Letterpaths vs Nazoru

Letterpaths is a free handwriting practice resource linked to the UK primary school curriculum. It provides worksheet generators for cursive, joined, print, and pre-cursive writing, with custom word practice for words, names, and spellings. Print and pre-cursive sheets can show guide lines, stroke order, arrows, and numbered starting points. Tracing activities include guided modes with plain, snake, and rollercoaster skins, plus freehand tracing using grey word shapes and checkpoints. The tools run on the web and on iOS and Android; the apps can open in a browser or be installed for a full-screen tablet or phone experience. Cursive worksheets encode their settings in the page URL, allowing links to be copied for saving or sharing. The associated cursive font works on the web and in Microsoft Word or Apple Keynote. Letterpaths also links to a public TypeScript library that generates handwriting geometry data for other applications to render.

Nazoru is a Japanese handwriting practice app for learners working on kanji, hiragana, and katakana. Practice moves from full character outlines through dashed stroke cues and direction hints to a blank canvas, supporting progress from tracing toward writing from memory. When a learner misses a stroke, the guide and direction cue return; the next session starts at the level indicated by their memory. Built-in paths cover JLPT levels N5 to N1, Japanese school grades, frequency, and Heisig ordering. Learners can browse categories and custom lists, search kanji and words they have seen, and practice confusable kanji side by side. Nazoru can suggest practice based on kanji studied in WaniKani, Bunpro, and MaruMori. Those integrations use a read-only API key kept on the device, and practice here does not count as a review in those services. The app works offline and offers optional Google Drive backup for progress, history, and settings. Free allows two full practices per day; Unlimited costs $3.99 per month. The app has no ads or tracking.