Knowt alternatives: 7 free and paid study apps (2026)
The best Knowt alternative depends on why you are leaving. Quizlet has the biggest library of shared sets. Anki has the strongest spaced repetition and is free outside the iPhone. Brainscape and RemNote bring their own review styles. NotebookLM and Turbo AI work from your files, and StudyPDF builds a whole course with cited answers and progress per concept. Prices are as of October 2026.
Knowt is a free flashcard and notes app, often called the top free Quizlet alternative. Basic costs nothing and puts no cap on the sets you create. The catch: the free plan shows ads, and the AI summaries of PDFs, videos and lecture recordings, the voice tutor and the AP, SAT and ACT prep sit in Ultra, at $24.99 a month or $149.99 a year.
So people look elsewhere when they want no ads, a stronger review scheduler, AI from their own files without a $25 monthly plan, or a view of which topics they still get wrong. Each of the seven tools below covers one of those reasons. We checked each vendor's site on 14 October 2026. Prices change, so check before you pay.
At a glance
| Tool | Best for | Free tier | Price (October 2026) | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quizlet | The biggest library of shared sets and classic study modes | Free plan with the core modes, some tools are capped | Plus is paid, check the current price | Web, iOS, Android |
| Anki | Remembering for months with the deepest spaced repetition | Free on Windows, Mac, Linux and Android; sync is free | iPhone and iPad app: $24.99, paid once | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS |
| Brainscape | Simple confidence-based review of flashcards | Free plan with flashcards and spaced repetition | Pro from $7.99 a month (yearly option) | Web, iOS, Android |
| RemNote | Notes and flashcards in one linked workspace | No cap on notes and cards, 250 AI credits a month | Pro $8 a month, with AI $18 (billed yearly) | Desktop, iOS, Android |
| NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook) | Free questions and answers over your own sources | Free plan, 50 sources per notebook, daily caps on chats | Higher limits with a paid Google AI plan | Web, iOS, Android |
| StudyPDFThat's us | Studying a whole course with cited answers and progress per concept | About 4 materials a week, 2 courses, no card | Free, Pro and Ultra plans, see the pricing page | Web, iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Turbo AI | Turning lecture recordings into notes, flashcards and quizzes | Free tier with notes, flashcards and quizzes, limits not listed | Paid plan $19.99 a month in the iOS app | Web, iOS, Android |
Prices as of October 2026. Check the vendor's site for the current price.
The options
Quizlet
Best for: The biggest library of shared sets and classic study modes
Quizlet is the flashcard app Knowt set out to replace. It has a huge library of sets made by other students and modes such as Learn and Test.
Strengths
- A huge library of ready-made sets for common courses
- Familiar modes: flashcards, Learn, Test and games
- Easy to share sets with a class
Limits
- Some tools, such as practice tests, are capped on the free plan
- Sets from other students can be wrong or miss what your course covers
Anki
Best for: Remembering for months with the deepest spaced repetition
Anki is a free, open-source flashcard program built around spaced repetition. It shows each card just before you would forget it, which suits long courses such as medicine.
Strengths
- Free on desktop and Android, with free AnkiWeb sync
- No ads on any version
- Add-ons and shared decks from a large community
Limits
- No AI and a steeper learning curve than Knowt
- The iPhone and iPad app is a paid purchase
Brainscape
Best for: Simple confidence-based review of flashcards
Brainscape asks you to rate each card from 1 to 5 by how well you knew it, and repeats the weak ones sooner. It also has a library of certified decks.
Strengths
- A one-tap confidence rating drives the schedule
- Certified and community decks
- Pro costs less per month than Knowt Ultra
Limits
- Flashcards only: no notes, practice exams or mind maps
RemNote
Best for: Notes and flashcards in one linked workspace
RemNote is a note-taking app with spaced repetition built in. You write notes, mark what to remember, and it schedules the reviews.
Strengths
- Notes turn into flashcards without a second app
- Spaced repetition built in
- PDF annotation, with a small allowance on Free
Limits
- More to set up than a pure flashcard app
- Heavy AI use needs Pro with AI
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook)
Best for: Free questions and answers over your own sources
Google's tool for asking questions about your own sources, renamed Gemini Notebook in July 2026. It answers from the files you add, cites them, and makes study guides and audio overviews.
Strengths
- AI over your own files for free, which Knowt keeps in Ultra
- Answers stay close to your sources and cite them
- Audio overviews of your material
Limits
- No flashcard scheduler and no record of what you already know
- Daily caps on chats and audio overviews on the free plan
StudyPDF
That's usBest for: Studying a whole course with cited answers and progress per concept
StudyPDF turns your slides, documents, scans, photos and YouTube links into one course. It builds flashcards, quizzes, practice exams and study guides from it, and Bo, the tutor, answers with the page cited.
Strengths
- Every card and answer cites the page of your own material
- Tracks mastery per concept, so you see what to review next
- PDF export on every plan, Anki (.apkg) and Word on Pro and up
Limits
- Weekly caps on every plan
- No library of ready-made sets from other students
Turbo AI
Best for: Turning lecture recordings into notes, flashcards and quizzes
Turbo AI, formerly TurboLearn, turns lectures, documents, videos and recordings into notes, flashcards, quizzes, short lessons and summaries, with an AI chat over your material.
Strengths
- A built-in notetaker for lecture recordings
- Notes, flashcards and quizzes from one upload
- Syncs between the website and the mobile app
Limits
- Its site does not publish the free limits
- The iOS app lists several prices, so check the offer you get
How to choose
- Want the big shared library back? Quizlet. Check which modes are capped on its free plan first.
- Want to remember for months? Anki, free outside the iPhone and without ads. Want a simpler 1 to 5 rating? Brainscape.
- Want notes and cards in one app? RemNote.
- Want AI from your own files without paying for Knowt Ultra? Try NotebookLM, Turbo AI and StudyPDF on their free plans with one real lecture.
- Moving your sets? Check how Knowt lets you take them out and what the new app can import before you switch.