Anki is the better app overall, scoring 8.8 to 8.2. Anki wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Quizlet on 1.
Med students, language learners and anyone memorizing large volumes of facts
High school and college students reviewing vocabulary and key terms for tests
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Anki | Quizlet |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Learning | Learning |
| Category rank | #3 of 8 | #6 of 8 |
| Developer | Damien Elmes and AnkiHub | Quizlet |
| Pricing | Free | Free + paid plans |
| Usable for free | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | — |
| Windows | ✓ | — |
| Linux | ✓ | — |
| Web | ✓ | ✓ |
Strengths and weaknesses
Anki
- Smart scheduling means less review time for the same recall
- Free and open source on desktop, Android and the web
- Fully customizable cards, decks and study settings
- Dated interface with a steep learning curve
- The iPhone and iPad app, AnkiMobile, is a paid download
Anki is the most effective flashcard tool you can use, if you are willing to put in the work. Its spaced repetition scheduler, including the newer FSRS option, shows each card just before you would forget it. It is free and open source everywhere except iPhone, where AnkiMobile is a one-time purchase. The catch: the interface is dated and setup takes effort. Ideal for med students and serious language learners.
Full Anki review
Quizlet
- Huge library of ready-made sets for common classes
- Several study modes keep review from getting stale
- Very quick to create and share your own sets
- Free plan has ads and limits Learn and Test modes
- User-made sets can contain mistakes
Quizlet is the quickest way to turn class notes into flashcards, and its huge library of shared sets means someone has often made yours already. Learn mode, matching games and practice tests keep review varied. The catch: the free plan has ads and limits the best study modes, and shared sets can contain errors. Great for students reviewing for school tests.
Full Quizlet review
