What Kanshudo covers
Kanshudo's website describes a complete system for studying written Japanese and its structure. It lists lessons, flashcards, challenges, games and readings, and it presents several ways to study: formal lessons, self study, games and quizzes, and reading.
The reference side is large. The site lists 14,000 kanji, of which 4,000 have mnemonics, along with 260,000 words, 800 grammar points, 150,000 example sentences and 600,000 names. It presents itself as a dictionary for daily use as well as a course. It also lists drawing practice for hiragana, katakana, kanji components and kanji, a grammar reference, a reading corner with Japanese texts, textbook companion materials, and Joy o' Kanji essays on individual joyo kanji.
For review, the site describes spaced repetition flashcards that track your progress automatically, and mastery wheels that summarise what you know in kanji, words and grammar. The site also says your progress is represented as a journey through Japan. The site describes AI features as well: AI TeachMe for learning grammar interactively, AI Sentence Correct for correcting Japanese sentences, and a personalised study programme that is generated from your progress.
What a speaking tutor covers
A speaking tutor trains a different skill. Recognising a word on a flashcard and producing it in a sentence, aloud, within a second or two, are separate abilities. Many learners have a large reading vocabulary and a small speaking vocabulary because only the first has been practised.
Unihongo is an AI Japanese tutor built for that second skill. You talk by voice with an AI Sensei in an immersive 3D classroom, and you can choose from 8 teacher personalities, for example gentle, strict, funny or relaxed. There are 90 conversation topics across daily life, travel, work, culture and creative challenges.
Roleplay missions are graded by level. They include situations such as cafes, convenience stores, hotels and clinics, and the AI plays the clerk or doctor and stays in character. Pronunciation practice scores each line and gives coaching. After each conversation, a session report lists corrections, and a Review history keeps past sessions so you can return to them.
Unihongo is free to use with a free account. The free plan includes 3 minutes of live conversation with the AI Sensei a day, 2 roleplay missions a day, 5 scored pronunciation lines a day and 2 AI session reports a day, and it keeps the 10 most recent sessions in Review. Three minutes a day is short. It suits a short daily speaking habit, not hour-long sessions.
Kanshudo and Unihongo compared
The table shows what each company's website confirms as of September 2026. Where something could not be confirmed on Kanshudo's site, the cell says to see their site. That wording means the information was not found on the pages consulted. It does not mean the feature is absent.
| Area | Kanshudo | Unihongo |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Study system for kanji, vocabulary, grammar and reading | AI tutor for spoken Japanese |
| Kanji | 14,000 kanji listed, 4,000 with mnemonics, drawing practice | Reference library of 2,136 joyo kanji |
| Vocabulary | 260,000 words in the dictionary, flashcards | Vocabulary games and words met in conversation |
| Grammar | 800 grammar points, reference guide, AI TeachMe | Grammar is corrected inside session reports |
| Spaced repetition | Flashcards that track progress automatically | Not offered |
| Reading | Reading corner and Joy o' Kanji essays | Not a reading course |
| Voice conversation | See their site | Live conversation with an AI Sensei in a 3D classroom |
| Roleplay | See their site | Roleplay missions graded by level |
| Pronunciation scoring | See their site | Line-by-line scoring and coaching |
| AI correction | AI Sentence Correct for Japanese sentences | Corrections of what you said, in a session report |
| Games | Games, quizzes and challenges | Game Arcade and Kana Dash, free without an account |
| Progress view | Mastery wheels and a journey through Japan | Review history of past sessions |
| Mobile apps | See their site | Android in early access, iOS pending |
| Pricing | See their site | Free with a free account, with daily limits |
Read across the rows and the pattern is clear. Kanshudo is built for areas where Unihongo has little or nothing: systematic kanji, a large dictionary, grammar reference, spaced repetition and reading. Unihongo is built for live conversation, roleplay and scored pronunciation.
Where the two overlap
The overlap is small, and knowing it helps you avoid doing the same work twice.
- Kanji reference: Unihongo has a free library of all 2,136 joyo kanji at unihongo.com/kanji. Kanshudo's kanji coverage is far larger and is connected to lessons, mnemonics and flashcards.
- Games: both offer games. Unihongo's Game Arcade at unihongo.com/games includes Vocabulary Dash, Kotoba Stack, Sushi Sort, Listen & Pick, Sentence Builder and Quick Flip, and Kana Dash at unihongo.com/alphabet covers hiragana and katakana. All are free and need no account.
- AI correction: Kanshudo lists AI Sentence Correct for correcting Japanese sentences. Unihongo corrects what you said during a conversation and lists the corrections in a session report.
- Levels: Unihongo's roleplay missions are graded by level, so you can choose a mission close to the level you are studying. Kanshudo's site says it teaches all levels from absolute beginner to expert.
Use the overlap lightly. If Kanshudo is your main kanji tool, treat Unihongo's kanji library as a quick reference while you prepare a conversation, and do not try to run two kanji courses at once.
Other study systems: WaniKani, Bunpro and Renshuu
Kanshudo is not the only study system, and the same pairing works with the others. WaniKani's site describes it as a kanji learning application by Tofugu that teaches 2,000 kanji and 6,000 vocabulary words. It uses radicals as building blocks, mnemonics for each item, and a spaced repetition system that adjusts the time between reviews.
Bunpro's site describes studying Japanese grammar with a spaced repetition system. Its menu lists a grammar library, reading practice, hiragana and katakana, and official apps, with links to the App Store and Google Play. Renshuu's site lists vocabulary, kanji, grammar, sentences, games and listening, and says it can adjust what you see to match your level. Its home page invites you to start learning for free.
Each of these is built around study and review of written Japanese. Whichever one you use, the question is the same: where will you say aloud what you studied? Pricing for all of them is on their own sites.
Japanese sentences that turn study into speech
These sentences connect a study session to a conversation. Say them to a speaking tutor, a teacher or a language partner. Each one takes something you read or reviewed and makes it the subject of spoken practice, which is the step from knowing an item to saying it.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| この漢字の読み方は何ですか。 | Kono kanji no yomikata wa nan desu ka. | What is the reading of this kanji? |
| 今週、新しい漢字を二十個覚えました。 | Konshū, atarashii kanji o nijukko oboemashita. | This week I learned twenty new kanji. |
| この言葉を使って文を作ってみます。 | Kono kotoba o tsukatte bun o tsukutte mimasu. | I will try to make a sentence with this word. |
| この文法の使い方は合っていますか。 | Kono bunpō no tsukaikata wa atte imasu ka. | Is my use of this grammar correct? |
| 昨日読んだ記事について話したいです。 | Kinō yonda kiji ni tsuite hanashitai desu. | I would like to talk about the article I read yesterday. |
A weekly routine that uses both
The routine below takes about 30 to 40 minutes a day. The study blocks fit Kanshudo or any of the study systems named above. The speaking blocks fit Unihongo or another speaking tutor. Unihongo's free plan includes 3 minutes of live conversation a day, so keep the conversation block short and focused, and fill the rest of the speaking time with a roleplay mission, scored pronunciation lines or reading corrected sentences aloud.
| Day | Study system (input) | Speaking tutor (output) |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Flashcard reviews and 5 new kanji | Conversation on a daily life topic using this week's words |
| Tuesday | One grammar point with example sentences | Roleplay mission at your level using that grammar |
| Wednesday | Flashcard reviews and a short reading | Pronunciation practice on lines from the reading |
| Thursday | 5 new kanji and their vocabulary | Conversation where you explain what you read on Wednesday |
| Friday | One grammar point and sentence writing | Repeat Tuesday's roleplay mission with changed details |
| Saturday | Longer reading session | Free conversation, then read the session report |
| Sunday | Light flashcard reviews only | Review history: say each corrected sentence aloud |
The order matters more than the exact minutes. Input comes first and output follows on the same day, so new words are used while they are still fresh. At the end of the week, move any word that you could not produce in conversation back into your flashcards.
Who needs which tool
- You read well but cannot answer quickly in conversation: add a speaking tutor and keep your study system.
- You speak a little but cannot read signs, menus or messages: add a study system such as Kanshudo for kanji and reading.
- You are preparing for the JLPT: a study system and reading practice come first, because the test has no speaking section. Speaking practice supports the grammar and listening.
- You are preparing for travel, a job interview or a move to Japan: spoken roleplay comes first, with kanji study for the signs and forms you will meet.
- You are a complete beginner: learn kana first. Kanshudo has drawing practice for kana, and Unihongo's Kana Dash is a free game for recognition.
Unihongo is not the right tool if you want one product to teach reading, schedule kanji reviews and prepare you for JLPT reading sections. It is a speaking tutor. It also does not replace a human teacher's judgement about culture and what is suitable in a given situation.
About this comparison
This article is published by Unihongo. The descriptions of Kanshudo, WaniKani, Bunpro and Renshuu are taken from each company's official website as it appeared in September 2026. They report what each company states about its own product. They are not test results and not a ranking.
Study systems add features often, so a row that says to see their site may already be out of date. Read the current website of any product named here, including Unihongo, before you subscribe. Unihongo's free plan, and the free access that the study systems describe on their sites, are enough to try the routine above for a week.