# KanjiBox vs Nihongo Lessons

The clearest difference is price: Nihongo Lessons at Free against KanjiBox's $4.99. Nihongo Lessons also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.6). KanjiBox's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). On review sentiment, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Nihongo Lessons is free to download; KanjiBox costs $4.99 up front. KanjiBox sells 8 one-off in-app purchases and Nihongo Lessons sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Nihongo Lessons holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 138 and 126 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 93% of KanjiBox's written reviews are positive against 85% of Nihongo Lessons's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

KanjiBox ships an update weekly, Nihongo Lessons every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | KanjiBox | Nihongo Lessons |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $4.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.6 (138 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kanjibox/id322311303/reviews) | **[4.8 (126 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nihongo-lessons/id1640204242/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **138** | 126 |
| Positive reviews | **92.8% of reviews** | 84.8% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 361 MB | 258 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 17 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Unknown Genius Software](https://appshunter.io/developer/322311306) | [Serpenti Sei Japan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1767544234) |

## What reviewers say

### KanjiBox

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kanjibox/id322311303)

Master Japanese language skills offline with interactive drills, quizzes, and flashcards. Track progress with detailed stats and game-like achievements. Includes handwriting practice and preparation for standardized tests.

**Highlights:** Offline Japanese study, Drills, quizzes, and flashcards, Handwriting practice modules, Progress tracking and achievements, JLPT and Kanji Kentei preparation, Adaptive learning with SRS, Customizable study sets

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

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| KanjiDraw | $0.99 | one-time |
| KanaDraw | $0.99 | one-time |
| Grammar - Beginner I: Particles | $0.99 | one-time |
| Grammar - Intermediate I | $0.99 | one-time |
| Grammar - Beginner II: Where? When? | $0.99 | one-time |
| Grammar - Beginner III: 後, 前, 上, 下... | $0.99 | one-time |
| Advanced I: ところ＋に,で,へ,を... | $0.99 | one-time |
| Vocab N5 Nouns (pt. 1) | $0.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Comprehensive kanji and vocabulary practice
- 🚀 Efficient spaced repetition learning
- 💡 Customizable study settings
- 🚀 Syncs progress across devices
- 👍 Integrates with dictionary app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
- 👎 Limited grammar practice
- 👎 Sensitive kanji writing recognition
- 👎 Repetitive kanji/vocabulary selection

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when launching at higher JLPT levels
- Syncing issues between mobile and web versions
- Incorrect kanji/vocabulary definitions in some cases

**Requested features**

- Add more grammar and sentence-level practice
- Improve kanji writing recognition accuracy
- Allow searching for specific kanji or vocabulary
- Provide more detailed review of missed questions


### 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


## Frequently asked questions

### Is KanjiBox free?

KanjiBox costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Nihongo Lessons free?

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

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

Nihongo Lessons is rated higher. KanjiBox averages 4.6 out of 5 from 138 ratings, while Nihongo Lessons averages 4.8 from 126 ratings.

### Do KanjiBox or Nihongo Lessons have ads?

Neither KanjiBox nor Nihongo Lessons shows ads.

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

KanjiBox ships an update weekly, and Nihongo Lessons every 3 weeks. Most recently, KanjiBox was updated on October 20, 2026 and Nihongo Lessons on October 17, 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.*