Comparison
Wanilog vs wkstats: a respectful successor
wkstats has been the WaniKani community's stats home since the mid-2010s, and is the reason every dashboard in this space exists. If you have been using it to track your progress, you already know what good stats look like. Wanilog keeps the same projection, JLPT, Joyo, and frequency math you rely on, then adds a confidence band on your finish date, reading coverage on real Japanese text, goal tracking, and a phone-first PWA that opens instantly even offline.
What wkstats got right
- It defined the category. Finish-date projection, JLPT coverage, Joyo grade buckets, frequency lists, time-on-level history. Every WaniKani stats tool is downstream of that work.
- Per-level item drill-downs. Still the canonical reference for browsing radicals, kanji, and vocab one level at a time.
Side-by-side feature matrix
| Feature | Wanilog | wkstats |
|---|---|---|
| Setup and hosting | ||
| Hosted, no install | Yes | Yes |
| Self-host option | No | No |
| Open source (MIT) | No | No |
| Demo mode (no API key) | Yes | No |
| Stats and analytics | ||
| SRS stage distribution | Yes | Yes |
| Review and lesson forecast | Yes | No |
| Workload forecast (lessons-per-day slider) | Yes | No |
| Peak review day surfaced | Yes | No |
| Per-level accuracy chart | Yes | No |
| Leech list with severity | Yes | No |
| Leech trainer (multiple algorithms) | Yes | No |
| Confusion pairs / visually similar items | Yes | No |
| Burn velocity (week / month) | Yes | No |
| Critical-kanji-to-level-up panel | Yes | Partial |
| Coverage and forecasting | ||
| Level 60 finish-date projection | Yes | Yes |
| Statistical projection with confidence interval | Yes | No |
| Goal level (1–60) and goal date | Yes | No |
| JLPT N5–N1 coverage with drill-down | Yes | Yes |
| Joyo coverage (grades 1–9) | Yes | Yes |
| Frequency-list coverage | Yes | Yes |
| Reading coverage on live NHK headlines | Yes | No |
| "Can I read this?" arbitrary text tool | Yes | No |
| Manual known-kanji input | Yes | No |
| UX and device support | ||
| Installable PWA | Yes | No |
| Offline shell | Yes | No |
| Phone-first layout | Yes | No |
| Dark mode | Yes | No |
| Color palettes (4) | Yes | No |
| Cinematic level 1–60 replay | Yes | No |
| Share-card export (PNG) | Yes | No |
Verdict
30 features comparedIf you are comfortable with wkstats, you will feel at home on Wanilog within minutes - same projection, same coverage charts, same drill-downs. Wanilog adds 22 more on top: a projection confidence band, reading coverage on live NHK news, goal tracking, an installable PWA, mobile-first design, the leech trainer, and the Kanji Odyssey.
How Wanilog goes further
A projection you can plan around
wkstats averages your past level durations, which is a solid baseline. Wanilog adds a p25–p75 confidence band on top, so a single slow week (a holiday, an illness) never shifts your finish date by a month. You see a range you can plan around instead of a single brittle number.
Coverage that answers the real question
Every WaniKani learner eventually asks whether they can read anything yet. wkstats scores your kanji against frequency lists, which is a great baseline. Wanilog goes one step further: NHK Easy and NHK News headlines pulled fresh, each kanji you have taken to Guru highlighted, and a readability percentage shown alongside. Paste any Japanese text into Can I read this? and get the same score back on the spot.
Installable, offline, built for your phone
Wanilog installs to your home screen on iOS, Android, and desktop. The Service Worker keeps your last-synced data available without a connection, so the dashboard opens just as fast on the train as it does at your desk. Every page was laid out for a phone first.
Goals, not just projections
Pick a target level (1–60) and a target date. Wanilog shows an on-track or behind banner across the home, projection, and coverage pages, so you know where you stand at a glance instead of doing the math in your head every week.
Leech trainer, workload forecast, Kanji Odyssey
Three extra surfaces that go beyond the core charts. The leech trainer runs three scoring algorithms so you can pick the one that flags the items you actually struggle with. The workload forecast graphs the next 60 days of expected reviews, so a heavy week becomes something you see coming rather than discover the morning of. The Kanji Odyssey is a cinematic level 1-to-current replay with chiptune audio - the kind of payoff you only get from a tool that took the long view.
When wkstats might still be the right pick
- The layout is in your muscle memory. Years of looking at the same dashboard is real value; if you only check projection and JLPT once a week, you may not need anything more.
- You want the original. wkstats predates Wanilog by roughly a decade and carries a decade of community trust.
If you ever want to see your finish date with a confidence band, your readability on today's NHK headlines, or your dashboard on your phone's lock screen, Wanilog is one paste of an API key away.
FAQ
Is wkstats still working in 2026?
Yes. wkstats.com is still online and still serves projections, JLPT, Joyo, frequency, and reading charts.
Will my wkstats projection match Wanilog’s?
Not exactly. wkstats averages your past level durations; Wanilog uses the median plus a p25–p75 confidence band. On steady users the numbers stay close; on users with one or two slow levels Wanilog is more stable.
Does Wanilog work for free-tier WaniKani accounts?
Yes. Free WaniKani accounts cap at level 3 and Wanilog respects that cap on the dashboard. The projection still extrapolates to level 60 so free users can preview what a full subscription would unlock.
Does Wanilog have an iOS or Android app?
Wanilog is a PWA. On iOS Safari tap Share then Add to Home Screen; on Android Chrome use the install prompt. The home-screen icon launches a full-screen app with offline support.
Can I see a per-hour review heatmap?
No, and neither can wkstats for new users. WaniKani deprecated the per-review endpoint in 2023. Both tools fall back to per-subject review statistics, which give accuracy and counts but not timestamps.
See your stats with the lights on
Open the demo for a feel of it, then paste your WaniKani API key when you are ready. Your full history syncs in under a minute.