Is the website WaniKani a good resource for learning and practicing Kanji? I’ve been playing around with it for a bit and it seems alright. I know it doesn’t show you how to write it, but I have a kanji book for writing practice. I’m wondering if Wanikani is a good supplement?
16 comments
I like wanikani because all I need is my phone and a few minutes, so I’m actually using it.
It will work like any other spaced repetition program, but it’s bloated with three times as many words as there are kanji, so I wouldn’t recommend it.
Edit: Forgive me, father Tofugu, for I have sinned. Never again shall I take WaniKani’s name in vain.
Start by searching for the 500 other posts asking the exact same question with no context. These people with no research skills at all can’t be helped.
IMHO, WaniKani is an excellent resource for learning Kanji. I started from zero Kanji and in little over a year I have learned essentially all the Kanji I need for JLPT N3.
Yup I’m on level 11 and I’ve found its really helped build self discipline for studying. I never miss a day l. I may not finish all my reviews but I always do a few lessons and never let my reviews pile up to bad.
Yep. I completed level 60 a while back. I don’t have perfect retention, but I don’t really consider that a reasonable expectation. It was also nice to pick up some vocab, which is what really made things work for me. I tried RtK, and I felt like I had nothing to attach anything to, so I quit and switched over when there was a lifetime sale.
It depends on if you find it engaging and if you think their method works…i personally didnt like it
I bought lifetime membership because it has been the most useful app I’ve used. Do the first few levels for free and see what you think.
You can try it for free up to level 3.
Nope. Use anki.
Yeah, it’s really good.
Continue using it until you’ve reached the limit for the free account. If you like it then it’s good, if not – then try something else.
Personally I like WaniKani a lot. I know I can do a lot of it myself using Anki, using other sources, and even lots of free resources, and so on. But there’s just something with WaniKani that feels right for me. It clicks with me, the site is nice to use and motivating.
What really makes it the best option for me is all the plugins and the API which you can use to get color highlighted kanji on webpages based on your WaniKani level, like “the red kanjis are above your level, the black ones you should know, the green ones are easy” or something like that.
It may not be the most efficient time wise. But I would say it is a good option. It is especially good if you use addons to costumize it more to your liking and needs.
Some people use Kamesame with it, you may try it.
Also what matters most imo is that you are enjoying the process, if that is happening with Wanikani, just keep using it.
I can’t deny its effectiveness. But remembering the radicals, ESPECIALLY the ones Wanikani just makes up for their own means? Absolutely useless in my opinion.
While it does give you a good progression of kanji that are both common and useful, I couldn’t help but be very put off by the method in which it both unlocks and progresses (Not related to the kanji itself.), maybe it’s just me, but it seems to be designed more to keep you subscribed than teaching you the kanji and vocabulary (Which it does, don’t get me wrong, but it just seems more ‘weighted’ per se to the subscription side in my opinion.)
Depends who you are. Personally I don’t like memorizing radicals or kanji and would rather just SRS the vocab
It has been perfect for me. I find that learning the kanji and the vocabulary together really helps it stick. But I also wanted to mention that you get access to the forum as well and there is a great community there. If you do the free trial make sure to check that out too.