Online lessons for the Japanese you want to speak.
SPEAK JAPANESE
in 60 DAYS.
EXPERIENCE JAPAN DIFFERENTLY.
+15“60 days” is a guideline for completing one 16-lesson course on the 2×/week plan. Results vary by individual and are not guaranteed.
An online Japanese school, born in Japan.
Sound familiar?
You're not bad at Japanese. You're just stuck.
You freeze at the register — the word's right there, but nothing comes out.
Three years of apps. Still can't hold a two-minute conversation.
You smile and nod — and catch maybe half.
You live in Japan, but you've never felt more like an outsider.
Every one of these — gone in 60 days.
KODAWARI Sensei fixes that “I can't speak.”
Goal-based courses, native 1-on-1 lessons, and easy monthly plans — three things that get you speaking fast.
How is this different?
Not an app. Not a teacher marketplace. That's the difference.
On your own: 3 years in, still can't chat for 2 minutes.
To speak Japanese — for real
Other courses: weeks on grammar you'll never use — and never the words you actually need.
Built for your exact goal
Pay-by-lesson tutors drift off-topic — wasting your time and money.
A course tailored to you — zero filler
A marketplace: 1,000 teachers — you pick one on a gut feeling.
Screened from 600+ applicants — only the best teach you
An app: 100-day streak — still can't order a coffee.
All about getting you talking
A private tutor: $40 each — before you know it's a fit.
Your first 25-min lesson
Five courses, chosen for your goal
Find the course that fits what you want to say.
Travel
+The teachers behind you
“Will I find the right teacher? Will I get a dud?” We put that worry to rest.
What do you want to speak?
Nana
Travel & culture
“Let's have fun — and watch the words start coming on their own.”
Not the right fit? Switch teachers anytime — no awkwardness.
0%
Acceptance rate
0
Native JP teachers
Only 18 teachers made it through, from 600+ who applied. Every one is here for you.
Getting started — 4 steps
Sign up
Pick a course
Pick a plan
Pick a teacher & learn
What our students say
4.8· from real learners around the world
“I never thought I'd speak this much in under half a year. My teacher always matches my pace.”
Emma
USA · Travel course
“I never thought I'd speak this much in under half a year. My teacher always matches my pace.”
Emma
USA · Travel course
“I started from zero — couldn't even read hiragana. A few months in, I can hold a real conversation. Wish I'd found it sooner.”
Jack
Australia · Beginner course
“I started this to get closer to my Japanese partner. Now we actually talk — in Japanese. It changed us.”
Linnéa
Sweden · Romance course
“I passed the JLPT and walked into my interview confident. Having a study plan made just for me was everything.”
Chloé
France · Interview course
“No set topic — we just talk about my week, my hobbies. My Japanese got natural fast.”
Lukas
Germany · Free Talk course
“I never thought I'd speak this much in under half a year. My teacher always matches my pace.”
Emma
USA · Travel course
“I started from zero — couldn't even read hiragana. A few months in, I can hold a real conversation. Wish I'd found it sooner.”
Jack
Australia · Beginner course
“I started this to get closer to my Japanese partner. Now we actually talk — in Japanese. It changed us.”
Linnéa
Sweden · Romance course
“I passed the JLPT and walked into my interview confident. Having a study plan made just for me was everything.”
Chloé
France · Interview course
“No set topic — we just talk about my week, my hobbies. My Japanese got natural fast.”
Lukas
Germany · Free Talk course
Plans
Pick a course — your pace sets how fast you finish.
Standard
Finish a course in
~2 months
$150/mo · 8 lessons/mo · 25 min
+- ✓Hand-picked native teachers — choose freely, switch anytime
- ✓Switch among 5 goal-based courses anytime
- ✓24/7 chat questions
- ✓Free access to all materials
+Finish a course in
~2 months
- ✓Hand-picked native teachers — choose freely, switch anytime
- ✓Switch among 5 goal-based courses anytime
- ✓24/7 chat questions
- ✓Free access to all materials
No card needed · switch plans anytime
Want to try, but a little nervous?
No need to commit yet — start with one real lesson.
Get serious — in 3 months.
Coached personally by the founders
Shima
Founder · coach
Kanta
Founder · coach
Tsun
Coach
First, we get you to your goal — then we've got the rest, too.
We're all in on your goal — passing the JLPT, speaking naturally, whatever it is for you. And as ex-consultants with a 300K-strong following across Japan, we're there for the rest too — new opportunities and everyday hurdles, whenever you need us.
What your coach gets you through
Pass JLPT N3 · N2
Mock exams, weak-point drills and a plan built backward from your exam date. N1 too.
Life's urgent moments in Japan, handled
Visa, hospital, contracts, city hall, last-minute work situations — your coach helps you through it in real time.
- ✓A dedicated coach, just for you
- ✓2 one-on-one lessons / week
- ✓A 3-month custom curriculum
- ✓24/7 chat questions
- ✓Bi-weekly progress reviews
- ✓Your own learning roadmap
Still wondering something?
Everything people ask before their first lesson — answered.
Ask us directlyA course is 16 lessons; on the popular 2×/week plan that's ~60 days. Focusing on one goal gets you speaking faster.
Absolutely. The Beginner course starts from hiragana and greetings with careful support.
Yes — every one of our teachers speaks English. Even at zero Japanese, you can check things in English and never get stuck in silence.
Just pick the goal closest to yours — and switch anytime. Not sure? Start with Free Talk.
Both are up to you. Choose from teacher profiles yourself, and switch anytime if it's not the right fit — you're never stuck with a bad match.
Yes. Lessons run across a wide range of hours, and you book in your own local time — from the US, EU, Australia, or anywhere.
Online, 1-on-1, 25 minutes over video. Just a phone or laptop, internet, and ideally headphones — materials are online, so there's nothing to buy.
Your first lesson is just $4.90, with no auto-billing. Only if you decide to continue do you pick a monthly plan ($90–280/mo) — so there's no big charge before you've even tried it.
Yes — cancel anytime. Start with the $4.90 first lesson (one-time, no auto-billing) and continue only if you like it.
None. Access to all materials is included in your plan — nothing extra to buy. The plan price is the only price.
Monthly is the standard self-paced plan. Coaching is a 3-month premium plan with a dedicated coach, custom curriculum, and 24/7 support.
“Language is just the first step.”
Why I started KODAWARI Sensei.
Kanta Kobayashi
Founder, KODAWARI Sensei
On a working holiday in Australia, I ran straight into the language barrier myself. The day I finally broke through it, everything opened up — friends, work, a whole bigger life.
Since then, nothing makes me happier than seeing someone from abroad truly at home here. I love solving people's problems and watching them light up.
So I built KODAWARI Sensei — and I design every lesson myself, around one promise: you actually speaking. Never streaks, never busywork.
And I'm not stopping at language. Here's where I want to take it —
KODAWARI Sensei — break the language barrier, online.
A real Japanese school in Tokyo, in person.
Empty houses I rebuild, by hand, into hostels.
Spaces where locals and newcomers truly meet.
A Japan where anyone, from anywhere, has a place to belong.
Speak Japanese — for real, in 60 days.
5 courses + hand-picked native teachers — choose & switch anytime
Monthly · $4.90 first lesson · no auto-billing