9 Awesome Japanese Podcasts for Accelerating Your Learning

Looking for superb Japanese podcasts?

Why waste any more time wading through low-quality, fledgling work?

We’ve already tracked down the best and brightest Japanese language learning podcasts available today!

The Benefits of Listening to Japanese Podcasts

• They are created by people who are sultry about language learning and committed to providing you the resources and imaginative lessons you need.

• Palms down, spending time with podcasts is one of the best ways of improving your listening abilities – this is something that books and flashcards cannot supply.

• You can listen to them any time, any place and anywhere – on the long commute home, while you’re jogging around the park or soaping up in the shower. They can even be playing in your ears as you go to sleep at night!

In this post, we’re going to go through some of the best Japanese podcasts for language learners out there. Plus, at the end, we’ve got a bonus section for you on how to reach Japanese fluency quicker.

Spoiler alert: it has to do with FluentU’s good collection of authentic Japanese content.

9 Awesome Japanese Podcasts for Accelerating Your Learning

News in Slow Japanese

The title says it all. This fabulous learning resource features a different joy news topic every week which is read out in slow, clear and precise Japanese. Every syllable can be lightly heard. This is a wonderful way to hone your listening and comprehension abilities. If you are feeling adventurous and want to open up yourself a little, you can listen to a quicker version of each slow news story. The audio is accompanied by popup translations and readings of the kanji.

Among the site’s eclectic mix of topic categories are movies, manga, good news, culture, humor, internet and sports. Many of the posts also feature a movie of the topic under discussion.

Learn Japanese Pod

“Learn Japanese Pod” is a good choice for the beginner who needs to master useful Japanese phrases and vocabulary. The shows are hosted by Alex who created the website to improve his own language abilities, and Asuka, a native of Japan who speaks several languages. The typical demonstrate format features a handful of brief conversations inbetween the pair, conducted in Japanese. They are designed to illustrate how certain words and phrases are used.

Each conversation is then dissected in English to give the listener a thorough understanding of what is taking place. This is backed up by an array of supporting materials including transcripts of the conversations in Japanese and English. Alex and Asuka are a good dual act who spark off each other, and their tone is friendly and engaging with an occasional splattering of humor. To date, there are more than one hundred podcasts on the site, slew to bury your teeth into!

Bitesize Japanese

Sometimes, superb things come in puny packages. “Bitesize Japanese” lives up to that maxim with a comprehensive series of very brief podcast lessons. On average, each one lasts for about ten seconds. They cover a wealth of topics including Japanese numbers, Japanese basics, communication abilities, dating, health, and food and restaurants. The podcasts are accompanied by transcripts in English and romaji. What makes “Bitesize Japanese” so good is that the podcasts cover a lot of ground very quickly. There are no fillers or padding out the lessons just to make up the air time.

Whenever you have some idle moments in your day, such as in a supermarket queue, the doctor’s surgery or at a bus stop, strap on your headphones and dive in for a quick lesson. If you can listen to a few a day you’ll soon pack your skill banks with a lot of Japanese.

Japanese LingQ

This is an excellent way to learn Japanese online. LingQ’s podcasts cover a range of formats such as interviews, features, audiobook excerpts, albeit most of the lessons are conversations in real Japanese. They feature numerous topics of everyday interests including current affairs, education and food and drink.

Each podcast comes with a transcript, but they are only available after you have signed up for a free account with LingQ. The podcast series is aimed at the intermediate level Japanese language learner, but advanced beginners not frightened of a challenge may benefit from tuning in.

If you think that their free podcasts are working well for you, then you should most likely consider getting a membership to LingQ and use their utter program—this comes finish with features like flashcards, vocabulary lists, progress trackers and neat web browser extensions for learning while you surf.

The Japanese Page

If you are a Japanese language learning beginner, The Japanese Page is designed squarely for you. Its aim is to get you away from text book Japanese and speaking real, everyday conversations. The mini podcast lessons are conducted in English and feature brief conversations in Japanese, which are then explained in English. The lessons conclude with a quick recap. Albeit each podcast is self-contained and can be listened to in isolation, they build on each other. Each one starts with a précis of what was covered in the previous lesson. English and Japanese texts of key phrases and conversation accompany each podcast.

JapanesePod101 by Innovative Language

JapanesePod101 is fairly simply one of the best podcast series out there for learning Japanese. It has a superlative library of material for the beginner, intermediate and advanced language learner. In addition to the audio lessons, there are slew of movie tutorials too. The presentation is clear and crisp via, with ample chance for the student to repeat what they’ve just heard.

One of the many plus points of JapanesePod101 is that the pronunciation is so clear and distinct, permitting for every syllable to be heard. Peter is the host who guides a clear path through each lesson which features native Japanese speakers. As well as language and conversation essentials, they throw in occasional tidbits of Japanese lifestyle which helps to keep the lessons interesting. The format is of an interview session, but in truth the tempo is so snappy that it feels like you are listening into a conversation. Among the topics featured are Japanese for everyday life and survival phrases.

NHK World

Part of what makes “NHK World” an attractive option for the beginner is the simpleness of the structure of its podcast audio lessons. Two hosts take the reader through various screenplays over the course of a ten-minute lesson. Each podcast is conducted in English intermixed with Japanese words and phrases and how they are used in different situations. They also feature screenplays played out by native Japanese speakers. The moderate rhythm of the Japanese is fairly effortless to comprehend. But no worries if you miss what was said as the friendly hosts repeat conversations, exploring them in a little more detail. There is a strong concentrate on pronunciation and grammar.

The podcasts also include interactive elements to check your understanding of the Japanese. There are fifty lessons in all and among the featured topics are how to ask for things, ordering in a restaurant and words associated with disaster situations. Text versions of the lessons are available in PDF format.

Japanese Listening Advanced

Are you ready for this? “Japanese Listening Advanced” is for the advanced language learner. What you will hear on the podcasts are Japanese natives talking at natural speed, using colloquialisms and the language you will hear on the street. If you are at this level but not presently residing or staying in a Japanese-speaking country, then daily bursts of the podcast will keep your language abilities alive. If you find any parts of the conversations difficult, there are downloadable transcripts in Japanese with English translations.

Survival Phrases by Innovative Language

If you are traveling to Japan for a vacation or business excursion and don’t have a clue about the language, Survival Phrases by Innovative Language can help. It is like your Japanese language learning SOS with podcasts that cover the essentials, such as how to say “you’re welcome” and how to say “thank you.” As the website says, a little Japanese learning can go a long way, and you will impress your hosts by at least making some effort to communicate with them in their own language.

The podcasts are an entertaining listen, largely due to the up-tempo, friendly style of the host and the clear and pro tuition.

The interesting topics, diversity of difficulty levels, rich vocabulary and authentic speaking styles make Japanese podcasts an awesome implement for Japanese language learning. Embark at your level and steadily work your way up. Before you know it, you’ll be listening to full-on native Japanese audio! The sooner you begin listening to these podcasts, the sooner you can get yourself on the rapid track to Japanese fluency.

Bonus: How to Learn Japanese with Authentic Resources

Ready to kick things up a notch and get into authentic Japanese resources, made by native speakers for native speakers?

That can be an intimidating step to take.

Not only will you find grammar lessons and YouTube language learning movies here, you’ll also find authentic Japanese movies that natives actually see on the daily.

It’s all violated down into six Japanese proficiency levels, so you can rest assured that your chosen content will be within your reach.

FluentU makes these native Japanese movies approachable through interactive transcripts. Read along while you observe!

Simply tap on any subtitled word to look it up instantly. All definitions have numerous examples written for Japanese learners like you. Tap “add” to save a word to your vocab list for later review.

The most titillating part is perhaps the learn mode. Vocabulary lists and tailor-made flashcard decks will help you learn actively while watching your beloved movies. The flashcards are truly unique, integrating a multimedia mix of materials for the ultimate in-context learning practice.

The best part? FluentU keeps track of your progress and suggests content based on the lessons you’ve already mastered. You’ll have a 100% personalized practice.

And even better (if you can imagine that) is the FluentU App is now available for iPhone. It’s also still accessible as a website that you can use with your computer or tablet, and if you’re an Android user, fear not—our Android app is presently in the works!

All in all, inbetween your podcasts and FluentU content, you’re sure to find yourself accelerating towards Japanese fluency swifter than ever.

Now put the pedal to the metal!

If you liked this post, something tells me that you’ll love FluentU, the best way to learn Japanese with real-world movies.

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