If you’re starting Japanese from scratch, learning hiragana is your very first step.
Japanese uses three writing systems, but beginners begin with the two phonetic alphabets – hiragana and katakana. Together, they’re known as the kana.
They represent sounds, not meanings. And once you can read them, you can pronounce any Japanese word correctly.
That’s why I always recommend starting with hiragana practice sheets for beginners.
Master the kana first, and everything else – vocabulary, grammar, even kanji – becomes much easier.
Best FREE hiragana worksheets for beginners
This free workbook is the best resource I’ve found for learning hiragana.
These free hiragana practice sheets for beginners walk you through every single hiragana character step by step.
You’ll get guided tracing lines first, then space to write each character on your own so you can build confidence as you go.
You’ll also find katakana included, so you can start recognising both Japanese phonetic alphabets from the beginning.
My biggest tip is to print it more than once.
(And that’s the beauty of a free PDF – you can print it as many times as you like!)
Repetition is what makes hiragana stick. The more you write it, the more natural it feels.
Don’t worry about getting it perfect the first time. Just keep going!
Inside the free workbook, you’ll also get:
- Printable hiragana and katakana charts – these are great for sticking on your wall or adding to your study notebook
- Simple writing exercises to test your new knowledge
- Kana flashcards to practise recognition
- Extra tracing and copying space for hands-on practice
One quick note: you’ll need to create a free account to download the workbook. But it’s completely free and no card details are required.
If you’re just starting out with Japanese, this is a simple, structured way to practise every day without feeling overwhelmed.
Cute free hiragana practise sheets that Japanese kids use
Happy Lilac is a brilliant website packed with FREE printable Japanese resources. You’ll find worksheets, games, crafts, posters, colouring pages, and loads more.
The materials are actually made for Japanese children. That might sound intimidating, but it’s great news for beginners.
If you’re just starting with hiragana practice sheets for beginners, head straight to the preschool section. It has simple, beginner-friendly worksheets designed for children who are learning hiragana and katakana for the first time – which makes them perfect for adult beginners too.
As your Japanese improves, you can move up through the elementary and even junior high school resources. It’s a site you can keep coming back to at every stage.
The only catch is that everything is in Japanese, so it can feel a bit overwhelming at first. The easiest solution is to open it in Google Translate so you can navigate more comfortably.
Thankfully, each worksheet link includes a small thumbnail preview. That makes it much easier to spot materials that look suitable before you download anything.
Blank graph paper for more hiragana writing practice
Once you no longer need tracing lines, you’ll probably want simple blank space to practise freely.
I created these free printable blank Japanese writing sheets for extra practice.
In Japan, students use special squared paper when practising their handwriting. The boxes help keep each character balanced, evenly sized, and properly spaced – which is especially important when you’re writing hiragana (and later, kanji).
You can download my blank Japanese squared paper here and print as many copies as you like.
It’s perfect for kana drills, extra repetition, or writing out simple sentences once you’re feeling more confident.
Print out your hiragana practice sheets and get writing!
There are actually hundreds (if not thousands!) of resources out there for learning hiragana, but the most important thing is to just practise writing!
That’s why I just gave you a couple of useful sites, where you can print out useful practice sheets and get writing right away.
Hope you find them useful! Just practise for a few minutes every day. You’ll learn hiragana in no time at all – and then you can get onto the fun stuff 🙂
Related posts
- Japanese Writing Practice: Ultimate List Of Resources For Every Level
- Free Japanese Worksheets for Beginners
- How to Read Japanese
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Rebecca is the founder of Team Japanese. She spent two years teaching English in Ehime, Japan. Now back in the UK, she spends her time blogging, self-studying Japanese and wrangling a very genki toddler.