Comparison

ManabuLab vs Gravity

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

Head to head
About

ManabuLab

Master Japanese alphabets, kanji with mnemonics, and everyday vocabulary. Build grammar understanding and reading skills from the start with structured lessons and a smart review system. Designed for beginners to develop real language proficiency.

Highlights
  • Hiragana & Katakana mastery
  • Kanji with visual mnemonics
  • Everyday vocabulary building
  • Clear grammar explanations
  • Reading & listening practice
  • Smart review system
Features
Read full description

Start learning Japanese with a clear path from your first characters to everyday words and sentences. ManabuLab combines short lessons, visual kanji stories, and practical exercises to help complete beginners build their skills step by step. Whether you want to read Japanese, prepare for a trip, or explore the language behind your favorite interests, start with the basics and build from there. WHAT YOU CAN LEARN · Hiragana and Katakana: Learn the Japanese alphabets with stroke order and practice. · Kanji: Use image mnemonics and simple visual stories to make characters easier to remember. · Vocabulary: Learn everyday words with pictures, meanings, and pronunciation. · Grammar: Understand how sentences work through clear explanations and examples. · Reading and listening: Put your knowledge into practice with exercises that develop both skills. · Smart review: Revisit what you have learned with spaced repetition to strengthen recall. A CLEAR PATH FOR BEGINNERS Work through structured lessons that bring characters, vocabulary, and grammar together. Explanations and examples help you understand each new concept, while practice gives you opportunities to use what you have learned. Short lessons make it easier to fit Japanese into your day, whether you have time for a quick session or want to study a little longer. REMEMBER WHAT YOU LEARN Visual mnemonics connect kanji with images and simple stories, giving you something meaningful to recall. Learn useful vocabulary alongside pronunciation and meaning, then return to previous material through the smart review system. Build your understanding over time, with regular practice that helps new characters and words become more familiar. KEEP YOUR LEARNING MOVING Follow your progress, build a learning streak, and celebrate milestones with achievements. Leaderboards add friendly competition, while the community feed lets you share learning updates and follow other learners. Turn small study sessions into a routine and see your progress grow one lesson at a time. PRACTICE BEYOND YOUR LESSONS Home screen and lock screen widgets bring Japanese words into view throughout the day. Keep vocabulary close at hand and make room for small moments of learning between lessons. ► Download ManabuLab and take your first step toward reading and understanding Japanese, one lesson at a time. PRIVACY POLICY: https://manabulab.app/privacy/ TERMS OF USE: https://manabulab.app/terms/

About

Gravity

Learn Japanese by capturing real-world text from your surroundings. This app creates personalized flashcards and study plans based on the vocabulary you encounter daily, making learning practical and context-driven.

Highlights
  • Personalized learning plans
  • Instant vocabulary extraction from photos
  • Smart review system
  • Context-based flashcards
  • Immersion-focused learning
  • Daily learning sessions
Features
Read full description

LEARN LANGUAGES THE FAST WAY - THROUGH VIDEOS! (Now with Mandarin Chinese support!) ◆ Learn Japanese and Mandarin Chinese through the content you already love. ◆ Gravity is an immersion-first language app that turns real videos and music into personalized learning. Doomscroll short native clips, sing along in Karaoke Mode, or pick something from a hand-curated library of native videos, each one transcribed word by word and levelled for learners. ◆ Whether you're into anime, J-pop, C-dramas, music, or YouTube creators, Gravity helps you build real language skills through context instead of generic textbook lessons. WHY CHOOSE GRAVITY? → Doomscroll to fluency: Moments turns scrolling into learning with a feed of short clips from native content. → Curated video library: native videos across anime, music, entertainment, creators, and more, levelled from complete beginner to advanced. → Word-synced transcripts: follow along word by word as the audio plays, with an English translation for every line that you can show or hide. → Karaoke Mode: follow the lyrics of songs you love, understand every line, and pick up vocabulary through music. → Tap to learn: tap any word for its reading, meaning, and an AI explanation, then save it in one tap. → Context-based flashcards: every saved word keeps the moment it came from, so you can replay the original clip while you review. → Smart spaced repetition: reviews are scheduled so each word comes back right before you'd forget it. → Practice right after watching: review the words you just saved as soon as you finish a video. → Daily word goals and reminders: stay consistent without overwhelming study sessions. BUILT FOR EACH LANGUAGE Japanese → Furigana, romaji, or no reading aids. Your choice. → Pitch accent graphs and dictionary meanings on every card. → Anime, J-pop, podcasts, streams, and more, levelled from Pre-JLPT to N1. Mandarin Chinese → Pinyin with tone marks, or turn it off. → Simplified characters, with traditional forms shown alongside. → C-dramas, music, and more, levelled from Pre-HSK to HSK 6. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN ◆ Real vocabulary and phrases, the way native speakers actually use them. ◆ Listening and reading skills through authentic videos, songs, and clips. ◆ Words from the shows, music, and creators you already watch. ◆ Language you'll actually hear, not just textbook examples. WHO IT'S FOR → Anime, J-pop, C-drama, and music fans who want to learn from what they already love. → Learners who already spend hours watching videos and scrolling online. → Travelers, international students, and people living or working abroad. → Busy learners who want immersion to fit naturally into their day. → Anyone tired of repetitive textbook lessons and overwhelming flashcard decks. HOW IT WORKS 1. Choose Japanese or Mandarin Chinese and your level. 2. Watch a video, scroll Moments, or sing along with a song. 3. Tap unfamiliar words to see what they mean and save them. 4. Gravity turns your saved words into flashcards, each linked to its original moment. 5. Review a few minutes a day and watch your known words grow. LEARN THROUGH WHAT YOU LOVE Doomscroll in the language you're learning. Watch videos. Sing your favorite songs. Gravity turns the content you already want to watch into something you can actually learn from. GRAVITY IS IN EARLY ACCESS. Any bugs, issues, or feedback can be directed to support@learngravity.com. Privacy: https://learngravity.com/privacy Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

ManabuLab4 screens
Gravity4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: ManabuLab at 4.7 against Gravity's 4.1. ManabuLab also leads on review sentiment (80% vs 68%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. ManabuLab sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $12.99 per month and Gravity sells 6 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

ManabuLab holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 74 and 39 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 80% of ManabuLab's written reviews are positive against 68% of Gravity's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ManabuLab ships an update weekly, Gravity every 9 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
ManabuLab versus Gravity: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterManabuLabGravity
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (74 ratings) — better4.1 (39 ratings)
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews — better67.9% of reviews
Number of ratings74 — better39
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 9 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size223 MB109 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCAGATAY TURKILERIHeimdall Space Inc.

Customer experience

ManabuLab

All ratings72 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral4.2%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative0.0%

Gravity

All ratings35 ratings
Positive77.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative22.9%
Written reviews28 reviews
Positive67.9%
Neutral3.6%
Negative28.6%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

ManabuLab

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly ManabuLab Premium$12.991 Month
  • Yearly ManabuLab Premium$59.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime ManabuLab Premium$99.99
6 purchases

Gravity

Subscriptions6
  • special offer$4.991 Month
  • Fluency$6.997 Days
  • Immersive Monthly7 Days trial$8.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Immersive Monthly7 Days trial$11.991 Month
  • Immersion7 Days trial$14.991 Month
  • Polyglot7 Days trial$69.991 Year

Questions

Is ManabuLab free?
ManabuLab is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Gravity free?
Gravity is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ManabuLab or Gravity?
ManabuLab is rated higher. ManabuLab averages 4.7 out of 5 from 74 ratings, while Gravity averages 4.1 from 39 ratings.
Do ManabuLab or Gravity have ads?
Neither ManabuLab nor Gravity shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ManabuLab or Gravity?
ManabuLab ships an update weekly, and Gravity every 9 days. Most recently, ManabuLab was updated on October 31, 2026 and Gravity on October 31, 2026.

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