Comparison

Japanese Reader JP vs Rakuo

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

Head to head
About

Japanese Reader JP

Master Japanese vocabulary, grammar, and reading with a comprehensive learning platform. Features detailed explanations, example sentences, professional voice actor pronunciations, and precise bidirectional translation. Organize learned words into custom folders for efficient study.

Highlights
  • Master Japanese vocabulary, grammar, and reading
  • Detailed word explanations with example sentences
  • Professional voice actor pronunciations
  • Bidirectional Japanese-Chinese translation
  • Customizable word collection folders
  • Precise and fast search functionality
Features
Read full description

Read real Japanese faster. Nihongo Reader JP helps Japanese learners turn real reading material into vocabulary they can understand, save, review, and export. Scan a textbook page, menu, screenshot, manga panel, website excerpt, email, game dialogue, or JLPT reading passage. You can confirm and edit the recognized text before parsing. The app then breaks Japanese text into word-sized pieces, checks local dictionary matches, shows readings and meanings, and helps you save unknown words as vocabulary cards with the original source sentence. Why learners use it: - Scan or paste Japanese text instead of searching one word at a time - Confirm OCR text before parsing, so mistakes are easy to fix - See readings, meanings, and local dictionary matches - Save unknown words with the sentence where you found them - Review vocabulary from your real reading, not random word lists - Export reading vocabulary as CSV or Anki TSV with Pro - Use basic word lookup without daily search limits Built for: - JLPT learners reading practice passages - Self-study learners reading websites, books, manga, or game text - Students who want a lightweight Japanese dictionary and vocabulary notebook - Anyone who wants furigana, meanings, and flashcards from real Japanese text The app is built around one simple loop: Scan or paste Japanese text. Understand the words. Save what you do not know. Review it later. Export your reading vocabulary when you need it. Basic dictionary search is free. Pro reading features focus on OCR, longer text parsing, bulk source-sentence vocabulary cards, review, and CSV / Anki export.

About

Rakuo

Read full description

Rakuo helps you learn languages in a natural way through the videos and books you love, combined with smart tools. Core features support cross-language learning across English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. Watch the videos you love and analyze their subtitles, with deep insight into how conversations work based on those subtitles. Watch English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese videos and analyze the deeper conversation patterns within them, along with word definitions and sentence-level grammar parsing. Supports word-by-word and step-by-step analysis in English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese, plus furigana annotations for Japanese books — so reading is no longer stressful. • Grammar Analysis Tap any sentence to see a clear breakdown of its grammar points, structure, and meaning — every grammar point can be traced back to where it appears. • Reading Mode Import English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese books and read them with in-depth word definitions and sentence-level grammar parsing. Japanese books come with furigana readings. • AI Learning Assistant Ask questions about English, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean grammar, vocabulary, and usage. Get in-depth grammar explanations. • Vocabulary & Favorites Save the words, grammar points, and sentences you want to remember. Track when you first encountered them. • Multi-language Support The interface supports English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese. Premium Membership Subscribe to unlock all premium benefits: 500 AI assistant messages per month 120 minutes of realtime voice conversations per month Unlimited video subtitles and Japanese read-aloud Unlimited favorites and follows Unlimited access to Rakuo Ultra/Pro offline models Free users get full access to all core features with a daily allowance. Subscriptions renew automatically. You can manage or cancel them anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://rakuo.top/terms Privacy Policy: https://rakuo.top/privacy

Screenshots

Japanese Reader JP4 screens
Rakuo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Rakuo at fortnightly against Japanese Reader JP's every 10 months. Japanese Reader JP's advantage is iOS requirement (16.6 vs 18.1). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. Japanese Reader JP sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days and Rakuo sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Japanese Reader JP ships an update every 10 months, Rakuo fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Japanese Reader JP versus Rakuo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJapanese Reader JPRakuo
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 10 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.6 — better18.1
Further details — not scored
Size169 MB989 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperYun Jiang颖嬿 邱

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Japanese Reader JP

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly Pro$0.997 Days
  • Monthly Pro$1.991 Month
  • Yearly Pro$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Pro$29.99
4 purchases

Rakuo

Subscriptions4
  • Monthly Subscription$4.991 Month
  • 3-Month Subscription$12.993 Months
  • 6-Month Subscription$24.996 Months
Show 1 more
  • Annual Subscription$39.991 Year

Questions

Is Japanese Reader JP free?
Japanese Reader JP is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Rakuo free?
Rakuo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Japanese Reader JP or Rakuo have ads?
Neither Japanese Reader JP nor Rakuo shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Japanese Reader JP or Rakuo?
Japanese Reader JP ships an update every 10 months, and Rakuo fortnightly. Most recently, Japanese Reader JP was updated on September 19, 2026 and Rakuo on September 20, 2026.

Other comparisons