Hello everyone,
I wanted to share some valuable resources that have aided me in my Japanese learning journey. I’ll continuously update this post with additional resources that I find useful, and I also encourage you to share your own recommendations. Together, we can build a comprehensive list of tools to support our language learning endeavors.
Last updated 2023-12-16
- Added WaniKani to Web and Phone Apps
- Updated the Comprehensible Input post
- Added Tae Kim’s “Guide to Learning Japanese”
- Added Real Kana to the list of websites
Free resources:
YouTube channels
Comprehensible Input (Listening comprehension practice)
https://kbin.social/m/LearnJapanese/t/621990/Japanese-Comprehensible-Input-YouTube-channels
Dogen on Japanese Pitch Accent
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6AoilGEers
Learn Japanese with Masa-sensei - also available on Spotify
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kb_b213wkdI
That Japanese Man Yuta on How to Learn Japanese
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caQQRs-hDf0
Web and phone apps
Anki - Spaced repetition based flash card app. Can be downloaded on Android, iOS, and accessed through the web. Highly customizable, while also allowing one to use decks created by other users. There are also useful plugins which can enhance your learning experience.
https://ankiweb.net/about
Platforms: Android, iOS
Renshuu - A Japanese language learning application that helps gamify the process, while offering flexibility and variety in selecting your own difficulty. Recommended by @ZILtoid1991
https://www.renshuu.org/
Platforms: Android, iOS
Jisho - An online Japanese dictionary. You can install an extension which enables the display of the pitch-accent patterns for any word, which will be linked in the next section. Jisho is also available on Android, iOS, and as a Progressive Web App (PWA).
https://jisho.org/
Android
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ric.Jsho
iOS
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/jisho-japanese-dictionary/id1424347243
Nihongo – Nihongo is an offline Japanese dictionary, flashcard app, and reading assistant, designed to make the best use of the time you dedicate to studying Japanese… The app also includes audio recordings from native speakers for many words, instead of relying entirely on text-to-speech. Recommended by @bobob
iOS
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nihongo-japanese-dictionary/id881697245?l=en-GB
https://www.wanikani.com/ - Kanji-learning app that teaches radicals, kanji, and vocabulary. Lessons and reviews are available, and utilizes a Spaced Repetition System (SRS)
Browser extensions
jisho-pitcher - Adds a visual depiction of pitch-accent patterns to words and phrases found on Jisho.
Firefox
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/pitcher/
Chrome
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/jisho-pitcher/fgnpplmalkhmcilpgbngpmdgfnodknce?hl=en-GB
Edge
https://microsoftedge.microsoft.com/addons/detail/jishopitcher/pkenagekmgcdcepnleflphmnpnnhfdpc?hl=en-US
10ten Japanese Reader (Rikaichamp) - Allows you to look up Japanese text by hovering over words. Also includes pitch-accent.
Firefox
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/10ten-ja-reader/
Chrome
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/10ten-japanese-reader-rik/pnmaklegiibbioifkmfkgpfnmdehdfan
Edge
https://microsoftedge.microsoft.com/addons/detail/10ten-japanese-reader-ri/cgiogkjpebgfcpcaipiicfeaelpapeig
Note-taking apps
Notion - A robust, highly customizable note-taking app that has a mobile and web version. You can tweak things to your preferences, or use premade formats provided by Notion or other users. It should be noted, that this does not work offline.
https://www.notion.so/
Platforms: Android, iOS, Mac, Windows
Obsidian - Another note-taking app with a mobile and web version. Syncing is a paid feature, however, you can upload your vault (collection of notes) online to access them anywhere. Offers plugins created by the community which enables new features. This application does work offline.
https://obsidian.md/
Platforms: Android, iOS, Linux (AppImage, Deb, Flatpak, Snap), Mac
Websites
Irodori - Free digital textbook and workbook series with native audio recordings. The resources included consist of vocabulary, grammar, kanji, hiragana, katakana resources, and more.
https://www.irodori.jpf.go.jp/en/about.html
NHK News articles - Offers simplified news articles that provide cultural and historical insights. The web interface allows users to easily toggle furigana and listen to the articles being read aloud, albeit with a robotic voice. Each article is a simplified version of a full-fledged NHK news article, with a link to the original content provided. This website enables a smooth transition for beginners to explore more advanced news articles as they become more comfortable with the simplified ones. It encourages progress through gradual learning and understanding. Recommended by @bayaz
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/
https://www.realkana.com/ - Website for kana (hiragana/katakana/romaji) drills.
Also available on iOS as an app.
https://www.realkana.com/app
Blogs
Tae Kim’s Guide to Learning Japanese
https://guidetojapanese.org/learn/
That Japanese Man Yuta
https://www.yutaaoki.com/blog/
Paid resources
Textbooks
Genki - Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese is a study resource for people who are starting to learn Japanese. It is designed to comprehensively build communication competencies across all four skill areas—listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
https://genki3.japantimes.co.jp/en/intro/
Dictionaries
NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent New Dictionary - a Japanese accent dictionary app
Android
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jp.monokakido.nhkaccent&pli=1
Patreon
Dogen
http://www.patreon.com/dogen
That Japanese Man Yuta
https://www.patreon.com/ThatJapaneseManYuta
Just wanna say that Duolingo shouldn’t be on this list except as something not to use for learning Japanese.
When providing critique, it would be appreciated if you include a suggestion alongside it. Constructive feedback becomes even more valuable when accompanied by potential solutions or alternatives.
I personally had more luck with Renshuu. It’s a Japanese only learning app, and it’s more geared towards general Japanese rather than primarily for tourists to get by.
Thank you for the suggestion; I’ll add it to the post!
+1 for Obsidian. Not just for learning a language, just for notes in general it’s brilliant.
easy Japaneseのアプリを知っていますか？
いいえ、どうしてそれが好きのと聞いてもいいですか？ありがとうございます。
Starting to wonder if I should just make a doc at this point…
As mentioned in the other post, I absolutely love NHK Web Easy News: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/
It’s meant for children in Japan, so you are getting authentic Japanese content at a child’s level. Some of the things that I appreciate:
- You can pick up little bits of culture and history along the way.
- You can easily show and hide furigana on the web interface.
- There is a button to have the article read to you in order to practice your listening. The voice is pretty robotic, but I like the practice.
- Each news article is a simplified version a full-on “grown-up” article from the NHK, and that regular article is linked to at the bottom of the page. This makes for a nice transition – once you get more comfortable with the kids’ articles, you can try out the regular articles, and you can go in having some idea what they are about if you read the kids’ ones first.
For anyone who is starting out, don’t be disheartened if it’s not really “easy” for you – that will take a while. It’s just a lot easier than the adult news.
Love this, I was recommended this awhile back but completely forgot to save and explore it. Thank you for this!
@daredevil @ZILtoid1991 日本語が話せますか？
はい、しかし日本語がむずかしいです。日本語を習う。
難しくてが、楽しいですね？頑張ってください ^^
はい、できます。一年半くらい勉強しています。あなたはどうですか？
@daredevil @ZILtoid1991 @bayaz あ、すごいね！頑張って！僕も話せます。高校生時代に勉強しました。そして、大学生時代に日本語を専攻しました。でも、あまり話せないので、だんだん悪くなってしまいましたな。
ええ、ありがとうございますよ！なるほど。大学の時には勉強したが、今一人でちょっと勉強しています。ブッバは日本語が悪くないと思います。上手ね。お当該頑張りましょう〜
Regarding the dictionary app: I prefer the app Nihongo on iOS. Looking up words works similar to Jisho, but the UI is less buggy. The app also includes audio recordings from native speakers for many words, instead of relying entirely on text-to-speech.
https://apps.apple.com/de/app/nihongo-japanese-dictionary/id881697245?l=en-GB
Thank you for the suggestion, the post has been updated.
