This study uses the frame of sociocultural theory to explore the idea that agency is at the root of autonomy and autonomous learning, despite recent trends that instead emphasize self-direction and independence. Agency is here conceptualized in light of co-regulation in a group of 12 university learners who were involved in practices of other-regulation, co-regulation and input-regulation, with their learners framed as agents who both shape and are shaped by sociocultural contexts. The findings reveal the link between agency and the co-regulated practices that emerge within the learning environment, as well as the different manifestations that learners’ agency can take due to their backgrounds.