Top 24 Resources to Help You Learn Japanese

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Learning a new language like French, German, Spanish or Japanese can feel like a daunting task. Many people learn it in high school for a few years. However, they come out of it only remembering a few words and feeling very disappointed. You don’t need to be one of those people! In fact, you can easily learn Japanese online. Check out below for the top 24 resources to help you learn Japanese.

Table of Contents

General Resources to Learn Japanese

Duolingo – This is one of the most popular free online resources to learn Japanese or even almost any new language. It provides a lot of dictation and writing lessons as well as a lot of games to help make it very fun. What is even better, is that there is a mobile version, so you can practice your Japanese on your phone almost anywhere!
Linguti – is similar to Duolingo is that it gamifies Japanese language learning.
Japanese Level Up – take Japanese learning to another fun level. It uses a unique adventure backdrop with video game and RPG elements.

Learn Japanese Pronunciation

Rocket Languages – a great online resource that helps you learn how to pronounce Japanese like a native.
tofugu – another great online resource to help you with your Japanese pronunciation.

Talk with a Real Person to Learn Japanese

Italki – One of the best ways to learn Japanese is through talking. Italki provides a platform that makes it very easy to find great and affordable Japanese teachers and tutors to help you.
Language exchange – a great way to find and meet up with native Japanese speakers.

Learn Japanese Vocabulary

Glossika – Learning Japanese vocabulary is not always the one of the most fun things. However, with Glossika, you can easily get your Japanese vocabulary training in. It uses artificial intelligence to make sure that you are learning the correct things at your own pace.
Anki – This is one of the best vocabulary flashcard programs out there. It uses spaced repetition to help maximize your memorization.
Memrise – Another great online vocabulary resource that includes audio.
Wordreference – A great language dictionary. Not only does it provide the meaning of the Japanese words you are looking for, it also provides many additional meanings so that you can best understand the subtle meanings behind Japanese words.
Tangorin – the best online EDICT dictionary. You can search kanji by radicals.
Tagaini Jisho – great online Japanese dictionary that makes it very easy to search for kanji.
ALC Dictionary – is a great Japanese dictionary that helps you find words in context.
WaniKani – learn around 2,000 kanji and 6,000 Japanese vocabulary words in a little over a year.

Learn Japanese Grammar

Tae Kim’s Guide to Japanese Grammar – this is both a Japanese textbook as well as a great grammar reference. It covers material from beginner to intermediate levels and includes colloquial variations.
Imabi – a great website that covers grammar through mini lessons. The shear number of example sentences make it a great Japanese grammar reference.
Japanese for busy people – great textbooks with concise and clear lessons that are designed to help you learn and retain Japanese in the quickest and most efficient way.
Genki – a great Japanese resource with culturally relevant grammar.

Learn Japanese Through Reading

NHK News Web Easy – great place to learn Japanese through reading. A great feature is that every day there is new content to read that is especially adapted to help you learn Japanese.

Learn Japanese by Watching TV

モーニングバード (もーにんぐばーど) — “Morning Bird” – is a great news program. There are a lot of investigation style reports that help you both learn about things while at the same time learning Japanese.
ドラえもん (どらえもん) – Doraemon – one of the best ways to learn Japanese is through Japanese cartoons. Doraemon is probably one of the best ones to start with. It follows the story of Doraemon a cat shaped robot.