The practice companion for serious Chinese learners.
Your Dragon HSK Prep Toolkit
Most apps play audio and hope for the best. Hidden Dragon listens and speaks to you.
Why I built this
I've finished HSK 4–6 with LTL Flexi Classes online.I've been working through Chinese Zero to Hero (HSK 4–6) for grammar.I've built Hidden Dragon to practice those lessons myself.
One platform. Every level.
Whether you just learned 你好 or you are debating classical Chinese with your tutor, Hidden Dragon meets you where you are.
Pre-HSK → HSK 2
🐣 Baby Dragon
You know why you want to learn Chinese. You don't know where to start.
- ✓Learn pinyin, tones and most basic characters
- ✓Learn vocabulary in context with active recall
- ✓Pronunciation feedback from your very first words
- ✓Complementary free video lessons from Chinese Zero to Hero
- ✓13 learning games in lesson rotation to help trigger your memory
- ✓Daily spaced-repetition reviews
HSK 3 → 4
Intermediate
You kept a 400-day streak. Then a Chinese friend sent you a voice message and you understood one phrase. Doing more of what got you here will not get you past it.
- ✓Follow structured lessons with HSK textbooks and videos
- ✓Character writing practice with narrated stroke guidance, radical breakdown, and etymology
- ✓64,000 native speaker sentences matched to your level
- ✓Stories generated from the vocabulary you are studying
- ✓Grammar patterns linked to the exact Chinese Zero to Hero chapter that explains them
HSK 4 → 6+
🔥 Advanced
You want to break out of the intermediate plateau, think in Chinese, not just translate.
- ✓Video call conversation practice with your Dragon tutor — 50+ scenarios at 5 difficulty levels and 6 moods (fair use: 50/day)
- ✓Import any Chinese text and turn it into an illustrated graded reader or flashcards instantly
- ✓Custom lessons built from your vocabulary, not someone else's word list
- ✓1,300+ grammar patterns with cultural context
- ✓Sentence creation with AI feedback on nuance and cultural appropriateness
How Your Dragon Trains You
No sign-up. No download. Hear the difference in 30 seconds.
Your phrases build each Dragon lesson. Pronunciation, listening, stories, conversation practice, and optional handwriting. Learn in context, not in isolation.
Decide what to learn
Study our pre-built HSK textbooks — or bring your own vocabulary from Anki, Quizlet, or Skritter. Generate topic-based lists or import any text and turn it into flashcards.
Pronounce sample sentences
Pronounce real sentences selected from 64,000+ created by native-speakers, matched to your vocabulary and level.
Read illustrated stories
Read and listen to stories at your level with your vocabulary. HSK-leveled with built-in popup dictionary, natural audio and read-along highlighting.
Practice real-world conversations
Practice real conversations with 50+ scenarios at 5 difficulty levels, from ordering hotpot in Beijing to acing a job interview, all using your vocabulary.
Produce sentences and get feedback
Write or speak sentences using your vocabulary and get feedback on word choice and cultural context, with grammar patterns linked to the best published resources.
Study Smart. Practice Hard.
Chinese Zero to Hero teaches you the rules. Hidden Dragon makes you use them. Together, they are the fastest path from textbook to fluency.
Chinese Zero to Hero & Language Player
2,000+ instructional videos covering Chinese grammar, sentence patterns, and textbook lessons from Pre-HSK through HSK 9. The gold standard for structured Chinese learning. Hidden Dragon is designed to complement Zero to Hero, linking you to the right videos and providing interactive practice and feedback.
Watch first free video
Hidden Dragon
An interactive spaced-repetition (SRS) practice platform that connects what you are learning directly to grammar, stories, and real conversation practice. Your mouth masters accurate pronunciation, your hands learn to write characters, your mind solidifies vocabulary right before you forget.
Start practicing freeBetter Together
Hidden Dragon recommends the next Zero to Hero video for each lesson and grammar point you are practicing so you never have to guess which lesson to watch next. Study with Zero to Hero, then practice with Hidden Dragon. Master Chinese faster.
Full guide for Z2H students
Perfect your pronunciation
Get instant pronunciation feedback. Free tier uses your device's speech recognition. Pro unlocks Azure phoneme-level scoring with detailed drills and articulation guides.
- ✓Sentence mining: automatically find related example sentences
- ✓Visual waveforms show your pronunciation vs. native speaker
- ✓Mirror practice: watch yourself speak to check mouth position
- ✓Articulation tips with jaw, tongue, and lip diagrams
- ✓Unlimited free practice
- ✓ProPhoneme-level scoring for accuracy, fluency, and completeness
Stories that follow your journey
Read 4,000+ illustrated stories with karaoke-style highlighting: text lights up as audio plays. Or generate custom illustrated stories from your own vocabulary.
- ✓Read-along highlighting: text lights up word by word as audio plays
- ✓Neural voices with regional accents — Mandarin (Beijing, Taiwan, Shanghai), English (US, UK, Australian), and more
- ✓HSK-colored (HSK 2.0 and 3.0) vocabulary (see difficulty at a glance)
- ✓ProGenerate 15 custom stories per day
Master characters stroke by stroke
Learn to write 9,000+ Chinese characters with stroke-by-stroke guidance. Free to study.
- ✓Animated & narrated stroke order for correct character formation
- ✓9,000+ characters with stroke order and radical breakdown
- ✓Character decomposition shows radicals and meaning components
- ✓ProSRS writing practice to test yourself
Speak HSK grammar and real-world Chinese
Roleplay with your Dragon tutor: practice 370+ HSK-tagged grammar patterns (linked to Chinese Zero to Hero lessons), then use them in situational scenarios — hotpot in Beijing, a doctor visit, interviews, and more. Strong speaking practice alongside written HSK and HSKK study; not a timed HSKK mock exam.
- ✓HSK Grammar roleplay: one pattern per session, Pre-HSK through HSK 6+
- ✓50+ situational scenarios at 5 levels, from Baby Dragon to Master Dragon
- ✓Culture-specific: Beijing hotpot, Silk Market, TCM doctor, and more
- ✓6 Dragon personalities change how each scenario plays
- ✓7+ languages: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, German, English
Play memory building games
Crossword puzzles, word chains, tone trainers, and matching games directly in each lesson. Many games pull from the words you are studying.
- ✓Crossword puzzles generated from your vocabulary at your HSK level
- ✓Jielong (接龙): build word chains from character compounds
- ✓Tone trainer: practice tone discrimination with instant feedback
- ✓Memory match: paired word recall from your study list
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers about HSK prep, pronunciation, and pricing.
What is Hidden Dragon?
Hidden Dragon is a Chinese learning practice app with spaced repetition flashcards, pronunciation feedback, HSK-aligned graded stories, character writing with stroke order, conversation scenarios, and study games. It is built to complement structured courses like Chinese Zero to Hero.
Is Hidden Dragon good for HSK prep?
Yes. You get HSK textbook decks, graded stories, grammar pattern support, pronunciation coaching, and writing practice from Pre-HSK through advanced levels. Vocabulary and stories can show HSK 2.0 and 3.0 difficulty coloring so you study at your target band. Pro adds voice roleplay to practice HSK grammar patterns and real-world conversations.
Can Hidden Dragon help me prepare for HSKK?
It can support the speaking side of your prep, but it is not an HSKK mock exam. Free pronunciation scoring and tone practice build accuracy; Pro roleplay lets you speak HSK grammar patterns and situational Chinese with a Dragon tutor. Pair Hidden Dragon with your HSKK course or official practice materials for timed listen-and-repeat and picture-description tasks.
How is pronunciation practice different from other apps?
Most apps play audio and move on. Hidden Dragon scores your speech, shows waveforms and character-level feedback, and offers articulation. Free tier uses device speech recognition; Pro adds phoneme-level Azure scoring and deeper drills.
Can I use Hidden Dragon for free?
Yes. The free tier includes SRS flashcards, pronunciation testing, games, Chinese writing study, cloud sync, and access to textbook libraries. Pro unlocks AI stories, speaking roleplay practice in Scenarios, homework checking, and premium pronunciation scoring.
How does Hidden Dragon compare to Anki or Quizlet?
Anki is a general flashcard tool. Hidden Dragon adds illustrated graded readers, pronunciation scoring, stroke-order tutoring, grammar popovers, dragon tutors, and games tied to the vocabulary you are studying — purpose-built for Chinese and other languages in one app.
Can I use Hidden Dragon with Skritter?
Yes. Export your Skritter list as TSV and import it into Hidden Dragon for SRS, stories, pronunciation, and grammar roleplay on those words. Hidden Dragon includes stroke-order writing and SRS writing practice; Skritter remains strong for dedicated handwriting muscle memory — use either or both. You do not need Skritter to start: built-in HSK textbooks and writing tools are included.
How much does Pro cost?
Pro is $12.99/month with a 7-day free trial. Early subscribers keep the launch price. See the pricing page for a full free vs Pro comparison.