Sumi
- Japan
- ノ first, then the horizontal.
- Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong
- The horizontal first, then ノ.
- Same pattern
- 有、布
Guide · Writing kanji
Kanji stroke order: the 10 rules
Every kanji is written in a set order. Two basic rules and eight principles from the guide Japan’s Ministry of Education published in 1958 explain most of it. Each example below writes itself in the order taught in Japanese schools.
The short version
- Write from top to bottom and from left to right.
- Where strokes cross, the horizontal usually comes before the vertical.
- Write a frame before what’s inside it, and close it with its bottom stroke last.
- A stroke that runs through the whole kanji comes last.
- A stroke is one movement of the pen, corners included: 口 has three strokes, not four.
The 10 rules, one at a time
Each kanji writes itself as it comes into view. Tap it to watch again: the numbers mark the order, and the stroke being written turns red.
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三3 strokes Top to bottom
Write the upper parts of a kanji before the lower parts.
三: the three lines, from the top down.
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川3 strokes Left to right
Write the left parts of a kanji before the right parts.
川: the left stroke, the middle one, then the right.
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十2 strokes Horizontal before vertical
When a horizontal and a vertical stroke cross, the horizontal usually comes first.
十: 一 first, then 丨.
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田5 strokes Except in 田 and 王
In 田 and 王, and in kanji built on them, the vertical stroke comes before the horizontal it crosses.
田: the middle vertical is stroke 3, before the middle horizontal.
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小3 strokes Center before the sides
When a kanji has a center with one or two strokes on each side, write the center first. 忄 and 火 are exceptions.
小: the center, then the left, then the right.
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国8 strokes Outside before inside
Write an enclosing frame before what’s inside it, and close the frame with its bottom stroke last.
国: the frame, then 玉 inside, then the bottom line.
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人2 strokes Left sweep before right sweep
When a stroke sweeping down to the left meets one sweeping down to the right, the left one comes first.
人: ノ first, then the stroke to the right.
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中4 strokes A vertical through everything comes last
A vertical stroke that runs through the whole kanji is written last.
中: 口 first, then the long vertical.
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女3 strokes A horizontal through everything comes last
A horizontal stroke that runs through the whole kanji is written last. 世 is an exception.
女: く and ノ first, then the long horizontal.
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右5 strokes 左5 strokes Short sweep first, long sweep second
With a long horizontal and a short left sweep, the sweep comes first, as in 右. With a short horizontal and a long sweep, the horizontal comes first, as in 左.
右 starts with ノ; 左 starts with 一.
Enclosures: first or last
No single rule covers enclosing parts. Some are written first, like 走 in 起 and 是 in 題. Others come last, like 辶 in 近 and 廴 in 建. Learn these with each kanji.
Written first
Written last
How to count strokes
A stroke is everything you write without lifting the pen, even when it turns a corner. That’s why 口 has three strokes, not four, and 九 has only two.
Across the 2,136 Jōyō kanji, stroke counts run from 1 (一、乙) to 29 (鬱), with about 10.5 on average. Kanji dictionaries use stroke counts to order and look up characters.
Japanese and Chinese stroke order
Japan, mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong each set their own school stroke orders. They agree on most characters, but not all. If you learned Chinese first, watch for these.
- Japan
- The top line, then the vertical, then the other two lines.
- Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong
- Both upper lines, then the vertical, then the bottom line.
- Same pattern
- 玉、主、生
- Japan
- The middle vertical before the middle horizontal.
- Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong
- The middle horizontal before the middle vertical.
- Same pattern
- 由
Kana have a stroke order too
Hiragana and katakana follow the same principles. The charts show every basic character with its strokes numbered, and each one writes itself.
Practise stroke order in Sumi
Every kanji and kana in Sumi shows its stroke order on the answer side of the card. Watch it, step through it, then tap Practice writing and write it yourself.
- Each stroke is checked for direction, position and order
- A hint shows the next stroke after two misses, or whenever you ask
- Write with your finger or Apple Pencil
- The Writing quiz asks you to write kanji from memory
Questions
Does kanji stroke order really matter?
Yes. The standard order helps your kanji come out balanced and legible, and it lets you count strokes correctly, which dictionaries use to order kanji. Writing a kanji the same way every time also helps you remember it.
Who decides the correct stroke order?
In Japan, schools follow the Ministry of Education’s 1958 guide, 筆順指導の手びき (Hitsujun shidō no tebiki), written for the 881 kanji then taught in elementary school. It was meant to keep teaching consistent, not to rule other orders wrong, and it lists kanji such as 上, 必 and 馬 that have more than one widely used order.
Is Japanese stroke order the same as Chinese?
Mostly, but not always. Japan, mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong each have their own school standards. Japan writes the ノ of 右 first, for example, where Chinese standards start with the horizontal, and it writes the vertical of 王 and 田 earlier.
How many strokes can a kanji have?
Among the 2,136 Jōyō kanji, from 1 (一 and 乙) to 29 (鬱). The average is about 10.5 strokes.
Where does Sumi’s stroke order come from?
From KanjiVG, an open data set by Ulrich Apel and contributors (CC BY-SA 3.0) that records the shape, direction and order of every stroke. Sumi uses it for all 2,136 kanji and 162 kana, and every example on this page is drawn from it.
How should I practise stroke order?
Watch a kanji written once, then write it yourself a few times while counting the strokes. Start with kana and simple kanji like 一, 十 and 口; the same rules carry over to complex ones. In Sumi, Practice writing checks each stroke as you write.
Keep going
Stroke order data: KanjiVG by Ulrich Apel and contributors (CC BY-SA 3.0).