The best study apps in 2026, ranked on five criteria

A study app is worth what it makes you do. Our five criteria, in order. One, does the app make you answer from memory rather than reread. Two, is spaced repetition built in. These two criteria come from the review by Dunlosky and colleagues, where only these two techniques out of ten earned high utility (Dunlosky et al., 2013). Three, does the free plan let you really study. Four, how much effort does it take to build your cards. Five, which devices does it run on.

We make Lumi, so we left it out of the ranking and gave it its own section, to keep the ranking fair. Facts about the other apps come from their official pages and App Store listings, read on 6 November 2026. App Store ratings are shown for information, they do not count in the ranking.

Anki meets the first two criteria better than the others, with recall cards and the SM-2 or FSRS schedulers (AnkiMobile (US), 2026). It is free on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android, with free syncing (Anki, 2026). It loses points on the effort to build cards and on iPhone, where AnkiMobile costs 24.99 USD once (AnkiMobile (US), 2026).

Knowt comes second thanks to its free plan. Its listing mentions a Learn mode with unlimited rounds, spaced repetition, and AI cards made from notes, PDFs or videos, which cuts the effort of building cards (Knowt (US), 2026). Generated cards need checking, and the app is aimed first at US students. It is rated 4.7 out of 5 on 11,000 ratings in the US (Knowt (US), 2026).

Quizlet is the easiest to start with, with sets made by other students, a Learn mode, tests and spaced repetition (Quizlet (US), 2026). It falls behind Knowt on the free plan, which shows ads, with Quizlet Plus at 9.99 or 44.99 USD (Quizlet (US), 2026). RemNote gives unlimited notes and cards for free, and Pro at 8 USD a month (RemNote, 2026). It is excellent if you take notes on a computer, heavier otherwise.

Brainscape sets the pace of reviews from the confidence you give each card, from 1 to 5 (Brainscape (US), 2026). It is a form of active recall, but the app relies on your own judgement, and Pro costs 19.99 USD a month or 95.99 USD a year (Brainscape (US), 2026). These three apps remain good choices, each for a specific profile described in the table.

Lumi meets the first two criteria by design. You teach it your notes from a photo, text, a PDF or dictation, it writes its questions, then comes back to quiz you in the evening right before you forget. The effort to build cards is low, since a photo of a page is enough. It sometimes offers a wrong answer on purpose, and you correct it, which adds the explaining described in Does learning by teaching work? What research says about the protégé effect.

The free plan gives 3 cards a week with no ads, Lumi Pro costs 4.99 EUR a month or 29.99 EUR a year with a 7 day trial. Lumi runs on iPhone and is coming soon to the App Store. For a detailed comparison, read Anki vs Quizlet, which one to study with in 2026, and where Lumi fits and The best Quizlet alternatives in 2026, free or close to it.