Using Anki on your iPhone or Android device, not just on your home computer, is an important step to maximizing your foreign language fluency. The more places you can work out, the more you’ll work out. The more you work out, the better your fluency.

Here’s step-by-step how to manage it.

I’m assuming these prerequisites:

1. You’ve already installed Anki on your home computer.
2. You’ve already created or installed at least one flash card deck on your home computer’s Anki.
3. You’ve become familiar with the basics of how Anki works on your home computer.
4. You’re ready to take it to the next level by
   1. Installing Anki on your iPhone or Android device
   2. Syncing your decks across  your computer and your mobile device

You’ll need this app.

Anki Flash Cards For iPhone (The iPhone appears in the screenshots below. But it’s the same for iPads, and indeed the same process for Android devices too.)

or

Anki Flash Cards for Android (It works the same way as the iPhone’s iOS screenshots, below.)

Why is Anki for Android free while Anki for iPhone is not free?

Is it a conspiracy? In a word, no.

Here’s how to install Anki on your iPhone, move all decks from your computer to your phone, and sync both so that the workouts you do on  your phone are reflected in your computer’s decks, and vice versa:

Step 1: Go to Anki’s Website. Google “Anki Flash Cards” to make sure you don’t end up on some gaming site with the name Anki in it.

Step 2: Click on the AnkiWeb Sign Up button.

Step 3: Create an AnkiWeb user account (free) by using  your email address and a password.

Step 4: Read the terms and click “agree,” assuming you do, in fact, agree. But why stop now?

Step 5: Open the Anki program on your computer. (See the prerequisites at the beginning of this article.)

Step 6: In your Anki computer program “decks” window, click on the Sync button at the upper right corner.

Step 7: Log into AnkiWeb from within the Anki computer program interface.

Step 8: Click on “Upload”.

Step 9: Wait for your upload to finish. Will be pretty fast unless you have a lot of media files embedded in  your flash cards.

Step 10: Click “OK”.

Step 11: Go to the App Store on your iPhone or iPad. (Android devices are similar enough, of course. Follow your nose.)

Note: the iOS app [maintained by the official Anki team] costs $24.99, while the app forAndroid [an app which is not created by the official Anki team] is free. ) $25 may seem like a lot for an app, but it’s very little for the powers of memory this app bestows upon you.

Step 12: Search for “Anki Flashcards” to make sure you don’t end up with some game or other unrelated app.

Step 13: Click to buy for $24.99.

(See the note on pricing under Step 11, above.)

Step 14: Open the app.

Step 16: Click “Synchronize” at the bottom right corner.

Step 17: Enter your AnkiWeb login info — username and password.

Step 18: Enjoy — your computer’s flash card decks are now all on your mobile device.

How to keep your decks synchronized between your phone and your computer:

• Before each workout session on your mobile device’s Anki app or your computer’s Anki program, click “Synchronize” first, then begin to study.
• Also, after each workout session on your mobile or your computer, click “Synchronize” again.

So, as long as you click “Synchronize” on whatever device you’re using, before and after working out, you’ll keep all your cards and decks up to date with  your latest workout results.