For my neighbors

Furiganar

日本語(にほんご)に、()みをひと()り。

Nihongo ni, yomi wo hitofuri.

Add a sprinkle of reading to Japanese.

Snap a photo of Japanese text and instantly get hiragana and romaji readings. No typing, no dictionaries — just point and read.

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Translation isn't always the answer

Sometimes you don't need a translation — you need to know how to read it.

Example: reading a station name
Translator
研究学園
→ "Tsukuba Research Park" ...but what do I tell the taxi driver?
Furiganar
研究学園
→ けんきゅうがくえん — Kenkyū-gakuen

You needed the reading, not the meaning.

Example: reading times
Translator
9:48
→ "9-Ji 48-bu" ...is it ku? kyū? pun? fun? bun?
Furiganar
9:48
→ くじ よんじゅうはっぷん — Kuji yonjuhappun

Time has irregular pronunciations that translators get wrong.

Example: reading prices
Translator
4,980円
→ "$49.80" ...but a customer just asked me the price and I can't say it.
Furiganar
4,980円
→ よんせんきゅうひゃくはちじゅうえん — Yonsenkyūhyakuhachijūen

You needed to say the price, not convert it.

Example: reading dates
Translator
七月八日
→ "July 8th" ...but I'm on the phone booking a restaurant and need to say the date.
Furiganar
七月八日
→ しちがつようか — Shichigatsuyōka

Now you can say the date on the phone.

Why we built this

"Built for my neighbors who struggle to read Japanese every day."

Living in Japan shouldn't mean being stuck at every sign, menu, or notice. Furiganar was made so anyone can read Japanese text around them — instantly, without studying kanji for years.

What it does

📸

Photo to Reading

Take a photo or pick one from your gallery. AI reads the Japanese text for you.

Hiragana

See the hiragana reading above every kanji so you can read it out loud.

Aa

Romaji

Get romaji (alphabet) transcription for when hiragana isn't enough yet.

Instant

Results in seconds. No typing, no copy-paste, no switching apps.

How it works

1

Snap

Take a photo of any Japanese text — signs, menus, letters, anything.

2

Analyze

AI recognizes the text and generates accurate readings.

3

Read

Get hiragana and romaji readings instantly on screen.

Start reading Japanese today

Free to download. No account needed.

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