How to get the most out of the AMBOSS add-on for Anki

1. What is the AMBOSS add-on for Anki?
2. Why is the AMBOSS add-on for Anki the most powerful learning tool for medical students?
3. Key features of the add-on
4. How to install the AMBOSS add-on for Anki
5. Learn the basics with the Anki crash course

What is the AMBOSS add-on for Anki? 

First up: what is Anki? Anki is a flashcard app designed for memory retention. You can create your own flashcards or use flashcard decks pre-made by other people. Anki uses a spaced repetition algorithm that ensures you never forget anything you learn. It’s so effective that over 80% of medical students in the US use it in their study routine. 

The AMBOSS add-on for Anki is a powerful feature that medical students can add to their Anki flashcards and decks. It gives you full access to the AMBOSS library right there in your Anki flashcards. If you’re studying a flashcard and can’t quite recall a specific term, all you have to do is hover over it and the explanation will pop up. You can also open the full AMBOSS article next to the flashcard for a deeper learning experience. 

The best part? The add-on works with your own self-created flashcards and with every pre-made deck, such as those by AnKing, Zanki, Cheesy Dorian, etc.

Download the AMBOSS add-on for Anki today and supercharge your flashcards.

“Initially, I thought that the add-on would only help with larger known decks such as AnKing, but it turns out that AMBOSS immediately recognizes [all] cards with terms in their articles, and makes the connection simultaneously. As someone who makes their own small deck for lectures, this has been such an incredible feature and adds SO MUCH to my learning experience without ever having to leave Anki. It's made a huge difference in how I study and learn.”

- Kimberly Strull, CUNY School of Medicine, class of 2026

Why is the AMBOSS add-on for Anki the most powerful learning tool for medical students? 

The combination of Anki and AMBOSS is so effective as it employs a three-step method to learn and really understand the information needed in medical school: 

Learn, remember, and apply. 

Learn: All of the information you need to know to ace your in-house, USMLE, or NBME exams is in the AMBOSS library—as is all the info you need to answer clinical questions and provide excellent patient care. Simply search for the topic you’re studying, and you’ll find everything you need to learn. 

Remember: Learning the information is the first step. But remembering it in the long term can be a bit trickier. This is where Anki comes in. Create flashcards based on the topic you just studied, or find a premade deck on the topic from another source, such as AnKing. You tell Anki how well you know the material by designating it “Easy,” “Good,” Hard,” or deciding to do it “Again” if it’s a particularly unfamiliar topic. This is when Anki’s algorithm kicks in. If you know the topic really well, it won’t show you that topic again for a while. But if it’s a topic you struggle with, the card will appear again and again until you know it down pat. And if something is coming up a little too frequently for you, you can adjust the time settings to suit your learning needs. 

Apply: Now that you know the information and are unlikely to forget it anytime soon, you’ll want to apply it, so you can really gain a deep understanding of the material. You can do this with the AMBOSS Qbank. The questions in the Qbank are created by a team of medical editors who extensively research and create every question in line with the USMLE guidelines, so they are representative of the real exam. Answering these questions is not only great practice for exams, but it also helps you to really understand the material so you can then apply it when caring for your patients. 

“From the beginning of M1, I’ve used the Anki add-on, which has enriched my daily learning and helped me attain a deeper understanding of each concept. I’ve used AMBOSS nearly every day since M1 year, and I highly recommend AMBOSS as an important resource to anyone studying medicine.”

- Matthew Record, Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, class of 2025. 

Kickstart your memory retention and download the AMBOSS add-on for Anki today.

Key features of the add-on

Medical students love the AMBOSS add-on for Anki for its quick definitions and easy access to the AMBOSS library. And there are so many more great features on top of that! Our Anki team is constantly working to build even more features to amplify your learning experience. Here are some of the best: 

1. Pop-up explanations: Hover over medical terms in your Anki flashcards to get an instant pop-up explanation of the word. These definitions come straight from the AMBOSS library. Click on the explanation to dive deeper into the related AMBOSS article. This is a great way to streamline your studying and quickly familiarize yourself with important concepts. 

2. Images in pop-ups: Some terms contain important concepts that need to be conveyed visually. When this is the case, the pop-ups will include a preview of the relevant image. Click on the pop-up to go to the library where you will see the image expanded and get more information. 

3. Mobile access: Review your flashcards on the go with the AMBOSS add-on for mobile. Whether you’re taking the daily commute or standing in line at the grocery store, you can practice flashcards with that extra AMBOSS kick. It works on iPhone, Android, iPad, or wherever you usually use Anki.  

4. Some nifty extras: Move seamlessly between pop-ups with customizable keyboard shortcuts. Choose the color that best suits your learning needs with the custom highlighting tool. If you want to put yourself to the test and briefly disable the pop-ups, you can do that with easy-to-use, pop-up settings.

5. And coming soon! Anki meets Qbank: Launch custom Qbank sessions directly from your Anki flashcards. This means you don’t have to search or filter for the right practice questions to match the material you’re reviewing—it’s all right there. Your studying just got that much more efficient. Sign up here and be one of the first to try out this new feature. 

How to install the AMBOSS add-on for Anki

Installing the add-on on desktop 

1. Copy and paste the following code: 1044112126
2. Open your Anki app. Click on "Tools" and then "Add-ons". 
3. Click on "Get Add-ons". Then paste the code that you copied from the webpage. Click "OK". 

Installing the add-on on mobile  

The add-on for mobile is available for all users of the AMBOSS add-on for Anki. If the add-on is installed on your PC or Mac and you are logged into your AMBOSS account, you should receive a notification that the mobile add-on is available. Once you receive the notification, you can follow the instructions to enable mobile support. 

You can also enable the mobile add-on by following these steps: 

1. Click on the AMBOSS tab in the navigation bar of your Anki desktop app. 
2. Click on "Settings". 
3. Check the mark under "Enable mobile support (beta)". 
4. Hit "Save". 
5. To see the changes on mobile, make sure to sync your device afterward. 

Troubleshooting tips 

- The add-on is compatible with Anki 2.1.26 and higher. You can download the latest version here.

- The add-on is free to try initially, but you need an AMBOSS account to get unlimited access to the pop-ups and other features. Create your AMBOSS account here. Only users with AMBOSS membership can use the mobile add-on.

- Make sure you use the official AMBOSS add-on which can only be downloaded here. If you’ve downloaded it from anywhere else, please contact our Help Center.

Learn the basics with the Anki crash course

While Anki is an amazing tool for medical students, getting started with it can sometimes be a little intimidating. To conquer this challenge, we’ve teamed up with the one and only AnKing to bring you a digestible introduction to Anki and the AMBOSS add-on. The course includes 

- Quick and easy tutorials to help you learn the ropes
- Pro study tips from the AnKing and the Anki community for every skill level
- Advice for effective study habits 

You can watch the course (each video is 5 minutes or less) here. 

Happy studying! 

New to AMBOSS? Start your 5 day free trial and get access to all the study plans, medical knowledge, and Qbank questions you need.