Comparison

字课 vs Modu

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

Head to head
About

字课

Features
Read full description

See each stroke, then write on paper Tap a character during dictation or on its detail page to watch it build stroke by stroke in a writing grid. Hear each stroke name in Chinese, then tap outside to return to practice. Animation and stroke audio work offline. This is a stroke guide, not automatic reading of dictation words. The app interface and learning content are in Simplified Chinese. 字课 helps you build Simplified Chinese writing skills on paper, rate every character, and focus each review on weaker ones. Choose a structured character or word range, then write each prompt by hand on paper. Afterward, mark every character as Easy, Hard, or Wrong. 字课 turns those results into a clear proficiency view and brings weaker characters forward for focused review. Use the Mistake Notebook to collect characters missed in dictation, homework, tests, or everyday study. Review recent mistakes, see which characters are becoming secure, and keep a history of your practice results. The built-in character and word lists follow a character-first path inspired by Mainland Chinese elementary learning. Use them alongside classes, tutoring, heritage-language study, or independent practice. Core features: • Real handwriting practice on paper • Character-by-character scoring • Automatic priority for weaker characters • Mistake Notebook and progress history • Printable Tian Zi Ge PDF practice sheets from any selected character set • Offline character and word data The app interface and learning content are in Simplified Chinese.

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

字课4 screens
Modu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Modu at weekly against 字课's fortnightly. Modu also leads on iOS requirement (15.5 vs 18.0). 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

字课 ships an update fortnightly, Modu weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
字课 versus Modu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter字课Modu
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyFortnightlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.015.5 — better
Further details — not scored
Size81 MB156 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developer帅 刘雪寒 周

In-app purchases

None

字课

No in-app purchases

None

Modu

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is 字课 free?
字课 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Modu free?
Modu is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do 字课 or Modu have ads?
Neither 字课 nor Modu shows ads.
Which is updated more often, 字课 or Modu?
字课 ships an update fortnightly, and Modu weekly. Most recently, 字课 was updated on October 5, 2026 and Modu on October 24, 2026.

Other comparisons