Two of the 13 Japanese learning apps we checked have nothing to buy for study features: Anki on a computer or Android, and the iPhone dictionary imiwa?. The rest are free to download with a catch: ads with a paid way to remove them (Kana Challenge, FluencyTool, Takoboto), a free tier with no timer but a paid plan for extras (Renshuu), a daily or count limit (Japanese Crossword, YoMoo, Duolingo, Drops), or limits the maker does not state (Write It! Japanese, Todaii, HelloTalk). The table below says for each one what is free, what is limited and what it costs, from the maker’s own listing or website on November 13, 2026.
Disclosure: My Senpai makes four of these apps: Kana Challenge, Japanese Crossword, YoMoo and FluencyTool, marked “ours”. Rows are grouped by skill and sorted alphabetically inside each group, so ours sit where their skill puts them. We have no affiliate links and are not affiliated with the other apps; their names refer to their products only.
Four kinds of “free”
- Nothing to buy for study
- Anki (computer and Android), imiwa?. Optional donations or gifts only.
- Free with ads, paid to remove them
- Kana Challenge, FluencyTool and Takoboto give their study features free and sell ad removal (Takoboto’s subscription also adds sync and quizzes). Renshuu is the reverse: no ads, a free version with no timer, and a paid pro plan.
- Free up to a daily or count limit
- Japanese Crossword (4 puzzles a day), YoMoo (5 articles, then a short ad for each new one), Duolingo (hearts or energy) and Drops (a daily time its makers do not state).
- Free to start, limits not stated
- Write It! Japanese, Todaii and HelloTalk show ads and sell upgrades, but their listings do not say what the free version leaves out.
13 free Japanese learning apps compared
Scroll the table sideways; the app name stays in view.
| App | What it teaches | What is free | What is limited or paid | Platforms | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kana | |||||
| Kana Challenge (ours) | Hiragana and katakana: 92 characters in a 30-day plan, stroke checks, speaking scores | All 30 lessons and reviews, practice, audio, speaking scores and charts, with ads. The course also runs in the browser | Ads. A one-time ad-free purchase removes them and adds full offline access to lessons and charts; price shown in the store, not on the page | Android, iPhone, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Write It! Japanese | Writing hiragana and katakana, with handwriting recognition stroke by stroke | Free to download. Which lessons are free is not stated | Contains ads. Full Unlock listed at 6.99, 8.99 and 9.99 USD (US App Store); what it adds is not stated | Android, iPhone, iPad | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Vocabulary and kanji | |||||
| Anki | Flashcards with spaced repetition; you make decks or download free ones | The computer version, AnkiDroid on Android and AnkiWeb sync are free. AnkiDroid is open source | AnkiMobile for iPhone and iPad: 24.99 USD once (US App Store), sync included, no subscription | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iPhone, iPad, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Drops | Vocabulary games with pictures and audio; Japanese is one of its languages | Free lessons. The free daily time is not stated | Premium adds unlimited time, no ads, offline practice and all content; 7-day free trial; US App Store items from 7.99 to 99.99 USD | Android, iPhone, iPad | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Japanese Crossword (ours) | JLPT vocabulary crosswords: 7,195 words from N5 to N1, typed in romaji and shown in kana | 4 puzzles a day in the app, 1 a day in the browser, 1 puzzle a day with another player, with ads | One-time purchases: Ad-Free (no ads, plays offline), Unlimited (no daily limits) or both as a Bundle; prices shown in the store, not on the page | Android, iPhone, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Grammar and courses | |||||
| Duolingo | A full course with short lessons; Japanese is one of 40+ languages | Every course, Japanese included, with ads | Super: no ads, Unlimited Hearts (Google Play listing) or Unlimited Energy (App Store listing), monthly streak repair; 14-day free trial; US App Store items from 9.99 to 119.99 USD, durations not shown | Android, iPhone, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Renshuu | Vocabulary, kanji, grammar and sentences by JLPT level or textbook, plus kana packs | The free version has no timer and no ads (“The free version is unlimited”) | renshuu pro: 3.99 or 6.99 USD a month, 49.99 or 59.99 USD a year, 109.99 or 129.99 USD lifetime (US App Store); what pro adds is not listed there | Android, iPhone, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Reading | |||||
| Todaii | News-style articles sorted N5 to N1, more than 10 new pieces a day, 356 JLPT reading exercises | Free to download, with ads. The free plan’s limits are not stated on the listings | US App Store items from 12.99 USD (1 month) to 69.99 USD (Premium forever) | Android, iPhone, iPad | Nov 13, 2026 |
| YoMoo (ours) | Reading with furigana: news in eight topics with an Original and an Easy version (Easy is written by AI), 325 JLPT passages, about 500 Aozora Bunko classics, your own text | Always free: furigana, dictionary, text-to-speech, saved words and review, shadowing, Aozora Bunko and your own text. 5 news, passage or how-to articles | After 5 articles a short ad opens each new one; the web version opens 1 new article a day. Ad-free monthly or yearly subscription removes ads and the limit; 7-day free trial on the yearly plan; prices shown in the store | Android, iPhone, iPad, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Speaking and listening | |||||
| FluencyTool (ours) | Shadowing with speech-to-text scoring, flashcards, kanji practice (1,026 elementary-school kanji in Kanji Tower), JLPT N5 to N1 | Shadowing, flashcards, grammar guide, vocabulary games and crosswords, with banner ads. No trial and no subscription; an account is optional | One optional one-time purchase removes the banner ads; price shown in the store, not on the page | Android 7.0 and up, iPhone, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
| HelloTalk | Text, voice and video chat with Japanese speakers who are learning your language; group voice rooms | Free to download, with ads. Which features need VIP is not stated on the listings | VIP: 12.99 USD a month or 79.99 USD a year (US App Store) | Android, iPhone | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Dictionaries | |||||
| imiwa? | Dictionary from JMdict and KANJIDIC, stroke order, JLPT level, example sentences, a built-in copy of Tae Kim’s grammar guide | Free, no ads | Optional in-app “gifts” from 1.99 to 49.99 USD to support development | iPhone, iPad | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Takoboto | Offline dictionary with 200,000+ words, example phrases, conjugations, radical search, flashcards, AnkiDroid export | The dictionary, flashcards, word lists, kana charts and text-to-speech, with ads | Takoboto Cloud subscription: sync and backup, shared lists, recorded voice audio, no ads, kanji by drawing, study quizzes; price not stated on the listing | Android, web | Nov 13, 2026 |
Kana
Kana Challenge gives the whole 30-day course free with ads, including stroke checks and speaking scores, and the course also runs in a browser. Write It! Japanese is free to download with ads; its Full Unlock starts at 6.99 USD, and the listing does not say what it adds. Renshuu also has free hiragana and katakana packs, with no ads. For seven kana apps side by side, see the hiragana and katakana apps comparison.
Vocabulary and kanji
Anki is free everywhere except iPhone and iPad, where AnkiMobile costs 24.99 USD once; you bring or download the decks. Drops gives free lessons for a daily time it does not state, and Premium removes the limit and the ads. Japanese Crossword gives 4 JLPT-level puzzles a day in the app and 1 in the browser, with one-time purchases to remove ads or the limit.
Grammar and courses
Duolingo’s Japanese course is free with ads; Super removes ads and the hearts or energy limit. Renshuu covers vocabulary, kanji and grammar by JLPT level or textbook, with no ads and no timer on the free version; its store listing gives pro prices but not what pro adds.
Reading
YoMoo keeps furigana, the dictionary, saved words, Aozora Bunko classics and your own text free at all times; its news, JLPT passages and how-to articles are free for 5 articles, then a short ad opens each new one. Todaii shows ads and sells premium plans from 12.99 USD, but its listings do not state the free limits. NHK News Web Easy is a free website rather than an app; our easy Japanese news comparison covers it as checked on November 6, 2026, and the Japanese reading apps comparison covers paid readers such as Satori Reader.
Speaking and listening
FluencyTool’s shadowing with speech-to-text scoring is free with banner ads, and one one-time purchase removes them. HelloTalk is free to download for chatting with Japanese speakers; VIP costs 12.99 USD a month or 79.99 USD a year, and the listing does not say what it adds. The Japanese speaking practice apps comparison adds tutors, AI conversation apps and shadowing apps.
Dictionaries
imiwa? on iPhone and iPad is free with no ads, built on JMdict and KANJIDIC, and includes a copy of Tae Kim’s grammar guide. Takoboto on Android is free with ads and works offline; its Cloud subscription adds sync, recorded audio and quizzes, at a price the listing does not give.
How we checked
On November 13, 2026 we read each app’s US App Store listing, Google Play listing or official website, and wrote down what the maker says is free, what is limited, and the listed prices. We did not install the apps, so free-tier limits are as the makers state them, and “not stated” means we could not find them on the maker’s pages. We left out user reviews, ratings and user counts. Store prices are US prices and differ by country.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a completely free app to learn Japanese?
Among the 13 apps we checked on November 13, 2026, two have no paid tier for study features: Anki on a computer and on Android (AnkiDroid, open source), and the iPhone dictionary imiwa?, which has no ads and only optional gifts. Both are tools rather than courses. For a course with no daily cap, Renshuu’s free version has no timer and no ads, and Kana Challenge’s 30 kana lessons are all free with ads. Most other apps are free to download with a limit, ads or a paid tier.
Is Duolingo free for Japanese?
Yes. Duolingo’s own store listings say every course is free, and Japanese is in the list. The free app shows ads. Super Duolingo removes the ads and adds Unlimited Hearts (the Google Play wording) or Unlimited Energy (the App Store wording) and monthly streak repair, with a 14-day free trial.
What is the best free app for kana?
It depends on how you want to learn. Kana Challenge (ours) gives all 30 lessons free with ads, with stroke checks and speaking scores. Write It! Japanese focuses on handwriting recognition and shows ads, with a Full Unlock from 6.99 USD whose contents are not stated. Renshuu has free hiragana and katakana packs with no ads. Our hiragana and katakana apps comparison covers seven options in more detail.
Is Anki free on iPhone?
No. AnkiMobile, the official iPhone and iPad app, costs 24.99 USD once on the US App Store, with sync included and no subscription. Anki on Windows, Mac and Linux, AnkiDroid on Android and the AnkiWeb sync service are free.
What does “free” mean on an app store listing?
“Free” with “In-App Purchases” means the download costs nothing, not that every feature does. In this table it comes in four forms: nothing to buy for study features (Anki on computer and Android, imiwa?), everything free with ads and a paid way to remove them (Kana Challenge, FluencyTool, Takoboto), a daily or count limit (Japanese Crossword, YoMoo, Duolingo’s hearts or energy, Drops’ time), and free to start with limits the maker does not state (Write It! Japanese, Todaii, HelloTalk).
Last reviewed November 13, 2026. Sources: each app’s US App Store listing, Google Play listing or official website, and our own product pages for Kana Challenge, Japanese Crossword, YoMoo and FluencyTool, all checked on November 13, 2026. Found something out of date? Email fluencytool@my-senpai.com.