# Anki Published January 1, 2026 · Updated August 10, 2026 Powerful flashcard program Category: Productivity · Free · Open source · Replaces Quizlet Plus ($3/month) · [Official website](https://apps.ankiweb.net) ## Install with Homebrew `brew install --cask anki` ## Quick take Anki remains the default serious spaced-repetition stack on Mac in August 2026: desktop 26.08.1 is free, AnkiWeb sync is free, AnkiDroid is free, and AnkiMobile's ~$24.99 one-time price funds the ecosystem without locking desktop behind a paywall. FSRS is there if you want it; AnkiHub is optional third-party. The cost is learning templates, not a subscription. Export before experiments; sync is convenience, backups are insurance. Best for: Medical and professional exam students, Language learners building long-term vocab, Anyone who wants open, syncable decks across Mac and phones, Users willing to learn templates for long-term payoff, People who prefer one-time iOS pricing over subscriptions ## What is Anki? Anki is a free, open-source spaced repetition flashcard program for remembering things long-term. On Mac, the current desktop build in this August 2026 refresh is 26.08.1. AnkiWeb sync is free. AnkiDroid on Android is free. AnkiMobile on iOS is a paid one-time App Store app at about $24.99, which funds development. Scheduling options include FSRS. AnkiHub exists as a third-party sharing/ecosystem service and is not the same thing as AnkiWeb. The workflow is simple: you rate how hard a card felt, and Anki schedules the next review. Medical students, language learners, and engineers who maintain exam-scale decks still standardize on it because the algorithm and the media support hold up after years. Desktop remains the authoring workhorse on Mac; phones handle reviews on the go. Pick Anki if you will write or import serious decks and care about open formats. Pick a simpler quiz app if you only need casual lists without sync across desktop and mobile. Anki rewards setup time with retention; it is not a pretty quiz toy. Operational advice that survives every version bump: author on desktop 26.08.1, review on phones, sync with AnkiWeb, export backups before experiments, and treat third-party hubs as optional. That workflow is how Anki stays useful after the novelty of a new scheduler fades. If you are moving from Quizlet-style apps, expect a slower first week while templates click. After that, the scheduling math is why people stay. Desktop 26.08.1 on Mac is where you fix card types; phones are where you clear the queue. AnkiWeb keeps those worlds aligned without a subscription line item. AnkiMobile's roughly $24.99 one-time fee is the iOS funding path, not a desktop lock. AnkiDroid remains free for Android phones. FSRS stays optional. AnkiHub stays optional. Backups stay mandatory. ## Features - **Desktop 26.08.1 for Mac.** Anki desktop 26.08.1 is the Mac version referenced in this August 2026 page. It handles deck management, card templates, add-ons, and bulk imports. Keep desktop as your source of truth for template edits. Note required add-ons in a deck README after upgrades. Version pins in your notes (26.08.1) help when diagnosing add-on breakage after upgrades. - **Free desktop licensing.** The desktop app is free and open source. You can download it without paying. Optional donations and the paid iOS app support the project financially. Keep desktop as the template debugger. Donation prompts on desktop are optional; they are not a soft paywall. - **AnkiMobile (~$24.99 one-time).** AnkiMobile on iPhone and iPad is a one-time purchase around $24.99. It is the official iOS client and a primary funding path. There is no subscription for the base iOS app purchase model described here. Confirm AnkiMobile purchase only if you are on iOS. Receipts for AnkiMobile help with student expense reimbursements where allowed. - **AnkiDroid free.** AnkiDroid provides a free Android client maintained in the wider ecosystem. Mac users with Android phones review there while authoring on desktop. AnkiDroid users should still author templates on Mac. AnkiDroid storage permissions on Android are a separate checklist from Mac desktop installs. - **AnkiWeb free sync.** AnkiWeb syncs decks across devices at no charge for normal use. Create an AnkiWeb account, then sync from desktop and mobile clients. Resolve sync conflicts deliberately when the same card changed offline on two devices. Sync deliberately after large imports. AnkiWeb passwords belong in a password manager; shared class logins create sync collisions. - **FSRS scheduling options.** FSRS is available among scheduler options for decks that want that model. Read the Anki docs before switching an established deck; migrating algorithms mid-exam season is a common self-own. Read FSRS docs before switching schedulers. FSRS parameters should be changed rarely and measured over weeks, not overnight. - **Templates, media, and LaTeX-friendly study.** Card types support HTML/CSS templates, images, audio, and scientific notation workflows students rely on. Desktop is where you debug templates; mobile inherits the rendered results after sync. Prefer simple CSS for mobile review fidelity. Audio normalization on desktop prevents surprise loud cards on headphones. - **Add-ons and AnkiHub (third-party).** Desktop add-ons extend importing, stats, and deck tools. AnkiHub is a third-party service for shared deck workflows. It is optional and separate from free AnkiWeb sync. Evaluate permissions before installing add-ons. Treat AnkiHub as optional infrastructure. Third-party hubs need their own offboarding plan if a course ends. ## How to Install Anki on Mac Install desktop from the official Anki site or GitHub releases, create an AnkiWeb account if you want sync, then install AnkiMobile or AnkiDroid for reviews away from the Mac. On Apple Silicon Macs the desktop build runs natively in current releases; you do not need a special compatibility shim for ordinary study. After installing 26.08.1, spend ten minutes in Preferences mapping your sync account and backup location before importing a 20,000-card medical deck. 1. **Install Anki desktop 26.08.1.** Download the Mac build from apps.ankiweb.net (or the project's GitHub releases) and move Anki to Applications. Open it once and create or open a profile. 2. **Create AnkiWeb sync (optional but recommended).** Register on AnkiWeb for free, then use Sync in the desktop client. Keep a backup export before the first large sync. 3. **Install a mobile client.** iOS: purchase AnkiMobile (~$24.99 one-time) from the App Store. Android: install free AnkiDroid. Sign into the same AnkiWeb account. 4. **Import or create a deck.** Create cards on desktop or import a shared deck. Prefer editing templates on desktop. Enable FSRS only after reading deck options docs. ## Pros - Desktop 26.08.1 remains free and open source on Mac - AnkiWeb sync costs nothing for standard use - FSRS available among scheduler options - Strong template and media support for serious study - AnkiMobile one-time purchase funds development without a desktop paywall - AnkiDroid covers Android users without an extra fee - Huge existing deck ecosystem for languages and exams - Add-ons extend desktop for power users - Cross-platform clients cover Mac desktop plus iOS and Android review ## Cons - Learning curve for templates and deck options - iOS requires a paid app while other clients are free - Add-ons can break across desktop updates - Sync conflicts confuse people who edit offline on two devices - Third-party services like AnkiHub add complexity and separate accounts - Large media decks need disk planning on small SSD MacBooks ## Closer look: Anki's desktop-and-mobile split funding model Why desktop stays free while AnkiMobile costs about $24.99, and how FSRS and third-party hubs fit without replacing AnkiWeb. Backup discipline matters more than any single scheduler choice. The Mac author's job is templates, imports, and backups. The phone's job is reviews. Confusing those roles is how people end up editing CSS on a train and breaking card faces for a week. ## FAQ ### Is Anki free on Mac? Yes. Anki desktop is free. AnkiWeb sync is free. AnkiMobile on iOS is a separate ~$24.99 one-time purchase. ### What desktop version is current here? This page references desktop 26.08.1 for the August 2026 refresh. ### What does AnkiMobile cost? About $24.99 one-time on the App Store. ### Is AnkiDroid free? Yes. AnkiDroid is free on Android. ### Is AnkiWeb free? Yes. Standard AnkiWeb sync is free. ### What is FSRS in Anki? A scheduling option documented in Anki's deck options. Read the docs before switching an active exam deck. ### Is AnkiHub the same as AnkiWeb? No. AnkiHub is a third-party service. AnkiWeb is official sync. ### Can I use Anki offline? Yes. Sync when you have network. Resolve conflicts carefully if two devices changed the same card. ### Does Anki run on Apple Silicon? Yes. Modern Mac desktop builds run on Apple Silicon Macs. ### Where should I edit card templates? On desktop. Mobile is for reviews. ### Are add-ons safe? Only install add-ons you trust. They run code inside desktop Anki and can break after upgrades. ### How do I back up? Export APKG backups from desktop and keep them outside iCloud-only folders you might accidentally delete. ### Should I put my Anki folder in iCloud Drive? It is safer to keep the live collection local and use AnkiWeb plus APKG exports. Mixing consumer file sync with AnkiWeb is a common cause of collection pain. ### How often should I sync? Sync when you finish a session on a device. Avoid editing the same cards offline on two devices without syncing in between. ### Can I use Anki for programming syntax? Yes. Keep cards small. Prefer questions that force recall of a concept or command over pasting entire files onto a card face. ### What is an APKG file? An exported Anki package used for backups and sharing decks. Create them from desktop before major changes. ### Can two people share one AnkiWeb login? It is a bad idea. Progress will collide. Use separate accounts and share decks via export or a third-party hub if needed. ## Sources - [Anki official site](https://apps.ankiweb.net/) - [Anki background docs](https://docs.ankiweb.net/background.html) - [FSRS deck options](https://docs.ankiweb.net/deck-options.html#fsrs) - [Anki GitHub](https://github.com/ankitects/anki) - [FSRS4Anki project](https://github.com/open-spaced-repetition/fsrs4anki) - [Gwern on spaced repetition](https://gwern.net/spaced-repetition) - [Lifehacker Anki overview](https://lifehacker.com/learn-any-language-easily-with-anki-5135117) ## Related - [Raycast](https://bundl.run/apps/raycast) - [Notion](https://bundl.run/apps/notion) - [Obsidian](https://bundl.run/apps/obsidian) - [Loom](https://bundl.run/apps/loom) - [Linear](https://bundl.run/apps/linear-linear) - [Grammarly](https://bundl.run/apps/grammarly-desktop) - [Free alternative to Quizlet Plus](https://bundl.run/https:/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://bundl.run/#organization", "name": "Bundl.run", "url": "https://bundl.run", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://bundl.run/og-image.png", "width": 1200, "height": 630 }, "description": "The Ninite for Mac. 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