Best Anki Decks for Chinese in 2026 (+ How to Use Them)

Why Anki Is Popular for Chinese Learning

Anki has been the go-to flashcard tool for serious language learners for over a decade, and for good reason. It is completely free on desktop and Android, it uses a proven spaced repetition algorithm to schedule your reviews, and it is extraordinarily customizable. For Chinese learners specifically, Anki solves a fundamental problem: Mandarin requires memorizing thousands of characters and vocabulary words, and spaced repetition is the most efficient method for doing exactly that.

The Chinese learning community has embraced Anki like few other language communities have. There are hundreds of shared decks available for Mandarin — from beginner HSK 1 vocabulary all the way through HSK 6 and beyond. The combination of character recognition, tone drilling, and vocabulary building makes flashcards an especially natural fit for Mandarin study, and Anki's flexibility allows you to customize card formats to show pinyin, traditional characters, stroke order, audio, example sentences, or any combination you need.

That said, Anki's power comes with complexity. New users often spend more time configuring the software, finding the right decks, installing add-ons, and troubleshooting settings than actually studying Chinese. This guide exists to shortcut that process. We will walk you through the best decks available, show you exactly how to set up Anki for Chinese, and share the optimal settings that experienced learners use. And if you decide that Anki's setup overhead is not worth it, we will point you to alternatives that work right out of the box.

How to Install and Set Up Anki for Chinese

Before you can use any Chinese deck, you need Anki installed and configured properly. Here is the quickest path from zero to studying:

Step 1: Download and Install Anki

Download Anki from the official website (apps.ankiweb.net). The desktop version is free for Windows, Mac, and Linux. AnkiDroid for Android is also free. AnkiMobile for iOS costs approximately $25 — this is a one-time purchase that funds the development of the free versions. Install it like any other application.

Step 2: Create an AnkiWeb Account

Sign up for a free account at ankiweb.net. This enables syncing between your devices — study on your laptop at home, review on your phone during your commute. Syncing is automatic once you connect your account in the desktop app under Tools > Preferences > Network.

Step 3: Install Essential Add-ons for Chinese

Anki's add-on system lets you extend its functionality. For Chinese learners, several add-ons are practically essential. Chinese Support Redux automatically generates pinyin readings, color-codes tones, and adds stroke order diagrams to your cards. AwesomeTTS adds text-to-speech audio for any Chinese text on your cards, which is critical for tone practice. To install add-ons, go to Tools > Add-ons > Get Add-ons, and paste the add-on code from the AnkiWeb add-ons page.

Step 4: Download a Shared Deck

Go to AnkiWeb > Shared Decks and search for "Chinese" or "HSK." You will see hundreds of results. Click "Download" on the deck you want, and open the .apkg file — Anki will import it automatically. Below, we review the five best decks to save you the trouble of sorting through all of them.

Best Anki Decks for Chinese: Comparison Table

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the five best Anki decks for Chinese learners in 2026. Each serves a different purpose, and many serious learners use two or three of these simultaneously.

#1 Official HSK Deck Series

The Official HSK 1-6 deck series is the most downloaded Chinese deck on AnkiWeb, and for good reason. It contains the complete vocabulary list for every level of the HSK exam — from the 150 words in HSK 1 through the approximately 2,500 words in HSK 5 and the full 5,000-word vocabulary of HSK 6. Each card includes the simplified Chinese character, pinyin pronunciation, and English definition. Some versions also include audio recordings and example sentences.

How to use it: Download the deck for your current HSK level. If you are a complete beginner, start with HSK 1. Set your new cards per day to 10-15 and work through the deck in order. The vocabulary is arranged by difficulty within each level, so the first cards you see will be the most common and useful words. As you approach the end of one level, download the next. Many learners keep all levels in a single parent deck with sub-decks for each level, which lets Anki mix review cards across levels — this is beneficial because it prevents context-dependent memory.

Pros: Perfectly aligned with the HSK exam, which is the most widely recognized Chinese proficiency test globally. The vocabulary list is official and well-curated. Every word you learn is directly useful for the exam. The deck is well-maintained and frequently updated by the community. It is completely free.

Cons: The basic card format (single word, pinyin, English) lacks context. You learn individual words but not how they are used in sentences. Audio coverage is inconsistent — some versions have it, many do not. The card templates are plain and could benefit from better formatting. You will likely want to install the Chinese Support Redux add-on to improve the display quality. With the HSK 3.0 update changing the vocabulary lists, some older decks may not reflect the latest official word lists.

#2 Spoonfed Chinese

Spoonfed Chinese is widely considered the gold standard of Anki Chinese decks. Unlike vocabulary-based decks that show you isolated words, Spoonfed Chinese is entirely sentence-based. Each of its approximately 18,000 cards presents a complete Chinese sentence with native speaker audio, pinyin, and English translation. The sentences are carefully ordered so that each one introduces exactly one new word or grammar point — everything else in the sentence is something you have already learned.

This "i+1" approach (also called "comprehensible input plus one") is grounded in second language acquisition theory. By encountering new vocabulary within sentences you can mostly understand, your brain learns not just the word's definition but its usage patterns, collocations, and grammatical behavior. You develop an intuitive feel for how words fit together, which is something isolated vocabulary study simply cannot provide.

How to use it: Start from card 1 and work through the deck in order. This is critical — the carefully sequenced progression breaks down if you skip around. Set new cards to 10-15 per day. Listen to the audio first, try to understand the sentence, then check the translation. Pay attention to the one new element in each sentence. Many learners supplement Spoonfed Chinese with an HSK vocabulary deck to ensure exam coverage, since Spoonfed Chinese does not follow the HSK word list exactly.

Pros: Sentence-based learning is far more effective than isolated vocabulary for building real comprehension. Native audio on every card is invaluable for pronunciation and tone practice. The careful sequencing means you are never overwhelmed by too many unknown elements. The deck is massive (18,000 cards), providing enough material for years of study. It is free.

Cons: The sheer size can be intimidating. At 15 new cards per day, it would take over three years to complete. The deck is not directly aligned with HSK levels, so it is not ideal for targeted exam preparation. Some audio recordings vary in quality. The deck has not been significantly updated in recent years, though the content remains relevant. Because each card depends on previous cards, you cannot easily skip sections that do not interest you.

#3 Heisig's Remembering the Hanzi

James Heisig's Remembering the Simplified Hanzi (RTH) takes a radically different approach to Chinese characters. Instead of learning characters alongside their pronunciation and meaning simultaneously, Heisig's method focuses exclusively on connecting each character to a single English keyword through a mnemonic story. The Anki deck based on this book contains approximately 3,000 characters with their keywords and suggested mnemonics.

The philosophy is that by first building a strong visual-meaning association for every common character, you create a scaffold onto which pronunciation and detailed meanings can later be attached much more easily. Many learners report that after completing Heisig, they can "read" Chinese text in the sense of recognizing every character and knowing its general meaning, even before studying pronunciation. This is a controversial approach — some swear by it, others argue it is an inefficient detour.

How to use it: Work through the deck in order alongside the physical book (or at least read the first few chapters to understand the mnemonic method). Many learners set new cards higher for this deck — 20-30 per day — because the mnemonic approach makes initial acquisition faster. Review by looking at the English keyword and trying to recall (or even write) the character. This is a supplement to, not a replacement for, vocabulary study.

Pros: Builds strong character recognition quickly. The mnemonic approach makes characters memorable and reduces the "they all look the same" problem that plagues beginners. Understanding character components (radicals, primitives) helps you guess the meaning of unfamiliar characters. Good for visual learners.

Cons: No audio, no pronunciation, no pinyin. You learn to recognize characters but not how to say them. The method requires the companion book for full effectiveness. Not aligned with HSK at all. The keyword-to-character mapping is sometimes debatable. This deck is best used as a supplement alongside a pronunciation-focused deck like the HSK series or Spoonfed Chinese.

#4 Chinese Grammar Wiki Deck

The Chinese Grammar Wiki Anki deck is based on the AllSet Learning Chinese Grammar Wiki, one of the most comprehensive free grammar resources for Mandarin. It contains approximately 900 cards covering grammar points from absolute beginner (A1) through advanced (C1). Each card presents a grammar pattern with example sentences, usage notes, and difficulty level tagging.

Grammar is often the neglected sibling of vocabulary in Chinese study. Most learners focus heavily on characters and words while hoping grammar will "come naturally" through exposure. For some it does, but many learners benefit from systematically reviewing grammar points — especially the ones that differ significantly from English, like aspect markers (了, 过, 着), result complements, topic-comment structure, and measure word usage.

How to use it: Filter the deck by your level (A1/A2 for beginners, B1/B2 for intermediate). Set new cards low — 3-5 per day — since grammar points require more mental processing than vocabulary. Read the grammar explanation, study the example sentences, and try to construct your own examples mentally. This deck works best alongside a vocabulary deck, not as your only study material.

Pros: Fills a gap that most vocabulary decks ignore entirely. Well-organized by difficulty level. Based on a respected, comprehensive grammar resource. The example sentences provide useful context. Partially aligned with HSK levels through the difficulty tagging.

Cons: No audio. Grammar is harder to review with flashcards than vocabulary — recognizing a grammar pattern on a card does not necessarily mean you can produce it in conversation. The deck is relatively small (900 cards) and may feel incomplete at advanced levels. Card formatting is text-heavy and not always well-suited to quick review sessions.

#5 Frequency-Based Character Decks

Frequency-based decks take a data-driven approach to Chinese vocabulary. Instead of following a textbook curriculum or exam syllabus, these decks order words by how frequently they appear in real Chinese text — newspapers, books, websites, and conversation transcripts. The most popular version contains the top 5,000 most common Mandarin words with definitions, pinyin, and some audio.

The logic is compelling: the top 1,000 most frequent Chinese words cover approximately 85% of everyday written text. The top 3,000 words cover about 95%. By learning words in frequency order, you are always studying the vocabulary that will give you the most real-world comprehension per unit of study time. This approach is especially useful for learners whose goal is practical comprehension rather than passing a specific exam.

How to use it: Start from card 1 (the most common word) and work your way through. The first 500-1,000 cards will overlap heavily with HSK 1-3 vocabulary, so if you have already studied those levels, you can skip ahead or use the deck to fill gaps. Set new cards to 10-20 per day. Consider suspending cards for words you already know well — this saves review time and lets you focus on genuinely new vocabulary.

Pros: Maximizes practical comprehension per word learned. Based on real usage data rather than curriculum decisions. Good for learners beyond HSK 4 who want to continue building vocabulary without following the HSK track. Complements exam-focused decks by filling frequency gaps that exam syllabi miss.

Cons: Frequency data varies depending on the source corpus — a deck based on newspaper frequency will emphasize different vocabulary than one based on conversational transcripts. Not aligned with any exam. High-frequency words at the top of the list tend to be function words (particles, prepositions, conjunctions) that are hard to learn from flashcards alone. Audio coverage is inconsistent across different versions of the deck.

How to Optimize Your Anki Settings for Chinese

Anki's default settings are designed for general-purpose learning and are not optimal for Chinese. Here are the settings adjustments that experienced Chinese learners recommend. To access these, click the gear icon next to your deck and select "Options."

New Cards Per Day

Recommended: 10-20 new cards per day. The default is 20, which is fine for most learners. If you are a complete beginner, start at 10 and increase after two weeks once you have a feel for the review load. The critical thing to understand is that new cards compound: if you add 20 new cards per day, after a month you will have roughly 150-200 cards to review daily. Make sure you can commit to that review volume before increasing your new card count. If your daily reviews start exceeding 30-40 minutes and feel unsustainable, reduce new cards until reviews stabilize.

Learning Steps

Recommended: 1m 10m 1d (or 15m 1h 1d for more repetition). Learning steps determine how many times you see a new card before it graduates to the review queue. The default (1m 10m) means you see a new card, wait 1 minute, see it again, wait 10 minutes, then it graduates. For Chinese characters — which are visually complex and require tone memorization — adding a third step (1d) gives you an extra repetition the next day before the card enters the longer-interval review cycle. This significantly improves initial retention.

Graduating Interval and Easy Interval

Recommended: Graduating interval of 1-3 days, Easy interval of 4-7 days. The graduating interval is the first review interval after a card leaves the learning phase. Setting this to 1 day (instead of the default 1 day) is fine for most learners. The easy interval applies when you press "Easy" on a new card — setting it to 4-7 days prevents cards from disappearing for too long after just one successful review.

Starting Ease Factor

Recommended: 250% (the default). The ease factor determines how quickly intervals grow. Some learners reduce this to 230% for Chinese because characters are harder to retain than, say, English-Spanish vocabulary pairs. However, reducing it too much leads to "ease hell" — a situation where intervals stay short and your review count becomes unmanageable. If you find that cards are consistently too easy when they appear for review, you can increase the starting ease. If you are failing many reviews, consider lowering it slightly rather than adding more new cards.

Maximum Reviews Per Day

Recommended: 9999 (effectively unlimited). The default cap of 200 reviews per day can actually harm your learning if your deck grows beyond that. When Anki caps your reviews, overdue cards pile up invisibly, and the spaced repetition algorithm breaks down. Set the review limit very high and instead control your workload by adjusting the number of new cards. If reviews are taking too long, the answer is fewer new cards — not capping reviews.

Audio Settings

Recommended: Enable auto-play audio, play audio on the front of the card. For Chinese specifically, hearing the pronunciation (and especially the tones) is not optional — it is essential. If your deck has audio, make sure it plays automatically. If it does not, install the AwesomeTTS add-on and configure it to generate audio for the Chinese text field. Set audio to play on the front of the card so you hear the word before seeing the answer. This trains your listening comprehension alongside reading.

Common Anki Mistakes Chinese Learners Make

After years of seeing Chinese learners use (and misuse) Anki, these are the most common mistakes that undermine results. Avoid these and you will get significantly more value from your Anki study time.

Adding Too Many New Cards

This is by far the most common mistake. Enthusiasm leads new learners to set their new card count to 30, 40, even 50 per day. The first week feels manageable. By week three, daily reviews have ballooned to 300-400 cards, taking over an hour. By week five, the learner is overwhelmed and quits entirely. The math is unforgiving: each new card generates roughly 7-10 reviews over the following month. Thirty new cards per day means 210-300 additional reviews per month, compounding daily. Start conservatively (10-15 new cards) and only increase after you have confirmed you can sustain the review load for at least two weeks.

Not Using Audio

Chinese is a tonal language. Learning a word's characters and meaning without learning its tones is learning an incomplete word. Yet many Anki users study Chinese decks in complete silence — reading the pinyin but never hearing the pronunciation. This creates a dangerous gap: you might recognize 你好 and know it means "hello," but produce it with the wrong tones (nì hào instead of nǐ hǎo) because you never trained your ear. Always use decks with audio, or install AwesomeTTS to add text-to-speech audio to decks that lack it.

Ignoring Tones in Reviews

Related to the audio issue: many learners mark a card as "Good" if they remembered the meaning, even if they got the tone wrong. This is a mistake. In Chinese, tones are not optional decoration — they change meaning entirely. 买 (mǎi, third tone) means "to buy" while 卖 (mài, fourth tone) means "to sell." If you recalled the character and meaning but not the correct tone, that should count as a failed review. Configure your study habits accordingly: when you see a character, try to recall the meaning and the full pinyin with correct tones before flipping the card.

Not Customizing Card Templates

Anki's default card templates show a word on the front and its definition on the back. This is fine for basic recognition, but experienced Chinese learners get much more value by customizing their templates. Consider adding separate card types for different study directions: character-to-pinyin (tone recall), character-to-English (meaning recall), English-to-character (production), and audio-to-character (listening). Use the Chinese Support Redux add-on to add tone coloring (each tone displayed in a different color) and stroke order diagrams. Better templates lead to deeper learning from the same cards.

Other common mistakes include: studying only in one direction (recognition without production), not suspending leeches (cards you fail repeatedly that waste review time), downloading too many decks at once, and reviewing cards without actually trying to recall the answer first (just clicking through passively). Each of these significantly reduces the effectiveness of your study time.

When to Consider an Alternative to Anki

Anki is a remarkable tool, and everything in this guide is written to help you get the most out of it. But it is worth being honest about its limitations. Anki is a general-purpose spaced repetition engine. It was designed to study anything — medical terminology, law, geography, programming, or yes, Chinese. That generality is its greatest strength and its greatest weakness.

For Chinese specifically, getting Anki set up properly requires: downloading the application, creating an account, finding and downloading the right shared deck (or multiple decks), installing add-ons for Chinese support and audio, configuring card templates, adjusting the algorithm settings, and troubleshooting any issues that arise. Most learners spend 2-4 hours on this initial setup before they study a single character. And maintenance is ongoing — you need to manage your deck, update add-ons when they break after Anki updates, and periodically review your settings.

Some learners thrive on this level of control. They enjoy tweaking settings, customizing templates, and building their own optimized study system. If that describes you, Anki is probably the right choice and you should use the settings and decks recommended in this guide.

But many learners — especially those new to Chinese or those who just want to study without friction — find the setup process frustrating and time-consuming. If you have tried Anki and found yourself spending more time configuring it than studying, or if the setup process is what is keeping you from starting, a purpose-built Chinese learning app might be a better fit.

HSKLord was built specifically for Chinese vocabulary learners who want spaced repetition without the setup overhead. The vocabulary is pre-loaded and aligned with HSK 1 through HSK 6, audio is built into every card, the algorithm is pre-configured for Chinese, and you can start studying in under a minute. There is no deck to download, no add-ons to install, and no settings to configure. You can use our placement test to find your starting level, and the study calculator to plan your learning timeline. It is not a replacement for Anki's full flexibility, but for focused HSK study, it is a much faster path from "I want to learn Chinese" to actually studying.