Harken vs. Anki
Anki is a popular spaced repetition flashcard app. Harken was built to be a simpler, easy-to-use alternative to Anki. If you're looking for an Anki alternative, the easiest way to see if Harken is right for you is to try it out for yourself! Harken lets you import your entire Anki collection, so you'll be up and running in seconds.
One notable difference you may want to consider is Harken's Chrome extension—the extension lets you quiz yourself on content from any article on the internet, by using AI to generate questions with a single click. If you have trouble remembering content you read online, this extension may be the perfect solution.
If you'd like a detailed breakdown of the pros and cons of Harken and Anki, please refer to the table below.
| Harken | Anki | |
|---|---|---|
| Easy to Use | ✅ Gone are the days of reading pages of Anki documentation. Harken’s card creation system is flexible yet intuitive. | ❌ Anki's high levels of customization and confusing user interface make it difficult to use, especially for beginners. |
| Spaced Repetition Algorithm | ✅ Harken uses the same spaced repetition algorithm as Anki. | ✅ More information on Anki's algorithm can be found here. |
| Cloze Support | ✅ Harken has built in support for cloze (aka fill-in-the-blank) cards. | ✅ |
| Code Support | ✅ Harken has built in support for code blocks and inline code. You can also change the syntax highlighting for code blocks by choosing a language. | 🟡 Anki has a plugin for this, but it's harder to use than Harken. |
| Import Support | ✅ Harken lets you import your entire Anki collection into Harken, so you can pick up right where you left off! | ✅ |
| Audio Support | ❌ Harken doesn't support audio yet. If you're interested in this feature, please contact us! | ✅ |
| Statistics | ✅ Harken's stats page makes it easy to visualize how much you're learning. Example stats include your current review streak, and a GitHub-style view showing how many reviews you've completed each day. | ✅ |
| Web Support | ✅ Harken was designed and built to be used from your browser. | 🟡 Anki has a web version, but it is not fully featured. |
| Mobile Support | 🟡 Harken's website is fully responsive, and can be easily used from your phone. However, there are no native Harken apps for desktop, iOS, or Android. | ✅ Anki has apps for desktop, iOS, and Android. |
| Extensive Customization | ❌ Harken optimizes for simplicity and ease-of-use, but is not as customizable as Anki. | ✅ Anki is extremely customizable, and even supports custom plugins. |
| Open Source | ❌ Harken's code is currently not open source, but we are considering open sourcing it. If you're interested in us open sourcing the code, please let us know! | ✅ Anki's desktop app is open source. |
Lastly, if you have any questions or feedback on what Harken can do better, please contact us!
