronunciator conjugates 99 verbs, with 8 forms (I, you, he, she, it, we, you-plural, they) in present, past and future tenses. They have many brief conversations, which are for intermediate learners, since they go fast.

Students can choose any topic, depending on interests and need. Pronunciator says it has 80 languages, since it counts regional variations of some languages, noted in this site's List of Language Courses.

The main competitor which has good pronunciation scoring is Transparent ($25-40 for unlimited time in 76 languages). Transparent costs less, has more detailed feedback on pronunciation, and grammatical explanations of each word, but it starts with complicated artificial conversations, does not let you choose topics, and does not conjugate verbs. Pronunciator lets you start with very simple words like numbers, which are easier for learning good pronunciation, and then you can choose more advanced topics. After you learn good pronunciation with Transparent or Pronunciator, there are other free or inexpensive programs with 4 or 5 stars to expand your vocabulary and grammar.

The main competitor which lets you pick topics to study is Book2 (free), but it has no feedback on pronunciation, and has less vocabulary. For example on medical terms, Pronunciator goes from ache, acne, aids, allergy, ambulance, to vaccination, vitamin, wheel chair, and x-ray. If you need medical care abroad, you really need practitioners who speak your language or hire a translator, but for times when the translator is not there, you can download (Audio tab) medical terms and learn some to track the babel around you. Even if you speak the language, you may not know all these terms, so you can learn them when needed.

The site was founded by Robert Savage, a former employee of McKinsey, who hired translators and native speakers to provide the range of languages.The site lists 72 languages, including multiple dialects of some languages such as Chinese.

Review of Learn to Speak, from eLanguage.com
MP3+video+web, Pronunciation scored, Cheap, ★
They teach 4 languages in their full course ($20), with MP3 files to learn on the go. They have minimal scoring of pronunciation. They do start with numbers from 0 to 1000, but they go quickly to complex phrases, with little explanation and pauses that are too short to repeat the phrase. There are 40 lessons; each has vocabulary, dialog, grammar.

They show a needle on a dial to score your pronunciation, and it is very inaccurate. In the English course, when I was supposed to say Tail, I got a good score for Teal, and a medium score for Say. Zero pronounced in English, French or Spanish was all acceptable, in the English course.

They have computer pictures of the mouth saying each sound, but the pictures move too fast and are too small and indistinct to learn from.

Some lessons are good and simple, like the difference in English between few and little. Other lessons cover too much, like plurals, and make mistakes. They say, "Both the -s and -es spellings are accepted for nouns ending in -o" and they list heroes and tomatoes. They do not say that -s and -es generally apply to different words. Only 7 words require -es. Most require -s and a few can take either. They teach "How are you?" as a greeting, without saying that the standard answer regardless of health, is "Fine, thanks." They give that answer 4th, after: "Nothing much," "I'm all right," and "Pretty good."

The English course has travel videos of a few US cities, no better than any commercial movie for learning, and hard to hear the words through the music. These mispronounce the Corcoran Gallery and misspell the Juilliard School. Sound quality varies on their MP3 files, which are full speed.

Unlike their 35-language course, this does operate on recent Windows systems. I used it on Windows 7, and the software is also labeled as working in Windows 8, Vista and XP.

Most Amazon reviewers give good reviews to the Spanish course, not to French, nor to English, where all explanations are in English, unlike the same company's 35-language course which has explanations in 6 other languages, and is reviewed separately. Amazon incorrectly refers to a "newer version" which is a competitor lacking speech analysis.

Review of TellMeMore.com by Auralog
Software or web, Pronunciation scored, Expensive, ★
Each language costs $200-$500 depending on levels and version. They say it can be exported to MP3 files or audio CDs to practice on the road.

Amazon reviewers say the content and speakers start too fast for beginners and expect you to know words which have not been taught. You can see this in the web demo of Spanish (Spain), which expects you to know señor, mujer, chica, niño, as well as the order of words in Spanish and remote geography. However it can be good for intermediate learners. Reviewers also say the software runs slowly. The demo's sample lesson on grammar is cryptic: "The verb 'ser' is used when the description put forward is not susceptible to change whatever the circumstances."

It scores pronunciation generously. I got undeservedly high scores in Spanish. A graph shows volume and an extra line for pitch to help you learn intonation. This would be good for Mandarin, which is one of the languages they teach. Reviewers say that in sentences, you must speak each word separately to get a good score.

Review of GoEnglish.Me
Web, Pronunciation scored, Words, Free, Intermediate
This site, sponsored by Voice of America (VOA), teaches English for speakers of Chinese, Farsi, Indonesian and Russian, lets you hear and record each phrase, and marks you pass or fail.

The site spells short sentences in English and in the native language chosen, says them in English, records you, and gives pass or fail on each sentence. You can repeat as often as you wish, but they do not break the audio into separate words or syllables, so it would be very difficult for complete beginners. Scoring is also hard: even as a native English speaker I often failed, with no indication what I pronounced wrong.

_Review of LiveMocha.com
Web, Limited pronunciation scores, Cheap, ★
They give enough points for 6 free lessons, then $1-$2 per lesson. Each lesson teaches a few words or phrases by speaking them once, showing you the spelling, and letting you click for a translation. You cannot suppress spelling in the target language, and the pictures are often not self-explanatory, so you cannot learn just by ear, and you cannot slow the audio. It then speaks and displays the words in random order to see if you recognize them. It also uses the words in sentences. Sentences may use words which you have not been taught.  

They teach 35 languages. They dropped Czech, Estonian, Icelandic and Norwegian, and added Belarusian and Marathi.

An interesting feature is that you can record your pronunciation for volunteer native speakers to review, though this is no substitute for the immediate and constant feedback on Transparent and Pronunciator. You may wait a long time to get the review, since the instructions on reviewing are detailed and hard to follow.

It has a mix of words and phrases and includes numbers to 20. It does not offer downloads.

They teach in 11 languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish.

_Review of eBERLITZ
Web, Pronunciation scored, Expensive, ★
(Their low cost Audio CDs are reviewed elsewhere)
Berlitz offers online courses which display visuals, play audio, and check pronunciation. No samples of these are available. Online courses ($300/year) cover "a large range of languages, including English, French, Spanish, Italian, German and Dutch."

The online courses have 2,000 words of basic survival skills in present, past and future tenses. The cost, lack of online samples, and limited vocabulary prevent me from recommending these.

_Review of ROSETTASTONE.com
Web, Pronunciation scored poorly, Expensive, ★
Rosetta Stone teaches reading and listening, but does not emphasize speaking or pronunciation. It uses only the target language and pictures, so you can learn without distraction from your own language. It costs $200 for 3 months unlimited online, or $200 per level per language, which includes online oral sessions for 3 months.

The online demo does not score pronunciation, but the site and reviews (also here and here) say Rosetta Stone does score pronunciation, though they say it does not work well.

Speaking is also available in an online 50-minute oral session after each lesson, where you talk with a "coach" and "2 other learners with a maximum of 4." Here you can pick up the mispronunciations of the other 2-4 learners. Note you have limited months to use these sessions.

Like many courses it does not teach much grammar, unfortunate considering the price (FSI and Transparent do teach grammar, and Pronunciator conjugates 100 verbs). Amazon reviewers are split, with criticisms of the lack of grammar teaching, limited vocabulary, limited support, and trouble reinstalling on a new computer.

The Economist magazine notes detailed issues with their teaching of Mandarin.

_Review of BABBEL.com
Web, Apps, Pronunciation scored, Cheap, Hard to use, ★
This site presents pronunciation, reading and writing in 11 languages (hidden on the right side of the "Courses" tab), but very little repetition. First lesson in each "course" (collection of lessons; there are several "courses" in each language) is free, then price depends on language (Indonesian, Turkish, Dutch or Polish $13 per 3 months, others $8-$13/month).

It scores good pronunciation on a scale 50-100, but gives you no score or feedback on poor pronunciation and goes on to the next screen before you get the pronunciation right. They let you say and spell each word just once each time through a lesson and do not break it into syllables, so it is hard to practice the words which are hardest or most important for you.  The site is not expensive, but makes it hard to get enough repetition to learn well.

They teach in 7 languages: English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish.

_Review of EnglishCentral.com
Web, Pronunciation scored, Partly free, Intermediate
This site has many videos in English, with captions. You can repeat phrases, slow them down, and get your own pronunciation scored by the computer. When you slow them, the audio is still very clear.

The score on each phrase appears precise ("11 of 21 pts"), but does not say what needs improvement: vowels, beginning, end, etc. Scoring is gentle: I did well unless mispronouncing on purpose.

Hundreds of videos are free, or you can pay $10/month or $80/year for more. Some are listed as "starter courses," but even these are fast intermediate English, with no explanation of the meaning if you do not already know English, definitely not for beginners. Many have background music, which makes the intermediate English even harder to understand.