Yes, for beginners starting from zero. JapanesePod101 is a course in podcast form, with lessons explained in English, so you can start without any Japanese. It teaches you to hold basic conversations; it will not give you much long Japanese listening on its own.
- Level
- Beginner
- Format
- Podcast
- Year
- 2026
- Episodes
- 78
Why it works for learners
This is made for learners, not native listeners, and the difference is deliberate. Lessons follow a set pattern: a short dialogue, then translation, new vocabulary, grammar and some cultural insight. Because the steps are predictable, you always know what you are meant to take from each one. Short audio lessons fit a commute, and the free feed of 78 episodes gives you a way to try the approach before considering anything further on the company's own site.
What makes it hard
Most airtime is English, so you can finish a lesson having heard little Japanese. Listening alone will not teach you to read kana or kanji. The podcast feed is also a small part of a larger paid product, which may leave gaps between lessons.
How to use it
Take one lesson a day and replay just the dialogue until you can say it from memory. Learn kana on the side from the start. Once dialogues feel easy, add a slow all-Japanese podcast so you begin hearing more Japanese than English.
More for Japanese learners: our Japanese guides.
Keep it where you'll see it
Save JapanesePod101 and log every episode or chapter toward your Japanese hours. Free for one language.
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