Laoshi: Learn Chinese & HSK

Laoshi Inc.

In-app purchases

About this app

Laoshi is a complete app for learning Mandarin Chinese: smart flashcards built for Chinese characters, tones and grammar, with real handwriting practice, pronunciation scoring and ready-made decks for every major Chinese textbook.

Join 300,000+ learners who use Laoshi to build Chinese vocabulary, master Mandarin grammar, prepare for the HSK exam and make progress every day.

Laoshi is a Red Dot Design Award 2021 winner and a HICOOL 2025 winner.

Chinese works differently. Understanding a character isn't enough — you have to memorize it and write it by hand, and it fades fast. That's why spaced repetition sits at the core of Laoshi: it brings a word back exactly when it starts slipping, and locks it in through writing. Tones need pronunciation training, grammar needs clear explanations. Laoshi brings all of it together in one focused app.

Why learners choose Laoshi:

• Real handwriting practice — Don't just read Chinese. Write it. Draw Chinese characters with correct stroke order on your phone and strengthen recognition through active recall.

• Textbook decks, chapter by chapter — 4,300+ ready-made word lists covering 66 Chinese textbook series, including Standard Course HSK, Integrated Chinese, Developing Chinese, Boya Chinese, New Practical Chinese Textbook and Road to Success. Open your book, pick your chapter, start learning — no typing word lists by hand.

• HSK 2.0 and HSK 3.0 coverage — Chinese vocabulary and grammar aligned with both official exam standards, including the advanced 7–9 band, so you can prepare for the HSK exam at any level.

• Flashcards built for Chinese — Tones, pinyin, meanings, example sentences and character writing in one learning flow.

• Pinyin and tone training — Read pinyin with confidence and train tones with dedicated exercises.

• Complete Chinese grammar database — 756 grammar points with clear explanations and practical examples, from beginner to advanced.

• Spaced repetition system (SRS) — Scientifically optimized review intervals help you retain Chinese vocabulary up to 3x longer.

• Pronunciation scoring — Speak Mandarin and get instant feedback from advanced speech technology.

• 30,000+ word lists and thematic decks — HSK lists, textbook decks and topic-based Chinese vocabulary, including preparation for the CSCA, China's standardized admission exam for international students.

• Import and create decks — Bring lists from Anki, Quizlet or Pleco, or create and share your own.

• Stroke order worksheets — Print any deck as a handwriting worksheet in one click.

• Progress tracking — Monitor your HSK level, daily goals and long-term growth.

Whether you are preparing for the HSK exam, applying to study in China, or simply learning Chinese for yourself — with thematic word lists or ready-made lists from your textbook — Laoshi gives you structure, clarity and tools that make Chinese vocabulary, characters and grammar stick.

What learners say on the App Store:

"Well designed and structured, helping students to build a solid foundation for later on write and speak Mandarin correctly." — Leah

"Really like this so far. Spaced repetition, goals, lots of resources. Overall I recommend this very much!" — keivqc

"So many helpful features and updates." — avemisha

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.

Questions or ideas? Email us at [e-mail]

Ratings and reviews

Totally game changing for me. I was struggling to find an app with pre made word lists, a nice UI, and spaced repetition. But laoshi does it all. it even has the new hsk 3.0 vocabulary. If you already know some Chinese you can swipe left on a word in the list to set it as known. Pre made lists for my textbooks and other apps? so useful.

I've bought the full version for a year. In terms of content the app is awesome, I was looking for complete decks based on my textbook and only found it there. Edit: thanks for response! It feels like I am stumbling upon new functions every day, you should really try and rework your new user manual. Awesome work nonetheless!

Update: They've helped me clear any misunderstandings, and so far, the app is very good for learning new words! Original: It says that you can try it for free, but every button guides you to the subscription page. I completely understand and would support the subscription. But why say that you could try it for free? Additionally, when you pick the yearly subscription, it says that it'll give you 6 months free trial. But when you click it, it changes to 7 days free trial. It's quite misleading.

What’s new

New: Master your speaking with our new Pronunciation Assessment! Plus, you can now listen to audio for all grammar examples to perfect your listening skills.