日本語 · こんにちは
Learn Japanese online with a private tutor
Three writing systems and a grammar unlike anything in Europe — the clearest case in this catalogue for learning with a teacher rather than an app.
- Native name
- 日本語
- Speakers
- 125M
- Hours to fluency
- ~2200
- Lesson length
- 25 / 50 / 80
How long does Japanese actually take?
The US Foreign Service Institute has been timing this for decades, and the figure everyone quotes is only half of what they publish. FSI puts Japanese at 88 weeks — 2200 classroom hours for an English speaker to reach professional working proficiency. But FSI also states that a typical week is 23 hours in class and 17 hours of self-study, so the real total is closer to 3696 hours of work. The pace below divides that full total rather than the classroom half, which is why these numbers are longer than the ones you have seen elsewhere:
One lesson a week
about 28.4 years
≈2.5 hours a week including homework
Two lessons a week
about 14.2 years
≈5 hours a week including homework
Intensive — daily
about 4.7 years
≈15 hours a week including homework
Worth saying plainly: that figure is for full professional proficiency, which is a much higher bar than most learners need. Holding a real conversation in Japanese usually arrives at somewhere between a fifth and a quarter of the way in.
What the Japanese levels mean
Teachers describe lessons using the Common European Framework. If you do not know your level, a teacher will place you in the first ten minutes of a trial.
- A1Beginner
Introduce yourself and handle very simple, predictable exchanges.
- A2Elementary
Cope with routine tasks — shopping, directions, simple description of your background.
- B1Intermediate
Handle most travel situations and explain opinions on familiar topics.
- B2Upper-intermediate
Hold a fluent, spontaneous conversation with a native speaker without strain on either side.
- C1Advanced
Use the language flexibly for social, academic and professional purposes.
- C2Proficient
Understand virtually everything heard or read, and express yourself with precision.
Kinds of Japanese lesson
Teachers list what they specialise in, so you can match on purpose rather than on price alone.
Japanese tutors for beginners
Teachers who work with absolute beginners every day and can run a first Japanese lesson entirely in a language you share.
Conversational Japanese tutors
Lessons that are mostly you talking. For learners who can read Japanese but freeze when someone answers back.
Business Japanese tutors
Meetings, email, negotiation and presentations — Japanese for the situations your job actually puts you in.
Japanese tutors for kids
Teachers experienced with children, who keep Japanese lessons short, build them around games, and keep a parent in the loop.
Japanese exam preparation tutors
Teachers who know the Japanese exam formats, mark to the real rubric, and work backwards from your test date.
Intensive Japanese courses
Several Japanese lessons a week with homework between them, for learners with a deadline rather than a hobby.
Native Japanese speaking tutors
Teachers who grew up speaking Japanese, for accent work, idiom and the register textbooks never cover.
Japanese grammar tutors
Focused work on the Japanese structures that keep breaking, with exercises built from your own mistakes.
Japanese exams teachers prepare for
JLPT
Japanese-Language Proficiency Test
Questions about learning Japanese
How long does it take to learn Japanese?
The US Foreign Service Institute puts Japanese at roughly 2200 hours of study to reach professional working proficiency for an English speaker. At two lessons a week plus homework — call it five hours — that is about 8.5 years. Conversational comfort arrives much earlier, usually somewhere between a fifth and a quarter of the way in.
How much do Japanese lessons cost?
Each Japanese teacher decides which lesson lengths they offer and sets a price for each — you see both before booking. Many teachers also sell lesson packages at their own price, usually cheaper per lesson. If you are still choosing, you can top up your wallet instead and spend the balance with any teacher — nothing is tied to one person.
Should I learn Japanese with a native speaker?
For pronunciation, idiom and register, yes — a native ear catches things a textbook cannot. For grammar explanations early on, a teacher who learned Japanese as a second language themselves is often clearer, because they remember finding it hard. Many learners use both, and there is no rule against switching.
Can I learn Japanese from absolute zero?
Yes. Filter for teachers who work with beginners and your first lessons will be run partly in a language you already share, shifting into Japanese as you gain ground. You do not need to prepare anything beforehand.
Which Japanese exams can I prepare for?
Teachers on KoloLingo prepare learners for JLPT (Japanese-Language Proficiency Test). Exam-prep teachers mark to the real rubric and plan backwards from your test date.
Free Japanese guides
All Japanese guides →- Writing systemA1
Hiragana, katakana and kanji: which to learn first and why
Japanese uses three writing systems at once. Here is what each is for, how they combine in a single sentence, and the order that gets you reading fastest.
- CostAny level
How much do Japanese lessons cost?
What platforms publish for Japanese tutors, and the parts of Japanese you should never pay a teacher to cover — which is most of the first three months.
- ExamN5–N1
JLPT levels explained: which one to sit, and the rule that fails people
What N5 to N1 mean, the official pass mark for each, the sectional minimum that fails a high scorer, and the two skills the JLPT never tests.