41 Best Apps for Learning Mandarin Chinese Language [2024]

There are many compelling reasons why you should learn Chinese. Besides being the most spoken native tongue, Chinese is one of the most complex languages to learn.

This is because of its thousands of scripts, inflections of tones, uses, pronunciations, and various types and dialects. Thus, learners are always looking for ways to simplify it.

Of all the methods, apps are one popular option. Today, we have plenty of apps to help you learn and improve almost every facet of the Chinese language.

Some market players have rightly recognized the need for innovative ideas while learning a challenging language. So they’ve created intelligent desktop software and mobile apps to help you learn languages.

Most students study a second language during school, but learning a new skill is never too late. As a result, adult language learners account for a significant portion of the population.

Despite being multilingual can be a gateway to living a high life in today’s life, most cannot devote their time to language study due to personal and professional commitments. Plus, language learning is never easy.

Luckily, we live in the digital age. As a result, a wealth of knowledge is available at your fingertips, thanks to your modern smartphone. The good apps to learn a language like Mandarin are plentiful.

These Chinese learning apps will allow you to swipe and enable your way to improve your Mandarin fluency.

But first…

How do such apps help?

When you use apps, you may choose your speed based on your plan and learning habits.

You are not obligated to attend a class on a busy or off day, so you may not learn anything useful. You have total control over when and how much you study.

Most apps include quick sessions you can easily fit into your timetable. Then, depending on your needs, their lesson plans will allow you to start with the basics, such as greetings and idioms.

It also can keep you constructively busy in the short periods you may have between schedules.

Images, music, video, and other visual aids may contribute to your success and appeal. Yet, most mobile app companies use visualization. This may be a practical way to remember language or essential phrases.

Most apps will provide you with a crossword puzzle, MCQs, and a game to speed up your vocabulary study.

Or even role-playing to immerse yourself in settings and dialogue. The speaking exercises are more valuable than learning to talk on your own.

Anyone with a smartphone, tablet, or computer may use it to learn Chinese.

You do not need to enroll at a language school or find a tutor. The mobile apps are also far less expensive than classic language lessons conducted online or in a language school.

Do apps alone suffice for learning Chinese?

In a word, the answer would be no.

The best way to learn any language, including tricky Chinese, is through live classes with a teacher. This is something I am pretty confident about. This can be offline in the classroom setup or face-2-face online.

Mobile apps in the current form cannot fully replace traditional methods like tutors, books, and notebooks. Multimedia resources like audio, music, movies, and podcasts also benefit, though to a lesser and varying extent.

There are obvious reasons for that.

First, not a single app for learning Mandarin can cover everything about the Chinese language you require. And none of them are flawless, so it can make you uninstall all others.

Second, language learning demands speaking and listening practice, preferably with native speakers, skilled educators, or classmates. This helps to grasp where and how to use the language properly and correctly.

It also offers how colloquial and dialect usage differs from the online book and prerecorded version of the language that most apps teach.

Mobile applications are also impersonal compared to face-to-face online courses or language schools. A mobile app can only “communicate” with you, not honestly talk, discuss, examine, and test.

Despite some of these known shortcomings, apps can still help you dive deep into the enchanting world of the Mandarin language.

It can serve as a complement to conventional approaches, like physical classrooms. The combination improves your learning experience.

For the best outcomes, I found a variety of lessons from a teacher, audio, and language apps to be the most effective. Rest is optional and may assist learners to vary degrees.

If you know which app to use, it’s still worthwhile to investigate this alternative. The qualities are fruitful in helping you learn Mandarin efficiently.

Top 41 Apps to help you learn the Chinese language

Chinese is a well-known and widespread language. That is why it has vast resources and offers an abundance of good choices. As a result, it is easy to find Chinese learning apps and study material to help you learn Mandarin.

Given the oversupply of Chinese language smartphone apps, you are finding the right one to help you best can be a slippery slope and daunting task.

But with this list of the best apps to learn Chinese, rest assured that you will find your preferred one.

Many specialized apps also assist in different parts of your Chinese language journey. This list comprises both free, freemium, and paid only. So, let’s explore this in detail!

1. Hello Chinese — All-in-one Chinese learning app

Hello Chinese, a game-based learning tool, is ideal for beginners and intermediate Chinese students.

Reading, writing, listening, and speaking are all covered. This is because it is a fantastic all-around program for learning a lot of Chinese.

The program supports traditional and simplified Chinese characters. And the courses include Standard Mandarin audio recorded by native speakers.

There is also an inbuilt speech recognition to aid with difficult Chinese pronunciation and tones, and there’s a handwriting interface to practice writing Chinese characters.

Price: Hello Chinese is one of the best free apps to learn Chinese. They have 2 paid plans. The premium costs $8.99/month, $19.99/3-months, or $59.99/year. Premium+ is $19.99/month, $89.99/6-months, or $149.99/year.

2. Anki — Flashcards for studying Chinese

Anki is a multi-platform, open-source, and free flashcard software with many features (though the iOS version has a fee). This means you can learn Chinese on any device that has Anki installed.

Anki employs the Spaced Repetition System or SRS. It determines how well you know a word. It then repeats the process at reasonable times to help you remember it forever.

Price: Ankit Flashcards is 100% free and open-source, but iOS costs some money. With over 100,000 card decks, you can download it totally free.

3. Pleco — A Chinese dictionary app

Pleco includes a wealth of other features that make it essential for learners. It is a solid dictionary with native audio pronunciations.

You may use the dictionary offline and can search for characters in various ways, such as by writing, drawing, or camera capture. You may also use Chinese characters, pinyin, or both to find words.

Price: It has two bundles that comprise many dictionaries and tools. The Basic costs $29.90, whereas the Professional is $ US $59.99. Plus, Pleco also has dozens of additional bundle packages and individual add-ons.

4. Pimsleur — To improve speaking and listening

The Pimsleur course is a breath of new air regarding user-friendliness and aesthetic attractiveness. In addition, their audio lessons are a proven method for learning any language available on the platform.

The audios and other tools benefit from the quantity of speaking and listening practice it provides and its attractive appearance.

The Mandarin course’s 30-minute audio sessions are designed for beginning to think and speak in Chinese soon. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to practice repeating speech and responding to questions vocally.

Price: Pimsleur has two plans — Audio-only and premium with audio and some extra tools. You can buy 1 level (30 lessons) of Chinese for $119.90 and all 5 parts (150 tracks) at $550.00. The monthly is $14.95. The pricing is a bit complex, but it is worth its cost!

You can check my full review of Pimsleur.

5. Duolingo — Most popular language app

As a language learner, there is no way you don’t recognize this app. Duolingo is a game-based learning platform that keeps users hooked on learning Mandarin Chinese.

It uses appealing animations and images, engaging exercises, an exciting reward system, motivating methods, and fun challenges.

The software does an excellent job of picking up terms you’re having trouble with along the journey and emphasizing them.

Price: Duolingo’s basic plan is 100% free. The Plus plan has features like offline access, full access to lessons, unlimited mistakes, and tracking of your progress. The cost is $6.99/month, though it is not worth the price.

You can check my full review of Duolingo.

6. Skritter — App to help you to write Chinese

The software uses a handwriting recognition algorithm to enable students to write the characters they’re learning.

Skritter will ask you to trace each Chinese character stroke by stroke. It then prompts you to reproduce the character from memory on a blank canvas screen.

They teach the tone and pinyin for each character you encounter in the program and the proper stroke sequence. And how to apply it in a phrase.

Price: The cost is $14.99 for 1 month, $59.99 for 6 months, and $99.99 for 1 year. They have a 7-day trial to check whether it suits you’re liking.

7. Zizzle — learn Mandarin via visualized stories

Zizzle is a Chinese character learning software that uses short tales and images to teach characters.

They teach each Chinese character through a helpful tale that frequently includes the character’s pronunciation, related audio, stroke order, and the character’s significance.

After seeing its English translation and pinyin, you’ll learn how to employ each character in a phrase. They will also illustrate its decomposition for more sophisticated characters.

Price: It costs $9.99/month, $24.99/3-months, and $59.99/year. They also have three packs — Crack the HSK, Master every day Chinese, and Chinese Textbook Companion.

8. FluentU — Immersion through Videos

FluentU is a language-learning software that creates an immersive learning experience by combining real-world videos with interactive subtitles.

Commercials, music videos, interviews, and other types of videos are the formats used in the videos. Also, quizzes accompanying the films allow visitors to practice the language used in the videos.

FluentU is a video app for iOS, Android, and the web that delivers videos in nine different languages. Most of its content is beyond the beginning level. Also, it feeds videos for all levels of learners.

Price: You can choose between $239.99/year or $29.99/month. Before committing to the paid plan, you can take a 14-day free trial.

9. Chinese Skill — Fun Chinese Mandarin lessons

Through games and interactive activities, the Chinese Skill app makes learning enjoyable. In addition, because the program benefits total novices, it’s a terrific alternative for taking you from beginner to intermediate level proficiency.

The app encourages you to learn Chinese Mandarin through various interactive games and structured lessons.

Expert instructors have created a well-rounded curriculum for Chinese Skills. It covers over 400 grammatical points, 300 sentence patterns, 1000 keywords, and 1500 key characters.

Price: The monthly subscription is $14.99, whereas $79.99 is for 1 year. You can also buy for a one-time fee of $159.99 for lifetime validity.

10. The Chairman’s Bao for Reading Chinese News

The Chairman’s Bao app uses real-world news stories to create an immersion background for Chinese learners of all levels. It is a fantastic app for reading Chinese text.

It’s not difficult to see why over 125,000 users install this app and over 350 universities and organizations use it worldwide.

Over 7000 graded-reader lessons written as news items available on the internet are featured in the program. Besides the web version, you can access it on Android and iOS.

The lessons are suitable for novice to advanced levels of study. And if you are preparing for the HSK, their Chinese reading materials are helpful.

Price: Subscriptions range from 1 month for $10 to $140 for 2 years. A free trial is also available.

11. LingoDeer — e-learning app to learn Chinese

LingoDeer is another multi-language learning software featuring very well-developed Mandarin Chinese lessons. You’ll put your language skills to the test by completing a variety of challenges.

There are also several grammatical explanations and opportunities to review your learning.

The Chinese 1 course covers beginner-level learning materials (HSK 1-2), whereas the Chinese 2 course contains intermediate-level topics (HSK 3-4).

LingoDeer+ is an extension of LingoDeer. It uses interactive games to support your study of grammar rules and unfamiliar words. Also, the detailed answers add more value to this app.

Price: While the free plan is pretty generous, the premium costs $14.99 per month, $39.99 for 3 months, or $79.99 per year. You can buy a lifetime membership, which costs $159.99.

12. Memrise — A versatile flashcard app

Memrise is another popular language-learning software that provides a variety of language lessons. This includes simplified Mandarin Chinese courses.

They cooperate with native Mandarin speakers with concise and clear pronunciations. Thus, their content is appropriate for beginner and intermediate learners.

You’ll be confronted with review tests that measure your grip throughout the course. If you’re feeling very daring, their speed review is a race against the clock that encourages you to recollect what you’ve studied as rapidly as possible.

Price: The free plan is pretty generous, and most do not require the Pro version. For extra features, you can subscribe 1 month at $8.49, 1 year at $29.99, and a lifetime for $119.99. They nearly always offer discounts.

You can check my full review of Memrise.

13. ChinesePod — Learn via Audio and Videos

ChinesePod is a platform that teaches Mandarin Chinese with over 4,000 video and audio courses.

In reality, it promotes not just authentic Chinese content designed to immerse learners but also an unstructured method. It allows students to pick whatever courses they wish to finish.

There is no set order in which we must complete the courses: simply select your Chinese level and browse the various classes offered.

Price: There are 2 plans — Basic Learners for $14/month and Premium for $29/month. They also have unique plans and pricing for the team and education-based clients. Of course, you can take a free trial to assess.

14. Speechling — App to learn to speak Chinese

Speechling is a multi-language learning platform that works with natural language speakers to help users improve their grammar, intonation, word choice, and articulation. It also delivers traditional and simplified Chinese materials.

The app’s primary goal is to improve natural conversation fluency to a native level.

You have the option of listening to a native speaker articulate a word or phrase before recording yourself repeating it.

Price: It has a forever-free plan to access the whole curriculum and other features. For 1-on-1 tuition, audio journals, switch between languages, and offline bonus resources, buy Speechling Unlimited for $19.99/month.

15. Ninchanese — A gamified way

Ninchanese is a comprehensive Chinese language study program with over 1500 Mandarin courses. It is a stress-free and enjoyable learning approach because most sessions are gamified or feature game-like components.

You’ll increase your Mandarin reading, vocabulary, grammar, listening, speaking, and writing abilities through a series of exercises and games designed into structured courses.

The best part is that Ninchanese has an organized, easy-to-follow curriculum that lets students study up to HSK 6.

Price: You can start with a free plan. For paid, it is $10/1 month (Chinese Awakens), $54/ half-yearly (The Power of Chinese), and $96.10/1-year (The Dragon Unleashed).

16. HSK Online — Chinese Proficiency Test App

HSK Online is the most popular program for practicing Chinese proficiency test.

It provides a wealth of practice changes as mock and genuine exam papers, encouraging you to systematically enhance your listening, reading, writing, and vocabulary.

The app uses artificial intelligence (AI) and other algorithms to analyze your progress. It makes daily errors, tailoring your study sessions to help you develop in your weak areas.

They provide full explanations of mistakes in terms of feedback. It covers all levels, from HSK 1 to HSK 6.

Price: For 1 month, it is￥118, whereas it is ￥488 for 1 -year. You can also buy a lifetime VIP plan for￥698.

17. Du Chinese — App for reading Chinese

Du Chinese is a Mandarin-learning software that focuses on reading Chinese. It offers information to beginners, intermediates, and expert students.

The user interface is straightforward. You’ll be able to jump directly into reading information that corresponds to your level of competence.

The software helps you improve your character identification, sentence structure, syntax, and vocabulary while also giving you a taste of Chinese culture and lifestyle.

With easy word lookup, complete translation, unlimited lessons, and professional audios, Du Chinese is one of the best apps to dive into reading the Chinese language.

Price: The basic plan is free. If you want to get access to all the lessons, pick between 1 month ($14.99), 6 months ($79.99), and 1 year ($119.99).

18. Language Drops — Visual language learning

Language Drops has a basic UI and promises to teach you over 2000 Chinese characters. It also creates visual connections with these characters to help you remember them better.

There is a well-balanced combination of fascinating and valuable courses and activities that you may try out.

Language Drops app allows you to select the words you want to focus on and personalize your learning experience.

Price: Monthly cost is US$13.00 and US$69.99 yearly. They have lifetime service for a one-time purchase at US$159.99. You can also start with a 7-day free plan before going through the paywall.

19. HiNative — Q&A language community

HiNative is a question-and-answer (Q&A) software that pairs language students with native speakers. This Chinese app will answer your inquiries about languages, nations, and cultures.

Learning the language from local speakers may provide tremendous insight into natural conversational practices and fluency. Although sometimes, it lacks organized and book-based courses.

Price: The basic features are free for users. For premium, select either 1 month for $5.68/month or $59.63 for 1-year, translating into $4.96/month.

20. Busuu — A multipurpose language app

Busuu is a user-friendly and popular app for learning Chinese. The Mandarin lessons are organized and efficient.

It has plenty of prominent features to offer. E.g., a well-customized study plan, conversations, AI-based grammar review, social community, and many activities and lessons to enhance your Chinese learning.

You can determine when you like to study Chinese and for how long. The app will keep you on track with every activity. You can also improve your Mandarin skills through feedback from natives in the Busuu community.

If you’re an absolute beginner, a free plan is good. It gives you enough room to learn and understand basic things.

But, beyond that, you need to subscribe to either premium or premium plus to take your Mandarin study to the next level.

Price: There is a free version, but features and study content are pretty limited. For paid, you have premium and premium plus for 1, 12, and 24 months, and the cost is from $5 to $7 per month as per plan and duration.

You can check my full review of Busuu.

21. Beelinguapp — Mandarin through audios

Beelinguapp allows you to read and listen to music and audiobook in two languages while viewing text on the screen. It also translates the text you’re reading just next to the Chinese language.

With Beelinguapp, you do not require memorizing vocabulary. Instead, look through novels, short stories, famous children’s books, and other works in your mother tongue and Chinese.

This reading app is helpful for easy cross-referencing and ensures you comprehend the text and context. It is one of the best Mandarin apps to enhance Chinese reading.

Price: The free allows you to learn almost everything by listening, reading, and practicing words with flashcards & glossaries. The premium offer costs $5-$7 per month and an inexpensive yearly and lifetime.

22. HelloTalk — A language exchange platform

Unlike other platforms covering various language learning aspects, HelloTalk, a China-based app, is a prominent language exchange plan.

With over 30 million members and over 150 supported languages, it is the most popular app for talking to and meeting learners worldwide.

You learn how to speak Mandarin by speaking the language with native speakers. Then, the members will advise, correct your mistakes, improve pronunciation, etc.

You get access to many tools like searching for target learners, translation, transliteration, correction, text-to-voice, and many more. All these help you learn more effectively.

HelloTalk is worth it in many ways, but it does not teach you a language. You’re also at the mercy of others. So while the paid VIP plan costs money, I won’t recommend it. Free is just okay for most learners!

Price: The free version is sufficient for most learners and has core parts. But if you are looking for more features, you can consider VIP. It costs $6.99 per month, $45.99 for a year, and a lifetime for $175.00. The price varies depending on location, and you also get frequent discounts.

You can check my full review of HelloTalk.

23. ChineseClass101 — Audio & Video Lessons

ChineseClass101 is a collection of Mandarin language lessons through audio, podcasts, and videos. To make it simple, fun, and easy to use, you can search by subject and difficulty.

There are plenty of small-size lessons, such as slideshows, word lists, and flashcards for fast learning. Also, with the Premium Plus plan, you can get tailor-made guidance from an experienced Chinese teacher.

If you have a reason to learn Mandarin for jobs or travel or learn some cultural insight or grammar, you can find exact topics to help you. The lessons last 10 to 15 minutes and adhere to standard Mandarin dialogue.

Innovative Language 101 is the parent company of the ChineseClass101 website and offers extra lessons. It is a top-quality app to improve your Mandarin listening.

Price: They have many free options. But to unlock every content and feature, it charges $25 for Premium, $8 for Basic, and $47 for Premium Plus. All these payments are for one month each.

24. Rosetta Stone — All-in-1 Chinese learning app

Rosetta Stone is a popular name in language learning apps. With their old conversational approach, the platform helps you study to speak in your target language.

They provide a wide range of vocabulary, grammar, and various aspects of the language through customized bite-sized lessons. It motivates you to engage yourself in real-life scenarios.

Further, you can use Rosetta Stone for the Chinese language to practice characters, listen, and improve pronunciation through instant feedback.

Price: Rosetta Stone is a paid subscription-based plan. The Mandarin Chinese price for 3 months is $35.97, and for 6 months, it is $95.88. Lifetime is a value of money, which costs $179 for all the languages.

25. Hack Chinese — For increasing Vocabularies

Hack Chinese is a magnificent online Chinese language education website that assists increase their Chinese vocabulary. While they do not have any app, the web version is perfect and complete.

You can gain thousands of Chinese words over time with 15-20 minutes of regular practice through an SRS (spaced repetition system).

One terrific benefit is that it helps you prepare for various Chinese language tests like HSK, BCT, YCT, TOCFL, and more. They also have a bunch of graded reading, topic-wise words, frequency lists, and many integrations.

Price: You can start and use it for 20 days, totally free. After that, it costs USD 96 for 1 year ($8/month) and USD 12 for 1 month.

26. Chineasy App — Learn Chinese Characters

Founded by ShaoLan Hsueh, a Taiwanese entrepreneur, Chineasy is a beautiful Chinese learning platform.

It is a visual-appealing app to help you learn Chinese characters through colorful pictures. It comprises various characteristics like memory games, flashcards, and postcards to make Chinese easier to understand.

It also runs podcasts that cover cultural aspects and lively conversations. The unique approach of Chineasy makes it an exciting app for Chinese learners.

Price: To unlock the full features, you need to spend $6.99 / monthly, $39.99 /annual, and a one-time expense of $139.99 for a lifetime.

27. iQiyi — Learning Chinese through Movies

Do you want to learn Chinese through movies? Possibly, interested in Chinese dramas to take your Mandarin to a higher level?

iQiyi is the answer. It is a Chinese version of Netflix.

Founded in 2010, iQIYI is the largest online video site in the world. With ten thousand hours of Chinese films and TV series, you will never be out of entertainment, which also helps to learn Chinese.

If you love Chinese cinemas and shows, this Mandarin learning app can be a significant asset to your language learning tools. The subtitles, speed tools, and other video features are helpful for Mandarin learners.

Price: Free is sufficient for most learners. But if you want to dive deep into Chinese entertainment, you can consider a VIP plan. It has two options — standard and premium, ranging from $7 to $10 every month.

28. Mondly — App for Language Learners

Mondly can teach you in a fun way how to read and write the Chinese language.

It uses gamification to impart hundreds of tiny-sized lessons. It covers everything from greetings and everyday phrases to complex sentences and conversations.

The character-based Mandarin language requires lots of engagement and interest. Yet, the interactive app enables learners to practice without making it look dull.

Price: Mondly has a free plan with restricted lessons. It costs $9.99 per month or $47.99 per year for one language. From time to time, they also offer lifetime membership for the entire 41 languages for $50 to $100.

29. LinGo Play — Learn by flashcards and Games

LinGo Play is dedicated to language learning via games. The courses and lessons cover beginner to advanced and help you learn vocabulary and grammar lessons with interactive flashcards.

The lessons introduce thousands of new Chinese words and phrases in an effective technique. As an outcome, you can make hundreds of sentences in various situations.

You can always review your progress and know where you stand on the leaderboards. This nifty app is for competitive students and helps you study Mandarin grammar and new words.

Price: LinGo Play has many offers. For example, 7-day free trial, 1-month paid trial, monthly, half-yearly, and annual subscriptions, etc.

30. M Mandarin — Learn through Comics

Do you like comics and learning Mandarin at the same time?

If so, check the M Mandarin. This practical and professional app teaches you the Chinese language through unlimited comics that vary based on topics and difficulty level.

The entire format is based on reading and listening. And if that is your goal, try M Mandarin. Plus, the serial manga can assist you with the HSK examinations as a unique product.

Price: You can get a VIP plan and get access to everything. The cost is $5.99/monthly, $12.99/yearly, and $64.99/yearly. The features also differ as per the subscription.

31. QQ Music — Learning Chinese through Music

Do you love music and learning Chinese? Then, why not combine both through QQ Music?

QQ Music is like Spotify. You can listen to millions of songs and podcasts and use various tools like lyrics to learn Mandarin.

With over 100 million subscribers, this is possibly the best app to learn Chinese through music.

Price: Like other premium music apps, it has a VIP plan. It has ad-free, high-quality, and offline listening. But as a learner, the free plan is just fine. Do remember that music mainly helps advanced learners.

32. Scripts for Studying Chinese Characters

Learning a new writing system like Chinese Hanzi should not be complicated and tedious.

But there are paths to make it simple and enjoyable. The script, a sister organization of Drop’s, is one such remarkable app.

With quick games and simple and beautiful illustrations, you can discover Chinese characters on a fast track. Just spend a few minutes whenever you are free. An easy and effective way to learn non-Latin scripts that work!

Price: Some parts are free, and later it offers In-App purchases. It has two options: $9.99 for 1 month and $69.99 for 1 year.

33. uTalk — Learn Chinese through Visuals

uTalk is another app for learning Chinese. With thousands of words and phrases across several day-to-day topics, you can use them to learn Chinese or everyday use.

You can also practice speaking and check how you pronounce compared to native speakers. uTalk app also has many intuitive games to make your learning experience more enjoyable.

Price: The cost is pretty reasonable. But the quality is okay and leaves much to be desired. The price is $5 for 1 month, $18 for 6 months, and $25 for 1 year. Also, the charges deviate depending on the country you sign up for!

34. XiMaLaYa — Chinese Podcasts

If you want to listen to endless Podcasts to learn Mandarin, look no further than XiMaLaYa. This is the no 1 platform for listening to podcasts, stories, novels, books, and lectures in China.

With over ten thousand audio files across the genre, categories, and purposes, you can access the vast collection to improve your listening skills.

This app isn’t meant for the beginner since the app language is totally Chinese. Yet, you can use the desktop version to translate to your native tongue to maximize its advantage.

Price: Even though the XiMaLaYa has paid VIP packages, the free plan is acceptable for most Chinese learners. The free audio files are enough to practice and enrich your language skills.

35. Standard Mandarin for Pronunciation and Pinyin

To improve your accent, tones, and sound in Mandarin, attempt Standard Mandarin.

This app allows you to speak naturally without using your native accent. Instead, you can choose any sound referred to by Pinyin or hear any of the 4 tones.

The visual description and animation show complete detail in articulating diverse sounds in Mandarin. For instance, it contains facial muscles and slow-motion movements when you speak anything. Unfortunately, this app isn’t available on Android but only on desktop and iPad/iPhone apps.

Price: The Apple mobile versions are 100% free. But if you want to use it on a MAC, it will cost $39.90 for the desktop edition.

36. Chinese grammar

Do you want to study and practice Chinese grammar?

If that is the case, install the Chinese Grammar app. Then, with over 100 grammar exercises, you can practice these assignments to measure your grammar ability.

The app is only available on Android, and there is no iOS version. All study content has simplified Mandarin and is not traditional. Besides, it is not for advanced levels and can go only up to HSK 5.

Price: Chinese grammar app is 100% free. You do not even need to sign up with zero ads.

37. Learn Chinese AI — Super Chinese

Do you want to improve your accents and pronunciation when you speak Mandarin?

In that case, check out the famous Super Chinese that uses well-designed animations and images to offer courses. With speech recognition, this app can take you on a trip of Mandarin fluency.

Using this program, you’ll learn Chinese characters, pinyin, English translations, and how to incorporate these characters into everyday phrases.

You can take a placement test to know your specific skill, assigning a level per your current ability. AI (artificial intelligence) also sweetens your learning style.

Price: They have various plans like standard, VIP, VIP Pro, etc. For instance, you can buy a 1-month subscription for €8.49 or $59.99 for 1 year.

38. Daily Chinese — Learn Words

You can reach advanced levels of Chinese proficiency with Daily Chinese. The primary aim of this app is to help you grow your vocabulary. It has an enormous database of characters to aid in learning Mandarin.

If you have been studying for HSK, you need thousands of characters and words to pass various levels. Daily Chinese, with an extensive database of almost 10,000, simplified and traditional, can help you.

The vocabulary varies across topics, difficulty-level, sector-specific terms, and goal-related. You can also track your progress and learn more about China. To improve your word power, check out Daily Chinese.

Price: The Daily Chinese app is entirely free.

39. ChineseSkill — Learn Mandrin Chinese

With ChineseSkill, you can learn up to HSK 4 by combining games, videos, and audio posted by native speakers.

Expert educators developed the curriculum to provide a well-rounded learning experience. Besides 100’s grammar rules and sentence formation patterns, you will learn more than 1000s of helpful and relevant words and characters.

It offers games, native-speaker video and audio recordings, character writing practice, speech recognition exercises, and more to help you absorb all this information.

They present characters in simplified and traditional forms, so you can customize your understanding. Pinyin can also be enabled or disabled according to your preferences.

Price: Freemium. A few initial programs are free to try. Later, you pay to get more lessons and features. It has many In-App purchases, ranging from $12.99 a month to $299.99 lifetime.

40. LingQ – A Language Learning App

Reading and speaking are the two most necessary and practical ways to improve your Chinese skills. And LingQ shines on both!

The app uses SRS to teach dozens of languages, including Mandarin. You can learn Chinese by engaging yourself in easy-to-understand content! All terms have authentic Chinese speakers to help you speak and listen.

You can pick what to study. Besides the massive library, you can import anything to make into interactive lessons. For example, a novel, YouTube videos, songs, emails, and books. The choice is infinite.

Price: LingQ free plan has basic lessons and features to get you started. For paid, you have Premium and Premium Plus. The cost varies from $7.99 to $39.99 per month, depending on the selected plan and duration.

41. iTalki – Online Language Teachers

iTalki is an online language teaching platform. It allows you to learn one of the 100 languages, including Mandarin, from a professional online tutor.

You can choose from over 100s Chinese teachers for 1-on-1 tutoring based on your goals and interests. If unsure, you can read their profile and reviews for shortlisting.

iTalki is an ideal platform to learn Chinese through a live teacher from anywhere you want. You can also be free to select any time of the day and night. It entirely depends on you.

Price: Unlike other Chinese apps, iTalki does not have a fixed price as it depends on the instructor. It gives total freedom to the trainers to set their own hourly fees per their profile, experience, and lessons. Usually, it ranges between $8 to $30 per hour, depending on many factors.

Final Words: Best apps for learning Mandarin

Language learning is a vital experience that everyone should undertake at least once. It is intriguing and gives you a new perspective on your ideas and attitude by giving you a glimpse into another world.

And for the Chinese, it is even more worthwhile. Although it is a challenging language, the benefits far overshadow the effort you may have to put into it.

To solve it, you have many apps to make your life comfortable studying Chinese. I’ve checked and researched over 100 of them and only formed the standout apps on this list.

These smartphones or tablet apps can encourage you to study anywhere and at any time. Most cover overall Chinese skills. But some specialized ones can help you improve specific parts of the language.

Hopefully, this list of the best apps to learn Chinese can help with that. The ones listed above are some of the most popular and seem effective and valuable.

If you have any suggestions on missed-out good Mandarin learning apps or questions, write in the comments below.

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