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Turn your notes into flashcards you can mark up on iPad

DeckOwl builds flashcards from your PDFs, slides, notes or photos of pages, then schedules reviews with spaced repetition. Study in the browser on your iPad, or export a PDF on Plus and mark it up in any annotation app.

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How to get flashcards you can mark up on iPad

Students who search for flashcards you can draw on iPad usually want to annotate terms, diagrams and worked problems with an Apple Pencil instead of typing everything. DeckOwl takes a different route: it reads your PDFs, slides, notes or photos of pages and writes the flashcards for you, with spaced repetition built in.

Works with PDF, DOCX, PPTX, plain text and photos of pages
Spaced repetition brings back the cards you are about to forget
Free plan includes 3 generations per month, studied in the browser
Plus exports PDF, DOCX, Anki and CSV files for marking up or review

Example iPad Apple Pencil terms to study

Palm rejectioniPadOS ignores your resting hand while you write or draw with Apple Pencil, so marks appear only where the pen touches.

ScribbleAn Apple Pencil feature that converts handwriting into typed text in any text field.

MarkupBuilt-in annotation tools (pen, highlighter, shapes, text) in apps like Files, Photos and Mail for marking up PDFs and images.

FreeformApple's infinite canvas app for drawing, sticky notes and shapes with Apple Pencil, synced through iCloud.

Double-tap on Apple Pencil (2nd gen)Switches tools, such as pen to eraser, in apps that support the gesture.

Generate the full set

Built from your material

Upload PDFs, DOCX, PPTX, notes or photos of pages and get flashcards generated from them.

Spaced repetition

Cards come back at the intervals where you are likely to forget them, so review time goes to weak spots.

PDF export on Plus

Export your deck as a PDF on Plus, then open it in any iPad app that lets you draw with Apple Pencil.

How it works

Upload your material

Add a PDF, slide deck, notes file or a photo of a page.

Review the flashcards

Edit any card that is off, then study in the browser on your iPad.

Export a PDF to mark up

On Plus, export a PDF and draw on it with Apple Pencil in a PDF app.

Drawing helps most when you check your work against the source. Study the cards in the browser on your iPad first, then on Plus export a PDF of your deck and sketch diagrams or underline key terms in any annotation app.

Cards are text-based, so the drawing happens on the exported PDF rather than inside the study screen. That split keeps recall practice in the app and gives you a page you can mark up for review.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I draw directly on DeckOwl flashcards on an iPad?

DeckOwl cards are text-based, and drawing on the cards themselves is not part of the current feature set. You can study the cards in the browser on your iPad and export a PDF on Plus to mark up.

How do I mark up a flashcard PDF on an iPad?

Open the exported PDF in an annotation app such as Files or another PDF editor, then use the pen and highlighter tools with Apple Pencil. Keep the marked copy separate from your original notes.

What should I draw on flashcards when studying a diagram?

Sketch the diagram from memory on the back of a card, then compare it to your source. Add missing labels in a different color so you can see what you forgot.

Is PDF export free on DeckOwl?

No. PDF export is a Plus feature at $99.90/year or $9.99/month, while the free plan includes 3 generations per month with study in the browser only. Students get 40% off with a school email.

Generate free flashcards

Keep exploring the topic

Review the main ideas visually or practice recalling them.