Japanese Kanji Guide
Explore all 2,136 Jōyō Kanji characters organized by school grade. Click any kanji to learn its meanings, readings, and usage examples.
What are Kanji?
Kanji (漢字) are logographic characters borrowed from Chinese that form one of the three writing systems used in Japanese, alongside hiragana and katakana. Each kanji represents a meaning and can have multiple readings depending on context.
The Japanese Ministry of Education has designated 2,136 characters as Jōyō Kanji (常用漢字) - the "regular-use kanji" that are taught in schools and commonly used in daily life. Of these, 1,026 are Kyōiku Kanji (教育漢字) - "education kanji" taught during the six years of elementary school.
Grades 1-6 (Kyōiku Kanji)
1,026 fundamental kanji taught in elementary school, progressing from simple concepts to more complex ones.
Secondary School Kanji
1,110 additional kanji learned in junior and senior high school, completing the Jōyō Kanji set.
Study tip: Start with Grade 1 kanji and work your way up. Use our interactive learning tool to practice meanings and readings.