AnkiDecks

AnkiDecks: the Anki MCP server for Claude

Turn lecture PDFs, PowerPoint slides, Word files, notes and YouTube videos into Anki flashcards, right inside Claude. Every card keeps the exact quote and page it came from, so you can check it against your lecture.

Add to Claude · Website · How it works in Claude · Plans

https://ankidecks.ai/mcp

AnkiDecks is a hosted (remote) MCP server. Nothing to install: no Anki running in the background, no AnkiConnect add-on, no config file, no API key. Paste one address in Claude, sign in once, and ask for cards.

• Card types: basic (question and answer), cloze (fill in the blank) and image occlusion from the diagrams in your file
• Source on every card: the exact sentence and its page number. Cards whose quote isn't in your file are left out
• Your files: PDF, PowerPoint, Word, photos of handwritten notes, pasted text, YouTube links
• Download: a normal .apkg that opens in Anki, AnkiMobile and AnkiDroid, or CSV. Downloading is free on every plan
• Made for: medical, nursing and pharmacy students, USMLE and NCLEX prep, law, languages, the sciences, any subject

Add it to Claude

1. In Claude, open Customize › Connectors (open it).
2. Click + Add, then Add custom connector.
3. Name it AnkiDecks, paste https://ankidecks.ai/mcp and click Add.
4. Ask: "Use AnkiDecks to make cards from my lecture". Sign in once when Claude asks (Google or an email code). A free account is created on the spot.

Claude's free plan allows one custom connector. Add it on a computer once and it also works in the Claude phone app.

Claude Team or Enterprise: only an admin can add connectors. Ask them to add https://ankidecks.ai/mcp under Organization settings › Connectors, then click Connect under Customize › Connectors.

Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport http ankidecks https://ankidecks.ai/mcp

Or install the plugin, which adds the connector plus a short skill that tells Claude when to use it:

claude plugin marketplace add jjman2321/ankidecks-mcp
claude plugin install ankidecks@ankidecks

What you can ask

• "Make Anki flashcards from my cardiology lecture PDF"
• "Turn these notes into cloze cards"
• "Make a deck from this YouTube lecture"
• "Show my AnkiDecks decks"

For a file, an upload box appears in the chat: pick the file, the pages and the card types. The deck is made in the background. When it's ready, Claude shows the card count and a few example cards with their source page:

Then review, edit and download the deck on ankidecks.ai.

AnkiDecks vs. other Anki MCP servers

Most Anki MCP servers drive the Anki app on your own computer. AnkiDecks runs online and reads your files.

	AnkiDecks	Local Anki MCP servers (AnkiConnect)
Install	None: paste one URL	Anki open + AnkiConnect add-on + Node or Python + config
Works in the Claude web and phone apps	Yes	Desktop only, with Anki running
Makes cards from PDFs, slides, Word, photos, YouTube	Yes, with page and quote on every card	Claude writes cards from what's in the chat
Image occlusion from your diagrams	Yes	No
Adds cards straight into your Anki collection	No: you download a deck (.apkg) and import it	Yes
Price	Free plan, paid plans for more	Free (open source)

If you want Claude to edit your existing Anki collection live, a local server fits better. If you want decks from your lecture files with sources you can check, AnkiDecks does that.

Plans

	Free	Pro	Max
Decks a month	3	50	Unlimited
Pages per file	15	100	200
Image occlusion, cloze, basic cards	✓	✓	✓
Download for Anki (.apkg) and CSV	Free	Free	Free
Price	$0	$7.99 / month	$17.99 / month

Decks made in Claude count toward your AnkiDecks plan. Current prices and full limits: ankidecks.ai/pricing. Start free, no credit card needed.

Tools

Tools Claude can call:

Tool	What it does	Kind
open_upload	Shows an upload box for making an Anki deck from a file (PDF, PowerPoint, Word or photos). The deck starts when the student picks the file in the box.	read-only
make_deck_from_text	Makes an Anki deck from pasted notes, from the text of a short file attached in the chat (page by page, so cards keep their page numbers), or from a YouTube link. Optional: card types (both, basic, cloze, vocabulary), amount (fewer, normal, more), card language.	write (never deletes)
deck_status	Progress of a deck, its card count, 3 example cards with their source page, and the link to review and download it.	read-only
list_decks	The student's 10 most recent decks with their status and links.	read-only

Used only by the upload box (hidden from Claude): create_upload (checks the plan, returns one-time upload links), start_file_deck (starts the deck once the file is uploaded), upload_state (the box's current deck and plan numbers).

• Transport: Streamable HTTP · Sign-in: OAuth 2.1 with PKCE (dynamic client registration)
• The upload box is an MCP App; clients without MCP Apps can still make decks from pasted notes and YouTube links

Privacy and security

• When you pick a file in the upload box, it goes straight to AnkiDecks over HTTPS. Claude only gets the deck name, the card count, a few example cards and the link.
• If you paste notes or attach a short file in the chat, Claude reads it and passes the text on to make the deck.
• The connector can't see payment details and never deletes anything. Disconnect it any time in Claude (Customize › Connectors) or on ankidecks.ai (Account › Connected apps).
• Uploaded files are deleted after 30 days. Details: Privacy policy.
• Found a security problem? See SECURITY.md.

FAQ

Is there an Anki MCP server that works without Anki open? Yes, AnkiDecks. It runs online, so you don't need Anki, AnkiConnect or a config file. You download the finished deck and open it in Anki.

Does it work on Claude's free plan? Yes. Claude's free plan allows one custom connector, and AnkiDecks has a free plan too (3 decks a month).

Can I use it with ChatGPT or other clients? It's built and tested for Claude. Other MCP clients that support remote servers with OAuth may work.

Where do I edit the cards? On ankidecks.ai. Claude gives you the link when the deck is ready.

About this repository

This repository holds the connector's documentation and a Claude Code plugin (.claude-plugin/, .mcp.json, skills/). It contains no server code and no secrets. The server is closed source and run by Grasp Labs LLC at https://ankidecks.ai/mcp.

Support: [email protected] · ankidecks.ai/claude

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Anki is a trademark of Ankitects Pty Ltd. AnkiDecks is not affiliated with Anki or Ankitects. Claude is a trademark of Anthropic, PBC. AnkiDecks is not affiliated with Anthropic. Not to be confused with anki-decks.com, which is a different product.

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