About Nihao
Last updated: October 22, 2026
Nihao is a free website for learning first words in Mandarin Chinese, made for children aged 4 and up and for adults starting from zero. It teaches 841 words and phrases in 205 short lessons, each word with a looping picture, native-voice audio, pinyin and a simple sentence. It works in any browser, has no ads, and needs no account.
Nihao in numbers
- 48 units and 205 lessons
- 841 words and phrases, each with its own page
- 38 topics, from animals and colors to food and school
- 2 scripts: Simplified and Traditional characters
- About 5 minutes per lesson
- $0: every lesson is free
Who it is for
Kids aged 4 and up. Every word is a picture and a sound, so children can learn before they read, and parents don't need to speak Chinese themselves.
Families raising children with Chinese. Choose Simplified characters, as used in mainland China and Singapore, or Traditional characters, as used in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Traditional learners are taught the words people use in Taiwan, such as 公車 for bus and 馬鈴薯 for potato, with their own audio.
Teens and adults starting from zero. The same short lessons give a quick, low-pressure start before a full course.
How a lesson works
- The lesson shows its words first: picture, characters, pinyin, audio and a sentence.
- Each word is asked twice: once from a picture, once as a fill-in-the-blank sentence.
- A wrong answer costs a heart and comes back later in the lesson.
- The lesson ends by tracing one character, with every stroke numbered in the right order.
Phrase lessons teach whole sentences for everyday moments, such as meeting someone, saying thank you, or talking about the weather.
How it is made
All Chinese audio is read by one native Mandarin voice, so the app sounds like one speaker. The pictures are short animated clips made for each word on a plain white background, so a child sees exactly what the word means. Every word has its pinyin with tone marks and its Traditional form.
Free, with no ads
Every lesson is free. There are no ads and no in-app purchases. Without an account, progress stays in your browser; signing in with Google only saves progress across devices. See the privacy policy for details.
How Nihao compares
Nihao is a free vocabulary trainer, not a full course or a live class. For game-style learning at ages 2 to 8, a live teacher, or a full grammar course, other apps fit better. See our honest comparison: best Chinese apps for kids.
Contact
Questions, ideas or a mistake to report: support@trynihao.com.