Hiragana Flashcards: How to Learn Hiragana in 2 Weeks
Learn hiragana fast with flashcards: what it is, a simple 2-week study plan, tips to remember every character, and free hiragana flashcards to start.
New to Japanese and not sure where to start? Start with hiragana, and learn it with hiragana flashcards. This guide gives you a clear plan to learn all 46 basic characters in one to two weeks, with tips that make them stick.
No theory and no jargon. Just the steps, in order, so you can start today.
What Is Hiragana?
Hiragana is one of the three ways Japanese is written, alongside katakana and kanji. It has 46 basic characters, and each one stands for a sound, like か (ka) or み (mi).
You'll see hiragana in every Japanese sentence. That's why it's the first thing almost every learner studies.
The hiragana chart
Here are all 46 characters. Read the chart in rows: あ (a), い (i), う (u), え (e), お (o), then か (ka), き (ki) and so on. You can also open the full hiragana chart on its own page.
| a | i | u | e | o | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| あ (a) | い (i) | う (u) | え (e) | お (o) | |
| k | か (ka) | き (ki) | く (ku) | け (ke) | こ (ko) |
| s | さ (sa) | し (shi) | す (su) | せ (se) | そ (so) |
| t | た (ta) | ち (chi) | つ (tsu) | て (te) | と (to) |
| n | な (na) | に (ni) | ぬ (nu) | ね (ne) | の (no) |
| h | は (ha) | ひ (hi) | ふ (fu) | へ (he) | ほ (ho) |
| m | ま (ma) | み (mi) | む (mu) | め (me) | も (mo) |
| y | や (ya) | ゆ (yu) | よ (yo) | ||
| r | ら (ra) | り (ri) | る (ru) | れ (re) | ろ (ro) |
| w | わ (wa) | を (o (wo)) | |||
| ん (n) |
Why Do Flashcards Work for Learning Hiragana?
A flashcard makes you remember the answer before you see it. That small effort is what moves a character into your long-term memory. Rereading a chart feels easier, but it doesn't stick nearly as well.
Flashcards are also quick. You can do a round in five minutes on the bus, and they show you exactly which characters you don't know yet.
How to Use Hiragana Flashcards: A Step-by-Step Plan
- Start with five. Learn あ (a), い (i), う (u), え (e) and お (o) first. Every other sound is built on these five vowels.
- Add one or two rows a day. A row is five characters, like か (ka), き (ki), く (ku), け (ke), こ (ko). Small groups are easier to remember than the whole chart at once.
- Review before you add. Start every session with yesterday's rows. This step is easy to skip, and it's the one that makes everything stick.
- Shuffle the cards. If you always go in order, you learn the order, not the characters.
- Stop when you get a full round right. That's your sign the rows are ready, and you can add more tomorrow.
How long does it take to learn hiragana?
About one to two weeks, at 10 to 15 minutes a day. Here's what that looks like:
| When | What to learn | Characters |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | あ (a) and か (ka) rows | 10 |
| Day 2 | さ (sa) and た (ta) rows | 10 |
| Day 3 | な (na) and は (ha) rows | 10 |
| Day 4 | ま (ma) and や (ya) rows | 8 |
| Day 5 | ら (ra) and わ (wa) rows, plus ん (n) | 8 |
| Days 6 and 7 | All 46, shuffled. Drill your misses. | 46 |
| Week 2 | Dakuten (が ga, ぱ pa) and reading real words | 25 more |
Want more detail? The 7-day hiragana plan goes through it day by day, with words to read each day.
- Set aside 10 to 15 minutes a day.
- Review yesterday's rows first.
- Learn one or two new rows (5 to 10 characters).
- Say each sound out loud as you answer.
- Write each new character three times.
- Stop when you get a full round right.
Tips to Remember Hiragana Faster
Use mnemonics
A mnemonic is a little picture or story that links a shape to its sound. The sillier, the better. A few to get you started:
- く (ku) looks like a bird's open beak, going "cuckoo".
- つ (tsu) looks like a wave, as in "tsunami".
- し (shi) looks like a fishing hook: "she's fishing".
- へ (he) looks like a hill: "hey, a hill!"
Make up your own for the characters you keep missing. Your own pictures stick best.
Write while you review
Writing a character makes you notice every stroke. Keep a notebook next to your flashcards and write each new character a few times as you learn it.
Say every sound out loud
Saying さ (sa) out loud as you see it links the shape to the sound, not just to the letters "sa". It feels odd at first. It works.
Space out your reviews
This is called spaced repetition. In plain words: review a character again just before you'd forget it.
Go over new rows the next day, then a few days later, then about a week later. Each time, you'll remember it for longer.
Common Beginner Mistakes (and Look-Alike Characters)
- Leaning on romaji too long. Use it to start, then read the hiragana itself.
- Always going in chart order. Shuffle, so you learn each character on its own.
- Cramming. 15 minutes a day beats two hours once a week.
- Skipping review. New rows push out old ones unless you go back.
- Ignoring look-alikes. A few pairs cause most mistakes. Learn the one detail that tells them apart.
| Character | Looks like | How to tell them apart |
|---|---|---|
| さ (sa) | ち (chi) | Mirror images. The bottom of さ (sa) opens to the right; ち (chi) opens to the left. |
| ぬ (nu) | め (me) | ぬ (nu) ends in a small loop. め (me) doesn't. |
| ね (ne) | れ (re) | ね (ne) ends in a loop. れ (re) ends in a tail that kicks out. |
| わ (wa) | れ (re) | わ (wa) curves round at the end, with no tail. |
| は (ha) | ほ (ho) | ほ (ho) has an extra line across the top. |
| る (ru) | ろ (ro) | る (ru) ends in a loop. ろ (ro) stays open. |
There are more pairs, with bigger pictures, in Hiragana That Look Alike.
What Comes After the Basics?
- Dakuten, the little two dots ( ゛). They change the sound: か (ka) becomes が (ga). A small circle ( ゜) turns は (ha) into ぱ (pa). That's 25 new sounds with no new shapes. See Dakuten and Handakuten.
- Combinations. A small ゃ (ya), ゅ (yu) or ょ (yo) joins the character before it: き (ki) + ゃ (ya) = きゃ (kya).
- Small っ (tsu) and long vowels. They add a pause or stretch a sound, as in きって (kitte, stamp).
- Then katakana. Same sounds, new shapes. Katakana for Beginners is the next step.
- Then kanji and JLPT N5 words. Once you can read kana, start on vocabulary with the JLPT N5 flashcards.
Where Can You Get Free Hiragana Flashcards?
The easiest option is the free hiragana flashcards on JLPTCARDS.com. Here's how they work:
- Tick the rows you want to practise and press Begin Test.
- Type the romaji for each character. Each one has audio, so you hear how it sounds.
- Characters you get wrong keep coming back until you get them right.
- Your accuracy is tracked, so you can see which characters need more work.
- The 46 basic characters and the dakuten sets are free. The combination sets are part of Premium.
Prefer paper? The printable hiragana flashcards are free A4 sheets, double-sided with the romaji on the back. And once you know the characters, the Hiragana Words flashcards let you practise reading real words.
Try It Now: All 46 Hiragana
Tap a card to flip it. Each one has a word that uses the character.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to learn hiragana?
With 10 to 15 minutes of flashcards a day, many beginners learn the 46 basic characters in one to two weeks. The dakuten sounds, like が (ga), usually take a few more days.
Should I learn hiragana or katakana first?
Start with hiragana. It's used in every Japanese sentence, and katakana uses the same sounds, so it goes faster once hiragana is done.
Are hiragana flashcards enough on their own?
Flashcards are the fastest way to learn to recognise the characters. Add a little writing and some real words to read, and you'll remember them for good.
Is it okay to use romaji while I learn?
Yes, as a bridge at the start. Once you know the characters, read the hiragana itself and stop looking at the romaji.
Do I need to learn stroke order?
You don't need it to read. It helps if you want to write, because it makes your handwriting neater and similar characters easier to tell apart.
Are the hiragana flashcards on JLPTCARDS.com free?
Yes. The basic and dakuten sets are free, and so are the printable hiragana flashcards. The combination sets, like きゃ (kya), are part of Premium.
Start Practising Today
Hiragana looks like a lot at first, but it's only 46 characters, and a few minutes a day gets you there. Learn in small groups, review every day, and fix the look-alikes as you go.
Open the free hiragana flashcards on JLPTCARDS.com, tick the あ (a) row, and start your first round now.