Education · alternatives
Alternatives to Anki
19 education tools sit alongside Anki in this directory. Below is what separates each from Anki on the figures we hold, price, model, tier count and rating, and a direct comparison for every one.
- Alternatives listed
- 19
- With a free tier
- 16
- Cheaper to start
- -
- Anki starts at
- Free
Why people look past Anki
Only what the record supports. Each point below is a figure on the Anki entry measured against the tools listed beside it.
There is only one tier
Anki publishes a single plan, Anki at Free. There is no smaller tier to drop to if the fit is wrong or the budget moves.
What each alternative does differently
Ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry. Differences are drawn from price, pricing model, tier count and rating, the fields the category listing carries. For a feature-level difference, follow the head-to-head link on each card: those pages read both full records.
Vocabulary and spaced repetition language app built around video clips of native speakers
- Sold on a Free with a Pro subscription model rather than Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app.
Camera based maths solver that shows step by step working, owned by Google since 2022
- Sold on a Free with a Plus subscription model rather than Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app.
Piano-only learning app from JoyTunes using microphone listening, no MIDI keyboard required
- Publishes an entry price of $119.99/year, where Anki does not.
- Sold on a Per user per year or month model rather than Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app.
- 2 tiers to Anki's 1.
Cognitive skills training app from Elevate Labs covering reading, writing, maths and speaking games
- Sold on a Free with a Pro subscription model rather than Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app.
Free nonprofit wildlife and plant identification app built to be safe for children
- Sold on a Free, no ads and no in-app purchases model rather than Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app.
Free bird identification app from Cornell Lab of Ornithology using photo, sound and step-by-step ID
- Sold on a Free, no ads and no in-app purchases model rather than Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app.
Every Anki alternative at a glance
A dash means the catalogue entry carries no figure, not that the answer is nothing.
| Tool | Entry price | Model | Tiers | Head to head |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anki (this page) | Free | Open source, no licence fee except a paid iOS app | 1 | |
| MemriseIf you want built-in vocabulary content and native speaker video rather than building your own decks | Free | Free with a Pro subscription | 1 | vs Anki |
| PhotomathIf your study need is maths problem solving rather than memorisation | Free | Free with a Plus subscription | 1 | vs Anki |
| Simply Piano | Free, then $119.99/year | Per user per year or month | 2 | vs Anki |
| Elevate | Free | Free with a Pro subscription | 1 | vs Anki |
| Seek by iNaturalist | Free | Free, no ads and no in-app purchases | 1 | vs Anki |
| Merlin Bird ID | Free | Free, no ads and no in-app purchases | 1 | vs Anki |
| Stellarium | Free | Open source, no licence fee | 1 | vs Anki |
| Flowkey | Free, then $119.99/year | Per user per year or month | 2 | vs Anki |
| Lumosity | Free | Free with a subscription | 1 | vs Anki |
| Sky Guide | Free | Free download with Plus and Pro subscription upgrades | 3 | vs Anki |
| Busuu | Free | Free with a Premium subscription | 1 | vs Anki |
| Pl@ntNet | Free | Free, no ads and no in-app purchases | 1 | vs Anki |
| Star Walk 2 | Free | Freemium, low-cost ad-free subscription upgrade | 2 | vs Anki |
| Yousician | Free, then $9.99/month | Per user per month or year | 2 | vs Anki |
| Melodics | Free, then $9.99/month | Per user per month or year | 2 | vs Anki |
| eBird | Free | Free, no ads and no in-app purchases | 1 | vs Anki |
| PictureThis | On request | Per year, sold via a short free trial that auto-renews | 1 | vs Anki |
| SkySafari | On request | One-time purchase per tier | 3 | vs Anki |
| Jackrabbit Class | $49/month | Per month by student count | 6 | vs Anki |
Ratings are aggregated from third-party sources and imported with each catalogue entry; Softwr hosts no reviews of these products. How each figure is used is set out on the Anki badges page.
Cheaper ways to solve the same problem
Free to start (16)
These publish a tier that costs nothing, so they can be evaluated before any money changes hands.
- Memrise , Free
- Photomath , Free
- Simply Piano , Free, then $119.99/year
- Elevate , Free
- Seek by iNaturalist , Free
- Merlin Bird ID , Free
- Stellarium , Free
- Flowkey , Free, then $119.99/year
What you would be giving up
Anki is most often brought in for a medical student using a large shared deck to memorise anatomy or pharmacology facts on a fixed exam timeline, a language learner building custom vocabulary decks with audio and images tailored to their own study material, a self-directed learner who wants full control over the scheduling algorithm and does not want a subscription, an iphone-only user deciding whether the one-time ankimobile price is worth it versus using the free web interface instead. Anything replacing it has to cover the ones you actually depend on, and a cheaper tool that misses one of them is not cheaper.
Two things this page cannot settle. It compares on price, model, tier count and rating, because those are the fields the category listing carries, feature-level differences need both full records, which is what the head-to-head pages load. And the ratings are third-party aggregates imported with each entry rather than reviews written here, so a 0.2 difference between two tools is noise rather than a finding.
If Anki is broadly right and the question is cost, the Anki pricing breakdown covers every tier and what each one adds. If you want the whole field rather than a shortlist, the Education category lists everything the directory holds, and best education tools ranks them.
Anki runs on windows, mac, linux, ios, android, web. Platform coverage is not carried on the category listing for the alternatives, so it is one more thing to check on each head-to-head page rather than here.
Questions about Anki alternatives
- What are the main alternatives to Anki?
- 19 other education tools are listed in this directory, led by Memrise, Photomath, Simply Piano, Elevate. They are ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry, not by any Softwr ranking.
- What is the best free alternative to Anki?
- 16 of the alternatives listed here can be used without paying: Memrise, Photomath, Simply Piano, Elevate, Seek by iNaturalist.
- Why do people look for an alternative to Anki?
- On the figures on record, one thing stands out: there is only one tier. Each is set out with the numbers behind it above.
- What would I give up by switching from Anki?
- Anki is most often brought in for a medical student using a large shared deck to memorise anatomy or pharmacology facts on a fixed exam timeline, a language learner building custom vocabulary decks with audio and images tailored to their own study material, a self-directed learner who wants full control over the scheduling algorithm and does not want a subscription, an iphone-only user deciding whether the one-time ankimobile price is worth it versus using the free web interface instead. Anything you replace it with has to cover the ones you actually rely on, the side-by-side comparisons linked from each alternative below put the two feature records against each other.
- Is there an open-source alternative to Anki?
- None of the education tools listed here are recorded as open source. That is what the licence field on each entry says, and the field is not always filled in, so it is worth checking directly for any tool you are serious about.
- How were these Anki alternatives chosen?
- They are the tools filed in the same category, Education, ordered by the aggregated rating on each entry. There is no editorial shortlist, and nothing on this page is paid: no sponsored placement runs on alternatives pages and the order cannot be bought. Softwr has not used these products.
- Where can I compare Anki against one of these directly?
- Every alternative below has a side-by-side page against Anki covering price, platforms, features and what each one is used for. Those pages read the full record for both products rather than the summary shown here.
- Does this list cover every education tool?
- No. It covers what this directory holds in the Education category, 19 tools beside Anki. The category page lists the rest of the catalogue as it grows.