Where should I start if I am a complete beginner?
If you don’t yet know Hiragana and Katakana, start by learning these two phonetic alphabets first. They form the foundation of written Japanese and are used for grammar endings, native words, pronunciation guides, and beginner texts. Being able to read them will make lessons easier to follow and prevent you from relying on romanized text, which can slow long-term progress.
If you can already read Hiragana and Katakana comfortably, begin with JLPT N5, the beginner level designed for learners with little or no prior experience. N5 introduces essential kanji, vocabulary, grammar patterns, and sentence structures step-by-step, allowing you to build real reading ability from the ground up.