# iKana Nōto - Kana Notepad — Practice Writing Japanese

> iPad app for practicing Japanese character handwriting with digital tools. (iPhone/iPad app by ThinkMac Software.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ikana-noto-kana-notepad/id449916517 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [ThinkMac Software](https://appshunter.io/developer/288805276)
- Category: Productivity, Education
- Price: $1.99
- Rating: 4.00/5 from 6 App Store ratings · 20 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 16.6 · 42 MB
- Languages: American English, Japanese
- Released: 2011-07-19
- Data updated: 2026-07-21
- Monetization: paid
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ikana-noto-kana-notepad/id449916517/reviews.md

## What is iKana Nōto?

iKana Nōto transforms your fingertip or Apple Pencil® into a virtual marker, mechanical pencil or expressive brush and lets you use your iPad® to practice writing Japanese characters with a number of beautifully designed templates.

Whether you are a novice or an expert at Japanese, iKana Nōto is a great way to improve your handwriting and reinforce your memory.

iKana Nōto is designed to let you write even complicated kanji with ease, using a large drawing area that can be positioned on different sides of the screen to suit your needs. Choose the writing tool that suits your mood or the template, customise the stroke width and write – or draw, what ever you like. Easily correct mistakes using the eraser tool or undo that stroke you got wrong. Lookup kana and kanji you can’t remember how to write, see stroke animations to make sure you are writing them correctly or even trace over them!

iKana Nōto has 19 great templates to work from that allow for a mixture of vertical and horizontal writing styles. There are even a number of fun templates including traditional style scrolls, an ema board, sudoku puzzle and more.

You are not limited to using iKana Nōto only to practice writing though, we’ve made it easy to email your creations and share them on social networks. So why not send a lovely handwritten postcard to your sensei or write notes to your Japanese friends? Everyone will appreciate the personal touch that comes from using your own handwriting.

You will find that iKana Nōto is also ideal to write in other languages such as Chinese and Korean too.

## Key features

- Virtual marker, pencil, and brush tools
- Customizable stroke width
- Eraser and undo functions
- Stroke order animations
- 19 writing templates
- Email and social sharing

## Recent user reviews (10 of 20)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ikana-noto-kana-notepad/id449916517/reviews.md

### 5/5 — (petit) bug d’affichage

*2022-04-17*

App très utiles pour pratiquer l’écriture des KANA / KANJI (à l’aide d’un cours comme Reading Japanese)
J’ai remarqué le bug suivant: à chaque ajout d’une page dans un cahier, les quatre boutons droits de l’interface (où on écrit) se décalent sur la droite (faut fermer, puis réouvrir le cahier pour qu’ils reviennent à leur place)

### 4/5 — Great practice

*2021-10-27*

This is almost exactly what I needed, genkouyoushi paper with kana and kanji tracing. You’ll need a Japanese keyboard installed and a basic understanding of hiragana and katakana before you’ll understand how to search for kanji, but you’ll be learning that anyway if you’re reading this. The only thing that could make this app better is a bit of intelligence able to evaluate the accuracy of your characters, but don’t let that dissuade you. It’s just a wish for me. If you’re learning to write in Japanese, this is what you need, and it is easily worth a couple dollars.

### 2/5 — Not better than pen and paper

*2021-05-03*

Difficult to use for kanji practice, controls are clumsy, writing is laggy. Pen and paper notepad and online Jisho do a better job. I was disappointed.

### 5/5 — Excellent app

*2020-02-19*

Great app for learning and practicing kanji. Works great with the apple pencil.

### 4/5 — Needs better accuracy.

*2018-01-12*

I'm using a second generation iPad Pro 12.9", and this program writes like 3 millimeters below the point you touch.  This is using either the Apple Pencil or just your finger. It isn't enough to make this program unusable, but it irritates me enough to not want to use it.

### 5/5 — Great, beautiful, recommended.

*2016-10-09*

Beautiful application,  very helping for practicing my Kana and a cheeky game of sudoku while practicing Japanese numbers.

### 5/5 — Great and unique app

*2015-11-02*

iKana Noto is a great app to practice Japanese without paper. It can't speak, but has everything for writing. Even kanji dictionary, kana tables and shadow characters to trace.

You can use it to study Japanese or to write in Japanese. iKana Noto can replace many other apps or can accompany them. You still need something to learn phonetics and grammar, since this app cover writing only.

I would like iKana Noto to check your exercise as well. As for now, it's just Japanese notebook.

### 1/5 — A little disappointing

*2014-10-20*

I was hoping this app would have kanji included. Also, I've found that if you write fast, the app will not recognize some lines.

### 1/5 — Was a beautiful app

*2014-06-30*

This used to be a beautiful, relaxing way to practice kanji. Unfortunately, the app was redesigned to something flat and ugly. The beauty was the whole point. Not sure what they were thinking.

### 5/5 — Great app for Kani/Kana practice

*2013-12-21*

Like the design, stroke guidance boxes and fun features like making artistic cards to send to friends. Really nice app - @jmarcelino

## Frequently asked questions about iKana Nōto

### What devices is iKana Nōto compatible with?

iKana Nōto is designed specifically for iPads. It offers a large drawing area and utilizes the iPad's touchscreen for writing practice.

### How much does iKana Nōto cost?

iKana Nōto is a paid application, priced at $1.99. This one-time purchase grants you access to all its features.

### Does iKana Nōto have ads?

No, iKana Nōto is ad-free. You can practice writing Japanese characters without any interruptions from advertisements.

### How often is iKana Nōto updated?

The app was last updated on December 13, 2024, with version 1.6.1. This indicates regular maintenance and potential feature additions.

### What age rating does iKana Nōto have?

iKana Nōto has an age rating of 4+. This makes it suitable for a wide range of users, including younger learners.

### Can I use iKana Nōto for languages other than Japanese?

Yes, the description mentions that iKana Nōto is also ideal for practicing writing in other languages such as Chinese and Korean.

### What kind of templates are available in iKana Nōto?

iKana Nōto offers 19 templates, supporting both vertical and horizontal writing styles. These include traditional scrolls, an ema board, and even a sudoku puzzle.

### What is the user sentiment for iKana Nōto?

Based on the available data, iKana Nōto has a rating of 4.0 stars from 6 ratings, suggesting generally positive user experiences.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.6.1 — 2024-12-13

Fixes a crash when using the eraser tool.

### 1.6.0 — 2024-12-05

Sorry it's been quite awhile since we updated iKana Nōto, but the good news is the app has had a thorough rebuild and should work flawlessly now across all iPad sizes. We've also added a new document browser, dark mode support (finally!) and double tap Apple Pencil to switch tool (on Apple Pencil 2 and Apple Pencil Pro). The brush tool has been reworked to allow more expressive writing. You can now share as PDF for multipage nōtos!

### 1.5 — 2019-04-12

- Fixes issue saving nōtos to your photo library.
- Apple Pencil support with pressure sensitivity and improved stroke fidelity.
- Support for all iPad screen sizes.
- Three new photo wallpapers.
- UI improvements.

### 1.4 — 2015-07-31

- Pick your own background colour or image (including the old bamboo texture if you miss it!)
- Updated kanji database fixes some stroke order errors
- Some minor visual tweaks and bug fixes

### 1.3 — 2014-05-25

- Major redesign and new app icon for iOS 7
- Two new templates - Fuji and Haiku
- Added sharing to FaceBook and Chinese social networking sites Sina Weibo and Tencent Weibo.
- Improved character tracing feature
- Bug fixes

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## More apps by ThinkMac Software

- [iKana - Hiragana and Katakana](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ikana-hiragana-and-katakana/id288805273)
- [iKanji - Learn Japanese Kanji](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ikanji-learn-japanese-kanji/id311920885)
- [WordLine - Letters Game](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/wordline-letters-game/id6768048954)

All apps by ThinkMac Software: https://appshunter.io/developer/288805276

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-07-21.*