Japanese Tips 1: Best Free Japanese Language Learning Apps | Guidable - Your Guide to a Sustainable, Wellbeing-centred Life in Japan

Japanese Tips 1: Best Free Japanese Language Learning Apps

By Tony Tao Sep 18, 2020

Experiencing excellent Japanese Language Learning Apps

This article on “Best Japanese Language Learning Apps” is one of Guidable’s series of guideline articles on “Tips For Studying Japanese.” Learning a new language may be challenging at first, but persevere, and the results of all your hard work will be worth it!

You can learn a lot more from your phone than your books. Nowadays, it’s easy to find word definitions on your smartphone with just one touch by super convenient apps on the Apple Store or Android. Best of all, these magic tools stay at a low cost or completely FREE.

So check them out!

Best Free Apps For Studying Japanese 

Jsho

Available on:

Android (only)

Remarkable dictionary, guys. Jsho offers you options for searching words in English and Japanese with several input options. You can look up the vocabulary by Hiragana, Kanji, and Romaji, which is fantastic if you’re unsure what it means, but maybe you’ve just heard someone say it, so you only know the pronunciation.

There is a useful filter for nouns, verbs, etc. When you click on the word, you can see each Kanji character’s breakdown, including the level of JLPT difficulty, onyomi, kunyomi, and the stroke order for each character. Besides, it has a wide range of conjugations for each word, including the polite, the past, and the negative versions that can be a real-life savior for the JLPT practice’s trickier sections.

Imiwa?

Available on:

IOS (only)

Imiwa? is a strong multilingual dictionary that allows you to search using Kanji, katakana, hiragana, or romaji and can be used without the internet. The apps also include verb conjugation charts, notes to track your favorite phrase, JLPT vocabulary lists, etc. 

One of the app’s most valuable features is the kanji features. You can start looking up for a 

Kanji by drawing the character straightforwardly on the screen. Imiwa? also offers useful guides to help you look up Kanji with radicals or strokes.

Japanese (Renzo Inc.)

Available on: 

IOS

Android

In this application, kunyomi, onyomi, stroke order, meaning, and Kanji components will be breaking down. Moreover, this application displays common compounds of Kanji. These common compounds are essential for identifying more vocabulary. The application also offers phrases to find out how each word can be used in a particular situation.

NHK Easy Japanese News

Available on:

IOS

Android

This app lets you read, listen and watch the daily news from NHK NEWS WEB EASY, CNN, MBC … in straightforward Japanese. The app’s report is always updated, so you aren’t going to miss anything. It concludes a massive database of 31076 posts, 173386 vocabulary, 6355 kanji, 169736 examples, and over 2000 grammar will help you master Japanese. 

NHK EASY NEWS has many useful features. Check it out in the App Store and Android right now!

Anki 

Available on:

IOS

Android

Anki allows you to import vocabulary (Kanji & New words) typical textbooks or JLPT lists and transform them into flashcards. These can range from a word or Kanji to vocabulary in sentences to help you understand the context. 

Along with being able to build your cards, Anki comes with a variety of useful features, including a response timer and the ability to flip questions and answers.

This is especially useful if you want to switch between reading Kanji or vocabulary to write them. Anki can be used as an app, an online version, or a desktop version. 

You might find it faster to use the desktop version to build decks, and then sync it to your computer. You will have to pay for a small amount of money, but trust us, you’re going to get your money worth.

HelloTalk

Available on:

IOS

Android

Do you want to improve your Japanese daily conversational skill? HelloTalk is a wise choice for you. It allows you to connect with Japanese speakers to practice your skills. You can either talk with people one by one or put a question to anyone on a feed to test the sentence structure or ask a question.People will then respond with the correct form to help you understand where you might have gone wrong.

Japanese is not hard to learn! Use Japanese Language Learning Apps!

Stop a low tech lifestyle and find some other effective ways of learning Japanese, such as using Japanese learning apps! Learning the Japanese language does not only promote escalation in studying or working but also traveling. For instance, transportation in Japan is fantastic, and the trains easy to use if you understand Japanese applications such as Yahoo! 乗換案内. Do not waste time; let’s start to learn Japanese together!

Thus, the Guidable team does hope that you found this article as a helpful piece of information! After all, all of our activities are aiming for a better life for foreigners in Japan! So, stay tuned and follow us!