Best apps to learn kana and kanji
Learn hiragana and katakana first: Duolingo's free Japanese course teaches hiragana before katakana and kanji. For kanji, WaniKani teaches the meaning and reading of over 2,000 of them, built up from radicals with mnemonics, and its first three levels are free. To write them by hand, Skritter grades each character as you draw it, stroke by stroke.
Prices checked 6 Sept to 14 Oct 2026 · How we check
What each app teaches of the Japanese scripts
In each maker's words, from its own pages. The first group teaches or drills reading and writing; the second shows Japanese text without teaching it, or teaches none.
Teach or drill it
- WaniKani
Kanji meanings and readings, built up from radicals with mnemonics; no stroke order or handwriting; hiragana is expected before the first kanji.
- Skritter
Japanese characters, written on the screen stroke by stroke.
- Duolingo
Hiragana first, then katakana and kanji; romaji optional.
- Busuu
Some kanji; separate hiragana, katakana and kanji courses.
- LingoDeer
Alphabet unit for the writing system; Character Drill: writing practice for Japanese kanji.
- Rocket Languages
Reading and writing all three scripts, with a kanji writing tool.
- Drops
Katakana, hiragana and kanji.
- Lingvist
Hiragana and katakana decks; kanji from the easiest.
- Memrise
Kanji; Romaji (Latin letters).
- Rosetta Stone
Hiragana and katakana.
- Pimsleur
About 100 reading lessons for the new script.
- StoryLearning
Starts in romaji, then introduces hiragana and katakana.
- FluentU
How the writing system works, in the beginner course.
Show it without teaching it, or teach none of it
- Beelinguapp
Japanese text shown beside your own language, with karaoke-style narration.
- Clozemaster
Not taught: you need to know it already.
- Glossika
Japanese script with romanised hints.
- Michel Thomas Method
All-audio course: no writing is taught.
- Readle
Japanese with furigana shown over kanji.
- uTalk
Speaking first; the three scripts are not taught in depth.
13 of the 52 apps we cover teach or drill Japanese writing.
Japanese is written in three scripts: two sets of 46 kana for sounds, then kanji, which carry meaning. Most courses teach the kana in their first weeks and bring in kanji slowly, so a learner who wants to read soon adds a tool made for kanji. Check what a course says before you pay: some show romaji (Latin letters) at first, and a few teach no writing at all.
Every app that teaches Japanese writing, compared
Recommended first within each type of app. Sort any column or filter by what matters to you.
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| Best for | Free tier | Speech | Tutor | Offline | CEFR | Refund or trial | Where to buy | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course apps | ||||||||||||
| DuolingoCourse appSuper in the US App Store: $9.99 to $119.99, depending on the plan. | A free daily habit | Freepaid tier priced in-app | — | — | Free to keep using Full free tier with ads and limits; Super removes the ads and limits, and Max adds AI practice (Video Call and Roleplay). | 40 | Yes | No | Yes · Limited lessons available offline; progress syncs when connected | A1 to B2 | 1 week free trial on Super | |
| BusuuCourse app | Corrections from native speakers | $72.99 a year$6.08 a month, billed yearly | — | — | Free to keep using Free account with the complete course in each language, community feedback and basic progress tracking; Premium adds review tools, offline mode and no ads. | 14 | Yes | No · Live Lessons are exclusive to Busuu for Business, outside the consumer subscription | Yes | A1 to C1by course | 14-day money-back guarantee on the initial Premium payment; no renewal refunds. Apple and mobile-operator purchases require a refund from that provider. | |
| StoryLearningCourse app | One long story per course, with video lessons on it | $297Uncovered Beginner course | — | $997 | Free trial No | 16 | — | StoryLearning VIP: a 10-week programme with two coaching sessions a week, sold apart from the courses. | Yes | A1 to C1by course | A 7-day free trial of each Uncovered course, then one payment with a 365-day money-back guarantee; bundles have 30 days. The StoryLearning App's page gives no trial or refund terms. | |
| LingoDeerCourse app | Grammar-led lessons, with alphabet units for Japanese and Korean | $95.99 a year$8 a month, billed yearly | $14.99 | — | Free to keep using A free version with limited lessons; a membership unlocks every course and feature. | 20 | — | — | Yes | A1 to B1by course | A 7-day money-back guarantee on yearly and longer plans bought on LingoDeer's website, one request per person; no refund for part of a period or a renewal you forgot. | |
| Rosetta StoneCourse app | Immersion without translation | $159 a year$13.25 a month, billed yearly | $19.99 | — | Free sample Free sample lessons on its site and a one-time 7-day free trial in the app; no lasting free plan. | 25 | Yes | Coaching sessions with a Rosetta Stone certified tutor. | Yes | — | A one-time 7-day free trial in the app. Bought from Rosetta Stone: a 14-day money-back guarantee, refunded by its Memberships team by email or phone. App Store purchases go through Apple; a retailer's follow that retailer's policy. | |
| Rocket LanguagesCourse app | Paying once per level, not a subscription | $99.95Rocket Sign Language | — | $449.85 | Free trial A free trial; the page does not say what it includes or for how long. | 13 | Yes | No | Yes · audio lessons download in the app; voice recognition needs a connection | A1 to B2by course | A free trial; 60-day money-back guarantee on purchases. | |
| Audio courses | ||||||||||||
| PimsleurAudio course | Audio lessons for a commute | $149.95 a year$12.50 a month, billed yearly | $19.95one language | $798 | No | 51 | Yes | — | Yes | — | 7-day free trial on subscriptions; 30 Day money back guarantee on purchases | |
| Vocabulary and flashcard apps | ||||||||||||
| MemriseVocabulary and flashcards | Native-speaker clips and review | $61.99 a year$5.17 a month, billed yearly | $24.99 | $329.99 | Free to keep using Limited free version of the app; the paid plan unlocks the rest. | 149 | Yes | — | No · The current experience needs cloud-based tools | — | 30-day money-back guarantee; monthly plans have a 14-day refund window. Apple purchases require a refund from Apple. | |
| LingvistVocabulary and flashcards | Fast vocabulary with a placement test | $79.99 a year$6.67 a month, billed yearly | $9.99 | — | Free trial Free level placement before subscribing, and a 14-day free trial on the annual plan; the monthly plan has no trial | 16 | Yes | No | — | — | 14-day free trial on the annual plan; cancel before it ends and you are not charged | |
| DropsVocabulary and flashcards | Five-minute vocabulary sessions | $69.99 a year$5.83 a month, billed yearly | $11 | $150 | Free to keep using Free access capped at 5 minutes of play every 10 hours, with topics unlocked one at a time through gameplay | 55 | — | — | Yes | — | 7-day free trial on the Yearly plan; affiliate terms reference a 14-day refund period | |
| SkritterVocabulary and flashcards | Writing Chinese and Japanese characters from memory | $99.99 a year$8.33 a month, billed yearly | $14.99 | — | Free to keep using A guest account keeps free access to selected decks for good; a subscription unlocks review mode and every deck. | 2 | — | — | — | — | A 7-day free trial, then a 30-day money-back guarantee on a first purchase made with Skritter; App Store and Google Play purchases follow Apple's and Google's rules. | |
| WaniKaniVocabulary and flashcards | Learning to read kanji, with mnemonics and reviews | $89 a year$7.42 a month, billed yearly | $9 | $299 | Free sample Levels 1 to 3 are free with no time limit (about 100 kanji and 200 vocabulary words); Level 4 and above need a paid plan. | 1 | — | — | No | — | No separate trial: levels 1 to 3 are free. You can ask for a refund for any reason within 60 days of a payment, on monthly, annual and lifetime plans. | |
| Learning from real video, text and audio | ||||||||||||
| FluentUImmersion (video, reading) | Learning from real videos | $239.99 a year$20 a month, billed yearly | $29.99 | — | No | 10 | Yes | Group classes in some languages, offered free with the subscription for a limited time; no one-to-one lessons. | Yes · audio, quizzes and transcripts download; the videos stream only | — | 14-day free trial with no payment up front, plus a 20-day money-back guarantee | |
Which to choose
You are starting from zero
Duolingo, then Busuu
Duolingo's Japanese course is free and teaches hiragana first, then katakana and kanji; romaji is optional. Busuu ($72.99 a year) sells separate hiragana, katakana and kanji courses beside a Japanese course that goes from A1 to B2, and Lingvist has hiragana and katakana decks before its kanji, starting from the easiest.
You want to read kanji
WaniKani
WaniKani teaches only kanji and the words built from them: each kanji's meaning and reading, built up from radicals with a mnemonic, then timed reviews, across 60 levels with more than 2,000 kanji and 6,000 words. Levels 1 to 3 are free for good; after that it is $89 a year. It does not teach stroke order or handwriting, and it expects you to know hiragana before the first kanji.
You want to write by hand
Skritter
Skritter has you write Japanese characters on the screen, stroke by stroke, grades each one and schedules your reviews; a guest account keeps selected decks free, and a subscription is $99.99 a year. LingoDeer's Character Drill is writing practice for kanji inside a full course ($95.99 a year), and Rocket Japanese teaches reading and writing all three scripts, with a kanji writing tool.
You can read some and want real text
Readle
Readle has short news stories graded from JLPT N5 to N2, with furigana over the kanji and native audio, for $69.99 a year. It is reading practice rather than a course in the script, so it sits in the second group of the list above the table.
Questions people ask
What is the best app to learn kanji?
WaniKani to read kanji: it teaches each one's meaning and reading from radicals with mnemonics, over 2,000 kanji in 60 levels, the first three free. Skritter to write them, graded stroke by stroke. Duolingo, Busuu, LingoDeer and Drops bring kanji into a course.
What is the best app to learn hiragana and katakana?
Duolingo's free Japanese course teaches hiragana first, then katakana. Busuu sells separate hiragana and katakana courses, Lingvist has a deck for each, and Drops teaches both with kanji in its picture games.
Is WaniKani free?
Its levels 1 to 3 are free with no time limit, about 100 kanji and 200 words. Level 4 and above need a paid plan: $89 a year.
Which Japanese apps do not teach the script?
Clozemaster expects you to read it already, Michel Thomas is an audio course with no writing, and uTalk puts speaking first and does not teach the three scripts in depth.