# Jishokun vs Dictionaries

Jishokun and Dictionaries both sit at 4.2 stars, but that hides the real split: 57% of Dictionaries's written reviews are positive against 16% of Jishokun's. Dictionaries also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly). On price, rating, ratings volume and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Jishokun sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Dictionaries sells 23 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Jishokun against 4.1 for Dictionaries. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 29 and 85 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 16% of Jishokun's written reviews are positive against 57% of Dictionaries's.

Jishokun ships an update fortnightly, Dictionaries weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Jishokun | Dictionaries |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.2 (29 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/jishokun/id671889349/reviews)** | [4.1 (85 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dictionaries/id1380563956/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 29 | **85** |
| Positive reviews | 16.4% of reviews | **56.8% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 250 MB | 65 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Penzo](https://appshunter.io/developer/502622543) | [物書堂](https://appshunter.io/developer/284350529) |

## What reviewers say

### Jishokun

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/jishokun/id671889349)

This app provides comprehensive Japanese-English and English-Japanese dictionary functions. It includes features for kanji lookup, pronunciation, text translation, and stroke order visualization. Users can also save frequently used words and customize settings like text size.

**Highlights:** Japanese-English and English-Japanese dictionary, Kanji search with handwriting and radicals, English word pronunciation and text translation, Stroke order visualization, Save frequently used words, Adjustable text size

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Jishokun Premium | $3.99 | one-time |


### Dictionaries

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dictionaries/id1380563956)

Access and search multiple dictionaries simultaneously in one app. Purchase various language dictionaries, including English and Japanese, from an in-app store. Features include batch searching, handwriting input, and cross-dictionary navigation.

**Highlights:** Batch search multiple dictionaries, Purchase language dictionaries, Handwriting input support, Trace and Jump between words, Bookmark and categorize words, iCloud synchronization, Multitasking with other apps

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (23)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| WISDOM English-Japanese 2 | Free | one-time |
| WISDOM English-Japanese | Free | one-time |
| COBUILD American 2nd edition | Free | one-time |
| COBUILD Advanced 9th edition | Free | one-time |
| DAIJIRIN | Free | one-time |
| 柯林斯 COBUILD 高级英汉双解词典 | Free | one-time |
| RGKO12 Upgrade | Free | one-time |
| REIKAI GAKUSHU KOKUGO 11th | $15.99 | one-time |
| REIKAI GAKUSYU KANJI 9th | $15.99 | one-time |
| Nihongo Bunkei Ziten: English | $19.99 | one-time |
| Basic Japanese Grammar | $20.99 | one-time |
| Gendai Shin Kokugo Jiten | $20.99 | one-time |
| SHINMEIKAI 8 | $22.99 | one-time |
| Meikyo Japanese Dictionary | $22.99 | one-time |
| DAIJISEN | $22.99 | one-time |
| Japanese Colloquial Expressions | $25.99 | one-time |
| WISDOM English-Japanese 3 | $26.99 | one-time |
| DAIJIRIN 4 | $28.99 | one-time |
| Shogakukan Chinese-Japanese | $31.99 | one-time |
| OALD 10 | $32.99 | one-time |
| Japanese Collocations | $33.99 | one-time |
| NHK Japanese Pronunciation | $36.99 | one-time |
| SHOGAKUKAN Korean-Japanese | $47.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Jishokun free?

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

### Is Dictionaries free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Jishokun or Dictionaries?

Jishokun is rated higher. Jishokun averages 4.2 out of 5 from 29 ratings, while Dictionaries averages 4.1 from 85 ratings.

### Do Jishokun or Dictionaries have ads?

Jishokun shows ads; Dictionaries does not.

### Which is updated more often, Jishokun or Dictionaries?

Jishokun ships an update fortnightly, and Dictionaries weekly. Most recently, Jishokun was updated on November 1, 2026 and Dictionaries on October 29, 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.*