Real Kana
A narrow kana drill. Choose characters, type the romaji, and review misses. It is not a Japanese course.
Good fit if
- Beginners who need a narrow hiragana and katakana drill
- Learners who want to type romaji from a character prompt
- People who will cap study to selected rows instead of every mode
Look elsewhere if
- You need a full grammar, reading, or listening course
- You want custom card authoring
- You need a managed spaced-repetition curriculum
Real Kana is a typed-recall site for Japanese characters. The official homepage, checked 1 Sep 2026, says to open hiragana, katakana, or kanji, choose what to study, then type each romaji equivalent.
That is a useful first-week job. It is not a path through grammar, reading, or conversation.
The drill it actually runs
The site is built around selection plus typing. Hiragana and katakana pages let you add single characters, double characters, and word lists. Katakana also lists an extended set. Settings include fonts, random order, scoring, high scores, kana typing, and female or male audio.
Official audio notes say native audio is available for single, double, and extended characters. Audio can play when you click a character, when the answer is shown, or when you advance after a correct card. Playing audio counts as revealing the answer.
Missed or revealed cards can be set aside for later review. Official review notes describe that as an attention list you can disable. It is not a substitute for a spaced-repetition course such as Inku or Anki.
What the current iOS app lists
The current App Store listing (id 6775655637), checked 1 Sep 2026, calls itself the iOS version of the website. It is listed as free and iPhone-only, requiring iOS 16.4 or later. The listing and the official app page agree on 107 hiragana characters, 137 katakana characters, 531 hiragana words, and 639 katakana words. The App Store listing splits katakana as 107 single and double characters plus 30 extended characters.
The app also includes kanji study. This profile treats Real Kana as a kana drill. Do not use the kanji modes as a reason to skip a dedicated kanji path such as WaniKani.
The App Store privacy label says the developer does not collect data from this app. The website privacy page says Real Kana collects no personally identifiable information.
Price and the older listing
The website and the current iOS app page both say “Free for now.” The About page asks visitors to consider joining to support a one-person project. Confirm current Join terms on the official site. This profile does not state a membership price because the checked pages did not list one.
An older App Store listing (id 343807473) still appears as a $2.99 iOS app and shows a deprecation notice pointing users to the newer Real Kana app. Use the website or the current listing, not the deprecated paid one.
Limits
Real Kana does not explain grammar, assign a beginner syllabus, or give you pages of Japanese to finish. It will not replace Irodori, Genki, or a dictionary.
It also does not author custom cards. If you need to keep words from a textbook or a page you read, that is a different tool.
Choose a few rows. Finish them. Then read the two-week kana guide instead of turning on every kanji deck at once.
Frequently asked questions
Is Real Kana enough to learn Japanese?
No. It drills hiragana and katakana recall, and it also offers kanji study modes. You still need a course, a dictionary, and Japanese you can read or hear.
Is Real Kana free?
The website and the current iOS app page are labeled free for now. Confirm Join terms and the live App Store price before you rely on them.
Sources checked
Product details can change. Evidence pages and their individual check dates appear below. Profile reviewed Sep 1, 2026.
- Real Kana official site official product · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Official product description for hiragana, katakana, and kanji study, the choose-then-type-romaji workflow, and the current free-for-now label.
- Real Kana iOS app page official product · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Official iOS app page used for hiragana and katakana character counts, word counts, fonts, review, audio, and the free-for-now label.
- Real Kana App Store listing official app store · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Current official iOS listing for platform, free price, kana coverage, audio, review, and data-not-collected privacy label.
- Real Kana About official docs · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Official statement that Real Kana is a one-person project and that Join is a support option.
- Real Kana Privacy Policy official docs · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Official statement that Real Kana collects no personally identifiable information.
- Real Kana native audio notes official docs · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Official notes for female and male audio on single, double, and extended characters, and that playing audio counts as revealing the answer.
- Real Kana review notes official docs · checked Sep 1, 2026 · Official description of setting aside missed or revealed cards for later review, without claiming a full SRS course.