# Nihongo Lessons vs Aurea

The clearest difference is rating: Nihongo Lessons at 4.8 against Aurea's 1.0. Nihongo Lessons also leads on ratings volume (129 vs 1) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Aurea's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 13). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Nihongo Lessons sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Aurea asks for nothing beyond the download.

Nihongo Lessons holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Nihongo Lessons has 129 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Nihongo Lessons ships an update every 3 weeks, Aurea every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Nihongo Lessons | Aurea |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (129 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nihongo-lessons/id1640204242/reviews)** | [1.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aurea-daily-wisdom/id6759183186/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **129** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 84.8% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 258 MB | 11 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17** | 17.6 |
| Devices | iPhone | **iPhone, iPad** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Serpenti Sei Japan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1767544234) | [ADAM ARCHULETA](https://appshunter.io/developer/1868133705) |

## What reviewers say

### Nihongo Lessons

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nihongo-lessons/id1640204242)

This app helps learners of all levels achieve Japanese fluency. It uses a flashcard format to teach vocabulary, grammar, and writing systems, with advanced spaced repetition for effective retention. Content is sourced from real manga for advanced learners.

**Highlights:** Learn Hiragana and Katakana, 7000+ handcrafted sentences, Professional voice actor audio, Advanced Spaced Repetition System (SRS), Vocabulary and grammar from manga, Flashcard learning format

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| All Access Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| All Access Yearly | $49.99 | per year |
| Beginner Deck (Discounted) | $59.99 | one-time |
| Champion Deck (Discounted) | $59.99 | one-time |
| Expert Deck (Discounted) | $59.99 | one-time |
| Master Deck (Discounted) | $59.99 | one-time |
| Intermediate Deck (Discounted) | $83.99 | one-time |
| Beginner Deck (Discounted) | $101.99 | one-time |
| Beginner Deck | $119.99 | one-time |
| All Decks (Discounted) | $149.99 | one-time |
| All Decks (Discounted) | $254.99 | one-time |
| All Decks | $299.99 | one-time |
| All Decks (Discounted) | $299.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app for learning Japanese
- 🚀 Well-structured and effective learning format
- 💡 Tailors lessons to user goals
- 👍 Draws from real-life material
- 👍 More intense and serious than Duolingo

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Very expensive to unlock content
- 💰 High cost for full unlock
- 💰 Unlocking sections is costly
- 💰 Pricing is a bit rough
- 💰 Content is repetitive and not varied enough

**Reported bugs**

- Explanation modal flashed and cannot be brought back
- Unclear how to interact with cards (swiping direction)

**Requested features**

- Add notifications
- Add a way to add own notecards for review
- Add meaning and context for some words in dictionary
- Add monthly subscriptions or lower prices
- Add Kanji section


### Aurea

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aurea-daily-wisdom/id6759183186)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Nihongo Lessons free?

Nihongo Lessons is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Aurea free?

Aurea is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Nihongo Lessons or Aurea?

Nihongo Lessons is rated higher. Nihongo Lessons averages 4.8 out of 5 from 129 ratings, while Aurea averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Nihongo Lessons or Aurea have ads?

Neither Nihongo Lessons nor Aurea shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Nihongo Lessons or Aurea?

Nihongo Lessons ships an update every 3 weeks, and Aurea every 2 months. Most recently, Nihongo Lessons was updated on October 24, 2026 and Aurea on October 24, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*