Laoshi is a complete Mandarin Chinese learning system: smart flashcards built for characters, tones, and grammar — with real handwriting practice, pronunciation scoring, and ready-made decks for every major textbook.
Join 300,000+ learners who use Laoshi to build vocabulary, master Chinese grammar, prepare for HSK exams (2.0 & 3.0, including the new advanced levels 7–9), and make consistent progress every day.
Laoshi is a Red Dot Design Award 2021 winner and HICOOL 2025 winner.
Chinese is different. Characters require writing practice. Tones require pronunciation training. Grammar requires structured explanations. Laoshi combines all of it in one focused system.
Why learners choose Laoshi:
• Real Handwriting Practice – Don't just read Chinese. Write it. Draw characters with correct stroke order directly on your phone and strengthen recognition through active recall.
• Textbook Decks, Chapter by Chapter – Ready-made word lists for popular Chinese textbooks, so the app matches your class.
• HSK 2.0 & HSK 3.0 Coverage – Vocabulary and grammar aligned with both official exam standards, including the advanced 7–9 band.
• Flashcards Built for Chinese – Tones, meanings, example sentences, and character writing in one integrated learning flow.
• Complete Chinese Grammar Section – Clear explanations with practical examples from beginner to advanced levels.
• Spaced Repetition System (SRS) – Scientifically optimized review intervals help you retain vocabulary up to 3x longer.
• Pronunciation Scoring – Improve your speaking with instant feedback and advanced speech technology.
• 30,000+ Word Lists & Thematic Decks – HSK lists, textbook decks, and topic-based vocabulary — including preparation for the CSCA, China's standardized admission exam for international students.
• Import & Create Decks – Bring lists from Anki, Quizlet, Pleco, or create and share your own.
• Progress Tracking – Monitor your HSK level, daily goals, and long-term growth.
Whether you're preparing for HSK exams, applying to study in China, or learning Mandarin independently, Laoshi gives you structure, clarity, and tools that make vocabulary and grammar stick.
What learners say on the App Store:
“I love the spaced repetition and the tone training as well as the stroke order training.”
“All of the textbook vocabulary for both HSK and Integrated Chinese are premade so I don't need to waste my time doing it myself.”
“Well designed and structured, helping students to build a solid foundation.”
“Handwriting tool is awesome.”
Start learning Chinese today — try your first 10 words now.
To access all features of Laoshi, you will need to start a subscription after the free trial period.
Have ideas for improving Laoshi? Email us at app@laoshi.io
I’m a languages app junkie and have recently discovered an AWESOME app to learn and study Mandarin and purchased the Lifetime subscription 😍What I enjoy of this app is that is well designed and structured, helping students to build a solid foundation for later on write and speak Mandarin correctly.This app also allows to practice strokes in order to memorize and learn Chinese characters.There’s as well a section for studying grammar in an easy way by grasping what I would like to called “grammar chunks.”You can also practice pronunciation, which is a plus!Please, give a try! You won’t regret 🙌🏻BTW, they have one of the BEST customer service EVER! Thank you Laoshi team!🙏🏻🙌🏻❤️🫶🏻🤗Leah
Developer Response
Thank you so much for your kind words and support, Leah! We’re thrilled to hear that Laoshi is helping you build a strong foundation for Mandarin, and that you’re enjoying the design, grammar, stroke practice, and pronunciation features. Your feedback means a lot to our team, and we’re so happy to have you with us on this journey. 🙏💛
Need additional features to be great!
Smelly Diapers
After using the app for several hours, here are the good. Nice flash cards. Has a library of premade vocabulary bank of words from various Chinese textbooks and APPs that can be downloaded. Has audio in flash card. This app would be 5 stars if the following changes are made: Night mode to make it easy on the eyes. Ability to expand text size in grammar section as some user have bad eyes. Last but most important to some users like me, the ability to review and go through the entire deck of flash cards without having to press whether I know it or not! That’s so annoying that it can’t be turned off. I want a feature that gives me the option for continuous learning (cram) without having to be interrupted with rescheduling words over and over again. Just let me review all the words in sequential order in a HSK chapter/lesson/deck from beginning to end for quick review. I understand there is a memorization method they are using to help me memorize it, but I want the option to turn that off. In addition, I would like them to minimize touch or swipe when advancing a card to avoid carpel tunnel injury to thumb and fingers. Just let me tap on the right side of the screen to advance forward or tap on the left side of the screen to go backwards. Of course, this feature should be available under cram mode. Please fix because I’m ready to purchase your app.
Developer Response
Thank you for sharing such deep and valuable thoughts. We will discuss them with our team and get back to you.If you have any other ideas or questions, please let us know at app@laoshi.io.Thank you very much! 🤗
Looks interesting but impossible to test
Xiao-Min-Min
The app looks interesting and convenient, but there’s no way to taste it without committing to a payment plan. I’ve never used an app that asks you right away to choose a subscription with ZERO option to explore the app first. Most apps like this I’ve used give the HSK 1 (2.0 version) deck for free with everything else behind a paywall which I think is a nice way to let people test the app first. I’m not committing to a subscription just to be able to even look at the app let alone test the basics. They just hope you’ll forget to cancel the trial and get charged, not to mention the trial is only 3 days which for an app like this is way too short. At least a week would be better.
Developer Response
Thank you for the thoughtful feedback.We understand this isn’t for everyone, but we’ve intentionally built Laoshi as a subscription product with a short trial rather than a freemium model. This allows us to focus on depth and quality of content without limiting core features.That said, we hear your point about wanting more time to explore before committing — it’s fair feedback and something we’re actively thinking about.If you’d like, feel free to reach out to us at app@laoshi.io — we can help you get a better look at the app.
Almost okay
JustAnotherCommentator
Potential to be great, except it took multiple attempts to complete some of the smaller strokes, as though it doesn’t recognize the input, and then marks it wrong, placing the character(s) in a near endless cycle of repeat (I can work around this with the checkmark to skip, but this shouldn’t happen in the first place).
Developer Response
We have released a new version.In the Settings (top right corner on flashcards) you can select "Stroke Matcher Mode". Sounds like the "strict" mode is what you want.We look forward to your feedback on app@laoshi.io.Thank you very much!
Bugfixes and performance improvements
Version 5.7.10
The developer, Laoshi Inc., indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
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The following data may be used to track you across apps and websites owned by other companies:
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The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
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The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
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The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
