Reading danmei in Chinese is the more cost-effective than reading the official translated versions, and with benefits that go beyond the cost. It enables you to access content you otherwise couldn’t have and opens doors to new communities and fandoms.
You may think learning Chinese, especially to a high proficiency level to read danmei webnovels, will require taking an expensive course or studying for a few years in a Chinese-speaking country. This may have been true many years ago, but not in 2024.
Today, we have access to many learning tools, free content created for language learners on YouTube and plenty of free Chinese media (including webnovels, TV shows and movies). Learning Chinese to a high proficiency level is much cheaper than you imagined.
In this post, I will guide and show you, from beginner to reading your first danmei webnovel, the resources and tools you can use to progress. These resources will include free and paid options, so you can choose one that suits your learning style and budget.
For dedicated self-learners, if you make the most of free resources and friendly Chinese learner communities, you could spend as little as $50 to reach that goal!
Before You Start
Before diving into serious Chinese studies, you need to be aware of a few aspects related to the end goals of reading danmei. And they are as follows:
- Pinyin vs Zhuyin – learn pinyin phonetic system, and switch to zhuyin if pinyin is too confusing.
- Traditional vs Simplified Chinese – stick with simplified Chinese. It’s easy to learn traditional once you are proficient at reading.
- Handwriting – helps improve character recognition, but it isn’t necessary to handwrite from memory.
For detailed explanations on these aspects, you should check The Ultimate Guide to Starting Mandarin Chinese for danmei webnovels.
Tools and Resources
You’ll likely spend ~$25-$50 on a few essential tools. These tools will make your journey smoother and enhance your rate of learning. Anything to speed up this journey, right?
Pleco ($)
Pleco is a multi-featured app designed for Chinese learners, and its most famous free feature is the Chinese-to-English dictionary. This is a must-have app for all learners! Additional add-ons and graded readers can be purchased from the app.
The paid add-ons can be purchased separately or as part of a bundle. I highly recommend the basic bundle, which has a one-off cost of $29.99. The basic bundle includes several useful features, the most notable being the spaced repetition flashcard system, the document reader and the advanced OCR feature.
The document reader lets you look up the definition of any word with a single tap! You will need this to read danmei on your phone or tablet.
Spaced-Repeititon Tool ($)
There are two popular spaced-repetition tools for Chinese learners: Pleco paid flashcard add-on and Anki.
Pleco, as mentioned above, has many paid add-ons, and its SRS flashcard system is one of them. If you already have the basic bundle, it’s a no-brainer to try their flashcard system out!
Anki is a generic SRS tool that is available on multiple devices. It’s free on Windows, MacOS, and Android phones but there is a $25 cost for the iOS app. The alternative for Apple phone/tablet users is to use the web version from a mobile browser.
Regularly reviewing vocabulary during the early stages of your journey will aid in speeding up your progress!
Browser Pop-up dictionaries (FREE)
There are a few free Chrome and Firefox pop-up dictionaries. These plugins enable you to hover over any Chinese word and phrase and see its pinyin and definition. Commonly used ones are Zhongwen, Zhongzhong and Yomitan with Chinese dictionaries installed.
These tools help navigate Chinese websites and for reading on a computer.
Chinese Grammar Wiki (FREE)
A free knowledge base of all things Chinese grammar, with detailed explanations and example sentences.
You’ll be visiting this site quite often, so be sure to bookmark the website.
The Beginning
There is plenty of learning material for beginners on YouTube, so it’s possible to learn all the basics for absolutely nothing. However, investing some money in guided learning will help speed up the progress and help you quickly form a foundation in Chinese.
The amount you spend could range from $30 to over $100. To keep the cost low, I recommend you begin with self-studying using free content (apps and YouTube), then decide on your path once you’ve had a go at learning Chinese.
If you have the budget and require more guidance, signing up for private one-to-one lessons with a tutor or enrolling on an online course is a brilliant addition to self-studying.
HelloChinese ($$)
HelloChinese is an excellent learning app for absolute beginners. It covers basic vocabulary and grammar, as well as other essential elements of Chinese, including pinyin, character components, and stroke order. During the beginning stages of your learning, spending ~$30 to ~$60 on a few months of Premium membership to HelloChinese is worth considering.
HelloChinese provides a selection of free content, so you can give it a go at learning Mandarin Chinese before investing.
Note: With consistent practice and dedicated focus sessions on Chinese, you can expect to complete the main course on HelloChinese in less than 6 months.
Online Lessons on iTalki ($$$$)
Self-learning isn’t for everyone, and having regular lessons with a private tutor helps with accountability and keeping you on track.
There are many Chinese teachers on iTalki, so you’ll be able to find one that suits your needs. The cost ranges from $10 to $40 per lesson. Using my iTalki sign-up link, you can receive a bonus $10 credit after signup for your first lesson.
If you require a teacher’s guidance, taking lessons once a week for a few months will help you maintain the steady pace you need to push you along the early stages.
Textbooks ($$$)
Despite the plentiful amount of apps and resources available online, traditional paper textbooks are still popular among learners. They are an excellent choice for structured learning.
Here are some popular textbooks:
- HSK Standard Course
- Chinese Hero To Zero offers an online course that closely follows the textbooks. A selection of their course is available for free on YouTube.
- Other supplement materials are free on YouTube, such as the series by Say Ninhao.
- Reaching HSK 4 will be enough to provide you with the foundation you need to move onto other materials.
- New Practical Chinese Reader
- Some supplement listening material can be found on YouTube.
- Boya Chinese
- Some supplement listening material can be found on YouTube.
- Integrated Chinese
- Popular series used by teachers with a focus on group activities.
- Some supplement materials can be found on YouTube.
If you’re on a budget, don’t forget to check your local library or second-hand stores.
YouTube (FREE)
As mentioned before, there is plenty of free content on YouTube for beginners. They are fantastic as additional learning material to complement structured lessons.
Here is a series of videos targeted at learning basics:
- Learn The Chinese Alphabet (Pinyin) by ChineseFor.Us
- Pronunciation and Tone practice by Grace Mandarin Chinese
- The ULTIMATE Guide to Learning Chinese Characters by Grace Mandarin Chinese
- 12 Basic Chinese Grammar Points by Everyday Chinese
- Slow Chinese Stories (Newcomer) by Mandarin Click
- Beginner Chinese stories with comprehensible input by Lazy Chinese
After 200 characters (HSK 2+)
Once you’ve learnt the basics and have formed a foundation in Chinese, you should start incorporating reading into your study routine.
Plenty of options are available. You can choose to go for the free path by using free content or pay some money for a selection of graded readers. Both paths are equally efficient. It simply depends on the content that interests you.
Don’t forget to continue learning grammar, familiarising yourself with sentence structures, and working through the study materials you’ve already signed up for.
Little Fox Chinese (FREE)
Little Fox Chinese is the best free resource for Chinese learners who are interested in reading! They offer a wide range of stories with native audio and transcripts across five levels. The language and vocabulary found in Level 5 are similar to those found in books for young children. Level 5 will expose you to ~2,500 unique characters — most simple modern webnovels contain only 3,000!
The downside is that their content is targeted at children, but if you’re fine with that, this resource is sufficient to help you reach a level where you can begin reading simple danmei webnovels.
They don’t provide grammar explanations, so it’s best to use this resource in conjunction with grammar explanations on Chinese Grammar Wiki, YouTube or from your textbooks.
Note: Their material is only free when accessed from their website on a desktop device.
DuChinese ($$)
DuChinese is a tool specifically designed to improve Chinese language skills through reading. They offer a huge range of short stories and articles across six levels. While some lessons are available for free, the selection is limited.
Their subscription service isn’t cheap. If you want stress-free, easy-to-access progressive content designed for Chinese learners, then it’s worth subscribing for a few months (~$14 a month).
Note: With consistent use (ideally 30 to 40 minutes a day), you can expect to complete enough content from DuChinese to transition into simple danmei webnovels within 2 to 3 months.
Graded Readers ($$)
While the length of chapters in a graded reader is not as long as Chinese webnovels, they are still brilliant for improving reading stamina.
Many can be purchased on Amazon or other bookstores. A good selection is also available on Pleco. You can take advantage of the pop-up dictionary feature by purchasing on Pleco.
Here are some graded readers that many learners recommend:
- Mandarin Companion (available on Pleco, Apple, Google Books, Amazon, Kobo and more)
- The best graded readers for new readers!
- Their level ranges from 150 to 450 unique characters, and each series has been carefully written to ensure it does not contain words that aren’t in the relevant HSK level.
- If you’re following the HSK program or textbooks, these graded readers are perfect for you!
- Note: 450 unique characters are not enough to step into native content, after completing their books, you’ll need to use other graded readers or resources to make the bridge to native content.
- Imagin8 Press (available on their website and Amazon)
- Best graded readers for building reading stamina.
- Their retelling of “The Journey to the West” is their most popular collection. The first book has 500 unique words. Approximately 30 new words are introduced with each book. 2,000 unique words would have been introduced by the last book.
- Their audiobooks are available for free on YouTube.
- Sinolingua’s Rainbow Bridge Series (available on their website, Amazon and Pleco)
- Perfect for an insight into famous Chinese stories.
- It is a great collection of abridged versions of famous fables and famous Chinese classic stories.
- Native audio versions of their books can be found on their website.
YouTube (FREE)
YouTube is an absolute goldmine for free resources, from language channels to Chinese culture and media channels.
It’s a wonderful place to improve your understanding of the Chinese language, learn about the culture, find enjoyable entertainment and generally have fun with Chinese-related content.
Here are some of my favourite Chinese related channels:
- Grace Mandarin Chinese – Variety of videos including explanations of grammar, pronunciation, tones, and tips and tricks.
- Chinese Hero to Zero – Brilliant and detailed explanations on grammar.
- ShouShouChinese – Variety of videos, including vlogs in Chinese, grammar explanations and tips & tricks.
- Chinese with Jessie – Fun videos on Chinese vs English topics.
- 李子柒 Liziqi – Tranquil videos on rural life in China
YouTube is also an excellent place to find free content for comprehensive input. Comprehensive Input (CI) is a language learning method where you consume content slightly that is harder than your level but still within a zone that is comfortable for you.
Here are channels that focus on providing comprehensive input content:
Honorable Mention: HelloChinese ($$)
HelloChinese has a selection of graded readers locked behind the Premium+ membership plan. If you already have a Premium+ plan, it’s a no-brainer to make the most of their content.
Otherwise, I recommend the other resources mentioned above. Their graded readers only advance up to HSK3, which is still far from native content. Options such as Little Fox Chinese, DuChinese and some of the more advanced graded readers are better for bridging the gap to native content.
1,500 Characters and Beyond
You’ve reached the end of the “spending money to learn Chinese for danmei webnovels” road. I am not joking! I bet you didn’t expect to get here so fast and for so little money!
From this point on, you would have exhausted all content created for learners, and you will now be spending your money on danmei webnovels and tools that will help you read.
Having said that, the Chinese language and literature textbooks used by primary and middle school native students are brilliant supplement materials. You can purchase those in China or online stores such as Aliexpress.
Danmei webnovels ($)
I’ve only put one $ symbol against this, but why? Believe me; this is actually the cheapest aspect of the whole journey!
A one million Chinese character webnovel (for example 天官赐福 – Heaven Official’s Blessing) is approximately $4. Depending on your experience, it will take 4-6 months to read that amount of characters. You’ll likely spend less than $10 on webnovels in the early years.
1,500 characters aren’t enough to read more complex webnovels such as 天官赐福 and 将进酒. You will need to work your way up. So which webnovels should you buy?
You can start with some free and newcomer-friendly danmei webnovels such as 《做树真的好难》 and 《我与情敌互换了灵魂》. Make reading a regular activity, and before you know it, you’ll be reading more challenging content.
There are many free ones, so you won’t have to spend any money for a while.
The first webnovel you could purchase is 《一不小心和醋精结婚了》, which is a very intermediate-friendly danmei, with short sentences, straightforward language and a simple slice-of-life plot.
Pleco Document Reader & Advanced OCR ($)
The Pleco Document Reader and the Advanced Live OCR are must-have add-ons if you want to read on your mobile or tablet. If you haven’t already purchased the basic or pro bundle, it’s worth considering.
The document reader is available on Android and iOS. You will need to source an offline version of the reading materials. It will take a bit of effort, but you’ll be able to copy and paste the webnovels from most platforms into a file for personal use.
Unfortunately, the Advanced Live OCR is not available on iOS. On Android devices, it works great, allowing you to look up words while reading directly on the webnovel platform.
Android eReader ($$$$)
What makes an Android eReader unique compared to other eReaders such as Kindles and Kobo is that they allow you to install Android apps. This means you can use apps such as Pleco document reader and the 晋江文学城 mobile app on a paper-like screen.
Android eReader is a must-have if you want a paper-like experience with a pop-up dictionary.
The most accessible and popular devices are those by Boox. The ability to install Android apps is not the only advantage. The built-in reader is also excellent for reading Chinese content with features such as traditional and simplified conversation and the ability to install custom fonts and dictionaries.
Chinese word recognition on their devices is excellent, so along with the ability to install custom dictionaries, you can achieve the pop-up dictionary experience without additional apps.
They are pricey and will cost you around $250. However, considering how much you’ve saved by not purchasing the translated versions of danmei, it’s worth considering one of these devices.
Conclusion
If you choose to begin this journey of reading Chinese danmei for an affordable price, I wish you the best of luck.
Also, remember that cost is only a small part; your enjoyment and ability to discover more content (without translation restrictions) play a much bigger role in the end result.
Money may have been the initial motivation, but in the end, you’ll be staying for the wonderful doors you would have opened.