Hiragana, katakana, kanji: which to learn first, and how long each takes

The order gives a beginner a manageable starting point. Hiragana makes basic sentences and pronunciation guides accessible. Katakana opens up familiar-looking vocabulary on menus and signs. Kanji helps identify words and meaning as reading becomes a larger part of study. I adjust the amount of kanji work to the goal: conversation and reading manga do not need identical study plans.

The basics

What each writing system does

I describe hiragana and katakana as sound-based scripts, or kana, rather than alphabets in the English sense. Each has 46 basic characters. Those charts are the starting point; additional marks and combinations also need practice. Kanji are characters borrowed from Chinese and used in Japanese writing. They carry meaning, but their pronunciation depends on the word.

Writing system	Main jobs	Examples from this article	My starting priority
Hiragana, ひらがな	Particles, verb endings, words written without kanji, reading guides	は, を, です, ひらがな	Learn first and read in short sentences
Katakana, カタカナ	Loanwords, many foreign names, sound effects, emphasis	コーヒー, ホテル, アニメ	Begin after the basic hiragana chart
Kanji, 漢字かんじ	Meaning-bearing parts of many words	本ほん, 日本語にほんご, 読よむ	Add gradually through vocabulary

Hiragana is the grammatical glue, but it is also a way to write whole words. A word can have a kanji spelling and still appear in hiragana in beginner material. Katakana represents the same basic sounds as hiragana with different shapes. It is common for foreign names, although I would not assume that every person's name must be written that way.

There are thousands of kanji, with about 2,000 in general use. I treat that as background context, not a beginner's assignment. A few hundred can help with familiar everyday material, but they do not guarantee understanding most everyday reading. Vocabulary, grammar, the topic, and available reading aids all affect what a learner can understand.

How they work together in a sentence

私わたしはコーヒーを飲のみます。 — I drink coffee. (polite — all three scripts together)

Here 私わたし and 飲いん are kanji, コーヒー is katakana, and は, を, and みます are hiragana. I use this example to show why learning the scripts is not choosing which version of Japanese to use. Each does a job inside the same sentence. The ending みます belongs with 飲いん to make the polite verb form 飲のみます.

これは本ほんです。 — This is a book. (polite — a kanji noun inside a mostly hiragana sentence)

The kanji 本ほん gives the noun a visible shape within the sentence. If a beginner sees これはほんです instead, the basic meaning has not changed. I accept that hiragana version as a useful reading step. Later, recognising 本ほん makes it easier to identify the word without sounding out every character.

For another view of their roles, I link to Japanese writing systems. Here, my focus is the order in which I would study them and how to tell whether the practice is helping.

Beyond the basics

Hiragana first: learn sounds, then connect them

My planning estimate is one to two weeks at twenty minutes a day for an initial pass through hiragana. That is an estimate for basic familiarity, not a promise of fluent reading. Remembering a shape on a chart and recognising it inside an unfamiliar word are different tasks. I expect reading speed to develop through repeated encounters after the chart is familiar.

I start with a small group of characters, say the sound while writing each one, and review previous characters before adding more. Ten characters a day is a possible starting workload from the original plan, but I reduce it when review becomes guesswork. Writing by hand gives the shapes attention; reading and listening connect those shapes to language.

ひらがなを読よみます。 — I read hiragana. (polite — reading a word rather than reciting a chart)

In this example, I want the learner to recognise ひらがな as a word. Being able to recite the chart in order does not necessarily make that possible. I therefore move characters out of chart order and put them into words as soon as possible. If I need a chart to check a forgotten shape, I use it and return to the word.

Hiragana also gives access to furigana, the small reading guides printed alongside or above kanji. Manga and children's books can include them, though I check the actual page rather than assume every title does. Furigana helps with pronunciation; it does not supply the meaning of an unfamiliar word or explain a sentence's grammar.

Katakana next: use the shared sounds

I begin katakana once basic hiragana is recognisable, without waiting for perfect speed. The initial planning estimate is again one to two weeks. It may remain slower to read for a few months, depending on how much it appears in the material being used. I treat that difference as a reason to practise it regularly, not evidence that the first attempt failed.

The sounds are already familiar, but similar shapes can interfere with recognition. ツ and シ are one pair to compare; ソ and ン are another. I study their stroke direction and overall shape, then return to whole words. Guessing from an English word alone can hide a reading mistake, so I still check each character.

ホテルはここです。 — The hotel is here. (polite — katakana vocabulary with hiragana grammar)

チケットがあります。 — There is a ticket. (polite — a familiar loanword in a sentence)

ゲームが好すきです。 — I like games. (polite — another useful katakana word)

The original examples コーヒー, ホテル, チケット, ゲーム, and アニメ are useful because their meanings may already be familiar. I still learn their Japanese pronunciation as part of the word. The long mark in コーヒー and ゲーム indicates a long vowel. The small ッ in チケット is also meaningful: it marks a pause before the following consonant. Neither is decoration that can be skipped when reading aloud.

Katakana is not a guarantee that a word behaves like English. Recognising a likely source word gives a clue, then context and a dictionary confirm the Japanese meaning. I discuss that distinction further in English-looking words in Japanese.

Kanji gradually: learn a word and its reading together

I can start conversation practice with almost no kanji. Speaking and listening do not require looking at characters. However, I would not describe kanji as having no value for conversation: reading vocabulary and lesson material can support the words I later use aloud. The practical question is how much study time to give it now.

If conversation is the main goal, I keep kanji work light while practising useful spoken sentences. If reading manga is the main goal, I introduce kanji vocabulary earlier alongside kana practice. I do not wait for katakana to feel effortless before allowing a useful kanji word into the routine.

日本語にほんごを勉強べんきょうします。 — I study Japanese. (polite — learning 日本語にほんご as a complete word)

I learn 日本語にほんご together with its reading, にほんご, and its meaning, “Japanese language.” I do not need to memorise every possible reading of its individual characters before using this word. Learning a character through a known word gives the reading a context and makes the review task clearer.

本ほんを読よみます。 — I read a book. (polite — kanji and a hiragana verb ending)

Here I connect 本ほん with ほん and 読よみます with よみます. The dictionary form 読よむ, read よむ, means “to read.” The hiragana after 読どく is part of the written verb, and it changes with the form. I keep the word together when practising instead of treating the kanji as a complete sentence element on its own.

What a useful study session looks like

I begin by recalling familiar characters without answer choices. Then I write the ones I missed, say their sounds, and read words containing them. An app with multiple-choice questions can support review, but I also need tasks where the answer is not visible. Otherwise I may recognise the right option while being unable to read the same character on a page.

After that, I read something short: a line with furigana, a sentence from beginner material, or a small section of lyrics I want to understand. A children's book or shounen manga can be motivating, but its language may still be difficult. I choose a manageable excerpt rather than use the intended audience as a measure of difficulty.

アニメを見みます。 — I watch anime. (polite — a short sentence to read as a whole)

I read the sentence aloud, check the unfamiliar part, and read it again for meaning. That last step matters. Naming each character correctly is useful decoding practice, but my eventual aim is to understand “I watch anime” while looking at the Japanese. I do not need to translate every character separately to get there.

What “finished” can reasonably mean

For hiragana, my first milestone is reading a familiar word without rebuilding it character by character. For katakana, it is working out a word such as コンビニ, meaning “convenience store,” even if the reading is slow. For kanji, recognising the fifty or so characters that recur on familiar signs can be a useful personal milestone. It is not a universal list or a requirement before opening a book.

Roughly a month of light work can be a planning target for getting started with both kana scripts and supported reading. I leave room for a different pace. None of these milestones means review is finished forever, and recognising a chart does not mean reading every word that can be written with it.

Common mistakes

Making rōmaji a separate course

I start with hiragana from the beginning instead of spending a long preliminary stage studying Japanese only in Latin letters. Rōmaji can help with a quick explanation or keyboard input, but relying on it can encourage pronunciation habits from another language. I pair kana with audio and gradually remove the Latin-letter support as recognition improves.

Treating the basic charts as the entire reading task

Knowing the 46 basic characters in each script is a foundation. I still need to notice marks, small characters, and long vowels inside words. チケット and ゲーム make this visible: reading only the full-sized basic characters would miss part of the pronunciation. I practise those features inside vocabulary rather than leave them as notes under a chart.

Waiting for perfect kana before doing anything else

I keep reviewing kana while learning sentences. Reading slowly is compatible with practising a greeting or a short conversation. Likewise, a useful kanji word can enter the routine before every katakana character feels automatic. My recommended order sets priorities; it does not close the next activity until the previous one is flawless.

Confusing handwriting, recognition, and understanding

I use handwriting to study shapes, but copying a page does not prove I can read it. I also check whether I can recognise a character without a model and understand it inside a word. When a word remains unfamiliar, I learn its meaning instead of assuming more handwriting alone will solve the problem.

Practice

I use these questions to check the study choices and reading features explained above. Try an answer before opening the explanation.

1. Which script do I recommend learning first, and what makes it useful beyond the basic chart?

Show answer

Hiragana. — It appears in grammar and words, and it lets a learner use hiragana reading guides for kanji.

2. Identify the katakana word in 私わたしはコーヒーを飲のみます and give its meaning.

Show answer

コーヒー, meaning coffee. — It is the loanword written in katakana; the sentence also contains kanji and hiragana.

3. Do hiragana and katakana represent different basic sets of sounds?

Show answer

No, their basic sounds correspond. — Katakana requires learning different shapes for familiar sounds, then practising those shapes inside words.

4. What does the mark ー contribute to ゲーム?

Show answer

It indicates a long vowel. — The mark is part of the word's pronunciation, so omitting it changes how the word is read.

5. Why should I pay attention to the small ッ in チケット?

Show answer

It marks a pause before the following consonant. — It has a different role from a full-sized ツ and cannot be ignored when reading the word aloud.

6. I can pronounce a word using furigana. Does that mean I understand it?

Show answer

No, I still need to know its meaning. — Furigana supplies a reading; vocabulary knowledge and grammar are needed to understand the sentence.

7. How would I study 日本語にほんご as a beginner: with every reading of each character, or as a word?

Show answer

As the word 日本語にほんご, read にほんご, meaning Japanese language. — A complete word connects the spelling, relevant reading, and meaning without requiring every character reading first.

8. My goal is conversation. Must I finish kanji before speaking practice?

Show answer

No, I can begin speaking with very little kanji. — Speaking does not require reading characters, so kanji can develop alongside conversation practice.

9. I always recognise hiragana in multiple-choice questions but struggle on a page. What should I add?

Show answer

Reading familiar words without answer choices. — This checks whether I can recall the sounds independently and connect the characters in actual words.

FAQ

Can I learn hiragana in a weekend? I would treat a weekend as an introduction, not a guarantee of lasting recall. My planning estimate is one to two weeks at twenty minutes a day, followed by reading practice.

Should I learn hiragana and katakana together? I prefer hiragana first so the initial shape-learning task stays manageable. I begin katakana once basic hiragana is recognisable and continue reviewing both.

Can I skip kanji if I only want to talk? I can prioritise speaking and listening with very little kanji. I would still add useful written words gradually because lesson material and everyday reading can support spoken vocabulary.

Why does katakana feel harder than hiragana? Similar shapes and fewer encounters can make it slower to recognise. I compare confusing pairs and practise whole words regularly instead of repeatedly starting the chart over.

Does furigana make manga easy to read? It makes kanji pronunciation accessible. I still need vocabulary, grammar, and context, so I choose a short passage and work through it at a manageable pace.

Vocabulary from this article

Tap the block to select all of it, then copy. In Anki: File → Import, note type Basic, separator Tab.

ひらがな	ひらがな — hiragana
カタカナ	かたかな — katakana
漢字	かんじ — kanji
私	わたし — I
コーヒー	こーひー — coffee
本	ほん — book
ホテル	ほてる — hotel
チケット	ちけっと — ticket
ゲーム	げーむ — game
アニメ	あにめ — anime
日本語	にほんご — Japanese language
読む	よむ — to read
コンビニ	こんびに — convenience store

---

I'm Yuuki, a Japanese teacher based in Tokyo. I treat kana drills as homework that learners can do independently. In a lesson, I use that preparation to read something real together, slowly enough to connect its spelling, sound, and meaning.

What lesson time is for is the moment after: taking something real, in Japanese, and reading it together slowly enough that it sticks. Bring the first thing you want to be able to read, and we will start on it.

Book a trial lesson · $13

Sources

The author's original article and teaching approach. The study-time ranges above are planning estimates from that article, not measured outcomes or guarantees.

そのうち2つは小ちいさな表ひょうで、今月中こんげつちゅうに終おわらせられます。3つ目めは大おおきくて、本当ほんとうの意味いみでは終おわりません。でも、始はじめるために必要ひつような量りょうは、思おもっているよりずっと少すくないです。

それぞれの役目やくめ

ひらがな（ひらがな） — 46文字もじ。文法ぶんぽうをつなぐ文字もじです。動詞どうしの終おわり方ほう、助詞じょし、漢字かんじのない日本語にほんごのことば。1つだけ覚おぼえるなら、これです。

カタカナ（カタカナ） — 46文字もじ。音おとはひらがなと同おなじで、形かたちだけがちがいます。外国がいこくから来きたことば、名前なまえ、音おとの表現ひょうげん、強調きょうちょうに使つかいます。あなたの名前なまえも、カタカナで書かきます。

漢字かんじ（漢字かんじ） — 何千なんぜん文字もじもあり、中国ちゅうごくから来きた文字もじです。ことばの意味いみを表あらわします。一般的いっぱんてきに使つかわれるのは約やく2,000文字もじですが、日常にちじょうの読み物よみもののほとんどは、数百すうひゃく文字もじでカバーできます。

覚おぼえる順番じゅんばん

1. ひらがな。ゆずれません。まず最初さいしょです。

他ほかのすべてが、この上うえに成り立なりたっています。マンガや子こども向むけの本ほんで、漢字かんじの上うえに小ちいさく書かいてある「ふりがな」のおかげで、ひらがなを覚おぼえただけで、読よめる本物ほんものの日本語にほんごがぐっと増ふえます。

現実的げんじつてきな目安めやすは1〜2週間しゅうかん、1日にち20分わくらいです。

2. カタカナ。ひらがなのすぐあと。少すこしめんどうです。

音おとはひらがなと同おなじなので、新あたらしい発音はつおんを覚おぼえる必要ひつようはありません。でも、ひらがなより難むずかしく感かんじる理由りゆうが2つあります。形かたちが似にているものが多おおいこと（ツとシ、ソとン）、そして見みる機会きかいが少すくないので、忘わすれやすいことです。

でも、覚おぼえるとすぐに得とくをします。カタカナは、すでに知しっていることばの宝庫ほうこです。コーヒー、ホテル、チケット、ゲーム、アニメ。

現実的げんじつてきな目安めやすは1〜2週間しゅうかん。そのあと数か月すうかげつは、ひらがなよりちょっと読よむのが遅おそいままですが、それはふつうのことで、そのうち追おいつきます。

3. 漢字かんじ。ゆっくり、ずっと、思おもっているより後あとからでいい。

ここはよく議論ぎろんになるところなので、はっきり言いいます。漢字かんじをほとんど知しらなくても、日本語にほんごで会話かいわはできます。

漢字かんじは「読よむ力ちから」です。メニューや看板かんばん、小説しょうせつ、ウェブサイトを読よみたいなら欠かかせません。でも、人ひとと話はなせるかどうかには、あまり関係かんけいがありません。

だから、目標もくひょうが「会話かいわ」なら、漢字かんじはあとまわしでも、ゆっくり並行へいこうして進すすめても大丈夫だいじょうぶです。目標もくひょうが「日本語にほんごでマンガを読よむこと」なら、もっと早はやく、もっと重点的じゅうてんてきに始はじめましょう。どちらの目標もくひょうも正ただしいので、自分じぶんがどちらなのかを正直しょうじきに見みつめてください。勉強べんきょうの計画けいかくがまったく変かわってきます。

2つの表ひょうの覚おぼえ方ほう

4択たくから正ただしい答こたえをタップするアプリだけでは足たりません。「見みて分わかる」だけなら、簡単かんたんなほうの半分はんぶんです。

手てで書かいてください。 紙かみに、声こえに出だして読よみながら書かきます。1日にち10文字もじ、前の日まえのひまでの復習ふくしゅうもしながら。最初さいしょの8日間にちかんは退屈たいくつですが、そのあとはずっと使つかえる力ちからになります。

そしてすぐに何なにかを読よんでください。 ふりがな付つきなら何なんでもいいです。子こども向むけの本ほん、少年しょうねんマンガ、好すきな歌うたの歌詞かし。実際じっさいのものをゆっくり読よむことで、「表あらを覚おぼえた」から「読よめる」に変かわります。

避さけたいまちがい

ローマ字じを、覚おぼえる段階だんかいとして使つかわないでください。日本語にほんごを先さきにローマ字じで覚おぼえると、あとで直なおさないといけないくせがついてしまいますし、日本語にほんごにない発音はつおんを英語えいごの音おとで固定こていしてしまいます。

最初さいしょの1日目にちめからひらがなで始はじめてください。最初さいしょの2週間しゅうかんは遅おそく感かんじても、2か月がつ目めには、そのほうが早はやくなっています。

「終おわった」と言いえる状態じょうたい

• ひらがな: 1文字もじずつ解読かいどくしなくても、ひらがなのことばが読よめる
• カタカナ: コンビニという文字もじを見みて、ゆっくりでも意味いみがわかる
• 漢字かんじ: 看板かんばんでよく見みる50文字もじくらいがわかり、それ以外いがいの漢字かんじを見みてもパニックにならない

これができれば、ふりがな付つきの本物ほんものの日本語にほんごを読み始よみはじめるのに十分じゅうぶんです。だいたい1か月がつ、軽かるい勉強べんきょうで届とどきます。

レッスンでは

レッスンの時間じかんを、文字もじの暗記あんき練習れんしゅうには使つかいません。それは宿題しゅくだいとしてひとりでできることだからです。

レッスンの時間じかんを使つかうのは、そのあとの瞬間しゅんかんです。本物ほんものの日本語にほんごを、身みにつくくらいゆっくり、いっしょに読よみます。最初さいしょに読よめるようになりたいものを持もってきてください。そこから始はじめましょう。