GraphChinese vs Super Chinese for learning Chinese
Pick GraphChinese if you intend to finish. It starts at absolute zero, gates every topic on proven mastery of its prerequisites, and continues through HSK 6, which is where Super Chinese's course stops.
Super Chinese is worth its subscription if what you want is conversational drilling with an AI partner and you are happy inside HSK 1 to 5. Its speech feedback is genuinely good. It just will not decide what you learn next, or notice which prerequisite you are missing when a lesson does not stick.
Super Chinese is a polished app with a real AI tutor, and the speech practice is one of the better implementations on the market. This comparison is honest about that, and honest about the part that decides whether you finish: Super Chinese teaches a fixed sequence of lessons up to HSK 5. GraphChinese models the whole language as a dependency graph, from your first tone to HSK 6, and refuses to advance you past a topic you have not proven.
| Super Chinese | GraphChinese | |
|---|---|---|
| Level range | HSK 1 to HSK 5 | HSK 0 foundations through HSK 6 |
| Structure | Fixed lesson sequence, roughly 900 lessons | Dependency graph of {TOPICS} topics, each gated on proven prerequisites |
| If a lesson does not stick | Repeat the lesson | The graph names the prerequisite underneath it and sends you there |
| Character writing | Stroke-order practice | Stroke-order writing drilled and graded, plus animations |
| Reading | In-lesson sentences | 102 graded passages, every one with native audio and comprehension checks |
| Speaking | AI tutor with speech recognition | Comment + question method from lesson one, plus a sparring dojo |
| Flashcards | Built-in review | FSRS scheduler, 38 built-in decks, imports your existing .apkg decks with audio |
| Your data | Inside the app | Decks import and export; the whole curriculum is published at /curriculum |
| Price | Subscription, roughly $28 to $46 a year depending on tier and region | $9/mo, $84/yr, or $149 once for life |
Prices and features for Super Chinese checked August 2026. They change; if you spot something stale, tell us and it gets fixed.
What Super Chinese does well
- The AI tutor is the real thing, not a chatbot bolted on. It corrects a sentence you actually said and explains why, which is hard to get anywhere else at this price.
- Speech recognition and tone feedback are strong, and they are the reason to open it daily.
- Around 900 short lessons with animation and clear production values. It is pleasant to use, and pleasant matters.
- For HSK 1 to 3, the on-ramp is smooth and the app does not get in your way.
Where it runs out
- The course stops at HSK 5. There is no HSK 6 material, so the last stretch to full proficiency is not in the product. That is the stretch where most self-studiers quietly stop.
- Lessons are a sequence, not a graph. Nothing models which topic depends on which, so nothing can tell you that your 把 sentences are failing because the underlying word-order rule was never proven. You get the same lesson again, not the missing one.
- An AI tutor corrects; it does not schedule. Being told your sentence was wrong is not the same as a system that decides what you meet tomorrow and when each item comes back.
- It is a subscription with no end. You pay for as long as you study, and the course still stops at HSK 5.
The core difference: a sequence versus a graph
A lesson sequence assumes everyone forgets the same things in the same order. They do not. GraphChinese holds all 829 topics, from the four tones and the first stroke of 你 through HSK 6 grammar, in one dependency graph, and a topic stays locked until every prerequisite underneath it is proven mastered. When something does not stick, the graph already knows what it rests on.
Around that sit the parts an app-shaped course usually leaves out: stroke-order writing that is graded rather than watched, 102 graded readings with native narration and comprehension checks, an FSRS scheduler that also runs any Anki deck you import, a 124,727-entry dictionary, and speaking drilled from the first lesson with a memorized comment-and-question kit you use on real people.
Which one should you use
Use GraphChinese if you are starting from zero. Beginners are exactly who this is built for: the 零 door opens on the four tones and the first five characters, taught by construction rather than by multiple choice, and the same system carries you to HSK 6 without ever changing product. Starting somewhere that stops at HSK 5 means moving later, and the move is where people quit.
Use Super Chinese alongside it if you want extra conversational reps with an AI partner and enjoy that format. The two are not mutually exclusive, and nothing in GraphChinese assumes it is your only tool.
Is Super Chinese or GraphChinese better for learning Chinese?
They aim at different jobs. Super Chinese is a polished lesson app with a strong AI speaking tutor, covering HSK 1 to 5. GraphChinese is a full course from HSK 0 to HSK 6 built on a dependency graph of 829 topics, where each topic is gated on proven mastery of its prerequisites, with stroke-order writing, 102 narrated graded readings, an FSRS flashcard scheduler and speaking trained from lesson one. If you intend to reach advanced Chinese, GraphChinese covers the whole path; Super Chinese stops at HSK 5.
Does Super Chinese cover HSK 6?
No. Super Chinese's course covers HSK 1 through HSK 5. GraphChinese continues through HSK 6 in the same system, and its HSK 5 and 6 levels hold 197 and 216 topics respectively.
Is GraphChinese good for absolute beginners?
Yes, and that is the intended starting point. The first lesson teaches the four tones and traces 你 and 好 in correct stroke order, with no prior Chinese assumed, and it is free without an account. HSK 0 foundations hold 19 topics before HSK 1 begins.
How much does GraphChinese cost compared to Super Chinese?
GraphChinese is $9 a month, $84 a year, or $149 once for lifetime access. Super Chinese is subscription-only and runs roughly $28 to $46 a year depending on tier and region; it does not publish a single public price list.
See the whole path instead of reading about it. Your first lesson, the four tones and tracing 你 and 好 in correct stroke order, is free on the landing page, no signup. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $9 a month, $84 a year (that is $7 a month), or $149 once for lifetime access.
Start the free first lessonCompare with: Anki · Duolingo · HelloChinese · Du Chinese · HSKStory · Hack Chinese · Skritter · Pleco · Migaku · all of them side by side