MCAT

Why Anki Works for the MCAT: The Science of Spaced Repetition and Active Recall

Before diving into the setup steps, it's worth understanding why Anki has become a near-essential tool for high-scoring MCAT students. The app is built on two well-established cognitive science principles: active recall and spaced repetition.

Active recall is the process of actively retrieving a piece of information from memory rather than passively re-reading it. Spaced repetition schedules these retrieval attempts at increasing intervals, precisely when you are about to forget the information, which strengthens the neural pathways and moves knowledge into long-term memory. Anki automates this scheduling, so you don't have to guess when to review.

The evidence for Anki's effectiveness in medical and science education is not just anecdotal. A 2023 peer-reviewed study published in BMC Medical Education by Gilbert et al. at the Boonshoft School of Medicine tracked 130 first-year medical students and found that those who used Anki scored significantly higher on NBME exams. After controlling for MCAT scores, the Anki users showed a 12.9% increase on the CBSE (Comprehensive Basic Science Exam), a 7.0% increase on Course III, and a 6.4% increase on Course I. While this study was conducted in a medical school setting, the CBSE is a standardized science exam with significant overlap in content and format, making these results highly relevant for MCAT preparation.

Step 1: Download and Install Anki

Your first task is to get Anki on your devices. The desktop version is the primary platform for all setup and configuration, so start there.

• Desktop (Windows / macOS / Linux): Download the latest version from the official Anki website. It is completely free. Make sure you get version 23.10 or later, as you will need it for the FSRS algorithm in Step 3.
• iOS (iPhone / iPad): Download 'AnkiMobile Flashcards' from the App Store. It costs $24.99 as of mid-2026. This is a one-time purchase, not a subscription, and supports the development of the free desktop and Android versions.
• Android: Download 'AnkiDroid' from the Google Play Store. It is free and open-source.

After installing the desktop app, create a free AnkiWeb account. This account syncs your decks and progress across all your devices, so you can review on your phone during downtime and do heavy lifting on your laptop.

For a detailed walkthrough of the download and import process, see our Complete Guide to Downloading Anki Flashcards.

Step 2: Pick the Right Premade Deck for Your Score Goal

One of the biggest advantages of Anki for the MCAT is the availability of high-quality, community-built premade decks. Building your own deck from scratch for 2,000+ concepts is a massive time sink that most pre-med students cannot afford. The key is to choose a deck that matches your target score and the time you have available.

Here is a comparison of the top four MCAT decks, based on a 2026 analysis from StudyRemote:

Our recommendation: Start with the MilesDown deck. It has a manageable ~2,888 cards, scores highest in feasibility (9/10), and covers all MCAT sections well. If you are aiming for a 528 or have already mastered the basics and need extreme depth, the Abdullah deck's 16,000 cards will fill every gap, but be prepared for a significant daily time investment. For the Psychology and Sociology section specifically, many students find the Cubene deck to be the most thorough and well-organized.

Step 3: Enable FSRS and Configure Your Settings

This is the single most impactful configuration step you can take. Anki's default settings are designed for general language learning, not for the high-stakes, content-dense environment of MCAT prep. Using the default algorithm (SM-2) often leads to poor retention rates.

Starting with Anki version 23.10, the app includes a new algorithm called FSRS (Free Spaced Repetition Scheduler). FSRS is a significant upgrade. It uses machine learning to optimize review intervals based on your personal memory patterns, leading to higher retention with fewer reviews. According to a 2026 guide from StudyCards AI, students using optimized FSRS settings achieve 85–90% retention rates, compared to 65–75% with the default SM-2 settings.

Here is how to configure it for MCAT prep:

1. Enable FSRS: Go to Tools → Preferences → Review. Check the box that says 'Enable FSRS.'
2. Set Desired Retention: Set this to 0.90 (90%). This is the optimal target for MCAT prep. A higher retention rate means you will see cards more frequently, which is necessary for the volume of detailed information you need to master.
3. Set Learning Steps: Change the learning steps to '1m 10m'. This means a new card will be shown to you, then again in 1 minute if you get it right, and then again in 10 minutes. This short initial spacing helps move the information from working memory into long-term memory before the longer FSRS intervals take over.
4. Optimize Parameters: After you have been using Anki for a few weeks and have a few thousand reviews logged, click the 'Optimize' button in the FSRS settings. This will tailor the algorithm to your specific memory patterns. Repeat this monthly for best results.

Step 4: Unsuspend Cards by Topic and Set Your Daily New Card Limit

When you download a premade deck like MilesDown, all the cards are initially 'suspended' (hidden). This is a good thing. It prevents you from being overwhelmed by thousands of cards you haven't learned yet.

The correct workflow is to unsuspend cards only as you cover the corresponding content in your content review (e.g., from Kaplan or UWorld books). For example, after you finish reading the chapter on Amino Acids, you go into the MilesDown deck, find the 'Amino Acids' sub-deck or tag, select all the cards, and unsuspend them. This ensures that you are reviewing cards for concepts you have already learned, which is far more effective than seeing unfamiliar cards cold.

Now, set your daily new card limit. This is a critical lever for managing your long-term workload. Set 'New cards/day' to 20–40. This may seem low, but it is sustainable. Here is why:

Data from ResidencyAdvisor shows the review load projection for a student doing 100 new cards per day: reviews explode from approximately 150 reviews in week 1 to over 800 reviews in week 4. At 20 new cards per day, you will be doing around 140+ review cards daily within a month. This is a much more manageable and sustainable pace that allows you to actually learn the material rather than just trying to keep your head above water.

Step 5: Build a Daily Review Habit (30–60 Minutes per Day)

Consistency is far more important than intensity when it comes to spaced repetition. Your goal is to make Anki reviews a non-negotiable part of your daily routine, like brushing your teeth.

Aim for 30–60 minutes of Anki per day. This is the sweet spot recommended by multiple high-scoring students and guides. If you cannot find a solid hour, break it into two 20-minute sessions — one in the morning and one in the evening. The mobile app makes this easy to do during commutes or between classes.

Understanding the rating buttons is essential for an efficient review session:

• Again: You completely forgot the answer. The card will be shown again very soon (within a few minutes).
• Hard: You remembered the answer but with significant difficulty. The card's interval will increase only slightly.
• Good: You remembered the answer with some effort. This is the default and most common rating. The card's interval will increase normally.
• Easy: You knew the answer instantly and effortlessly. The card's interval will increase significantly, and you will not see it for a long time. Use this sparingly.

A good rule of thumb: if you are using 'Again' on more than 10–15% of your cards, you are either introducing too many new cards or your cards are poorly designed. If you are using 'Easy' on most cards, you are not challenging your memory enough.

Step 6: Create a 'Missed Questions' Deck from Practice

This is a high-impact strategy used by many 517+ scorers, including Arvind from MedLife Mastery, who improved from a 499 to a 517 in six weeks. The idea is simple: every time you miss a practice question on UWorld or an AAMC full-length, you turn that concept into a flashcard and add it to a dedicated 'Missed Questions' deck.

Here is the workflow:

1. Miss a question on UWorld or AAMC.
2. Identify the core concept you got wrong. Do not just copy the answer explanation.
3. Create a new card in your 'Missed Questions' deck. Keep it short and specific. For example: 'Q: What enzyme catalyzes the first step of glycolysis? A: Hexokinase.'
4. If the concept involves a diagram (e.g., a biochemical pathway), use Anki's Image Occlusion feature to create a card that tests your ability to label the diagram.
5. Review this deck daily alongside your main content deck.

This strategy directly targets your weakest areas. Instead of passively reviewing content you already know, you are forcing yourself to repeatedly retrieve the exact concepts you struggle with. Over time, this 'Missed Questions' deck becomes a personalized, high-yield review set that is far more valuable than any generic premade deck.

Balancing Anki with Practice Passages and Full-Length Exams

This is the most important point in this guide, and it directly counters a common misconception among pre-med students: Anki is a tool for content retention, not a replacement for practice.

Data from ResidencyAdvisor paints a clear picture: students who rely on Anki as their primary or only study method tend to score in the low 500s, while students who use a balanced approach — combining Anki with practice passages and full-length exams — average around 513. The MCAT is a critical thinking and reasoning test, not a pure memorization test. You can know every fact in the Kaplan books and still score poorly if you cannot apply that knowledge to novel passages and complex questions.

Here is a recommended time allocation for your MCAT study plan:

Think of Anki as the foundation. It ensures that when you sit down to do a UWorld passage, you are not wasting time trying to remember what a 'kinase' does. But the real score improvement comes from the practice itself — learning how to interpret graphs, eliminate wrong answers, and manage your time under pressure.

Common Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

Even with the best intentions, it is easy to fall into habits that make Anki less effective. Here are the most common mistakes and how to avoid them:

• Setting New Cards Too High: Starting with 100+ new cards per day is a recipe for disaster. Your review load will become unmanageable within weeks, leading to burnout and low retention. Stick to 20–40 new cards per day.
• Using Default Settings:
• Treating Anki as the Only Study Method: As discussed above, Anki-only students score in the low 500s. You must balance Anki with practice passages and full-length exams. The MCAT tests application, not just recall.
• Making Overly Complex Cards: A card should test one specific piece of information. Avoid long, multi-sentence questions or answers. If a card requires more than 10 seconds to answer, it is probably too complex. Break it into multiple simpler cards.
• Not Unsuspending by Topic: Un-suspending all cards in a deck at once is overwhelming and ineffective. Only unsuspend cards for topics you have already covered in your content review. This ensures you are reinforcing learned material, not guessing at unfamiliar concepts.