· 6 min read
Chinese vs Mandarin: What's the Difference?
By Language Lab editorial team
Chinese vs Mandarin explained: Mandarin is the largest of seven major varieties of spoken Chinese, with about 800 million speakers. Which one should you learn?
Mandarin is a kind of Chinese, not a different language from it. Chinese is the name for a group of spoken varieties that share one written script. Mandarin is the largest of them, with around 800 million speakers, and it is what the beginner courses cited here teach under the name Chinese. The other six major varieties are Cantonese, Gan, Hakka, Min, Wu and Xiang. Speakers of different varieties often cannot understand each other when they talk, but literate Chinese people can communicate in writing, because the characters are shared. So when a course, an app or a test says Chinese, check which variety it means. If you are choosing what to learn, Mandarin is the default; Cantonese is the main alternative.
The short version
| Chinese | Mandarin | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A group of spoken varieties with a common written script | One of those varieties, and the largest |
| Speakers | Mandarin, Cantonese, Wu, Min, Xiang, Hakka and Gan speakers together | Around 800 million |
| Writing | Chinese characters, 汉字 hàn zì | The same characters |
| Romanisation | Depends on the variety | Pinyin, the official system since 1958 |
| In beginner courses | The Open University's Chinese courses teach Mandarin | Mandarin |
The seven major varieties
The Open University's beginner course sets out the varieties of spoken Chinese and approximately how many people speak each.
| Variety | Approximate speakers | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Mandarin | Around 800 million | The majority of east and west China |
| Cantonese | About 80 million | The southeast |
| Wu | Around 75 million | Shanghai and Hangzhou |
| Min | About 50 million | The southeast |
| Xiang | 35 million | The southeast |
| Hakka | 35 million | The southeast |
| Gan | 20 million | The southeast |
The figures come from a map the course adapts from a 1987 atlas of Chinese dialects, so read them as proportions more than as a current census. The proportions are the point: Mandarin has about ten times as many speakers as the next largest variety.
Dialects or languages?
The Open University notes that linguists debate whether the varieties of Chinese should be regarded as dialects or as languages in their own right, and that the answer depends on how language and dialect are defined. What is not in doubt is the practical situation: speakers of different varieties, especially the southern ones, often cannot understand each other when they speak.
One script, two forms
What holds Chinese together is writing. Literate Chinese people can communicate with each other in writing because they share a common script of characters. There are two forms of that script. Simplified characters were introduced by the government of the People's Republic of China, which simplified about 2,000 characters to raise literacy. Traditional forms are still used in Hong Kong, Taiwan and other overseas Chinese communities.
Do not confuse the two questions. Mandarin or Cantonese is about speech. Simplified or traditional is about writing.
What tests and courses mean by Chinese
- The Open University's free beginner courses are described as Mandarin Chinese and teach pinyin and simplified characters.
- The HSK, the Chinese Proficiency Test, assesses the ability to use Chinese as a second language, and its scores have become a requirement for international students applying for admission in China.
- The US State Department lists Mandarin and Cantonese as separate languages for training, both in its hardest category at 88 weeks.
Which should you learn?
- Learn Mandarin if you want the widest reach or plan to study or work in mainland China.
- Consider Cantonese if your life or family is tied to a Cantonese-speaking community.
- Choose simplified characters for mainland China and traditional characters for Hong Kong and Taiwan.
- Whatever you choose, expect the same scale of effort: the State Department allows 2,200 class hours for either.
Language Lab's Chinese course is built around voiced real-life scenarios with an AI tutor.
Frequently asked
Is Mandarin the same as Chinese?
Mandarin is one variety of Chinese, and the largest, with around 800 million speakers. The Open University's beginner Chinese courses, for example, teach Mandarin.
What is the difference between Chinese and Mandarin?
Chinese covers several spoken varieties that share a written script. Mandarin is one of them. The other six major varieties are Cantonese, Gan, Hakka, Min, Wu and Xiang.
Can Mandarin and Cantonese speakers understand each other?
Often not in speech. The Open University notes that speakers of different varieties, especially the southern ones, often cannot understand each other when they speak, but they can communicate in writing through the shared script.
Should I learn Mandarin or Cantonese?
Mandarin for most learners: it has about ten times as many speakers as Cantonese. Cantonese makes sense if you have ties to a Cantonese-speaking community.
Is simplified Chinese the same as Mandarin?
No. Simplified refers to a form of the written characters. Mandarin is a spoken variety. Mandarin can be written in simplified or traditional characters.
Is Cantonese easier than Mandarin?
The US State Department puts both in Category IV, its hardest group, at 88 weeks or 2,200 class hours.
Sources: The Open University, OpenLearn, Beginners' Chinese: a taster course (Varieties of Chinese, Pinyin, Chinese characters, Simplified and traditional forms of Chinese characters); Chinese Tests Service Website (CTI), HSK; US Department of State, National Foreign Affairs Training Center, Foreign Language Training. Checked on 13 October 2026. Photo: Hong Kong skyline from Victoria Harbour at night, lumoplank / CC0 (Wikimedia Commons).
