Kanji, word and name collections

We've put together a number of collections of kanji, vocabulary, and Japanese names for you to use. If you want to focus specifically on learning kanji or words, or just explore, these collections are for you.
Note: for general study, we recommend you work on kanji, vocabulary and grammar in parallel by following the study recommendations in your Dashboard. If you prefer a more independent approach, check the Study index for an overview of all our study tools.
Getting started
Core kanji collections
  • Jōyō Kanji
    The Jōyō Kanji are the 2136 kanji taught in Japanese schools, and considered the most important kanji for 'daily use'. With sound knowledge of the Jōyō kanji, you will be able to read any newspaper and most novels, and easily manage in daily life. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, view your mastery level, or download data for each of these twenty-one collections.
  • Kanji by Usefulness Level The full list of Jōyō Kanji organized into the 5 'usefulness levels' Kanshudo uses to prioritize your studies in lessons and the Kanji Wheel.
  • Kanji by JLPT Level
    The full list of Jōyō Kanji organized into the 5 levels of the JLPT, and further prioritized by frequency.
  • Kyōiku Kanji
    The Kyōiku Kanji are the 1006 kanji taught in Japanese schools from grades one to six. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, view your mastery level, or download data for each of these six collections.
  • Secondary School Kanji
    The Secondary School Kanji are the 1130 kanji taught in Japanese schools from grades seven to twelve. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, view your mastery level, or download data for each of these eleven collections.
  • Jinmeiyō Kanji
    The Jinmeiyō Kanji are the 862 kanji allowed for use in names, in addition to the Jōyō Kanji (for a total of 2998). Kanshudo uniquely presents the Jinmeiyo ordered by their actual usage in Japanese names. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, view your mastery level, or download data for each of these nine collections.
  • New Jōyō Kanji 2010
    In 2010, 196 kanji were added to the Jōyō Kanji list - here they are in one place for easy study. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, view your mastery level, or download the data.
  • New Kyōiku Kanji 2020
    In 2020, an additional 20 kanji will be added to the Kyōiku Kanji list. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, view your mastery level, or download the data.
Vocabulary collections
  • Words by Usefulness Level
    UPDATED!
    Build your Japanese vocabulary! This fantastic set of 102 collections contains the 10,000 most useful words in Japanese, organized by priority for a new Japanese learner. The Kanshudo usefulness level ranking is based on the most comprehensive assessment of Japanese word usage in a variety of contexts ever undertaken. Prioritize your studies with the confidence you are learning the most useful words first! Use Quick Study, create flashcards, or download the data!
  • Most useful words for each kanji reading
    NEW!
    Here we present the most useful word for every reading of every Jōyō kanji, organized in the same order that we present the Jōyō kanji themselves. The best way to learn kanji readings is to learn words that use them, and this collection makes it extremely easy to put together your own flashcards or test yourself. Each of the 4266 words in these collections is itself one of the most useful words in Japanese, so these collections are a great way to prioritize your studies.
  • Wikipedia JLPT Vocab Build your Japanese vocabulary! This fantastic new set of 84 collections contains 8183 of the most useful words in Japanese, organized by the JLPT level they first appear in (as classified in Wikipedia). Sets are organized into five groups for N5-N1 vocab, and within each group, words are prioritized by overall usefulness, so you can study the most useful words first. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, or download the data!
  • Pitch accent homonyms
    NEW!
    Correctly accenting Japanese words when you speak is essential for sounding like a native speaker, and in some situations essential for communication. To complement our comprehensive how-to guide, The Kanshudo definitive guide to Japanese pitch accents, here we present a full collection of all ~600 or so words in Japanese which are read the same way but accented differently.
  • iKnow! Core 6000 This set of 60 collections contains the 6000 words in the iKnow! Core 6000 list. Words are organized into 60 sets of 100 words, introduced in the same order as the iKnow! system. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, or download the data!
  • Routledge 5000 This set of 50 collections contains the 5000 words in the Routledge 5000 frequency list. Words are organized into 50 sets of about 100 words, introduced in the same order as the Routledge list. Use Quick Study, create flashcards, or download the data!
Textbook collections
  • Genki The 21 Genki collections include all kanji introduced in both books of the Genki textbook series.
  • Japanese for Busy People Edition 3 The new Edition 3 Japanese for Busy People collections include all kanji introduced in the updated third edition of the Japanese for Busy People textbook series.
  • Japanese for Busy People
    The 42 Japanese for Busy People collections include all kanji introduced in the Japanese for Busy People textbook series.
If you are working with Genki or the Japanese for Busy People textbook series, Kanshudo's Textbook Companion is for you! The Textbook Companion brings all the benefits of the Kanshudo system to help you study your existing textbook. Kanshudo's Textbook Companion supports the following major textbooks:
  • Genki
  • Minna no Nihongo
  • Adventures in Japanese
  • Japanese for Busy People
Thematic collections
Names
Our three name collections provide easy access to the most common names in Japanese. If you are looking for details for a specific name, try Name search.
Please note: unless otherwise noted, all collections are copyright Kanshudo and may not be downloaded, scraped, distributed or used outside Kanshudo except for personal study without the express permission of Kanshudo. For more information please contact support or see terms and conditions.
Kanshudo is your AI Japanese tutor, and your constant companion on the road to mastery of the Japanese language. To get started learning Japanese, just follow the study recommendations on your Dashboard. You can use Quick search (accessible using the icon at the top of every page) to look up any Japanese word, kanji or grammar point, as well as to find anything on Kanshudo quickly. For an overview, take the tour.
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