Kanapup: hiragana and katakana

Learn Japanese the easy way: read and write hiragana and katakana in a few minutes a day.

Kanapup is a Japanese learning app for complete beginners. It teaches hiragana and katakana the way Japanese kids learn them: row by row, with native audio, stroke order and short kana quizzes. No account, no ads, no subscription, no decks to download. A friendly shiba keeps you company.

ROW BY ROW, NEVER OVERWHELMED You start with the five vowels. Once you know a row well, the next one unlocks. You never face a wall of unknown Japanese characters, and every session builds on what you already know.

HEAR EVERY KANA Each hiragana and katakana comes with a recorded native pronunciation and example words, so your ear learns along with your eyes.

WRITE WITH YOUR FINGER Watch the stroke order, then trace each kana on the screen. Hiragana practice with your finger is the fastest way to remember a character.

SHORT, SMART KANA QUIZZES Ten questions at a time, mixing sounds, romaji and characters. Kana you struggle with come back more often until they stick, like flashcards that know what you have forgotten. The chart shows your progress at a glance.

BUILD YOUR FIRST JAPANESE VOCABULARY Every kana unlocks real Japanese words, shown as flashcards you can tap to hear. Review them, then practice them in dedicated vocabulary exercises.

MADE FOR COMPLETE BEGINNERS • No Japanese needed to start: easy Japanese, one kana at a time • Hiragana and katakana, every basic kana plus dakuten and combinations • Available in 12 languages • Works offline: audio and stroke data are built in • Free, with no account to create

Hiragana and katakana are the foundation of nihongo, the Japanese language. Whether you are preparing a trip to Japan, starting a Japanese course, or just curious, Kanapup gets you reading in a couple of weeks.

Start learning Japanese with the five vowels today. Your shiba is waiting.