Questions, answered

Miaru is a language learning app where every lesson plays like a game. Learn Japanese, Spanish, English, Chinese or Korean on the web at app.miaru.co or in the iPhone and Android apps, with Luffy, our monkey guide, cheering you on.

Yes, if you keep at it. An app is great for building a daily habit and the basics: words, listening, reading and real phrases. Miaru builds every lesson around a real situation, so what you practice is what you'll say out there. Say your lines out loud, and use the language whenever you get the chance.

Yes. Every course starts at zero: Japanese with the first five hiragana, Korean with Hangul, Chinese with its first characters, and Spanish and English with hello. Luffy explains each new thing before you practice it, and the lessons are short.

Five courses. Japanese: 137 units and 784 lessons, from hiragana and katakana to all 2,136 kanji and 114 everyday topics. Spanish: 114 units and 463 lessons of everyday Latin American Spanish. English: 114 units and 463 lessons of everyday American English. Chinese: 126 units and 913 lessons, with 3,500 characters. Korean: 115 units and 497 lessons, starting with Hangul.

Miaru speaks 35 languages, including English, Español, Deutsch, Français, Português, 中文, 日本語, 한국어, हिन्दी and Tiếng Việt. All five courses (Japanese, Spanish, English, Chinese and Korean) are taught in every one of them, except the language each course teaches.

Open app.miaru.co in your browser, or get the app from the App Store or Google Play. Sign in with your email, Google or Apple, pick a course and play your first lesson.

Everyday Latin American Spanish, with neutral words that travel well and scenes that lean Mexican: the tiendita, the fonda, the panadería. The course uses ustedes, not vosotros.

Everyday American English, set in the USA: the diner, the subway, the grocery store, the doctor's office and the job interview.

Yes: all 2,136 jōyō kanji, grade by grade, from grade 1 through the secondary-school set. Each one comes with its meaning, readings, audio and a flashcard that draws it stroke by stroke.

Standard Mandarin with simplified characters, set in Beijing, and standard South Korean in the polite everyday style, set in Seoul. Both courses are taught in 34 languages.

The app shows the courses taught in the language it's set to. It hides the course for that language itself, because nobody learns English in English. Switch the app to another language you speak and its courses appear.

Yes. Chinese and Korean just joined the trail, and more languages are next, then math, reading and science, all just as playful.

Luffy introduces a few new words or characters. You hear them, see them in real sentences, then play: flashcards, match boards, quizzes, listening and translation. Everyday lessons end with a scene where you play your side of the conversation.

Right answers in a row build a combo, and at ×5 it strikes gold. Every lesson earns XP, and a replay earns more only when you beat your best. Every XP also drops a sapphire in your bag. Finish a lesson or a review round each day to grow your streak.

Each course has a leaderboard with a podium for the top three. The XP you earn from lessons during the week counts, and the board resets every Monday (UTC), so everyone starts fresh. There's an all-time board too.

Every word, sentence and character you learn gets its own review schedule, so it comes back right before you'd forget it. Due words show up inside your lessons, up to 8 at a time, and in review rounds of up to 15. Review rounds are free on every plan, earn XP and keep your streak alive.

Miaru's reward for learning: 1 sapphire for every XP you earn from lessons, review rounds and XP boosters. Spend them in the Shop on streak freezes, XP boosters and extra lessons. Sapphires are only ever earned by learning. They're never sold.

It resets, unless you hold a streak freeze. Get one in the Shop for 100 sapphires (you can hold two). When you miss a day, the app asks whether to use it, and your streak keeps going.

Luffy shows you the right answer, no drama. Whatever you missed comes back in later lessons and reviews until it sticks.

Yes. Every word and sentence has audio in a female and a male voice. Choose the voice you like, and set the speed to slow, normal or fast in course settings.

Yes. In course settings, choose how Japanese is shown: romaji, kana, kanji or mixed. Start with romaji and switch to kana when you're ready.

As little as five minutes. When you sign up you choose a daily goal of 5, 10, 15 or 20 minutes, and one lesson a day keeps your streak alive.

Luffy is Miaru's monkey guide. He explains your lessons, cheers every right answer, plays all kinds of parts in your scenes and throws a party when you finish.

Luffy's friends in your scenes. Ai, a little green robot, often plays the professional: a nurse, a ticket clerk and, in the Spanish course, your teacher. Yuko, a friendly dragon, turns up as a classmate, a friend and, in the Spanish course, your neighbor.

Yes. Miaru is on the App Store for iPhone and on Google Play for Android. You can also learn in your browser at app.miaru.co.

Yes. Sign in with the same account and your lessons, XP and streak follow you between the web, iPhone and Android.

Yes. Turn on practice reminders and pick a time. Luffy sends a daily nudge as a push notification on your phone, or by email if you only use the web.

$12.99 a month, or $95.99 a year: that's $8 a month, 38% less than paying monthly. One subscription unlocks every course and every lesson.

You can start for free: your first five lessons are free, then a new free lesson opens every day, and review rounds are always free. A subscription, $12.99 a month or $95.99 a year, opens every lesson with no daily limit.

Yes. Cancel whenever you like, and you keep full access until the end of the period you've already paid for.

Where you bought it. If you subscribed in the App Store or Google Play, manage it there. If you subscribed on the web, manage it from your profile at app.miaru.co.

In the app, open your profile and choose Delete account, or follow the steps on our data deletion page. Deleting your account doesn't cancel a subscription, so cancel that first.

Miaru is a blend of our founder's two daughters' names. In Japanese we write it 実有: 実 (mi) means truth, reality and bearing fruit, and 有 (aru) means to exist, to be filled with. Together: filled with truth and substance.

Email hello@miaru.co. A real person reads every message.