Kanji by School Grade
Grade 1Grade 1 Kanji (Elementary)80 kanji from Japan's 1st-grade elementary curriculum — the very first characters every Japanese child learns, covering numbers, nature, body, and everyday objects. Part of the 1,026 Kyōiku Kanji (教育漢字) defined by Japan's Ministry of Education.Grade 2Grade 2 Kanji (Elementary)160 kanji from Japan's 2nd-grade curriculum. Introduces characters for directions, time, animals, and common verbs — building on the grade-1 foundation.Grade 3Grade 3 Kanji (Elementary)200 kanji from Japan's 3rd-grade curriculum. Characters for society, geography, and abstract concepts start to appear alongside everyday vocabulary.Grade 4Grade 4 Kanji (Elementary)202 kanji from Japan's 4th-grade curriculum. Covers government, history, and more complex natural and social vocabulary.Grade 5Grade 5 Kanji (Elementary)193 kanji from Japan's 5th-grade curriculum. Introduces characters from politics, economics, science, and formal writing.Grade 6Grade 6 Kanji (Elementary)191 kanji completing Japan's elementary school curriculum. Mastering these 191 characters finishes the 1,026 Kyōiku Kanji and prepares you for middle school.Jr. HighMiddle School KanjiThe ~1,100 Jōyō Kanji (常用漢字) introduced at middle and high school level — the characters beyond the 1,026 elementary Kyōiku Kanji. The full 2,136 Jōyō kanji set is the standard for newspapers, government documents, and general literacy in Japan.