Free · 17 dramas measured
Chinese dramas for HSK 1 learners
Every drama’s subtitles are counted word by word, so you see how much of each you’d follow at HSK 1, and where to watch it free. Another level? Pick it below.
At HSK 1
Luoyang 风起洛阳 2021
43% of the words it says are HSK 1 or below.
有人找我
Learn these 8 and you’d follow 47%
- 让ràngto yield; to give way; to let (someone have)
- 神shéngod; deity; spirit
- 就jiùthen; in that case (what follows from the condition before)
- 之zhīof (formal/written 的)
- 死sǐto die; dead
- 过guòto pass; to cross; to go over; to spend (time)
- 跟gēnto follow; heel
- 被bèipassive 被: "by" — the subject has something done to it
Watch episode 1 with pinyinFree, every line with pinyin and any word a tap. Or watch it on iQIYI 爱奇艺’s YouTube channel.
All 17 dramas at HSK 1
Share of the words each drama says that are HSK 1 or below. Press one to see its line, its words and where to watch it.
- 1All Is Well 都挺好 2019 59%
- 2The Bad Kids 隐秘的角落 2020 59%
- 3Wild Bloom 风吹半夏 2022 57%
- 4With You 最好的我们 2016 55%
- 5My Huckleberry Friends 你好，旧时光 2017 55%
- 6Dream of Golden Years 你好1983 2026 55%
- 7Hikaru no Go 棋魂 2020 54%
- 8To the Wonder 我的阿勒泰 2024 54%
- 9Detective Chinatown 唐人街探案 2020 54%
- 10The Knockout 狂飙 2023 53%
- 11Story of Kunning Palace 宁安如梦 2023 48%
- 12The Long Night 沉默的真相 2020 46%
- 13Mysterious Lotus Casebook 莲花楼 2023 46%
- 14Luoyang 风起洛阳 2021 43%
- 15My Journey to You 云之羽 2023 41%
- 16Love Between Fairy and Devil 苍兰诀 2022 40%
- 17Horror Stories of Tang Dynasty 唐朝诡事录 2022 40%
HSK 1 · Now hear it in a real story
十两饺子 How to order dumplings in Chinese
莎拉
饭馆
莎拉
老板
How is each drama counted?
From its own subtitles: the Chinese subtitles its official YouTube channel uploaded for its first episodes (one to three), 17 dramas in all. Our reader cuts every line into words and each word gets its level from the official HSK list (2025 syllabus); names are left out. A drama’s share at a level is how many of all the words it says are on the list at that level or below, so a word said 300 times counts 300 times.
Are dramas easier than films?
A little: in the typical drama here, HSK 1–4 words are 81% of what is said, and in the typical Mandarin film 80% (117 films, counted the same way).
How much do I need to understand to enjoy a drama?
Following a story with ease takes knowing about 95 to 98% of its words, and people pick up more new words from what they watch when they already follow more of it (Nation 2006; Peters and Webb 2018). With HSK 1–4, the easiest dramas here are at 84 to 87%; watched with Chinese subtitles and a dictionary for the rest, they are within reach.
Where can I watch these dramas free?
Each one’s first episode is linked here, on the drama’s own YouTube channel, free and legal, and 16 of them also plays here, its own Chinese subtitles under the video with pinyin over every word and any word’s meaning a tap away. On YouTube the Chinese subtitles are a track you turn on: press CC, then choose Chinese in the settings, not English. With our extension in Chrome, each line also shows under the player with pinyin over every word, and any word’s meaning when you point at it.
What should I do with the eight words?
Add them to your Backpack before you watch. They are the words the drama says most that your level doesn’t cover, so knowing them takes you furthest, and Review brings each one back until you know it. When you hear them in the episode, they will already be yours.
Why do Chinese shows always have Chinese subtitles?
Many viewers grew up speaking another Chinese language at home, like Cantonese or Shanghainese, accents differ from place to place, and many words sound alike, so the characters settle what was said. They help deaf viewers too, and on mainland TV they are the norm. For a learner they are a gift: you read each line as you hear it.
Pinyin over every line on YouTube
Add the extension to Chrome: every Chinese video on YouTube, these dramas included, gets its line under the player with pinyin over each word, and the meaning of any word you point at.
More to watch and read
Counted from the Chinese subtitles each drama’s official channel uploaded to YouTube, for its first one to three episodes; names, years and episode counts from Wikidata; levels from the official HSK list (2025 syllabus) and our reader. Later episodes can differ a little; only one short line of each is quoted.