Comparison

Brainscape vs QuickMem

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Brainscape

This app uses AI and spaced repetition to help you learn faster and remember longer. Create your own multimedia flashcards or access a vast marketplace of expert-curated content for various subjects and exams. It's designed for serious learners who want to optimize their study time.

Highlights
  • AI-powered flashcard maker
  • Spaced repetition algorithm
  • Expert-curated flashcard marketplace
  • Create multimedia flashcards
  • Collaborative content creation
  • Active recall and self-assessment
Features
Read full description

Learn faster and remember longer with Brainscape, the AI flashcard app that combines scientifically proven spaced repetition and active recall. Create flashcards instantly from notes, PDFs, images, and text, or study millions of expert-created flashcards for exams, languages, certifications, and more. Whether you're switching from Anki or another flashcard app, Brainscape helps you study more efficiently. Brainscape’s intelligent study system is designed around proven cognitive science principles that help you learn faster and remember longer. By combining active recall, metacognition, and spaced repetition, Brainscape helps serious learners spend less time studying and retain more of what they learn. How Brainscape works. Study any subject using smart flashcards designed to maximize retention: - Actively recall answers instead of passively rereading notes - Rate your confidence from 1–5 after each card - Let Brainscape automatically optimize review timing using spaced repetition - Focus more time on difficult concepts and less on material you've already mastered This unique combination of active recall, self-assessment (metacognition), and spaced repetition is designed to help you learn more efficiently. Where do all of Brainscape’s awesome flashcards come from? Three places: 1. Exper-created flashcards: Study professionally designed collections covering: - Foreign languages - MBE (Bar Exam) - NCLEX - MCAT - AP courses - Series 7 - GRE - And many more 2. Community-created flashcards: Search millions of flashcards created by students, teachers, professionals, and organizations around the world. 3. Create your own flashcards: Instantly create multimedia flashcards from: - Notes - PDFs - Images - Documents - Text input Add images, audio, and collaborate with classmates or colleagues. Why learners all over the world use Brainscape - AI-powered flashcard creation - Scientifically designed spaced repetition - Active recall learning techniques - Progress tracking and study insights - Millions of existing flashcards ready to study - Available across web and mobile devices How much does it cost? Creating and sharing great text flashcards is FREE. (Woohoo! And sorry, we do have to charge for image creation for security reasons.) And for unlimited access to ALL of Brainscape's user-generated and premium, expert-curated content, as well as optional features, like bookmarks and card reversibility--or to me your content private, you can upgrade to Pro for $19.99 (monthly), $59.99 (every 6 months), or $95.99 (annually). Alternatively, you can unlock a LIFETIME of learning with Brainscape for a one-time cost of only $199.99 American dolla billz. The fine print: The 3 recurring subscriptions (monthly, semiannual, and annual) will renew automatically within 24 hours before the end of the current period, unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the period. You can cancel auto-renewal any time by going to Account Settings, and the cancellation will apply after the active subscription period is complete. Go ahead and learn more about our Terms and Privacy Policy at brainscape.com/terms. What’s on the horizon? It’s our vision to empower everyone, everywhere to rise to the challenge of personalized forever-learning. And for this reason, we love hearing from our user community: it’s through your feedback that we can continue to innovate our platform to be more convenient, efficient, and even fun and social to use!

About

QuickMem

Create custom flashcards and study sets for any subject. Improve memorization and vocabulary with practice questions and answers. Organize your learning with groups and hints, and switch between light and dark modes.

Highlights
  • Create custom flashcards
  • Organize into groups
  • Add hints for memorization
  • Practice questions and answers
  • Light and dark mode
  • Search and edit cards
Features
Read full description

QuickMem is a flashcard app built around how memory actually works. Instead of showing every card equally, it weights each card by how likely you are to forget it and brings the shaky ones back first - so every minute of studying counts and more of it sticks. Now it writes the cards for you too. NEW IN 2.0: THE HELPER Describe the deck you want in your own words - "20 cards on Spanish animals" - and the Helper writes it. Paste your notes, a syllabus, or a PDF and it turns them into cards instead. You review every card before a single one is saved. Delete the ones you do not want, ask for changes in plain language, and only then save. It also works on one card you keep getting wrong: - Explain it in plain language - Split a card that is quietly testing three things at once - Tidy the wording without changing the meaning - Make a mnemonic and keep it as the card's hint Two skills run entirely on your device, with nothing sent anywhere: finding duplicates, and building a study plan from what is due. NEW IN 2.0: NESTED DECKS A deck can now live inside another deck. Put "Irregular Verbs" and "Food" under "Spanish", and the parent shows the total for everything beneath it. Move a deck and everything inside comes with it - and your study progress is kept, not reset. Delete a deck and you choose whether its contents go too. WHAT MAKES QUICKMEM DIFFERENT - Weighted spaced repetition: review cards right before you'd forget them - Image flashcards: add a photo from your camera or gallery for diagrams, formulas, and visual vocabulary - Shared decks: share a deck with a friend and study together, each keeping your own progress - Daily reviews: simple reminders and study stats help you build a habit - Works offline: study anywhere; changes sync when you're back online FEATURES - Create, edit, and delete cards, with optional hints - Nest decks inside decks for each subject, exam, or topic - Anki import: open an .apkg file and keep your decks, notes, and images - Import from a PDF, a .txt, or a .docx - Read aloud, with the voice, speed, and pitch you choose - Search your cards instantly - Filter which cards you study and customize what's visible - Show the front or back first, and show or hide hints - Light and dark modes - No account needed to start GREAT FOR - Students: languages, vocabulary, math facts, science, and exam prep - Medical, nursing, and anatomy study with image cards - Test prep: SAT, MCAT, bar exams, certifications, and more - Teachers building study sets to share with a class QUICKMEM PLUS The Helper's AI skills require QuickMem Plus. - QuickMem Plus, 1 month, $4.99 - Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase - The subscription renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period - Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of the current period - Manage or cancel your subscription in your Apple Account settings after purchase Everything else - making cards by hand, spaced repetition, nested decks, Anki import, read aloud, images, and sharing - works without a subscription. Terms of Use: https://www.quickmem.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://www.quickmem.com/privacy Build your first deck in under a minute. Download QuickMem and remember more, in less time.

Screenshots

Brainscape4 screens
QuickMem4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: QuickMem at none against Brainscape's 4. QuickMem also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Brainscape's advantage is ratings volume (21K vs 1) and chart position (#174 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Brainscape sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. QuickMem asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

QuickMem holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Brainscape has 21K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Brainscape ships an update every 3 weeks, QuickMem every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Brainscape versus QuickMem: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrainscapeQuickMem
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (21K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews82.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings21K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#174 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.615.3 — better
Further details — not scored
Size42 MB70 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBrainscapeJosh Mieczkowski

Customer experience

Brainscape

All ratings21,463 ratings
Positive95.3%
Neutral2.0%
Negative2.7%
Written reviews941 reviews
Positive82.1%
Neutral4.8%
Negative13.1%

QuickMem

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Brainscape

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes when switching between cards
  • Syncing issues causing data loss
  • Difficulty importing and organizing custom cards
  • Inconsistent performance on different devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Allow more customization of cards (e.g., adding images, audio)
  • Improve search and browsing functionality
  • Provide more detailed progress tracking and statistics
  • Offer family/group subscription plans
  • Add support for more languages

QuickMem

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Brainscape

Subscriptions3
  • Brainscape Pro$19.991 Month
  • Brainscape Pro$59.996 Months
  • Brainscape Pro$95.991 Year
One-time1
  • Brainscape Pro Lifetime$199.99
None

QuickMem

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Brainscape free?
Brainscape is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is QuickMem free?
QuickMem is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Brainscape or QuickMem?
QuickMem is rated higher. Brainscape averages 4.8 out of 5 from 21K ratings, while QuickMem averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Brainscape or QuickMem have ads?
Neither Brainscape nor QuickMem shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Brainscape or QuickMem?
Brainscape ships an update every 3 weeks, and QuickMem every 2 weeks. Most recently, Brainscape was updated on October 17, 2026 and QuickMem on October 5, 2026.

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