Learn Mandarin vs Anki
Checked September 17, 2026
Anki is a flashcard program for any subject: you write your own cards or download decks other people have made. Learn Mandarin is one finished deck, the 3,000 words of HSK 3.0 bands 1 to 4, with the audio, stroke order and example sentences already on every card. Both can schedule reviews with FSRS.
Side by side
| Learn Mandarin | Anki | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | One deck: the 3,000 words of HSK 3.0 bands 1 to 4 | A flashcard program for any subject |
| Getting started | Nothing to set up. Pick a starting level and study | Create a deck, or find and import a shared one |
| Scheduling | FSRS | FSRS, optional since Anki 23.10, or the older SM-2 scheduler |
| Audio | Every word and every example sentence, generated with Google Cloud Text-to-Speech | Whatever the deck you choose includes |
| Stroke order | Animated for every character, and traceable, with your strokes graded | Not part of Anki itself. It depends on the deck or add-ons you choose |
| Kinds of question | Meaning, listening, tones and fill-the-gap while a word is new, then writing, typing pinyin and filling a sentence once it has stuck | Whatever the deck's card templates define, including typed answers |
| Account | Not needed. Optional, to sync between devices | Not needed. Optional AnkiWeb account, to sync between devices |
| Platforms | Any modern browser, and installs to a phone or computer | Windows, macOS and Linux; AnkiDroid on Android; AnkiMobile on iPhone and iPad |
| Price | HSK 1 and 2 free with every feature. HSK 3 and 4 will be a single one-time purchase, not a subscription; it is not on sale yet. | Free on computers and on Android. AnkiMobile is $24.99 on the US App Store |
Which to use
Choose Anki if you study more than Mandarin, want to write your own cards, or want to go beyond HSK 4. Anki has no limit on what a deck can hold, and a large community shares decks for it.
Choose Learn Mandarin if you want the core 3,000 words ready to study today, with audio, stroke order and a sentence on every card, and a deck that is meant to be finished rather than maintained.
Where these facts come from
The Anki column is taken from Anki's own site, its manual and the App Store listing below. Prices and features change, so everything about Anki on this page is dated to the day it was checked, above. If something here is out of date, write to [email protected] and we will correct it. Learn Mandarin is not affiliated with Anki.