Mochi Flashcards Review (2026): Free Plan, Offline Use, and Anki Comparison

Mochi starts with a Markdown document, not a conventional front-and-back form. Add a line containing three dashes and the document gains reviewable sides. Leave it as a note, link it to another card, or archive it so it stays searchable without entering the review queue.

That small separator explains who Mochi flashcards suit. Mochi is a strong fit for someone who wants notes and spaced repetition in the same local-first app, especially if Markdown, backlinks, and a simple Remembered/Forgot review feel natural. It is less convincing for an established Anki owner whose collection depends on generated card variants, custom HTML/CSS, JavaScript, add-ons, or detailed scheduler controls.

For a one-device workflow, the free plan is more than a trial: no sign-up is required, and Mochi documents unlimited offline use. The catch is that cross-device sync belongs to the US$5-per-month Pro plan. For an Anki user, the harder cost is migration loss. Mochi can import an Anki package and its review history, but it cannot preserve every template, style, script, scheduler setting, or add-on behavior.

Disclosure: I am Kirill Markin, and I build Flashcards Open Source App. This is a source-checked workflow review, not a claim that I performed a hands-on product test. There are no affiliate links. Mochi and Anki remain the main comparison; my product appears only as a clearly labeled alternative near the end.

Facts checked: September 7, 2026. The latest visible Mochi release was version 26.8.2, dated August 10, 2026. Prices and app-store details can change.

The short review

• Choose Mochi if you want Markdown notes and cards together, account-free offline use on one device, backlinks, and a binary review decision.
• Choose Anki if you need mature note types, HTML/CSS templates, add-ons, free hosted sync, four review grades, or deeper FSRS controls.
• Do not switch yet if you already review consistently and cannot name the workflow problem Mochi will solve. A new interface is not enough reason to put years of scheduling data and custom cards at risk.
• Test before migrating if Anki is already your long-term collection. Mochi accepts .apkg files and can bring in review history, but it converts HTML to Markdown and removes CSS and JavaScript.

Mochi vs Anki at a glance

Decision	Mochi	Anki
Best fit	Linked-note and Markdown users who want notes beside review cards	Learners who want a mature, configurable flashcard system
Card creation	A Markdown document becomes multi-sided when you add ---; fields and templates are also available	Notes contain fields; HTML/CSS templates generate one or more cards
Review flow	New cards first enter a learning phase; learned cards use Forgot / Remembered	Cards use Again / Hard / Good / Easy
Scheduling	Mochi's own algorithm by default; FSRS is optional	FSRS or legacy SM-2, with broader FSRS tuning tools
Free use	No sign-up and unlimited offline use	Free desktop apps and free AnkiWeb sync; official iOS app is paid
Cross-device sync	Pro, US$5 per month	Free through AnkiWeb
Platforms	Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android	Windows, macOS, Linux, AnkiWeb, official AnkiMobile, independent AnkiDroid
Portable formats	Native .mochi, Markdown, and CSV exports	Native .colpkg and .apkg, plus tab-separated text
Data and hosting boundary	Local-first; the core app is not presented as open source, and no supported self-hosted sync service is documented	Main repository is AGPL-licensed; an official self-hosted sync server is documented

The useful split is note-first simplicity versus collection-level control.

What the Mochi interface is built around

Mochi's interface makes more sense once you follow one card through it.

Every card belongs to a deck. Click New Card and you get a Markdown canvas rather than fixed question and answer boxes. A single card can hold headings, lists, code, images, structured fields, and links. Add --- between blocks to create two or more review sides. Add [[double brackets]] to reference another card; Mochi creates a backlink automatically. The official card overview also documents templates whose placeholders render structured field values.

Cards can do two jobs without living in separate systems:

• a review card uses sides and enters spaced repetition;
• a reference note can stay in the same deck and be archived, which removes it from new-card and due-card queues without deleting its content, tags, links, or history.

Deck views are saved combinations of filters, sorting, and layout. You can keep a grid for ordinary browsing, then create another view for a tag, due status, low retention, or recent review. Mochi also lets a view become a cram session without changing normal scheduling or review history. This is more concrete than calling the interface “clean”: the same deck can act like a notebook, a filtered database, and a study queue.

The daily review has two stages. In New cards, you either add a card to the review schedule or choose Again to see it shortly. Once learned, a due card reveals the next side and asks for Forgot or Remembered. If you forget it, Mochi uses a re-review queue before resetting progress. The result is a deliberately narrow decision at review time.

Is Mochi free, and what works offline?

Yes, but “free” and “offline” mean different things depending on where you run it. Mochi's current pricing lists:

• Free: US$0 forever, no sign-up required, with unlimited offline use.
• Pro: US$5 per month, adding sync across devices, deck publishing, dynamic fields, AI integration, and email support.

Mochi runs on macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, and the web. Its download and installation guide draws the practical boundary:

Surface	What free and offline mean
Installed desktop or mobile app	You can use Mochi offline without an account. Data is stored on the device, so one installed app can be a complete free workflow.
Web app without Pro	Content is kept in the browser's offline storage. Mochi warns that a browser can clear this data without warning.
The same collection on several devices	Automatic cross-device sync is a Pro feature, even though each installed app can work offline.

Offline use and sync are separate promises. You do not need Pro merely to create or review in a downloaded app. You do need it if the same current collection must follow you automatically from laptop to phone. For important free-plan data, keep a native backup rather than treating a device—and especially browser storage—as the only copy.

If offline behavior is the deciding factor, compare the exact device workflow in Does Anki Work Offline? and the broader offline flashcards app guide.

Markdown flashcards are the real reason to choose Mochi

Mochi's real advantage is how Markdown changes the source material you maintain.

A Mochi card remains readable as text. The same document can contain a short explanation, a code block, links to related ideas, and separators between review sides. Cards can also use fields and templates when repeated structure matters. When a template is applied, Mochi renders the template's Markdown with field placeholders and ignores the card's own Markdown during rendering without deleting it.

Anki starts from a different model. A note stores fields, and card templates decide which fields appear and which cards are generated. Templates use HTML, with CSS for styling. One vocabulary note can therefore generate recognition and production cards while keeping the underlying data in one place.

That structure gives Anki a higher ceiling for conditional layouts, generated card variants, typed answers, custom styling, and workflows extended by add-ons. It also means Anki is not a native Markdown flashcards app. A Markdown-based Anki workflow needs an extra conversion or add-on layer.

The practical question is simple: do you want a note that can become a card, or a structured note type that can generate several cards? Mochi optimizes the first. Anki optimizes the second.

Mochi spaced repetition now includes FSRS

Comparisons that say Mochi has no FSRS are stale. Mochi added an FSRS preview in 2025 and has continued to ship fixes around the scheduler. Still, Mochi's own algorithm remains the default.

The default algorithm changes intervals with fixed multipliers after each remembered or forgotten review. Switch to FSRS in Review Settings and existing learned cards move onto FSRS without losing their history. You can set target retention, enter custom parameters, and switch back later.

Mochi keeps its binary grades under either scheduler:

• Forgot maps to FSRS Again.
• Remembered maps to FSRS Good.

Mochi's documentation says binary grading works with FSRS, while losing some of the information Hard and Easy would provide. It accepts optimized custom parameters but does not have a built-in optimizer; generating personal parameters requires an external FSRS optimizer and Mochi review history.

Anki's FSRS settings go further. Desired retention and parameters can be tied to presets, the built-in optimizer can fit parameters to review history, and the simulator estimates reviews or study minutes at different settings. Anki also records four outcomes: Again, Hard, Good, and Easy.

Those extra buttons help only if you use them consistently. Anki's manual treats Hard as a successful recall. Pressing Hard when you forgot the answer tells FSRS the wrong thing and can produce intervals that are too long.

Choose Mochi's binary review if pass/fail keeps the session clear. Choose Anki if you want the extra grading signal and will use its optimizer, retention controls, presets, or workload simulator. For the scheduler rather than the apps, see FSRS vs SM-2.

Mochi pricing and Anki pricing solve different costs

For one-device desktop study, both apps can cost nothing. The cost appears in a different place when more devices enter the workflow.

Mochi charges US$5 per month for Pro sync and bundles it with publishing, dynamic fields, AI integration, and support. Anki's desktop apps are free, and the official Anki site describes AnkiWeb synchronization as free. AnkiMobile is the paid official iPhone and iPad app; AnkiDroid is a free, independently developed Android client.

So “Which is cheaper?” depends on your devices:

• one computer: both can be free;
• several desktop or Android devices: Anki's free hosted sync avoids a subscription;
• iPhone or iPad: Anki adds a one-time app purchase, while Mochi puts cross-device sync behind its recurring Pro plan;
• Mochi users who already want publishing, dynamic fields, or its AI integration may view sync as one part of the bundle rather than the whole cost.

Check the regional App Store before comparing exact iOS totals. This review does not freeze an app-store price that can vary by market.

Mochi hosting is not the same as local-first use

Three labels often get collapsed into one:

• Local-first means the working copy lives on your device and the app can continue without its cloud service.
• Open source means source code is available under a license that permits inspection and modification.
• Self-hosted means the product documents a supported way to run the relevant service on your own infrastructure.

Mochi clearly documents local-first behavior. It does not present its core app as open source: the “Open source” link in its public site footer leads to a collection of integrations, not the core application. Its first-party site also does not document a supported self-hosted replacement for Pro sync.

If you search for Mochi hosting because you want your own server, this is the boundary: you can keep local data and native backups, but the documented cross-device path is Mochi Pro. Local-first is useful data control; it is not self-hosting.

Anki's main repository is licensed under AGPL version 3 or later, with listed exceptions for some components. The official manual also documents a self-hosted sync server for advanced users. That server replaces AnkiWeb sync for compatible clients; it is not a self-hosted copy of the AnkiWeb site, and Anki expects its operator to handle command-line, networking, firewall, protocol, and update issues.

What an Anki import keeps—and what it changes

Mochi's import documentation accepts Anki .apkg files, including review history. But “imported” and “equivalent” are not the same result.

During import, Mochi converts HTML to Markdown and strips CSS and JavaScript. That is a format conversion between two different card models. Plain front/back material is the easiest case. A card that depends on styling, template logic, typed interactions, or JavaScript needs inspection after import.

Review history also needs an explicit export choice. Anki's export manual says Include Scheduling Information controls whether review history goes into the package. If you leave it off, Mochi cannot recover history that the .apkg never contained.

Even when history arrives, do not expect identical future due dates. The two apps can use different schedulers, grades, target retention, parameters, learning steps, and deck settings. Preserved events give the new scheduler evidence; they do not make the systems identical.

Native backups and portable text do different jobs

Before moving anything, keep a backup that can restore the original system. A readable export is useful, but it is not always restorable.

Mochi's backup guide documents two native safety options:

• Copying the whole user directory preserves content, review history, attachments, app settings, and login state.
• A .mochi export preserves decks, cards, templates and fields, attachments, tags and metadata, review history, card order, and deck structure.

Mochi's Markdown and CSV exports are portability formats. Markdown creates one file per card and folders for subdecks, but drops review history, card order, templates, and metadata tags unless the tags are in the Markdown. CSV can export template fields or rendered front/back sides, but does not preserve review history, templates, or metadata tags unless they are embedded in the content.

Anki makes a similar distinction:

• A .colpkg exports the whole collection with scheduling and can include media. Importing it replaces the cards in the target Anki collection.
• An .apkg exports one deck and its child decks, with options for scheduling information, presets, and media.
• Notes in plain text use tab-separated fields with HTML formatting embedded. They preserve editable content, not the full collection behavior.

Moving from Mochi back to Anki normally means CSV. Anki can map text columns to note fields, but Mochi links, multi-sided behavior, templates, and review history do not become equivalent Anki objects through that file. Keep the .mochi export after the Anki copy appears correct.

Run a reversible representative-deck test

A migration dialog proves that a file was accepted. It does not prove that your real collection still works—or that you can bring usable content back. Test both directions while your normal Anki profile remains untouched.

1. Back up all of Anki. Export a .colpkg with media and store it outside the working profile.
2. Prove that the backup opens. Create an empty temporary Anki profile and import the .colpkg there. A collection-package import replaces the target collection, which is why the temporary profile matters.
3. Build a representative deck inside that temporary profile. Keep it small enough to inspect card by card, but include the behavior you rely on: basic and reverse cards, cloze, custom templates, CSS, JavaScript, images, audio, equations, tags, nested decks, and review history.
4. Export that deck as .apkg. Include scheduling information, presets, and media when they matter. Those options put the data into the Anki package; they do not promise that Mochi will reproduce every setting.
5. Import into a new Mochi deck. Keep your everyday Anki profile and its due queue unchanged.
6. Inspect before reviewing. Compare content, formatting, fields, media, tags, deck structure, and history. Pay special attention to anything that depended on HTML, CSS, JavaScript, or generated card variants.
7. Choose the scheduler on purpose. Mochi starts with its own algorithm. Turn on FSRS only if that is what you intend to use after the trial.
8. Review the copy for one normal week. Judge the Markdown editing flow, New cards stage, Remembered/Forgot decision, offline behavior, and—if you paid for it—sync on the devices you actually carry.
9. Test the way back. Export the Mochi test deck as .mochi for a native backup and as CSV for Anki. Use field-value CSV when reusable fields matter; use rendered-side CSV when you mainly need visible front/back content. Import that CSV into another empty Anki profile and map its columns to a suitable note type.
10. Write down every accepted loss. Check the forward and return paths separately. Exact styling, multi-sided behavior, add-on behavior, generated variants, review grades, history, or future due dates may matter more in daily use than they did in a comparison table.

The CSV return is a content migration, not a full Mochi restore: it does not carry review history, templates, or metadata tags unless those tags are embedded in the content. If Mochi does not solve the problem you named, delete the test deck and continue with the original Anki profile. If it does, migrate one real deck at a time and keep the Anki .colpkg and Mochi .mochi backups through several ordinary review cycles.

Who should use Mochi flashcards?

Mochi is a good fit when:

• Markdown is already how you write and think;
• notes and review cards belong in the same linked workspace;
• you want a small Remembered/Forgot decision instead of four grades;
• one-device offline use covers the free workflow, or Pro sync is worth US$5 per month;
• your collection is new or simple enough that a conversion from Anki is low-risk.

Stay with Anki when:

• your note types generate several important card variants;
• HTML/CSS templates, JavaScript, add-ons, or shared decks are part of the system;
• free cross-device sync matters more than Markdown authoring;
• you want Anki's FSRS optimizer, preset controls, four grades, and workload simulator;
• years of review data and custom behavior are already working well.

The most sensible Mochi alternative depends on why neither choice fits. For a fresh, simpler collection, Flashcards Open Source App features include FSRS reviews, offline study and sync, portable card/tag/media transfer, agent access, and a documented self-hosted path. I build it, and the limits are relevant: it does not replace Mochi's connected Markdown notebook or Anki's mature template and add-on system. The getting-started guide shows the current hosted, mobile, agent, and self-hosted paths.

The bottom line

Mochi is more than a prettier Anki interface. Its real idea is that a Markdown note, a linked knowledge record, and a spaced-repetition card can be the same object. The free plan covers accountless offline work; Pro adds the hosted features, including cross-device sync.

That is a good trade for a learner starting a new Markdown-centered collection. It may also be worth switching from Anki if the representative-deck test proves that native Markdown and binary reviews remove real friction.

For an established Anki owner, the burden of proof runs the other way. Back up the collection, test the cards that carry the most custom behavior, and keep Anki unless Mochi improves the week-to-week workflow enough to justify the specific formatting, template, scheduler, and ecosystem features left behind.