Hear Japanese the way it’s actually spoken.
Kiku turns your scrolling habit into real listening practice. Swipe through short clips of native speakers chatting, joking, and reacting. That’s the Japanese you’ll hear on the street, in anime, and on Japanese TV, not the stiff phrases from a textbook.
Every clip comes with an interactive transcript. Don’t know a word? Tap it. Like a phrase? Save it. Your saved words become flashcards tied to the exact moment you heard them, so you remember the voice and the context as well as the meaning.
HOW KIKU HELPS YOU LEARN
Real native audio: Train your ear on natural speed, everyday slang, casual speech, and authentic pronunciation.
Tap any word: Get an instant translation with an AI explanation of meaning, nuance, and grammar, right inside the transcript.
Flashcards from what you watched: Review vocabulary pulled from your own clips, with the original audio and context attached.
Hear any word in action: Search a word or phrase and get hundreds of real clips where native speakers use it.
Short and easy to fit in: Each clip takes seconds, so you can practice on the train, in a queue, or between meetings.
MADE FOR
Anime and J-drama fans who want to rely less on subtitles
Travellers getting ready to order food, ask directions, and chat with locals in Japan
Students who want to add real listening practice to their classes or JLPT study
Beginners and intermediate learners who’ve stalled with gamified apps and want real-world exposure
Busy people who want a few minutes of Japanese a day without heavy study sessions
WHY IMMERSION WORKS
Fluent speakers didn’t learn from drills. They learned by hearing the language over and over in real situations. Kiku gives you that same exposure in short clips, so listening comprehension, vocabulary, and natural phrasing build up a little more with every scroll.
Download Kiku and start understanding real Japanese today.
*SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION*
Kiku is available with an annual plan that includes a free trial, or a monthly plan without a trial. If you start a free trial, you won’t be charged until the trial is over. After that, payment is charged to your Apple ID account, and your subscription renews automatically at the same price unless you turn it off at least 24 hours before the current period ends. You can manage or cancel your subscription at any time in your Apple ID account settings. Prices are shown in the app and may vary by country or region.
*TERMS OF SERVICE*
https://kikulang.com/terms
https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
I saw an ad for this and thought I would give it a try. I was impressed with the features and it seemed promising but my videos wouldn’t load, which for me defeated the whole point of this learning method. When the problem is fixed I would try it again but probably not worth the money right now.
Developer Response
Hello, sorry for this issue! It was a bug I accidentally pushed in an update a few days ago. I just released another update that should've fixed the issue (version 1.1.7). Please update and try again; I'm happy to extend your free trial!I'm also actively working on the app, so if you run into any issues, feel free to leave a comment on the feedback board in the app or email me directly. I always try to fix problems as fast as I can :) Thanks!
Great App for a Fair Price
walking into future
I see people complaining about the the pay wall but this app is definitely worth the money. You even get a 7 day free trial that you can cancel at any time. For about $50 a year which is like $4 a month you get access to videos with word time syncing, ai grammar breakdowns, example sentences, definitions, the different pronunciations of a word and auto generated flash cards that you can review at anytime whenever you click on a new word. Another feature that I love is that there a watch history / save feature so if you accidentally close the app you can find the video you were watchingagain. Another awesome thing is that everytime you review a word it’s color progresses fromwhite (new) to dark orange (mastered) through multiple stages. One thing I do have to note is that sometimes the app will close when clicking on a word while scrolling. Another thing is that sometimes the AI description won’t generate but there’s an easy fix. Just click on the definition button next to the AI one and click back. It should be fixed after doing this 1-3 times. Overall a great app and I highly recommend it 🔥
Developer Response
Thanks for the review! As for those problems, message or email (hakeem@kikulang.com) me the details and I'll fix them asap!
Kiku App: Good idea, Lacking execution
Ibrahimabdou
I like the idea of the app, but I found that there was no real way for the app to know what type of content I wanted to see, so I just kept seeing random things which made it less enjoyable, so that was a big deal for me. Also the speech to text accuracy is defnitely lacking, there are many times where the word is wrong or diffrent to what the person actually said. That and there should be an easier way for people who already know many words in Japanese to be able to siphon through them. I had to manually tell the app that I “learned” them before and it became really tedious, maybe if i could choose “learned” on the side then press on the words i want to mark as that, then press on it again to choose “familiar” or something and then press on all the words that apply, kind of like a paint system, because as it stands it’s just way too slow. I wish there was a way to see the words you see the most/you press on the most, so that way you can know to go back to them more often.
Developer Response
Thanks for your feedback and for giving the app a go! Building an algorithm at the level of TikTok is really difficult, but it's something I'm working to improve. For now, you can filter content by genre on the Explore page, so hopefully you can watch videos that are more interesting to you. The idea to mark words you already know is great. I'll be implementing that in the coming updates. Again, I appreciate the feedback. Have a nice day :)
It's great!
ncknamrty
I love it so far, it's super helpful and the clips are short and useful for learning. I like that you can adjust your level of Japanese easily and turn translations, romaji, etc on and off. I'm currently doing the free trial, I might consider subscribing (which is huge as I usually refuse to pay for anything). The biggest issue is that it seems poorly optimized, and makes my phone very hot. I scrolled for 20 minutes, no charger, and my phone was extremely hot to the touch. This is strange, as I play HD mobile games (Genshin Impact for example) and they don't cause overheating.
Developer Response
Thanks for the review! The performance issue is interesting. If you wouldn't mind, could you email me at hakeem@kikulang.com with your phone model so I can look into it? Thanks!
Hello everyone! Thanks for using Kiku :)
Here's what's new:
- Example sentences on the vocab details page
- Custom study bug fix
- Ability to refresh the Explore page
- Other minor bug fixes
Version 1.1.9
The developer, HAKEEM O DIMOZANTOS, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Used to Track You
The following data may be used to track you across apps and websites owned by other companies:
Usage Data
Data Linked to You
The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
Contact Info
Identifiers
Usage Data
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
Seller
HAKEEM O DIMOZANTOS
Size
102.8 MB
Category
Education
Compatibility
Requires iOS 15.1 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 15.1 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 15.1 or later.
iPod touch Requires iOS 15.1 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 12.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.