7 Mandarin Chinese Learning Apps for Tones, Characters, and Conversation

Yes, with an important label. Duolingo listed Chinese (Simplified) in its official course selector when checked on August 8, 2026. Duolingo's own course explanation says its English-speaker course teaches Mandarin Chinese with simplified characters.

Before choosing an app, decide which spoken variety and character system you need. This guide is about Mandarin. If your family, school, or destination uses traditional characters, make sure your reading tool supports them instead of assuming every “Chinese” course does.

1. Duolingo

Duolingo Chinese offers short guided lessons in Mandarin with simplified characters. It is a convenient free option for habit, basic sentence patterns, and review.

It should not be your only tone model or your only source of natural speech. Repeat useful lines with native audio, and add a resource that makes you produce answers without tiles.

2. HelloChinese

HelloChinese is a Mandarin-specific beginner app covering reading, writing, listening, vocabulary, grammar, speech activities, and handwriting. Its native-speaker videos and structured course make it a stronger all-round starting point than a generic vocabulary app.

Some content and features are paid. Speech recognition is practice feedback, not proof that your tones would be clear to every listener.

3. Du Chinese

Du Chinese is built for graded Mandarin reading and listening. Stories and articles include native audio, instant word lookup, translations, and grammar explanations, with material from newbie to advanced levels.

It is a reading-led tool rather than a full beginner syllabus. Start with text that feels easy enough to follow, hide pinyin for a second pass, and retell two sentences aloud.

4. Pleco

Pleco is a Chinese dictionary and reference app for iOS and Android. The free base includes dictionary search and basic audio; optional additions include licensed dictionaries, flashcards, document reading, handwriting, and OCR.

Pleco helps you investigate language, but it does not choose a curriculum for you. Save words from sentences you actually met, not isolated lists assembled because they look useful.

5. Pimsleur Mandarin

Pimsleur Mandarin centers on 30-minute listen-and-respond lessons. Its current official page lists five levels, making it a substantial choice for learners who want scheduled oral recall and can study without looking at a screen.

The subscription is expensive compared with free apps, and audio-first work needs separate character reading and writing. Try the trial and check the cancellation terms before committing.

6. LingoDeer

LingoDeer Chinese provides sequenced lessons, grammar guidance, and native-speaker audio. It is useful when you want a guided course with more explicit explanation than a game-led app normally provides.

Confirm the course's character options and current depth against your goal. Guided exercises still need native listening and unscripted output beside them.

7. ChickyTutor

ChickyTutor Mandarin Chinese practice can rehearse a transaction after you have checked the core wording elsewhere. Ask it to change one detail so you retrieve the pattern rather than recite a fixed dialogue.

It is not an authoritative tone scorer, pronunciation model, dictionary, or guide to regional Mandarin and character choice. Check tones and uncertain wording against native recordings, a teacher, or a proficient speaker.

Run a six-turn beginner Mandarin ticket-counter roleplay in simplified characters. Start after I say "你好，我想买一张去上海的火车票。" Put pinyin after each reply for the first round, then remove it for the second. Correct one word-choice or sentence-pattern mistake, not every tone.

Build around one missing skill

Use HelloChinese or Duolingo for a guided base. Add Du Chinese if characters stop you from reading, Pleco if lookup friction is the problem, or Pimsleur if listening and recall lag behind. Then run the ticket scene and compare your pronunciation with native audio. One measured gap should determine the next app.