Comparison

HelloChinese vs Chinese 101

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

HelloChinese

This app offers a fun and effective way to learn Mandarin Chinese from beginner to conversational levels. It combines game-based lessons, stories, videos, and speech recognition to help you master pronunciation, characters, and practical conversations while exploring Chinese culture.

Highlights
  • Game-based learning
  • Graded stories
  • Immersive lessons
  • Video lessons
  • Speech recognition
  • Character handwriting
  • HSK level courses
Features
Read full description

HelloChinese is the best Mandarin Chinese learning app for beginners! Featured on the App Store in New Apps We Love and Notable Education Apps! Designed in a fun and highly effective manner, HelloChinese helps you rapidly learn Mandarin Chinese from scratch to a conversational level. With HelloChinese, learners can "learn the Chinese language, explore Chinese culture" – you will not only learn Mandarin Chinese but also enjoy the process of delving into the culture intertwined with the language. Features: ◉ Game-based Chinese learning: You will never get bored. ◉ 1000+ graded stories: read engaging stories at your level! ◉ Immersive lessons help you to have real-life, practical conversations quickly. ◉ Over 2,000 videos - all featuring authentic Chinese speakers! ◉ Innovative self-adaptive learning games that incorporate Chinese cultural education. ◉ Speech recognition corrects your pronunciation and makes speaking Chinese a breeze. ◉ Handwriting specially designed to learn Chinese characters at a faster rate. ◉ Systematic courses based on HSK levels. ◉ A well-designed Pinyin (pronunciation) course for newbies. ◉ Bite-sized curriculum to fortify your Chinese listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. ◉ Simplified and traditional Chinese(Mandarin) are both supported. ◉ Offline accessibility: Once a course is downloaded, no internet connection is required. ◉ Study progress tracking across multiple devices. With these tools at your disposal, nothing can stop you from mastering Chinese. Start on your path to fluency today! HelloChinese Premium offers: One-month subscription for $11.99 Three-month subscription for $25.99 Twelve-month subscription for $69.99 The above prices are for U.S. customers. Pricing in other countries may vary, and charges may be converted to your local currency depending on your country of residence. Once purchased, subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off in your iTunes Account settings at least 24 hours before the end of the payment period. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HelloChineseApp/ Privacy Policy: https://www.hellochinese.cc/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.hellochinese.cc/terms.html Premium users can always reach us at premium@hellochinese.cc if they need any help.

About

Chinese 101

Master Chinese characters through interactive tracing and pronunciation exercises. Features multiple learning modes, quizzes, and a memory game to reinforce knowledge. Share your progress and learn in an ad-free environment.

Highlights
  • Interactive character tracing
  • Pronunciation guidance
  • Multiple learning modes (Easy, Normal, Freestyle)
  • Character quizzes
  • Memory Flip Game
  • Progress sharing
Features
Read full description

Learn to write and pronounce Chinese characters with our fun and interactive app. • EASY mode provides a guiding hand to help you trace the characters. • NORMAL mode allows you to enhance your writing precision. • FREESTYLE mode encourages you to write in your unique style and check your understanding from the other modes. Reinforce what you've learned with our interactive QUIZ feature, letting you put your knowledge to the test. With illustrations, see the Chinese characters come to life through their meanings. Challenge yourself with the Memory Flip Game, a fun way to learn. As you learn and master new characters, you can share your scores directly from the app with your friends. Celebrate your progress and inspire others! Our app is completely ad-free, ensuring a seamless and uninterrupted learning experience from the start. After trying a selection of characters for free, you can access the full content with a simple in-app purchase. We welcome your feedback! Visit the support link to suggest new features for future updates. If you find our app beneficial, share it with your friends and family. Thank you.

Screenshots

HelloChinese4 screens
Chinese 1014 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HelloChinese at 4.9 against Chinese 101's 4.4. HelloChinese also leads on ratings volume (23K vs 8) and update cadence (every 6 days vs monthly). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. HelloChinese sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month and Chinese 101 sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HelloChinese holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HelloChinese has 23K ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 95% of HelloChinese's written reviews are positive against 100% of Chinese 101's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

HelloChinese ships an update every 6 days, Chinese 101 monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and July 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
HelloChinese versus Chinese 101: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHelloChineseChinese 101
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (23K ratings) — better4.4 (8 ratings)
Positive reviews94.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings23K — better8
Update frequencyEvery 6 days — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#93 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.114.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size102 MB21 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHelloChinese Technology Co., Ltd.Aspul Studios LLC

Customer experience

HelloChinese

All ratings23,059 ratings
Positive97.8%
Neutral0.9%
Negative1.3%
Written reviews3,648 reviews
Positive94.8%
Neutral2.0%
Negative3.2%

Chinese 101

All ratings8 ratings
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

HelloChinese

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Occasional login issues
  • Inconsistent performance on older devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • More advanced lessons beyond HSK3
  • Option to toggle pinyin on a per-word basis
  • Improved review system with more customization
  • Addition of traditional Chinese characters
  • More real-life conversation practice

Chinese 101

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

13 purchases

HelloChinese

Subscriptions10
  • HelloChinese Premium$11.991 Month
  • HelloChinese Premium+$16.991 Month
  • HelloChinese Premium+$19.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • HelloChinese Premium$25.993 Months
  • HelloChinese Premium$48.991 Year
  • HelloChinese Premium+$62.996 Months
  • HelloChinese Premium$69.991 Year
  • HelloChinese Premium+$89.996 Months
  • HelloChinese Premium+$104.991 Year
  • HelloChinese Premium+$149.991 Year
One-time3
  • 300 coins$4.99
  • 750 coins$9.99
  • 1650 coins$19.99
1 purchases

Chinese 101

One-time1
  • Characters Pack$3.99

Questions

Is HelloChinese free?
HelloChinese is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Chinese 101 free?
Chinese 101 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, HelloChinese or Chinese 101?
HelloChinese is rated higher. HelloChinese averages 4.9 out of 5 from 23K ratings, while Chinese 101 averages 4.4 from 8 ratings.
Do HelloChinese or Chinese 101 have ads?
Neither HelloChinese nor Chinese 101 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, HelloChinese or Chinese 101?
HelloChinese ships an update every 6 days, and Chinese 101 monthly. Most recently, HelloChinese was updated on September 24, 2026 and Chinese 101 on July 22, 2026.

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