Hiragana & Katakana Writing

Hiragana & Katakana writing practice — learn all 142 Japanese kana by hand.

The first step in learning Japanese is the alphabet. Reading alone fades fast; writing each character in the correct stroke order while hearing it pronounced makes it stick.
KanaSsam teaches every hiragana and katakana character through handwriting, from tracing to writing by sound.

■ 5 steps for every character
1. Stroke-order animation: watch the direction and order, then write it right away
2. Trace: write over the gray guide character several times
3. Write from memory: the character disappears — recall it and write it
4. Write by sound: hear the Japanese pronunciation only and write the kana
5. Reading & multiple-choice quiz: double-check the characters you mix up

■ Instant stroke feedback
Every stroke is checked for direction, order, shape and length as you write.
When a stroke is wrong, your writing is shown side by side with the model so you see exactly what to fix. Learn correct hiragana and katakana stroke order from day one.

■ Spaced review so you never forget
Characters you confuse come back often; ones you know come back less, based on the forgetting curve.
- Today's review: a short daily set chosen for you
- Exam mode: test how well you know hiragana and katakana
- Custom practice: drill only the characters you keep missing

■ Three friendly teachers
Musubi the rice ball (hiragana), Maneko the lucky cat (katakana) and Daru the tumbling doll (review & exams) cheer you on.

■ Great for
- Beginners starting Japanese from the kana
- Travelers who want to read katakana menus and signs
- Anyone preparing for JLPT N5 who wants a solid kana foundation
- Students who learn best by writing

■ Free to start
The vowels and the ka, sa, ta and na rows (50 characters) are free.
A one-time lifetime pass unlocks all 142 characters — no subscription.

Stroke data: KanjiVG (© Ulrich Apel, CC BY-SA 3.0)

Recent changes:
KanaSsam 1.2.1
- You can now rate the app right after finishing a practice session
- Refreshed store screenshots and description
- Stability improvements