Read Japanese
One kanji
at a time

Romaji is provided for the readings, so you can begin without already reading hiragana or katakana. Learning kana alongside kanji will help your broader Japanese studies. ReadWrite Japanese Kana teaches those two scripts.

The first 5 lessons are free. They introduce 35 kanji, starting with numbers and everyday foundations. One in-app purchase unlocks all 152 lessons and 1,240 characters, with no subscription.

The course contains the 1,000 most frequent characters in KANJIDIC2’s newspaper-frequency ranking, plus 240 additional kanji. Newspaper frequency is a guide to written usage, rather than a ranking of spoken language. Explore the lesson outline above to see the characters.

Lessons contain up to 10 kanji, with smaller groups when writing and pronunciation require more attention. Explore meanings, readings, strokes and examples first. Examples use current and earlier kanji; those requiring later characters become available as you progress.

ON readings have roots in Chinese pronunciations, while KUN readings come from Japanese words. A kanji may have several readings, and the word it appears in determines which reading is used. The app introduces these ideas with romaji and examples.

Pronunciation playback uses your device’s Japanese speech voice at normal or slower speed. A Japanese voice download may be needed in iOS Settings. This release’s audio is generated by the device, rather than bundled human recordings.

Writing from memory is self-assessed: reveal the model and compare it with your own work. The app also provides stroke-order models and tracing practice.

The course content is included in the app. Pronunciation uses the Japanese voice on your device; install a suitable voice in iOS Settings before relying on offline playback. App Store purchases require an internet connection.

No subscription or account is required. The full course is a single in-app purchase. The app has no advertising or analytics, and your progress and bookmarks are stored on your device.

ReadWrite Japanese Kana teaches hiragana and katakana. ReadWrite Japanese Kanji teaches character meanings, readings and writing. Bootstrap Japanese Grammar teaches sentence patterns, particles and verb forms. Each is a separate app with its own course.

ReadWrite Japanese Kanji is designed for iPhone and iPad. The App Store listing shows the current operating-system and device requirements.