How many English people speak a second language?

There isn't a precise official figure for how many English people speak a second language, because the UK Census asks about main language, not whether someone can also speak another language.

The best estimates suggest:

• Around 15–20% of adults in England can hold a conversation in at least one second language.
• Only around 5–10% are considered fluent or highly proficient in a second language.
• That means roughly 80–85% of people in England are effectively monolingual (English only), making England one of the least multilingual countries in Europe. (Office for National Statistics)

This contrasts with many European countries, where learning and regularly using a second language is much more common. For example:

• Netherlands: over 90% speak at least one foreign language.
• Sweden: around 85–90%.
• Germany: around 60–70%.
• England: around 15–20%.

It's worth noting that England is also home to millions of bilingual people whose first language isn't English. According to the 2021 Census:

• 90.8% of people in England reported English as their main language.
• Many of the remaining 9.2% speak another language at home while also speaking English well or very well. (Office for National Statistics)

The proportion of Ethnic English/British people, who can speak a second language is probably around 15–20%, with relatively few using it regularly or fluently.

Of everyone living in England, multilingualism is more common because of immigration and heritage languages.