Importing Your AnKing Deck Into Neurako

If you're a medical student, there's a decent chance your study life revolves around the AnKing deck — the community-maintained ~35,000-card monster that has become the de facto standard for USMLE prep. This guide walks through importing it into Neurako while keeping everything that matters.

What Gets Imported

Neurako's .apkg importer preserves:

• All cards and card types, including Basic, Basic (reversed), and Cloze deletion — essential for AnKing.
• Tags, including the nested tag hierarchy AnKing uses (#AK_Step1_v12::...).
• Images and media embedded in cards.
• Review history and FSRS state, so your scheduling picks up where Anki left off rather than starting over.
• Deck structure and subdeck hierarchy.

What You Should Know Up Front

Add-on-dependent features don't transfer. AnKing relies on several Anki add-ons for Image Occlusion, Hint Reveal, and the button add-ons. Image occlusion support is landing in Neurako soon; if you depend on it today, watch for the release notes before migrating production review flows.

Custom scheduling scripts don't transfer. If you're running custom-scheduling JS in Anki, those changes won't survive the export. Your FSRS parameters will, though.

Sound clips work, but they're large. A full AnKing import can be several GB. Plan for that on your upload.

Step-by-Step

1. Export from Anki.

• In Anki desktop, go to File → Export.
• Export format: Anki Deck Package (.apkg).
• Include scheduling information: yes (this is what preserves your review state).
• Include media: yes.
• Save the file somewhere with enough disk space.

2. Upload to Neurako.

• In Neurako web, go to Decks → Import.
• Choose your .apkg file.
• Wait for processing. Large AnKing imports can take a few minutes.

3. Verify the import.

• Open the imported deck.
• Spot-check a few cards with images and cloze deletions.
• Check the tag tree — it should mirror the AnKing hierarchy.
• Open a card and verify the FSRS state by checking the next interval preview. If a card was next due in Anki in 32 days, it should show roughly the same in Neurako.

4. Configure your scheduler.

• Open the deck's study settings.
• Set your desired retention (most AnKing users run 0.90 during the core study window, 0.93 in the final 6 weeks).
• Review your FSRS parameters. If you had a well-optimized set in Anki, you can re-optimize from the imported history in Neurako in a few clicks.

5. Start studying.

• The first review session will feel identical to Anki — same cards, same due dates, better UI.
• Use keyboard shortcuts (1/2/3/4 on web) to maintain your Anki review speed.

Common Issues

"My cloze cards show both sides at once." Re-save the cloze note type in Anki before exporting. This is an Anki quirk, not a Neurako bug.

"Some images are missing." Usually means the .apkg was exported without the "include media" option. Re-export with it checked.

"My review count jumped up overnight." FSRS recalibrates gradually. Give it a week before concluding anything is wrong.

Can I Go Back?

Yes. Neurako exports to .apkg at any time, so the migration is fully reversible. Your data stays yours.

A Note to AnKing Users

The AnKing team has built something genuinely important for medical education, and Neurako's import path is designed to respect that work — not replace it. You can use both apps, export back and forth, and keep your review history intact throughout. Bring the deck that made you a better student, and leave behind the parts of the 2006 interface you don't miss.

Sources

• AnKing: ankingmed.com
• Anki .apkg format: apps.ankiweb.net