Welcome to OniKanji! Whether you're just starting your Japanese journey or looking for a structured way to learn kanji, you're in the right place. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know to get started and make the most of the platform.
What is OniKanji?
OniKanji is a kanji learning platform built around spaced repetition — a scientifically-backed study method that shows you kanji right when you're about to forget them. You'll learn kanji through interactive lessons, reinforce them with timed reviews, earn coins, level up, and even unlock manga chapters as rewards.
Think of it as a structured path from zero to kanji literacy, with plenty of motivation baked in along the way.
Step 1: Creating Your Account
Head to onikanji.com and click Sign Up. You can register with an email and password, or use Google sign-in for a quicker setup.
During signup, you'll complete a quick human verification challenge — a fun emoji-based kanji matching test. Don't worry, it's not testing your kanji knowledge — just proving you're not a robot!
You'll also select your country — this helps us personalize your experience.
Step 2: Your Home Dashboard
Once you're in, you'll land on your Home Dashboard — the central hub for everything on OniKanji. Here's what you'll see:
The Four Main Cards
- New Lessons — Shows how many new kanji are waiting for you to learn. Tap this to start a lesson.
- Reviews — Shows how many kanji are due for review based on the SRS schedule. Tap to start reviewing.
- Extra Study — Custom practice sessions where you can target specific levels, JLPT categories, or kanji you're struggling with.
- Immersion Hub — Access authentic Japanese reading material like manga, light novels, and short stories.
Level Progress
Below the cards, you'll see your Level Progress section. OniKanji organizes kanji into levels of 20 kanji each. Each kanji has a circular progress indicator that fills up as you gain experience through reviews.
- Green circle = Kanji is complete (72+ experience points)
- Orange circle = Kanji is in progress
- Gray circle = Kanji hasn't been started yet
Once every kanji in your current level hits 72 experience, the Level Up button activates and you can advance to the next level!
Step 3: Your First Lesson
Click the New Lessons card to begin. Each lesson teaches you 4 new kanji at a time — a manageable batch that keeps things from getting overwhelming.
How Lessons Work
- Lesson Confirmation — You'll see which kanji you're about to learn. Hit start when you're ready.
- Flashcard Study — Each kanji gets a detailed flashcard showing:
- The kanji character (large and clear)
- Its meaning(s)
- On'yomi and Kun'yomi readings
- Stroke count
- Example sentences
- Audio pronunciation (tap to hear it spoken)
- Practice Quiz — After studying, you'll immediately get quizzed on what you just learned with multiple choice and other question types. This helps lock in the initial memory.
- Lesson Complete — You'll see a summary of what you learned. Those 4 kanji are now in your review queue!
Step 4: Reviews and Spaced Repetition
This is where the real learning happens. After completing a lesson, your new kanji will appear in Reviews according to a spaced repetition schedule:
| Review Interval | When It Appears |
|---|---|
| 1st review | 30 minutes after lesson |
| 2nd review | 4 hours later |
| 3rd review | 1 day later |
| 4th review | 3 days later |
| 5th review | 7 days later |
| 6th review | 30 days later |
The idea is simple: each time you correctly recall a kanji, the gap before you see it again gets longer. If you get it wrong, it comes back sooner. Over time, kanji moves from short-term to long-term memory.
Review Question Types
- Multiple Choice — Pick the correct meaning or reading from 4 options
- Text Input — Type the reading or meaning yourself (harder but more effective!)
- Sentence Builder — Assemble a correct Japanese sentence
Each correct answer earns you experience points (XP) toward that kanji and coins you can spend in the Immersion Hub.
Step 5: Understanding Kanji Mastery Stages
As you review kanji and gain experience, each kanji progresses through six mastery stages:
- Awakened — You've just learned this kanji. It's fresh and fragile.
- Explorer — You're getting familiar. Starting to recognize it.
- Mastery — You can reliably recall the readings and meanings.
- Ascension — This kanji is becoming second nature.
- Slayed — You've conquered this kanji. It's deeply embedded.
- Cooked — Complete mastery. This kanji is fully internalized.
You can see the count for each stage on your home dashboard. Watching kanji move from Awakened to Cooked is one of the most satisfying parts of the journey.
Step 6: Browsing and Looking Up Kanji
Want to look up a specific kanji outside of lessons? Head to the Kanji page from the navigation bar.
- Browse by level — See all 20 kanji for any level, organized in a clean grid
- Search — Type a meaning or reading to find a specific kanji
- Kanji Detail Page — Click any kanji to see its full breakdown:
- Stroke order animation
- All readings (on'yomi and kun'yomi)
- Primary and alternative meanings
- Example sentences with furigana
- Audio pronunciation
- Navigate between kanji with arrow keys
Step 7: Kana Review
New to Japanese? OniKanji also has a dedicated Kana Review section for practicing hiragana and katakana. Access it from the Kana link in the navigation bar.
- Chart View — A full reference table of all hiragana and katakana characters, including dakuten and handakuten variations. Click any character to hear its pronunciation.
- Quiz Mode — Multiple choice quizzes where you match kana characters to their romanization. You can customize which character sets to include.
- Results — See your score and time, then jump back into the chart or quiz again.
This is a great starting point if you haven't memorized the Japanese alphabets yet.
Step 8: Extra Study Options
Want to drill specific kanji outside of the regular SRS schedule? The Extra Study section gives you several custom practice modes:
- Critical Condition Kanji — Focus on kanji you're struggling with (low experience scores)
- By OniKanji Level — Pick specific levels to review
- By JLPT Level — Practice kanji grouped by the Japanese Language Proficiency Test levels (N5 through N1)
- By Kanji Status — Target kanji at a specific mastery stage
- Premade Lists — Curated themed lists (like sumo terminology)
You can also toggle between multiple choice and text input question types to customize your practice.
Step 9: The Immersion Hub
Once you've learned some kanji, it's time to see them in context. The Immersion Hub is OniKanji's library of authentic Japanese content:
- Manga and Light Novels
- Short Stories
- Podcasts
- News Articles
Content is organized by difficulty level and genre, so you can find material that matches your current ability.
The Reader
The built-in reader is designed for learners:
- Furigana displayed above kanji so you can read along
- Tap any kanji to see an instant definition popup with readings and meanings
- Tap any sentence to get an AI-generated breakdown
- Audio playback for listening practice
- Bookmarks to save sentences you want to revisit
- Auto-save your reading position so you can pick up where you left off
- 5 font sizes for comfortable reading
Some content is available as free samples. You can unlock more using coins or with a subscription.
Step 10: Coins, Rewards, and Leveling Up
OniKanji has a built-in reward system to keep you motivated:
Coins
- Earned from completing reviews (roughly 5-20 coins per session depending on performance)
- Bonus coins awarded when you level up
- Spend them on Immersion Hub content
- Your coin balance is always visible in the top navigation bar
- Need more? Visit the Coin Shop to purchase additional coins
Level Up Rewards
Every time you complete a level (all 20 kanji at 72+ experience), you unlock a chapter of "Can Mikan-chan Master Kanji?" — an original manga series featuring OniKanji's mascot. The chapter unlock screen is inspired by a chess.com-style progression path where you can see your journey through the story.
Leaderboards
Compete with other learners across multiple categories:
- Total Accuracy — Who has the best overall quiz performance?
- Speed Run — Who completes reviews the fastest?
- Longest Streak — Who has studied the most consecutive days?
- Most Painful Kanji — Which kanji gives everyone the most trouble?
Streaks
Study every day to build your streak! A countdown timer on your stats page shows when your streak resets (12:05 AM UTC daily). Even a quick review session counts.
Step 11: Tracking Your Progress
Head to My Stats in the navigation bar to see your full progress breakdown:
- Activity Heatmap — A GitHub-style calendar showing your study activity over time. Darker squares mean more activity that day. Great for staying accountable.
- Total Stats — Kanji completed, total reviews done, experience earned, current streak
- Mastery Breakdown — See how many kanji are at each mastery stage
- Leaderboard Rankings — See where you stand among all OniKanji users
Step 12: Your Profile and Settings
Visit My Profile (found in the utility menu — the three dots icon in the navigation bar) to manage your account:
- Public Username — Set the name that appears on leaderboards
- Subscription Status — View and manage your current plan
- Email Preferences — Toggle marketing and digest emails
- Account Actions — Change password, export your kanji data, or delete your account
Free vs. Subscription
OniKanji is free to use for the first 5 levels (100 kanji). After that, a subscription unlocks:
- All levels (the full kanji curriculum)
- Full Immersion Hub library
- All manga chapter rewards
Subscription plans include Monthly, Yearly (discounted), and Lifetime (one-time payment) options. Visit the Pricing page to compare.
Tips for Success
- Do your reviews every day. The SRS system only works if you show up consistently. Even 10 minutes a day makes a huge difference.
- Don't rush new lessons. It's tempting to learn as many kanji as possible, but your review queue will pile up fast. A sustainable pace is 4-8 new kanji per day.
- Use the Immersion Hub early. Reading kanji in context reinforces what you learn in reviews. Start with beginner-friendly content as soon as you have a few levels under your belt.
- Check your stats weekly. The activity heatmap is a great motivator. Try to keep those squares filled in!
- Don't fear mistakes. Getting a review wrong isn't failure — it's the SRS doing its job. The system will show you that kanji again sooner so you can lock it in.
- Use Extra Study for problem kanji. If certain kanji keep tripping you up, use the Critical Condition mode to give them extra attention.
- Set a daily reminder. Build the habit early. Your streak counter will thank you.
Quick Reference: Navigation
| Nav Item | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Home | Your main dashboard — lessons, reviews, progress |
| Kanji | Browse and search all kanji by level |
| Kana | Hiragana and katakana reference chart and quiz |
| Immersion Hub | Read authentic Japanese content |
| My Stats | Activity heatmap, stats, leaderboards |
| Pricing | Compare subscription plans |
| Coin Balance | Your current coins (click to visit shop) |
| Three-dot menu | Quick level jump, profile, logout |
That's everything you need to get started! The most important thing is to just dive in — click that New Lessons button and learn your first 4 kanji today. Welcome to the OniKanji community, and happy studying!
Have questions? Drop them in the comments below and we'll help you out.