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Anki for the NCLEX
Every missed practice question, turned into a card. Upload notes from your practice questions and get NCLEX cards in a minute.
Free to start · Quote and page on every card
How it works
- UploadSlides, notes, PDFs or YouTube.
- CheckEvery card shows its quote and page.
- DownloadOne file that opens in Anki.
- Lecture notes or a textbook chapter as a PDF? PDF to Anki converter
- Got lecture slides? PowerPoint to Anki converter
Every card shows where it came from
A card is only kept if its quote is really in your file.
From the sourcep. 93
Wear a fit-tested NIOSH-approved N95 or higher level respirator for respiratory protection when entering the room or home of a patient
The card · NCLEX Basic
Which respirator must be worn when entering the room of a patient with suspected or confirmed infectious pulmonary or laryngeal tuberculosis?
A fit-tested NIOSH-approved N95 or higher level respirator
Quote found in the source
Made for the NCLEX
Practice question notesScreenshots of your notesLab value listsDrug class tables
Priority and safety cards
Notes on who to see first, what to delegate and what's unsafe become cards with the reason in the answer.
Cloze for numbers
Lab values, time windows and distances become cloze cards, one number at a time.
Drug class tables
Tables in your review notes are read too, so each drug class gets its own cards.
Quote and page to check
Every card shows the line it came from, so you can check it in a second. Cards whose quote isn't in your notes are dropped.
Built for NCLEX prep
Practice questions show your gaps. AnkiDecks turns them into cards that stick, from priorities to lab values.
Your missed practice questions
After each set, jot down the rule you missed and the cue you overlooked. Upload it typed, as a screenshot or a photo, and AnkiDecks turns each miss into small cards with the rule on the back.
Priority and safety, with the reason
The NCLEX tests judgment, but the rules underneath are facts: ABCs, acute before chronic, what the RN keeps. Put the reason on the back of every card, so you practice the thinking, not one answer.
Labs and drugs as cloze
One range, one blank, with the nursing action on the back. For drugs, learn the class first: what it does, the side effect to watch, the antidote.
A 4–8 week plan
Questions first, cards from every miss, reviews done daily.
- Early: cards from your weakest topics
- Middle: a practice set most days, misses into cards
- Last week: no new cards, reviews and questions only
Example NCLEX Anki cards
- Cloze
A patient with a known or suspected airborne infection should wear a surgical maskc1 and follow Respiratory Hygiene/Cough Etiquette; the mask may be removed once in an AIIRc2.
Instruct patients with a known or suspected airborne infection to wear a surgical mask and observe Respiratory Hygiene/Cough Etiquette. Once in an AIIR, the mask may be removed; the mask should remain on if the patient is not in an AIIRp. 92
- Basic
Which four infections warrant restricting susceptible healthcare personnel from entering patient rooms when immune staff are available?
Measles (rubeola), varicella (chickenpox), disseminated zoster, and smallpox.
Restrict susceptible healthcare personnel from entering the rooms of patients known or suspected to have measles (rubeola), varicella (chickenpox), disseminated zoster, or smallpox if other immune healthcare personnel are availablep. 92
- Cloze
After a patient needing Airborne Precautions leaves an examination room without an AIIR, the room should remain vacant for generally one hourc1 to allow a full air exchange.
Once the patient leaves, the room should remain vacant for the appropriate time, generally one hour, to allow for a full exchange of airp. 92
- Make cards from your own file
Example cards made by AnkiDecks from CDC’s “Guideline for Isolation Precautions” (2007, updated 2024), public domain and free on the CDC website. CDC doesn't endorse AnkiDecks. Open the source
How to use Anki for the NCLEX
Anki keeps the facts ready; practice questions train the judgment that uses them.
Is Anki enough on its own?
No. The NCLEX asks you to apply facts to the client in front of you. Anki makes sure the facts are there; practice questions and case studies train the applying.
What to put in Anki
Lab values, drug classes, precautions, priority frameworks and the rules behind your missed questions. Not whole questions: a card should test one thing.
Settings that work
Turn on FSRS in Deck options and keep desired retention at 90%, Anki's default. Keep learning steps short, such as 10m, and set new cards a day to a number you can keep next to daily practice questions.
The Next Generation NCLEX
Since April 2023 the exam includes case studies and new item types that test clinical judgment. Cards cover the knowledge each case relies on; do practice in the new format for the format itself.
When you fall behind
Pause new cards until your daily reviews are manageable again, as Anki's manual recommends. Close to the exam, finishing reviews matters more than adding cards.
Free to start. Pro when you study every day.
Free is enough to try it on a few lectures. Pro covers one or two classes every week, Max every class.
Pro
For one or two classes$7.99/ month
or $54.99 a year (5 months free)
- 50 decks a month
- Up to 100 pages per file
- 300 image occlusion diagrams a month
- Your decks are made first when it's busy
Cancel anytime
Big textbooks or every class? Max takes files up to 200 pages and unlimited decks. Compare plans · Export to Anki is never paywalled.
Questions
Is Anki good for the NCLEX?
For the memory side, yes: lab values, drug classes, precautions and priority rules. It doesn't replace practice questions, which train you to apply those facts. Use it next to them, not instead of them.
NCLEX-RN vs PN: does it change my cards?
The facts are much the same; the scope differs. The PN test plan has Coordinated Care where the RN plan has Management of Care, so RN candidates need more cards on delegation, assignment and supervision. Make cards from the review material for the exam you're taking.
How long before the exam should I start?
Four to eight weeks of focused prep is common. Start Anki on day one of it, so the cards you add early are well learned by test day, and stop adding new cards in the last week or so.
Can I upload screenshots?
Yes. A screenshot or photo of your notes works like a PDF: we read the text and make the cards. Use your own notes on what you missed rather than the prep course's questions: that content is theirs, and the rule in your own words makes a sharper card.
What if a card is wrong?
Each card shows the exact quote and page it came from, and a card is only kept if that quote is really in your file. You can still edit, redo or delete any card on the Review screen before you download.
Does it work with Anki on my phone?
Yes. You download a normal .apkg deck. It opens in Anki on a computer, AnkiMobile and AnkiDroid, with no add-ons. Image occlusion cards need Anki 23.10 or newer.
Is it free?
Yes. Free makes 3 decks a month from files up to 15 pages. Pro ($7.99 a month) makes 50 decks a month from files up to 100 pages. Downloading to Anki is never paywalled.
NCLEX, NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN are registered trademarks of the NCSBN. UWorld, Archer and Kaplan are named only to describe how students study. AnkiDecks isn't affiliated with any of them.
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