Benji vs Ringotan
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Benji
This app helps you improve your Japanese vocabulary, reading, and writing skills. It combines a dictionary, notebook, and quiz features to make memorizing new words easier. Create custom lists and practice with various quizzes, from basic hiragana to advanced kanji.
- Interactive quizzes for reading and writing
- Customizable word lists
- In-app dictionary with over 100,000 entries
- Full sentence translation and word list creation
- Review quizzes based on learning progress
- JLPT N1-5 kanji support
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Learning Japanese? Benji is a simple app that helps you improve your vocabulary as well as your reading and writing skills. Benji is like combining a dictionary, a notebook, and a quiz app. Having it all in one place makes memorizing new vocabulary so much easier. The idea is quite simple: every time you come across a new word, 1. Use Benji to look it up 2. Add it to a list 3. Play various quizzes to memorize the list That’s the basics. Here is a feature rundown: * Quizzes Learn how to read and write Japanese through interactive quizzes. Benji comes bundled with quizzes ranging from basic hiragana to advanced level kanji (matching JLPT N1-5). * Customize Create your own word lists to focus on what you want to learn. Add example sentences and customize translations to help you put the words in context. * Dictionary In-app dictionary with well over 100,000 words and expressions. * Full Sentence Search Copy a news article / word listing / short story you found online and paste in Benji to translate all the words it contains. You can then easily make a list out of them. * Review Quiz Need to revisit the content from previous quizzes to prepare for the final exam? Benji observers your learning and knows what words you need to practice the most. To get most out of Benji, use it alongside your other Japanese learning activities such as preparing for a quiz, participating in class, studying online, reading a book, watching a video etc. In the free version, you can have two word-lists. Purchasing Benji removes this restriction.
Ringotan
Master Japanese Kanji by practicing writing. This app uses advanced input detection and spaced repetition to help you learn quickly and effectively. Focuses on the physical act of writing characters, not just recognition.
- Learn Kanji by writing
- Advanced input detection
- Spaced repetition system (SRS)
- Focus on writing, not just reading
- Frequent updates with new features
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Learn Kanji by actually writing it! Ringotan is the first app built from the ground up to teach you how to WRITE Japanese Kanji, not just read them. By combining advanced input detection with industry-standard SRS (spaced repetition) algorithms, Ringotan ensures you learn as fully and quickly as possible. ----------------- Ringotan is free for a limited time. We update frequently, so be sure to check back for new features!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Ringotan at none against Benji's 1. Ringotan also leads on ratings volume (575 vs 2). Benji's advantage is iOS requirement (6.0 vs 12.2). On price, rating, ads and device support 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
Both are free to download. Benji sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Ringotan asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Benji against 4.9 for Ringotan. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Ringotan has 575 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.
| Parameter | Benji | Ringotan |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better | 4.9 (575 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | — | 95.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 575 — better |
| Update frequency | — | Every 3 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 6.0 — better | 12.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 104 MB | 206 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Paavo Kyppo | Daniel Pflughoeft |
Customer experience
Benji
Ringotan
Bugs and requests
Benji
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Ringotan
Reported bugs
2 issues- Occasional issues with stroke order recognition
- Some kanji pronunciations not accurately represented
Requested features
5 requests- Add dark mode option
- Allow users to create and save custom kanji lists
- Provide more detailed keyword hints before writing
- Implement device sync to continue progress across platforms
- Add notification system to remind users of upcoming reviews
In-app purchases
Benji
- Full Version$4.99
Ringotan
No in-app purchases









