Comparison

Literate Chinese vs Modu

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

Head to head
About

Literate Chinese

Master Chinese reading and listening with adaptive flashcards, leveled texts, and authentic audio. Learn characters in context, track your progress, and build a personalized vocabulary bank. Ideal for learners of all levels, from beginner to advanced.

Highlights
  • Adaptive spaced-repetition flashcards
  • Leveled reading materials with instant translations
  • Studio-quality audio with multiple accents
  • Custom flashcard creation and import
  • Progress tracking and motivation stats
  • Traditional and Simplified character support
Features
Read full description

Learn to read, hear, and actually use Chinese. Literate Chinese pairs a serious spaced-repetition flashcard system with 1,000+ graded stories, so every word you learn is reinforced by reading it in context. It works in both Mainland and Taiwan Mandarin, in Simplified or Traditional, from your very first character all the way to advanced reading. I grew up speaking Chinese without being able to read it and this app is me creating everything I ever dreamed of for learning to read Chinese effectively. READ FROM DAY ONE • Graded stories, dialogs, news, and articles matched to your personal vocabulary. The app knows which characters you know and shows you how much of each story you can already read • Tap any word for instant pinyin or zhuyin, a clear definition, and native-quality audio (in Mainland and Taiwan accents, male or female) • Read the news in easy Chinese, or paste or photograph your own Chinese text and read it the same way with custom stories • Preview a story's new words before you read, and let Up Next queue the next chapter of the series you're following • Video lessons with synced, tappable subtitles • A built-in grammar guide, with every grammar point linked to real stories that use it THE BEST CHINESE FLASHCARD APP • True spaced repetition (SRS) built on your personal vocabulary bank, not just card decks • Complete HSK 2.0 and HSK 3.0 lists, TOCFL lists, AP Chinese, and themed vocabulary • Capture new words from photos or audio and turn them into cards in seconds • Drill any list on demand, practice writing characters, and get example sentences with audio on every card • Share your custom word lists with a code or link, so a class or a friend can study the same words • An AI word helper explains usage and nuance, tells you whether a word is actually common, and gives you more example sentences REVIEW THAT FEELS LIKE PLAY • A vocabulary arcade built on the words you're actually learning - another feature I always thought would be so fun so I built it. • Speed rounds, listening sprints, sentence scrambles, falling-character battles, and write-from-memory challenges • Every round counts as real review, so playing moves your streak and your spaced repetition forward BUILT FOR TAIWAN LEARNERS TOO • Full Traditional character and zhuyin (bopomofo) support throughout the app • Taiwan Mandarin audio with authentic Taiwan pronunciations • Taiwan-specific vocabulary lists: everyday terms, slang, and words that differ from Mainland usage • Stories automatically adapt their vocabulary to Taiwan or Mainland Chinese based on your settings • AI tells you whether a word is actually used in Taiwan (and vice versa for Mainland China) EVERYTHING ELSE YOU'D EXPECT • Simplified and Traditional, pinyin and zhuyin, switch anytime • Detailed progress stats, streaks, and a reading level that grows with you • Home and lock screen widgets with your streak and a word of the day • Dark mode, offline review, no ads Start free with the core study tools and a generous set of stories. Upgrade to Premium when you're ready to unlock the full library. Whether you're on your first 50 characters or reading full stories, Literate Chinese is the graded reader and flashcard app that grows with you. Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Modu

Features
Read full description

Read Chinese stories, understand unfamiliar words, and build vocabulary from what you read. Modu combines graded reading, a tap-to-lookup dictionary, and spaced-repetition review in one app. Choose a graded story or import your own EPUB and TXT books. Tap unfamiliar words for pinyin and meanings, save vocabulary in context, and review it later. READ WHAT INTERESTS YOU • Explore a library of graded retellings of public-domain stories. • Import EPUB and TXT books to read with built-in learning tools. • Generate AI stories based on your selected topic and level, with vocabulary you are due to review. • Follow RSS feeds. Available article text depends on the source; some feeds provide summaries only. UNDERSTAND AS YOU READ • Tap words for pinyin, meanings, and measure words. • Use AI explanations to explore a word in the context of a sentence. • Translate sentences and paragraphs into English on your device, or read with a bilingual chapter view. • Listen to text with read-aloud tools. REMEMBER WORDS IN CONTEXT • Save vocabulary from your reading and review it with spaced-repetition flashcards. • Mark words as known to focus highlighting on unfamiliar vocabulary. • Track your reading and vocabulary progress, and export your vocabulary. OFFLINE READING AND YOUR ACCOUNT Read and save books on your device as a guest, without creating an account. Books already on your device and core reading tools work offline. On-device translation requires an initial language-model download. AI features and natural online voices require an internet connection. Sign in to back up your vocabulary. Modu Plus also syncs reading progress and other learning data across devices. Imported book files remain on your device; import the same books on another device to continue reading there. FREE + MODU PLUS Free features include reading, dictionary lookup, on-device translation, bilingual reading, vocabulary review, book imports, RSS, the story library, and basic read-aloud. Limited AI explanations and story generation are included. Modu Plus adds higher AI usage allowances, natural multi-voice read-aloud, and additional learning-data sync. AI and natural-voice usage limits apply. See the in-app purchase screen for available plans and current allowances. Start with a story, and build your Chinese one reading session at a time. Terms of Use (EULA): https://modu-ai-proxy.zhouxuehan101.workers.dev/terms Privacy Policy: https://modu-ai-proxy.zhouxuehan101.workers.dev/privacy

Screenshots

Literate Chinese4 screens
Modu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Modu at none against Literate Chinese's 7. Modu also leads on update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly) and iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Literate Chinese sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month. Modu asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Literate Chinese ships an update fortnightly, Modu weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Literate Chinese versus Modu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLiterate ChineseModu
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (56 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings56 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.5 — better
Further details — not scored
Size151 MB153 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRay Banks雪寒 周

Bugs and requests

Literate Chinese

Requested features

2 requests
  • Add audio for words
  • Allow creating custom flashcard decks

Modu

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

7 purchases

Literate Chinese

Subscriptions5
  • Literate Early User Monthly7 Days trial$8.991 Month
  • Literate Monthly7 Days trial$12.991 Month
  • Literate Early User Annual7 Days trial$69.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Literate Annual14 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • Literate Premium Annual1 Year trial$99.991 Year
One-time2
  • Literate Lifetime$139.99
  • Literate Lifetime$249.99
None

Modu

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Literate Chinese free?
Literate Chinese is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Modu free?
Modu is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Literate Chinese or Modu have ads?
Neither Literate Chinese nor Modu shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Literate Chinese or Modu?
Literate Chinese ships an update fortnightly, and Modu weekly. Most recently, Literate Chinese was updated on October 30, 2026 and Modu on October 31, 2026.

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