# Noodle Chinese — Write characters, study vocab

> Offline Chinese character and vocabulary learning app with handwriting recognition. (iPhone/iPad app by Noodle Chinese, Inc.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/noodle-chinese/id1375293467 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Noodle Chinese, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1375293466)
- Category: Education, Reference
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.38/5 from 90 App Store ratings · 44 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 9+
- Requires: iOS 11.0 · 114 MB
- Languages: English
- Released: 2018-05-17
- Data updated: 2026-06-10
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/noodle-chinese/id1375293467/reviews.md

## What is Noodle Chinese?

The easiest, most effective way to create and study Chinese vocab lists!

- 100% Offline.
Noodle works without data. Study anywhere, anytime, without waiting for anything to load.

- Handwriting Recognition.
Practice over 10,000 characters. When studying, get real-time feedback on your strokes.

- Personalized Learning
Noodle adapts to your progress, focusing more on words you need help with, less on those you know.

- Smart Flashcards
Study actively by reading and writing words. Memorize faster, remember longer.

- A Full Dictionary.
Over 100,000 entries. See example sentences, character breakdowns, synonyms, and related words.

- Vocab Lists.
Create your own or choose from hundreds of topics like Numbers, Colors, and Animals.

## Key features

- Offline access
- Handwriting recognition
- Personalized learning
- Smart flashcards
- Full dictionary
- Custom vocab lists

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Annual Plan | $77.99 | per year |
| Biannual Plan | $47.99 | per 6 months |
| Monthly Plan | $12.99 | per month |


## Recent user reviews (10 of 44)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/noodle-chinese/id1375293467/reviews.md

### 2/5 — Stroke animation

*2024-06-25*

The stroke animation is terrible and distracting, with the strokes flipping back and forth needlessly. The very minimal number of lists that are free is also a huge downside.

### 5/5 — Exactly what I was looking for

*2024-01-14*

Many chinese language resources really seem to miss the mark for me, starting by teaching all sorts of characters you are very likely to see in a textbook, but very unlikely to see out in your daily life. This app gives lists of most commonly used characters - ones you will actually come across on signage and menus. However, if you are a student or something and need to know how to write the the obligatory “teacher” and “nice to meet you” type of characters, they are included as well in the HSK lists. Really a wonderful app, a very good use of spaced repetition software. Making the act of remembering characters into a sort of game with instant feedback is such a good way to learn. The fact that it is offline makes it even more convenient. One thing - a few of the recordings are wrong but the pinyin (so far) is always right so do mind that. I also would love the capacity to make an account so that I can keep the same progress on my ipad and my iphone.

Edit: trying to use this app again in 2024 most lists are locked behind a paywall. More importantly though, there’s a weird glitch where every stroke I write appears first backwards and then the correct way. Very very disorienting. I will not be using this app anymore

### 1/5 — Flashcards don’t make sense

*2023-04-15*

Have flash cards in pinjin and not their English translation. Following your logic, I am asked about things like “Chinese radical”. How am supposed to know from that WHICH radical you want? Bugs like that are really idiotic in what could otherwise be a good app.

### 4/5 — Used to be perfect

*2023-03-23*

This app used to be the perfect app for learning to write Chinese! But on my new phone it has a bug that reverses all of the character strokes when you write and is really distracting 😭 I can only use it on my old phone - hope you can fix this sometime 🤞🤞🤞

### 1/5 — Strokes flipping

*2023-02-01*

The strokes appear backwards then flip.

### 2/5 — Issues with writing practice feature

*2022-03-03, version 0.1.1*

The practice writing feature doesn’t work on the iPad

### 3/5 — Potential

*2021-11-26, version 0.1.1*

I got this app to learn how to write characters, but when I practice, I am unable to see  all of the character, because of how zoomed in it is

### 3/5 — Good but a problem for me

*2021-09-26, version 0.1.1*

When I’m on my iPad and I click on the Chinese character to write I can’t exit so I had to reopen the app

### 2/5 — Glitches your money away.

*2021-07-06, version 0.1.1*

I love the concept for this app. It has a ton of great potential. But the number of glitches that it has makes it annoying as heck to work with. Whatever you do do not buy the subscription. If you ever Delete and the re download or update the app it will delete you subscription with no option to restore your access. It just eats your money. The app has so many glitches that it is impossible to give a comprehensive list but a few of my favorites are: not letting you access the last few words in the list you’re studying, speaking the wrong pronunciation on several different flash cards, having the wrong character in the writing portion of the flash card, having the most sensitive “double tap to show answer” feature that makes you accidentally reveal the answer to the question marking the question wrong and making you start over. 

I would love to give this app 5 stars. I can tell that someone put a lot of effort into a stellar concept. But it is just too glitchy to deal with.

### 1/5 — One Major Criticism

*2021-04-18, version 0.1.1*

The character 和 is a very common Chinese hanzi, and its definition is “and.” But I looked this character up in Noodle Chinese’s dictionary, only to find out that “and” is not among this character’s listed definitions. I find this surprising, considering how common of a character 和 is.

Please fix for a good rating.

## Frequently asked questions about Noodle Chinese

### What does Noodle Chinese do?

Noodle Chinese is an app designed to help users learn and study Chinese vocabulary and characters. It offers features like handwriting recognition, personalized learning paths, smart flashcards, and a comprehensive dictionary to facilitate effective language acquisition.

### What are the key features of Noodle Chinese?

Key features include 100% offline functionality, handwriting recognition for over 10,000 characters with stroke feedback, personalized learning that adapts to your progress, smart flashcards for active study, a dictionary with over 100,000 entries, and the ability to create custom vocabulary lists.

### Is Noodle Chinese free to use?

The app is free to download and use, offering core functionalities. It also includes in-app purchases, suggesting that some advanced features or content may require a purchase to unlock.

### Can I use Noodle Chinese without an internet connection?

Yes, Noodle Chinese is 100% offline. You can study anywhere, anytime, without needing a data connection or waiting for content to load, making it ideal for on-the-go learning.

### Who is Noodle Chinese for?

This app is designed for anyone wanting to learn or improve their Chinese language skills, specifically focusing on characters and vocabulary. It caters to learners of all levels, from beginners practicing basic words to advanced students refining their character writing.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 0.1.1 — 2020-05-01

New in this version:
- Dark mode
- New lists
- Bug fixes

We'd love to hear from you! hello@noodlechinese.com

### 0.1.0 — 2020-04-28

Get in touch with us: hello@noodlechinese.com

New in this version:
- Dark mode
- New lists
- Bug fixes

### 0.0.14 — 2018-10-06

We'd love to hear from you! hello@noodlechinese.com

In this release:
- Bug fixes

### 0.0.12 — 2018-09-25

We'd love to hear from you! hello@noodlechinese.com

In this release:
- Bug fixes
- Performance improvements

### 0.0.11 — 2018-06-05

- Bug fixes

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| [HSK Vocabulary and Quiz](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hsk-vocabulary-and-quiz/id1449305092) | 4.6 (285) | Free | Education |

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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 2026-06-10.*
