Welcome to LearnChinese.ai

I'm a software engineer learning Chinese, so naturally I combined my efforts. This site has been in the works for years, and I'm happy to finally share it. I've pulled together what I think works well into a comprehensive, progressive way to learn Chinese using the proven HSK curriculum and efficient supporting tools.

Why I Built This

The site started as a set of flashcards I built for myself while working through the HSK courses. I wanted fast, efficient flashcards with multiple prompt/response modes including Chinese, English, pinyin, and audio. Over time I added reading practice with the course texts, then eventually built out all the activities from the HSK coursebook and workbook. Since then I've started adding additional features and tools to fill out the site.

HSK 1-2 are complete, with HSK 3 in progress. More features are planned, and feedback is welcome.

What's on the Site

Structured HSK Course — A full, free online version of the standard HSK course. Progress through lessons with a mix of activities and media. You can download the course PDFs at MandarinBean or buy the physical books on Amazon.

Spaced Repetition Flashcards — There are a lot of words to learn, so everyone should be using flashcards. Add cards automatically as you progress through the course or manually, and progress on different modes at separate speeds to make sure you learn every aspect of a word.

Sentence Speaking — Listen and speak full Chinese sentences. A good way to build confidence and practice both listening and speaking.

Hanzi Writing — Learn the components and strokes for each character, then practice writing with the hanzi tool.

Text Reading — Practice reading HSK course texts with tokenized text, pinyin, translations, and audio all in one place.

The Philosophy

I'm not trying to invent a new theory of language learning. I'm mostly trying to make a coherent system out of what already works.

Comprehensive and consistent learning — Lessons, texts, vocabulary, and practice should match. If a word is introduced in the course, it should show up across the site: in flashcard review, in reading, in speaking and listening practice, and in progress tracking.

Characters from the beginning — I include pinyin where it helps, but I didn't want the site to become pinyin-only. Skipping characters slowed me down long-term, so the site keeps characters present from the start and reinforces them as you progress.

Efficient and responsive UI — I want the site to feel fast and low-friction. Every section lets you pick up where you left off. Flashcards should be quick (one click, not multiple steps). The course should be easy to resume without managing materials. Pages are designed to work well across screen sizes so the tools stay simple to use.

Mobile-friendly — The site works on mobile so you can use it on your phone without installing another app. Great for short flashcard sessions.

Where AI Fits (and Where It Doesn't)

AI is a big reason this site exists in a complete form. I tried building Chinese learning tools for years—flashcards, video tools, readers, experiments. AI let me program the same high-quality features much faster.

AI didn't create the site, but it helped me finish it. I use AI primarily for programming (faster iteration on features) and for the tedious work of moving the course from a textbook to online. I also use it for supplemental content like audio and enhanced images, and in a few strategic places where the book was lacking.

That said, the site isn't meant to be AI content (commonly referred to as AI slop). The foundation is structured content and tools. I'll keep using AI where it makes the product better, but I'm cautious about adding AI-generated learning material because it can make mistakes.

Where I Want to Take It Next

I have more ideas than time, so I'm focusing on improving the core features first. But here are a few general plans I have for the site.

Course — I want to finish HSK 3 and add HSK 4 soon. I might add HSK 5 and 6 at some point as well. I'll also improve the course tools so it's an enjoyable experience.

Flashcards — Flashcards are fairly decent, but I'll make adjustments based on user feedback. I'm considering adding more modes.

Sentences and Texts — I want to add a lot more sentences and texts that aren't from the HSK course (but still associated with specific lessons), and expand the sentence-based tools to include other ways to practice them. I also want to improve sentence management and progress tracking. I plan to improve the reader so it can track individual words and show what percentage of words you know or are learning through flashcards.

Audio and Video — Explore transcript-backed audio with full tokenization and karaoke-style follow-along. I'm trying to figure out how to get high-quality non-AI-generated audio and video with transcripts to embed into the site.

AI Content — I want to explore generating live content that's completely customized to a person's level, in their chosen format, covering their chosen topic. I'm also interested in building ways to talk with AI, but I've seen lots of attempts and most look really bad. I'm still planning how to structure it so it's actually productive. I believe there's room for live AI conversations in language learning, but it needs to be done right.

Gamification and Motivation — I want to add achievements and progress tracking, plus more incentives to reach milestones. I personally dislike streaks and leagues (like Duolingo) so I'll avoid those, but I think there's lots of room to encourage people without adding too much pressure. Learning should be fun.

Social — I'm planning some small social features so it feels like you're participating in a community of learners instead of just being on a solo journey. For example, I want people to be able to see other users' profiles (if shared) and compare progress—a healthy sense of competition and the ability to share achievements with and connect with other learners, especially those around your level.

Feedback

If you try the site, I'd really appreciate any feedback. Tell me what felt helpful. Tell me what felt confusing. Tell me what you'd want improved first. It helps me decide what to focus on next.