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Basic Kanji — 20 Essential Kanji Every Beginner Should Learn First

Published 2026-02-19 · 8 min read

Starting kanji can feel overwhelming. There are over 2,000 in regular use, and they all look complex. But here's what most guides won't tell you: the first 20 kanji are actually easy. Many are simple pictures of the things they represent.

📋 Table of Contents

  1. Why Start With These 20 Kanji?
  2. The 20 Essential Basic Kanji
  3. How to Practice Basic Kanji Effectively
  4. What Comes After These 20?
  5. Free Tools for Learning Basic Kanji
  6. Summary

This guide gives you the 20 best kanji to learn first, chosen for being visually simple, extremely common, and useful from day one. Each entry includes the meaning, both readings, example words you'll actually use, and a memory trick to make it stick.

If you already know hiragana and katakana, you're ready. Let's go.

Why Start With These 20 Kanji?

Not all kanji are equally difficult. Some have 15+ strokes and abstract meanings. Others have 1-3 strokes and literally look like what they mean. We're starting with the second kind.

These 20 kanji were selected because they:

The 20 Essential Basic Kanji

Numbers (一 through 十)

The number kanji are the easiest kanji in existence. The first three are literally just horizontal lines:

一 — One

二 — Two

三 — Three

四 — Four

五 — Five

六 — Six

七 — Seven

八 — Eight

九 — Nine

十 — Ten

Nature Kanji (山, 川, 火, 水, 木)

These are pictographic kanji — they evolved from actual drawings of the things they represent. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.

山 — Mountain

川 — River

火 — Fire

水 — Water

木 — Tree

People and Size (日, 月, 人, 大, 小)

日 — Day / Sun

月 — Month / Moon

人 — Person

大 — Big

小 — Small

How to Practice Basic Kanji Effectively

Knowing the kanji above is just the start. Here's how to make them stick:

1. Use Spaced Repetition (SRS)

The science is clear: spaced repetition is the most efficient way to memorize kanji. Instead of reviewing all 20 every day, an SRS system shows you each kanji right before you'd forget it.

Kanji Flash uses built-in SRS — you rate each card (Again / Hard / Good / Easy) and it schedules reviews automatically. You can also use Anki with our free JLPT N5 deck.

2. Learn Kanji With Words, Not in Isolation

Don't just memorize "大 = big." Learn it as part of words: 大きい (big), 大学 (university), 大人 (adult). This teaches you the readings naturally and gives you vocabulary at the same time.

3. Write Them By Hand

Even if you'll mostly type Japanese, writing by hand activates different memory pathways. Practice each kanji 5-10 times when you first learn it, paying attention to stroke order.

4. Find Them in the Wild

Once you know these 20 kanji, you'll start seeing them everywhere — on Japanese restaurant menus (水, 火, 大, 小), in anime subtitles (人, 日, 月), and on maps (山, 川). Each real-world encounter reinforces your memory.

5. Learn in Small Batches

Don't try to learn all 20 in one sitting. Add 3-5 new kanji per day, then review. Your brain needs sleep to consolidate memories — research shows that multiple short sessions beat one long session.

What Comes After These 20?

Once you're comfortable with these 20 basic kanji, your next steps are:

  1. Complete the JLPT N5 set — Expand to all 103 JLPT N5 kanji. You already know 20 of them!
  2. Learn kanji radicals — The ~214 radicals are building blocks. Knowing them makes complex kanji much easier. For example, 木 (tree) appears inside 林 (forest) and 森 (dense forest).
  3. Study compound words — Most Japanese words use two kanji together. 大学 (big + study = university), 火山 (fire + mountain = volcano), 人口 (person + mouth = population).
  4. Take the JLPT N5 practice test — Test yourself with our free interactive quiz to see how well you've retained these kanji.

Free Tools for Learning Basic Kanji

Tool What It Does Cost
Kanji Flash SRS flashcards, quiz mode, 103 JLPT N5 kanji Free
Kana Flash Learn hiragana & katakana first (prerequisite) Free
JLPT N5 Practice Test Test your kanji knowledge with timed quizzes Free
Anki Decks Downloadable flashcard decks for offline study Free
Printable Study Sheets PDF reference charts for kanji, hiragana, katakana Free

Summary

You just met the 20 most beginner-friendly kanji in Japanese. Ten of them are just numbers (一 through 十). Five are nature pictures (山川火水木). And the rest are among the most common characters you'll see everywhere (日月人大小).

The key to making these stick is consistent daily practice — even 10 minutes a day with an SRS tool like Kanji Flash will have you reading these confidently within two weeks.

Start today. The 20 easiest kanji are waiting.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many basic kanji do beginners need to learn?

Beginners should start with the 20 most common kanji (numbers, days, basic concepts). For JLPT N5, you need about 100 kanji total. Starting with the 20 in this guide gives you a strong foundation for everyday Japanese.

What is the easiest way to learn basic kanji?

The easiest way is to learn kanji in thematic groups (numbers, nature, people) rather than random order. Use flashcard apps with spaced repetition (SRS), practice writing each character by hand, and learn kanji within vocabulary words rather than in isolation.

How long does it take to memorize 20 basic kanji?

Most beginners can recognize 20 basic kanji within 1-2 weeks with daily 15-minute practice sessions. Full memorization including both readings (on'yomi and kun'yomi) and writing takes about 3-4 weeks of consistent practice.

Should I learn kanji before or after hiragana?

Always learn hiragana first, then katakana, then kanji. Hiragana is the foundation of Japanese writing — you need it to read kanji readings (furigana) and most beginner textbooks. Once you know both kana scripts, start with basic kanji.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many basic kanji do beginners need to learn?

Beginners should start with the 20 most common kanji (numbers, days, basic concepts). For JLPT N5, you need about 100 kanji total. Starting with the 20 in this guide gives you a strong foundation for everyday Japanese.

What is the easiest way to learn basic kanji?

The easiest way is to learn kanji in thematic groups (numbers, nature, people) rather than random order. Use flashcard apps with spaced repetition (SRS), practice writing each character by hand, and learn kanji within vocabulary words rather than in isolation.

How long does it take to memorize 20 basic kanji?

Most beginners can recognize 20 basic kanji within 1-2 weeks with daily 15-minute practice sessions. Full memorization including both readings (on'yomi and kun'yomi) and writing takes about 3-4 weeks of consistent practice.

Should I learn kanji before or after hiragana?

Always learn hiragana first, then katakana, then kanji. Hiragana is the foundation of Japanese writing — you need it to read kanji readings (furigana) and most beginner textbooks. Once you know both kana scripts, start with basic kanji.

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