The HSK 1 exam assumes about 150 words — fewer than most people expect. Because the list is small, you can finish it in weeks instead of months. More importantly, these words cover almost everything you need for a first conversation: people, numbers, time, food, and the most common verbs.
The words you will use every day
Start with the high-frequency core: 你 (nǐ, you), 我 (wǒ, I), 好 (hǎo, good), 是 (shì, to be), 有 (yǒu, to have), and 吃 (chī, to eat). These few words already let you build real sentences: 我是学生 (I am a student), 我喝水 (I drink water).
Numbers come next
一 (yī), 二 (èr), 三 (sān) up to 十 (shí) follow a wonderfully simple pattern: 十一 is ten-one (11), 二十 is two-ten (20), 二十五 is two-ten-five (25). Learn the numbers 1-10 well and you can count to 99 without learning new words.
Group words by topic, not by list order
The HSK list is alphabetical in the official materials, but your brain learns better by topic. Learn greetings together (你好, 谢谢, 再见), then food (水, 茶, 米饭, 水果), then family and people (爸爸, 妈妈, 朋友, 老师). HanziQuest topic pages group exactly this way, with example sentences for each cluster.
Every word page has the full picture
For each word, study four things together: the character, the pinyin with tone marks, the English meaning, and one example sentence. For instance, 学校 (xuéxiào, school) becomes memorable through 我去学校 (I go to school). The word pages on HanziQuest combine all four, plus sentences that reuse the word.
Turn the list into a daily game
A word list is only alive if you meet it repeatedly. A short daily routine — one lesson with character and pinyin questions, then a review of yesterday's words — beats a long weekend cram. HanziQuest's daily lesson is built around exactly this loop: about ten questions, five minutes, then the words you missed come back in review.
The whole HSK 1 list is reachable in about a month of five-minute days. From there, HSK 2 doubles your vocabulary with travel, weather, and shopping words — but the habit you build at level 1 is what carries you through.