Resources and Tools for Learning Mandarin Chinese
Welcome to the Written Chinese Resource Page!
This is a list of tools and online platforms that we recommend using to improve your Chinese. We have tried and tested all the platforms in our list, and used them alongside our own Written Chinese Dictionary app and other tools.
Some of the products below also include affiliate links. That means if you click a product link below and then purchase the product, Written Chinese will take a small commission (Don’t worry, it’s at no extra cost to you!)
Schools and Teachers
Are you interested in studying Chinese in China, but aren’t sure where to study or what course to choose? Take a look at the Chinese Language Institute’s Chinese Immersion or Study Abroad programmes and find a course that’s right for you. Written Chinese fans get a $150 discount off CLI tuition by using the code CLIandWC.
Courses
If you’re trying to improve your spoken Chinese, the Real Spoken Chinese vault provides 100s of interview-style video lessons to help you pick up on nuances of the Chinese language missing from a textbook. Try out a demo or watch our review to learn more!
Wrtitten Chinese Tools
Learn to read written Chinese from your web browser, emails and online chats. Hover over Chinese characters on your computer’s desktop and get an instant translation in several languages. Look up words with the Written Chinese Reader and learn how to pronounce words with Pinyin and audio.
Use our Chinese Name Generator to get yourself a Chinese name. Even if you don’t study Chinese, just enter your name and get a free personalized Chinese name in Chinese Characters!
Use the Chinese Tone Trainer to practice the five tones of Mandarin Chinese. Listen to the tones and test your knowledge!
Tools
ChinesePod has hundreds of video and audio lessons ranging from Newbie to Advanced levels. There are 100 free lessons when you sign up and a range of different price ranges for their premium content, including monthly and yearly subscriptions. The classes teach a variety of subjects such as vocabulary, grammar and more complex topics. You can get your free 100 lessons here.
Practice writing Chinese characters on the web or your mobile with Skritter. Their newly updated web version is easy and fun to use to test your stroke order, tones and definitions.
LingQ allows you to study written and audio lessons, save words you need to learn and track your progress. You can easily add your own content from textbooks, news articles and blog posts. LingQ can be used to learn tons of languages, not just Chinese and the platform easily moves between different languages!