Mandarin Chinese can be written in many different ways. For the first time learner chosing a phonetic system can be challenging. Hanyu Pinyin is quickly becoming the accepted standard. Used in China, Hanyu Pinyin also enjoys widespread use on the Internet. In Taiwan; however, there is one 'official' phonetic system, Tongyong Pinyin. Taiwan also uses Zhuyin Fuhao or BoPoMoFo which is a system of characters rather than letters. Which one is better? That is entirely up to you, the learner; although if you plan to study or live in Taiwan, knowledge of Zhuyin Fuhao will be of great benefit.

...

The following tables will outline the basics of the 3 main phonetic systems: Hanyu Pinyin, Tongyong Pinyin and Zhuyin Fuhao. The first table shows the initial sounds while the second shows the final sounds.

Mandarin Chinese has 4 tones plus a neutral tone. Once you get past the zh, ch, sh, r sounds, the tones are next on the difficulty scale.

• First Tone (-): The first tone maintains a constant pitch in the mid to high level.
• Second Tone (ˊ): The second tone is a rising tone from the low to high level.
• Third Tone (ˇ): The third tone drops briefly from low before rising to the high level.
• Fourth Tone (ˋ): The fourth tone is a faling tone from high to low.
• Neutral Tone (˙): The neutral tone is short, unstressed and has no tone.