Skip typing cards by hand and study them in Anki or the browser
DeckOwl reads your PDFs, slides, notes, or photos of pages and turns them into flashcards with spaced repetition. Export to Anki on Plus, or study right in the browser on the free plan.
Flashcards and Anki do different jobs
Most students comparing flashcards and Anki are really asking who should write the cards. Anki is a spaced repetition app that schedules reviews well, but the deck is only as good as the cards you type into it. Writing good cards from a 40-page chapter can take longer than studying them.
- Anki gives you full control over every card, which suits people who enjoy building their own decks.
- Hand-written cards force you to process the material, which has real learning value for short topics.
- Generated cards save the most time on long PDFs, slide decks, and photographed notes.
- Export to Anki is a Plus feature, so a free account studies in the browser without exports.
Cards from your own material
Upload a PDF, DOCX, PPTX, plain text notes, or a photo of a page. The flashcards come from what you actually need to learn.
Spaced repetition built in
Cards come back at intervals based on how well you remember them, so review time goes to the material you are about to forget.
Anki export on Plus
Send your deck to Anki if you already study there. Exports are a Plus feature, and the free plan keeps studying in the browser.
How it works
Upload your material
Add a PDF, slides, notes, or images. Text recognition handles photos of textbook pages and handwritten notes that are readable.
Review the generated flashcards
Check the front and back of each card, edit anything that is off, and remove the ones you do not need before studying.
Study or export
Study in the browser with spaced repetition, or export to Anki on Plus if you prefer to keep your reviews in that app.
Paper flashcards and hand-built decks work well when the material is short and you want to control every word. They break down when you have dense lecture slides or a long PDF, because the effort of making cards can crowd out the review itself.
A practical split is to generate the first draft from your own material, check it for accuracy, and then either study in the browser or export to Anki. You keep the scheduling benefits of spaced repetition and skip most of the manual typing.
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Frequently asked questions
How many flashcards should I make for fractions and decimals?
Aim for one card per rule or conversion you need to recall, such as a fraction-to-decimal pair or a place-value rule. A focused set of 20 to 40 cards usually covers a unit better than a long list of near-duplicates.
Should I memorize decimal equivalents with flashcards or practice problems?
Use flashcards for facts you need to recall quickly, like common equivalents such as 1/4 = 0.25. Use practice problems for procedures like converting a repeating decimal, since those require working through steps.
Is exporting to Anki included in the free plan?
No. Exporting to Anki is a Plus feature, which is $39 per year or $7.99 per month. The free plan lets you study generated flashcards in the browser.
Does DeckOwl replace Anki?
Not necessarily. DeckOwl creates flashcards from your files and includes spaced repetition, and you can export to Anki on Plus if you want to keep reviewing there.
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