Top 6 Apps for Learning Mandarin Chinese
Last summer, while I was supposed to be studying French intensively, I accidentally started studying Mandarin instead. These things happen! The best thing about Mandarin compared to some other languages Iāve studied (specifically Persian and Korean) is that there are a huge number of resources available to help learners, including a lot of very well-designed apps. After months of obsessively checking the iTunes store for the best apps and trying them out, these are my favorite six (plus a few more worth mentioning). They appear in ascending order from my least favorite to my most favorite.
Worth mentioning: A couple of apps not included on this list but worth mentioning are Pleco andĀ Skritter.Ā
Pleco is a highly-regarded Chinese dictionary. I have it on my phone and do use it, but I left it off the list because I prefer another (#6 on this list). Since Iām still very much a beginner, a thorough dictionary isnāt quite so important to me right now. However, it seems like every advanced student of Mandarin recommends this app, so I had to include it.
Skritter is another app thatās highly regarded among serious students. I believe it focuses on helping with character recognition and writing. It has a subscription service that is a bit expensive, which is why Iāve never tried it; however, everyone seems to rave about it. If youāre a serious student, you should definitely look into it.
Also, I recommend downloading some Chinese-language apps designed for preschoolers. I found several of them online in the iTunes store, and a lot of them include short stories with simple words, practice with basic characters, etc. Using these apps gives you some immersive listening practice, which is fun. They can be kind of hit and miss, so I recommend downloading all you can find and seeing what you can figure out and what you like. They wonāt replace any of the apps below, but they still serve a purpose.
6. WCC DictionaryĀ This is the dictionary I use instead of Pleco. I like it primarily because of its beautiful design (something Pleco doesnāt really have). This app is mainly a dictionary, but it offers a lot more than that. For example, it has a character scanner (so you can look up words you find in books by taking a picture of the character). It also has aĀ āstory libraryā with a few simple books to read (with Pinyin, the characters, an English translation, and the ability to listen to the story being read). Characters are color coded if you use that as a device to help you with tones. It has a flashcard program with pre-created word lists, extensive example sentences, a section on radicals with example words, and stroke order animations. It also offers a ācharacter of the dayā and daily āhomeworkā to motivate you to use what you learn. The dictionary itself is free, but thereās a lot of content that you have to pay to unlock, although thereās also a way to buy the content usingĀ ācoinsā that you earn through using the app.
5. Mindsnacks MandarinĀ A lot of you are already familiar with the Mindsnacks app because itās offered for a lot of different languages (and a few school subjects like geography). This app uses games to teach Mandarin, mostly focusing on vocabulary (not grammar or sentence construction). Itās a bit limited, but it can be a really fun way to learn. After a while, the games start to feel repetitive and can get boring, but the app also has you move through levels (which allow you to unlock new games) and uses other incentives to keep you playing. The audio is an actual human, too, which is a big benefit since many apps and programs rely on Google Translate robot voices. This is a paid app, which could be a drawback.
4. FluentUĀ This app is the reason I started learning Mandarin in the first place. I tried using it for French, but I felt like my French was too advanced to gain much from it. Even though there were advanced-level videos with vocabulary I didnāt know, FluentU doesnāt do a good job of adapting to your level and guessing which words will give you trouble. Thatās perfectly fine for a beginner, though, since everyĀ word will probably give you trouble, which is why I used it for Mandarin. I think the makers of FluentU are Chinese speakers, and they seem to have focused more on Mandarin in their app. They have a built-in course you can follow, using videos they made themselves for teaching the language. The videos are pretty good, and you will feel like youāre learning a lot. There are also a lot of other videos if you want to branch out, including some catchy songs and clips from commercials or TV shows. The built-in flashcard system is a good way to review, but thereās no way to adjust their algorithms, so you might end up reviewing the same words way too often. I stopped using the program when I had 400+ words to review every day, and I just couldnāt keep up and continue advancing. This app is also very limited in the free version, and the paid subscription is VERY pricey, in my opinion, especially considering that there are other apps out there that offer more features. All of the videos are on YouTube anyway, so you can still use them to learn as you advance (or if you have a friend who can help you). I recommend this app if you want to pay for one month and use it to study intensively and advance quickly. Thatās what I did, and I think it helped me out a lot.
3. ChineseSkillĀ This is the first app that was designed to be aĀ āDuolingo for Mandarin,ā and it has a lot of great features. Thereās the typicalĀ ātreeā like in Duolingo, where you advance through different lessons one by one. It teaches character recognition, pronunciation, and grammar. The lessons can be really challenging for a beginner (sometimes too challenging, I thought), but it covers a lot of material. Iām not completely happy with the order in which lessons are taught (for example, thereās a lesson on shapes near the beginning that has you learn words likeĀ ātriangle,ā which seemed unimportant to me). The other drawback is there isnāt an easy way to review what youāve learned (like on Duolingo when your gold-level lessons start to fade). Itās possible, but not super easy to access. Other interesting features include a tone game, a pinyin chart, aĀ āsurvival kitā thatās like a travel phrasebook, and practice with stroke order. Also, this app is 100% free, which is amazing! I definitely recommend this app.
2. Social LanguageĀ This app is really different from the others and is probably the most useful if you believe in speaking a language as soon as possible. I donāt think a lot of English speakers know about it because it seems to be marketed mostly to Chinese speakers. Itās a bit hard to explain, but Iāll try my best: basically, thereās a tree like you have for Duolingo, but the exercises are all to improve your speaking and pronunciation. You work through the lessons, and Chinese-speaking users rate and comment on your recordings. They can even leave voice messages to help you improve. You can do the same for them (in fact, you have to if you want to unlock higher levels). That alone makes the app worth downloading, but even better is that it includes a CHAT FEATURE that makes it very easy to interact with native speakers. You can see the profiles of hundreds of Chinese speakers who are online at any given time of day, and you can send a text or voice message to them and later add them to your friendsā list. Whatās more,the ratio of Chinese to English speakers heavily favors English speakers. You will find hundreds of Chinese speakers eager to practice their English, and often you will be one of only a handful of English speakers on the app, meaning you have instant access to a chat partner any time of day or night. Have a question about your homework, something you read, or a phrase you donāt know how to pronounce? Instant, free tutoring is available 24/7 on this app, which is also FREE! I met some really nice people here without the pressure of a more formal language exchange. You can have a casual conversation any time you want, and itās like text messaging so thereās less pressure if youāre shy about speaking Chinese. The only drawback is the same as with all language exchanges, which is that itās sometimes difficult to balance the two languages. Also, I had problems with sending voice messages in chat, which can be frustrating. Overall, though, Iād say Social Language is a must-have.
1. HelloChineseĀ This app didnāt exist last summer when I was looking for a Mandarin version of Duolingo, but I discovered it last week and fell in love with it. It actually has fewer features than ChineseSkill, but the pacing seems much better, and it focuses more heavily on pronunciation (though the speech recognition software isnāt perfect and you will sometimes need to skip a speaking question just to keep moving forward). It comes with some good grammar explanations and a really basic flashcard program for review. Honestly, I feel bad for rating it higher than ChineseSkill since ChineseSkill has been around longer and offers a lot more features, but I feel like HelloChinese just makes more sense and is easier to stick with than ChineseSkill. Like ChineseSkill, itās also 100% free! I consider HelloChinese to be myĀ ācoreā app for casual study, with the other apps acting as supplements. If youāre a more serious student, HelloChinese might not be your #1 pick, but itās great for beginners who like the structure of an app like DuoLingo.