Install Rolko, connect your account, enable a website, and learn from webpages and video subtitles.
If asked to sign in, do that first. Choose Japanese to study and English for meanings. Button names below match the English interface.
Dictionary lookup is free. Saving words in the extension needs Starter, Plus or Pro. On a phone, use Reading Workspace.
Back to the main getting-started guide
Use Rolko on desktop to learn Japanese with English meanings. On mobile, use Reading Workspace.
Open the Chrome Web Store → Add to Chrome → Add extension. Pin Rolko from the browser’s puzzle-piece menu.
Sign in in the same browser. Choose Japanese → English in the app’s language selectors.
Open a page → click the Rolko toolbar icon → Try Rolko on this page. Approve the connection. Choose Always enable on for sites you use often.
Hover an unfamiliar Japanese word. Read the meaning; use audio when available.
Turn on Japanese captions on YouTube, Netflix or Bilibili, then switch Rolko ON. Hover a subtitle word or reveal the English translation. Bilibili has no timed A/S/D navigation or cue-end auto-pause.
Choose Learning to practise a word or Learned if you know it. Find saved words in Words and Review. Saving in the extension requires Starter, Plus or Pro; dictionary lookup is free.
No popup? Check website access, your language pair and Page Text Hover, then refresh. No subtitles? Try a video with Japanese captions. Signed out? Sign in again in the same browser. Still stuck? Report the problem.