Anki shared decks: where to find them and how to pick a good one

Anki's shared decks are on AnkiWeb at ankiweb.net/shared/decks. In the desktop app, the Get Shared button at the bottom of the deck list opens the same page. Find a deck, click Download, then double-click the .apkg file or use File > Import. You can't add a shared deck straight to your AnkiWeb account; import it into Anki, AnkiMobile or AnkiDroid first, then sync.

On your phone

• AnkiDroid: on the deck list, tap +, then Get shared decks. Download a deck and AnkiDroid imports it. AnkiDroid decks goes through it step by step.
• AnkiMobile (iPhone and iPad): tap Add/Export at the bottom left, then Shared Deck List. Download a deck, open Safari's downloads, tap the file and choose Open in Anki.

Or import it in Anki on your computer and sync through AnkiWeb; it then shows up on your phone too.

Import it without the author's progress

A shared .apkg can include its author's review history. If it does, cards arrive with long intervals as if you'd already studied them. In Anki 23.10 and later, leave Import any learning progress unticked when you import someone else's deck. That also drops their "leech" and "marked" tags. In older versions, Set Due Date can reset cards that came in with odd intervals.

What to check before you commit

A deck you'll review for months is worth ten minutes of checking first.

• Look at real cards. Open the deck in the Browse window after importing. Are the answers right? Is there one fact per card, or a paragraph?
• Check the audio. For a language deck, play a few cards. Recorded native audio is far more useful than none.
• Match it to your goal. A frequency list suits general vocabulary; a textbook or exam deck suits a course. A 10,000-card deck isn't better if you only need the first 2,000.
• Sentences or single words. Both work, for different things. See sentence cards vs word cards.
• Read the reviews and the date. Comments on the deck's page often point out errors, and a recently updated deck is more likely to have them fixed.

A big deck won't flood you on day one: new cards come in at your daily limit, 20 by default. How many new cards per day covers how to pick that number.

When a deck gets updated

If you import a newer version of a deck you already have, Anki updates the matching notes and adds any new ones. That only works while the note type is unchanged. If you or the author added a field, old notes won't update, though missing ones still import.

Shared decks or your own

Anki's manual makes the case for writing your own cards for complex subjects, because deciding what goes on a card is part of learning it. For vocabulary, a good shared deck saves a lot of typing. Many people do both: a shared deck for the core words, plus their own cards for words they meet in reading. How to write good flashcards helps with the second part.

Common questions

How do I share my own Anki deck?

In the desktop app, choose File > Export, pick the .apkg (Anki Deck Package) format and the deck, and leave Include scheduling information unticked. Anki then strips your review history and your marked and leech tags, so whoever imports it gets a clean copy. Send the file however you like. For a deck several people keep editing, Anki's FAQ points to collaboration add-ons such as AnkiHub and AnkiCollab.

Do shared Anki decks update automatically?

No. A deck stays as it was when you imported it. When the author releases a new version, download it and import it again: Anki updates the notes you already have and adds new ones, as long as the note type hasn't changed (see above).

In Decks

Decks can't open .apkg files. Instead it has a library of ready-made language decks with audio; the decks below are a few of them. If the deck you need is only on AnkiWeb, use Anki.