Comparison

Dictionary.com vs Nihongo

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

Head to head
About

Dictionary.com

Access over 2 million trusted definitions and synonyms for English words. Enhance your vocabulary with daily new words, example sentences, and audio pronunciations. This app provides grammar tips and editorial content to deepen your understanding of the English language.

Highlights
  • 2 million+ definitions and synonyms
  • Word of the Day
  • Example sentences
  • Audio pronunciations
  • Grammar tips
  • Search history
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Download the #1 free dictionary app! With more than 2 million trusted definitions and synonyms, this English dictionary and thesaurus app for iPhone is optimized for your mobile device. Improve your English vocabulary, whether you're just starting your learning journey or you're already a word wizard. Install the app for access to definitions and synonyms whenever and wherever you need them — no bulky books necessary. Flip to dark mode to give your eyes a break, or stick to the traditional set-up. In addition to the trusted reference content from Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com, this education app includes: Word of the Day ► Learn a new word each day and expand your vocabulary. Example Sentences ► Browse real-world example sentences to see how words are used. Idioms ► Explore how words can gain new meanings. Rhymes ► Finish every verse. Audio Pronunciations ► Never mispronounce another word. Grammar ► Get grammar tips, word usage, and more to improve your writing. Editorial Articles ► Explore editorial content for features on words, the origins of the English language, and the nuances that make English so complicated and unique. Search History ► Customize your recently searched word list, and never forget the newest words you’ve learned. Dictionary Shuffle ► Think you know ALL the definitions? Prove it with Dictionary Shuffle, which chooses a word at random and brings you to the definition. A-Z Dictionary ► What’s more exciting than ... wait for it … browsing the Dictionary?! We’ve now made it even easier, with the A–Z Dictionary.

About

Nihongo

This app is an offline Japanese study tool that functions as a dictionary, translator, and flashcard creator. It helps users learn Japanese by analyzing text from their surroundings, such as signs and menus, and creating personalized study materials.

Highlights
  • Offline Japanese dictionary
  • Picture-to-text translation (OCR)
  • Automatic flashcard creation
  • Reading assistant with furigana/romaji
  • Spaced repetition flashcards
  • Search in English, Japanese, or romaji
Features
Read full description

Nihongo is an offline Japanese dictionary, picture-to-text translator, flashcard app, and reading assistant. Our app helps you learn Japanese naturally, using the words you encounter in daily life—on menus, signs, manga, emails, books, and more. In addition to the dictionary, you can take a picture of Japanese text or paste it from any source. Nihongo will then translate the text, add furigana or romaji, and create flashcards so you can study and steadily build your vocabulary. Here are the complete features of the app: DICTIONARY * Over 200,000 words, 205,000 example sentences, and 6000 kanji entries. * Every word clearly marked as common, uncommon, or rare. * Add your own notes to any dictionary entry. * Quickly identify transitive/intransitive word pairs. * Audio pronunciations of words and example sentences (Requires Nihongo Pro) PHOTO LOOKUP (OCR) [Pro] * Look up words just by taking a picture. * Uses Google Cloud Vision to provide high-quality text recognition. * Just tap on a word to look it up. CLIPPINGS (READING ASSISTANT) [Pro] * Adds furigana or romaji to text pasted into the app. * Tap on any word to see its definition without leaving the clipping. * Flashcard deck automatically created so you can study the new words in a clipping. * Display text horizontally or vertically. * Have Nihongo read any clipping out loud. FLASHCARDS [Pro] * Flashcards automatically generated from words you lookup in the dictionary or paste into the app. * Nihongo learns what words you know, and won't bother you again with words you've mastered. * Built-in kanji flashcard decks up through Middle School. * Intuitive spaced repetition flashcard system for vocabulary and kanji drawing. * Level up flashcards by studying every day. * No penalty for missing a day of study, come back anytime. SEARCH * Search using English, Japanese, or romaji. * Supports searching for conjugated words in both English and Japanese. * Search for kanji using radicals and stroke counts. SAFARI EXTENSION [Pro] * Add furigana or romaji to webpages. * Tap on words to see definition within Safari. Nihongo Pro Terms of Use Read our full Terms of Service at https://nihongo-app.com/terms_of_use.html. This app is only possible because of the JMDict (edrdg.org) and Tatoeba (tatoeba.org) projects. I highly encourage you to support these incredible projects that make apps like Nihongo possible!

Screenshots

Dictionary.com4 screens
Nihongo4 screens

Verdict

The call

Dictionary.com and Nihongo both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 91% of Nihongo's written reviews are positive against 26% of Dictionary.com's. Nihongo also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs monthly). Dictionary.com's advantage is ratings volume (328K vs 1.9K) and chart position (#146 vs unranked). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Dictionary.com sells 9 one-off in-app purchases and Nihongo sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Dictionary.com against 4.8 for Nihongo. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Dictionary.com has 328K ratings behind it against 1.9K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 26% of Dictionary.com's written reviews are positive against 91% of Nihongo's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dictionary.com ships an update monthly, Nihongo weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Dictionary.com versus Nihongo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDictionary.comNihongo
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (328K ratings)4.8 (1.9K ratings)
Positive reviews25.8% of reviews91.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings328K — better1.9K
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#146 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size35 MB492 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperCuriosity MediaSerpenti Sei Japan

Customer experience

Dictionary.com

All ratings327,783 ratings
Positive95.5%
Neutral2.0%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews1,381 reviews
Positive25.8%
Neutral9.2%
Negative65.0%

Nihongo

All ratings1,860 ratings
Positive95.5%
Neutral2.5%
Negative2.0%
Written reviews261 reviews
Positive91.2%
Neutral4.6%
Negative4.2%

User reviews

Dictionary.com

From 328K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Robust dictionary and thesaurus
  • 🤓 Helpful resources like blogs and articles
  • 💡 Useful word games and puzzles
  • 👍 Easy to use and navigate
  • 🤩 Great for expanding vocabulary

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Inconsistent search results and missing definitions
  • 💸 Aggressive ads even after paid upgrades
  • 🤯 Frequent crashes and performance issues
  • 🤔 Confusing layout changes and UI issues
  • 🤷‍♀️ Paid features not always working as expected

Nihongo

From 1.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent dictionary
  • 👍 Comprehensive features
  • 🔒 Offline compatibility
  • 👍 Helpful example sentences
  • 👍 Intuitive interface

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
  • 💰 Subscription model could be expensive
  • 🔍 Difficult to manage flashcards

Bugs and requests

Dictionary.com

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Notifications not working as expected
  • Inconsistent behavior when tapping on words
  • Offline dictionary not downloading properly
  • Frequent crashes and freezes on various devices
  • Paid features not unlocking or resetting unexpectedly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Dedicated section to display all forms of a word
  • Ability to create and manage custom word lists
  • Improved offline mode with more functionality
  • Better integration with other productivity apps
  • More language support beyond just English

Nihongo

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Freezing issues when tapping on kanji
  • Font size problems
  • Inconsistent OCR and translation accuracy

Requested features

5 requests
  • Handwriting input support
  • Customizable flashcard settings
  • Monolingual dictionary feature
  • Improved backup and sync functionality
  • Statistics and progress tracking

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Dictionary.com

One-time9
  • Rhyming Dictionary$1.99
  • Grammar & Tips$1.99
  • Idioms & Phrases$1.99
Show 6 more
  • Example Sentences$2.99
  • Science Dictionary$2.99
  • Encyclopedia$2.99
  • Offline Dictionary$2.99
  • Remove Ads$2.99
  • Power Pack$5.99
5 purchases

Nihongo

Subscriptions3
  • Nihongo Pro (Monthly)7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Nihongo Pro (3 Months)7 Days trial$11.993 Months
  • Nihongo Pro (Annual)7 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time2
  • Pitch Accents$9.99
  • Nihongo Pro (Lifetime)2 variants$179.99

Questions

Is Dictionary.com free?
Dictionary.com is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Nihongo free?
Nihongo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Dictionary.com or Nihongo?
Dictionary.com and Nihongo are both rated 4.8 out of 5 on the App Store, from 328K and 1.9K ratings respectively.
Do Dictionary.com or Nihongo have ads?
Dictionary.com shows ads; Nihongo does not.
Which is updated more often, Dictionary.com or Nihongo?
Dictionary.com ships an update monthly, and Nihongo weekly. Most recently, Dictionary.com was updated on September 27, 2026 and Nihongo on September 26, 2026.

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