How to Learn Japanese: A Beginner's Plan from Kana to Kanji

The best way to learn Japanese as a beginner is to learn hiragana and katakana in your first two to three weeks, speak in simple polite desu and masu sentences from the start, and pick up kanji a few at a time through words you already use. Study every day. Thirty minutes a day does more than one long session a week, because kana and kanji fade quickly unless you review them often.

What does a beginner's Japanese plan look like?

The timings below assume 30 to 60 minutes of study a day. They are targets, not research findings, so adjust them to your pace.

Phase	When	Focus	Goal by the end
1. Kana and sounds	Weeks 1 to 3	Hiragana, katakana, pronunciation, greetings	Read any word written in kana, slowly
2. First sentences	Months 1 to 3	Desu/masu sentences, particles, about 500 words, first 100 kanji	Introduce yourself, order food, ask prices and directions
3. Grammar and input	Months 4 to 12	Plain form, including the plain past (食べた, tabeta), te-form (食べて, tabete), adjectives, graded readers	Talk about your day; work toward JLPT N5 and N4
4. Native content	Year 2 onward	More kanji, shows with Japanese subtitles, simple news such as NHK's NEWS WEB EASY, keigo for work	Follow slow native speech; work toward N3

What are the three Japanese writing systems?

Japanese uses three scripts together: hiragana, katakana and kanji. Hiragana and katakana are syllabaries, where each character stands for a sound such as ka or mi. Kanji are characters that came from Chinese and carry meaning.

All three often appear in one short sentence:

私はコーヒーを飲みます。 (Watashi wa kōhī o nomimasu.) I drink coffee.

私 (I) and 飲 (drink) are kanji, コーヒー (coffee) is katakana, and は, を and みます are hiragana.

Script	What it's used for	Examples	How many
Hiragana	Grammar endings, particles, and native words without a common kanji	あ (a), か (ka), す (su)	46 basic characters
Katakana	Loanwords, foreign names, emphasis, sound effects	テレビ (terebi, TV), ホテル (hoteru, hotel)	46 basic characters
Kanji	The meaning part of most nouns, verbs and adjectives	人 (person), 山 (mountain), 日 (sun, day)	2,136 on the official jōyō list for everyday use (2010)

Should you learn hiragana or katakana first?

Hiragana first, then katakana, then kanji a little at a time. Every sentence uses hiragana for particles and verb endings, and beginner textbooks either print words in hiragana or put small hiragana readings, called furigana, above the kanji. At 30 minutes a day, one to two weeks is a realistic target. Learn hiragana one row of the chart at a time (あいうえお, then かきくけこ), writing each character by hand and reading it in real words.

Katakana has the same sounds in different shapes, plus a few combinations for sounds that came in with foreign words, such as ファ (fa) and ティ (ti). Give it about another week, and practise on loanwords you already know, like コーヒー (kōhī, coffee).

Kanji take years. Each kanji can have more than one reading: 日 is read ni in 日本 (Nihon, Japan), and both nichi and bi in 日曜日 (nichiyōbi, Sunday). Don't memorise long lists of characters with every reading. Learn kanji inside words you can already say, one to three a day at first, and you learn the right reading along with the word.

Stop reading romaji, Japanese written in Latin letters, after the first couple of weeks. Everyday romaji often drops long vowels, so とうきょう appears as "Tokyo" instead of Tōkyō, and as long as you can lean on it, your kana reading won't speed up. The Japanese letters page has a recording of each of the 46 basic hiragana. Tap one to hear it.

How do you pronounce Japanese?

Pronunciation is one of the easier parts of Japanese. There are five vowels and each has one sound: a as in "father", i as in "machine", u like the "oo" in "food" but without rounding your lips, e as in "bed", and o like a short "oh". These are the points beginners miss:

• Every beat takes the same time. Japanese counts in beats called morae. こんにちは has five: ko-n-ni-chi-wa. The ん (n) counts as a full beat.
• Long vowels change meaning. おばさん (obasan) means "aunt" and おばあさん (obāsan) means "grandmother". ビル (biru) is "building" and ビール (bīru) is "beer". In romaji, a line over a vowel, as in ō, marks a long vowel.
• Double consonants change meaning too. A small っ holds the next consonant for a full beat: さか (saka) means "slope" and さっか (sakka) means "author".
• Some vowels go quiet. The vowels i and u often fade between voiceless consonants such as k, s and t, and after them at the end of a sentence. です (desu) usually sounds like "dess", and the u in ます (masu) is barely heard.
• The r is a quick tap of the tongue, somewhere between English r, l and d.
• Two particles break the spelling rule. The particle は is pronounced wa and を is pronounced o. That's why こんにちは ends in は but is said konnichiwa.

Japanese also has pitch accent, which means some words differ only in which beats are high and which are low. In standard Tokyo Japanese, はし said high then low means "chopsticks" (箸), and said low then high it means "bridge" (橋). Context usually makes the meaning clear, so copy the pitch you hear and don't let it slow you down in your first months.

What is the word order in Japanese?

The verb goes at the end. The usual order is subject, object, verb, where English uses subject, verb, object.

私はりんごを食べます。 (Watashi wa ringo o tabemasu.) I eat an apple. Word for word, it's "I, apple, eat."

Because the verb comes last, the end of the sentence carries tense, negation and questions. 食べます (tabemasu) is "eat", 食べません (tabemasen) is "don't eat", 食べました (tabemashita) is "ate", and adding か (ka) makes a question: 食べますか (tabemasu ka), "Do you eat it?" Japanese also drops the subject when it's clear. If someone asks whether you eat sushi, 食べます on its own is a full answer. English speakers tend to start every sentence with 私は (watashi wa). Leave it out when it's obvious who you mean; repeated, it can sound as if you're contrasting yourself with someone else.

If your first language is Hindi, Tamil, Turkish or Korean, this order will feel familiar, because those languages also usually put the verb last.

What do the particles wa, ga, o and ni mean?

Particles are short words placed after a noun to show its job in the sentence. These four come first.

Particle	What it marks	Example	Meaning
は (wa)	The topic, what the sentence is about	私は学生です。 (Watashi wa gakusei desu.)	I'm a student.
が (ga)	The subject, often new information; also used with "there is" and with likes	猫がいます。 (Neko ga imasu.)	There's a cat.
を (o)	The direct object	水を飲みます。 (Mizu o nomimasu.)	I drink water.
に (ni)	A destination or a point in time	東京に行きます。 (Tōkyō ni ikimasu.)	I'm going to Tokyo.

With times, に works the same way: 七時に起きます (Shichiji ni okimasu) means "I get up at seven."

The difference between は and が takes a while to feel natural. As a first rule, は sets the topic, like "as for me", and が points to who or what does something or exists. In 私は猫が好きです (Watashi wa neko ga suki desu), "I like cats", 私 is the topic and 猫 takes が as the thing that is liked. The rest comes from reading and copying example sentences.

You'll also meet の (no) and で (de) in your first week. の links nouns, as in 私の本 (watashi no hon), "my book". で marks where something happens, as in 駅で待ちます (Eki de machimasu), "I'll wait at the station."

Which politeness level should you learn first?

Learn the polite desu/masu form first. Japanese adults use it with anyone they don't know well, including shop staff, new colleagues and strangers, so it's always safe.

Plain form	Polite form (learn first)	Meaning
食べる (taberu)	食べます (tabemasu)	eat
行く (iku)	行きます (ikimasu)	go
だ (da)	です (desu)	is

The plain form is how friends and family talk to each other. You'll need it by phase 3 anyway, because many grammar patterns are built on it, but don't use it with strangers. Japanese also has keigo (敬語), the honorific and humble language used in shops, offices and formal letters. いらっしゃいませ (irasshaimase), the "welcome" you hear when you walk into a shop, is keigo. Beginners only need to recognise it.

Be careful with "you". あなた (anata) can sound distant, or rude to someone senior. Japanese speakers usually say the person's name plus さん (san), or leave "you" out.

Which Japanese words should you learn first?

Start with words about yourself and daily life. Learn each one by sound and kana first, then add the kanji.

Kanji	Kana	Romaji	Meaning
私	わたし	watashi	I, me
人	ひと	hito	person
水	みず	mizu	water
日本	にほん	Nihon	Japan
日本語	にほんご	nihongo	Japanese (the language)
先生	せんせい	sensei	teacher
友達	ともだち	tomodachi	friend
駅	えき	eki	station
今日	きょう	kyō	today
食べる	たべる	taberu	to eat
飲む	のむ	nomu	to drink
行く	いく	iku	to go

Which Japanese phrases should you learn first?

Japanese	Romaji	Meaning
こんにちは	konnichiwa	Hello (daytime)
おはようございます	ohayō gozaimasu	Good morning (polite)
ありがとうございます	arigatō gozaimasu	Thank you (polite)
すみません	sumimasen	Excuse me; I'm sorry
はい / いいえ	hai / iie	Yes / No
はじめまして	hajimemashite	Nice to meet you (first meeting only)
よろしくお願いします (よろしくおねがいします)	yoroshiku onegaishimasu	Said after introducing yourself or asking a favour; roughly "please treat me well"
水をください (みずをください)	mizu o kudasai	Water, please
いくらですか	ikura desu ka	How much is it?
わかりません	wakarimasen	I don't understand
もう一度お願いします (もういちどおねがいします)	mō ichido onegaishimasu	Once more, please

With friends, ありがとう (arigatō) on its own is a casual thank you. Swap 水 (mizu) in "mizu o kudasai" for any noun to ask for something else, like コーヒーをください (kōhī o kudasai), "Coffee, please."

What does a good weekly routine look like?

Plan on 30 to 60 minutes a day, with one main focus per day. Every day, also spend about 10 minutes reviewing flashcards for kana, kanji and words.

Day	Main focus	What to do
Monday	Grammar	One new pattern and five sentences of your own
Tuesday	Listening	Replay one short dialogue until you catch every word, then shadow it
Wednesday	Speaking	A 10 to 15 minute conversation about your week
Thursday	Kanji	Five to ten new kanji, each inside a word you know
Friday	Reading	A graded reader chapter or a short news article in simple Japanese
Saturday	Speaking	Role-play ordering food, asking directions or checking in
Sunday	Review	Reread the week's notes and redo what you got wrong

How long does it take to learn Japanese?

The US State Department's language school, long known as the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) and now called the National Foreign Affairs Training Center, puts Japanese in Category IV. That is its group of "super-hard languages" for native English speakers, along with Arabic, Korean, Mandarin and Cantonese. It expects a student in this group to need about 88 weeks of full-time study, or 2,200 class hours, to reach level 3 in speaking and listening on the Interagency Language Roundtable scale, which is general professional proficiency. Its typical study week is 23 hours in class plus 17 hours of self-study (US Department of State, Foreign Language Training).

Most people study part time, so think in milestones. With daily practice, simple conversations about yourself, shopping and directions are realistic within a few months, and comfortable everyday conversation takes a few years. Kanji go faster if you already read Chinese characters.

What are the JLPT levels?

The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) has five levels, from N5 (easiest) to N1 (hardest). N5 and N4 test the basic Japanese learned mainly in class, N1 and N2 test Japanese used across a wide range of real situations, and N3 bridges the two (JLPT level summary). The test covers vocabulary, grammar, reading and listening. It has no speaking or writing section, so passing N5 doesn't mean you can hold a conversation. It's held in July and December, though some cities outside Japan offer only one of the two dates.

Can you learn Japanese for free?

Yes, through the beginner stage at least. These cost nothing:

• NHK World-Japan's Japanese lessons, from Japan's public broadcaster.
• JF Japanese e-Learning Minato, from the Japan Foundation, with free courses from level A1 up to B1.
• The Japanese letters page, with a recording of each basic hiragana.

Can you learn Japanese without going through English?

Yes. Indilingo teaches Japanese through any of its 39 languages, so a Tamil speaker can learn it with explanations in Tamil and an Arabic speaker in Arabic. The app teaches the script character by character with audio, and the Speak tab has voice conversations with an AI tutor about everyday situations, with free minutes on the free plan. If you're still deciding, read why learn Japanese, start on the Learn Japanese page, or see our general guide on how to learn a language.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to learn hiragana?

One to two weeks at about 30 minutes a day is a realistic target for the 46 basic characters. Plan on roughly another week for katakana.

How many kanji do I need to know?

The official jōyō list has 2,136 kanji for everyday use, but you don't need any to start speaking. Learn them a few at a time inside words you already know.

How long does it take to learn Japanese?

The US State Department estimates about 88 weeks of full-time study, or 2,200 class hours, for an English speaker to reach general professional proficiency in speaking and listening. Simple everyday conversation is realistic within a few months of daily practice.

Can I learn Japanese from anime?

Anime is good listening practice, but characters often use casual or rough words, like お前 (omae) for "you", that sound rude with strangers. Use it alongside lessons in polite Japanese, not instead of them.

Is Japanese harder than Korean?

The State Department puts both in its hardest category with the same 88-week estimate. Korean's alphabet is much quicker to learn than kanji, while Japanese pronunciation is usually easier at the start. If you're choosing between them, read about why people learn Korean or look at the Learn Korean page.