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German A1, explained: what you must be able to do
What German A1 actually requires: the CEFR can-do list, the ~650-word vocabulary floor, the A1 grammar scope, and how the Goethe A1 exam tests each part.
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Editorial desk — reviewed against Goethe A1–A2 frameworks
A1 is not 'survival German' as a mood — it is a published checklist. The CEFR defines it by can-do statements, and the Goethe A1 exam turns them into four concrete tests. If you can do these things, you are A1, whatever app badge says otherwise.
The can-do core
- Introduce yourself and others, ask and answer questions about address, origin, belongings, people you know.
- Handle transactional survival: shopping, food ordering, asking prices and directions, simple requests.
- Understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very simple sentences about concrete needs.
- Write short, simple messages — a postcard, a filled form, a two-line note about your day.
The grammar scope, precisely
- Present tense of regular, irregular and separable verbs; sein and haben cold.
- Nominative and accusative articles — the first case wall, and only this one at A1.
- Perfect tense (haben/sein + participle) for talking about yesterday — the A1 exam loves it.
- Basic prepositions of place and time (in, auf, von, bis, um…), modal verbs können/müssen/wollen, and word order: verb-second statements, verb-first questions.
Vocabulary floor: roughly 600–700 words (Goethe's A1 wordlist is the standard reference), with the definite articles learned as part of each noun. That wordlist is smaller than most learners fear — and the full A1 guide breaks it into the domains the exam actually draws from.
How the Goethe A1 exam measures it
| Part | Skill | Length | The actual task |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hören | Listening | ~20 min | Short announcements and dialogues; answer multiple choice |
| Lesen | Reading | ~25 min | Short notes, ads, emails; match and answer |
| Schreiben | Writing | ~20 min | Fill a form + write a short message (~30 words) |
| Sprechen | Speaking | ~15 min | Introduce yourself; ask and answer on a topic; make and respond to requests |
Is A1 German enough to live in Germany?
Enough to survive transactions, not enough to build a life — A1 covers forms, shops, and introductions, but offices, doctors and bureaucracy run faster than A1 ears. Most residence routes that require a certificate ask for A1 as the entry rung (family-reunion visas, for example), with A2 or B1 as the real functional targets.
How long from zero to A1?
About 150–200 guided hours — roughly 12–15 weeks at an hour a day, or one focused course season. Structured paths compress the calendar, not the hours: the 77-day plan reaches the A1 gate at day 038 precisely because nothing is re-learned.
What vocabulary do I need for German A1?
Roughly 600–700 words, per the Goethe A1 wordlist — fewer than most learners fear. The domains: introductions and family, numbers and time, food and shopping, directions and transport, work and hobbies, and the question words. The non-negotiable is the form: every noun must be learned with its article (das Frühstück, not Frühstück), because gender is half the word and re-learning articles later costs double.