Is there checkst for Android?

No. checkst is a native app for iPhone and iPad. If you stay with Android, AnkiDroid serves you well: free, open source, with FSRS and AnkiWeb sync.

Can I continue studying my AnkiDroid decks in checkst?

Yes. Export the deck in AnkiDroid as .apkg and leave media and scheduling information checked. Open the file on the iPhone with checkst.

Does checkst sync with AnkiWeb?

No. checkst syncs via iCloud or your own checkst account, not via AnkiWeb. You move between AnkiDroid and checkst using an .apkg file, not via live sync.

Is there AnkiDroid for iPhone?

No. The official Anki app for iOS is called AnkiMobile, comes from Anki Software and costs a one-time €29.99 in the German App Store.

checkst vs. AnkiDroid: When switching makes sense

Short and honest upfront: If you have an Android phone, this comparison is over quickly. checkst is only available for iPhone and iPad. AnkiDroid is only available for Android. So the two apps never compete on the same device.

It gets interesting in exactly two situations: you are switching from Android to iPhone and want to take your decks with you, or you study in a group where some people have Android and some have iPhone. Below you will find what works and what doesn't in both cases.

Status: November 2026. All information about AnkiDroid comes from the sources linked below.

AnkiDroid in three sentences

AnkiDroid is the Android client for Anki, developed by volunteers in the AnkiDroid Open Source Team, which describes itself as independent of Anki, AnkiWeb and AnkiMobile. The app is free, the code is licensed under GPL-3.0 on GitHub, and according to the team nothing is sold in the app. The project is financed through donations on Open Collective, with public accounting.

That is a pretty good offer, and we won't pretend it isn't.

The comparison at a glance

	checkst	AnkiDroid
Platform	iPhone and iPad (native iOS app)	Android only
Price	Core features free, Pro €4.99 for six months (subscription, renews automatically)	Free, no in-app purchases
Open Source	no	Yes, GPL-3.0
Algorithm	FSRS	FSRS (can be enabled in deck options), classically SM-2-based
Sync	iCloud free, checkst account with Pro	AnkiWeb (free, account required) or file/USB
.apkg	Import with learning progress, export	Import and export, optionally with media and learning progress
AI cards	Yes, on-device via Apple Foundation Models or with your own OpenAI key	no built-in feature found
Learning without an account	yes	yes
Study groups	Yes, with shared decks, leaderboard and invitation link	not found in research

Where AnkiDroid clearly leads

Price and openness. Free, no subscription, no in-app purchases, with publicly viewable source code. If you value that a learning app won't change its business model tomorrow, an open-source project with a public donation fund is in the better starting position. checkst is not open source.

The Anki ecosystem. AnkiDroid syncs via AnkiWeb with Anki Desktop and AnkiMobile. According to the manual, cards and media are uploaded and downloaded again on the other devices. If you build cards on your laptop in Anki Desktop and study on your phone on the go, this is the path with the least friction. checkst has no AnkiWeb sync. That is the biggest difference of all.

Local and without an account. A developer explicitly describes AnkiDroid as built for fully local offline use. According to the privacy policy, no data about you or your activity is collected by default; crash reports and usage statistics are optional and require your consent.

FSRS is there too. If you think only new apps have the modern algorithm: AnkiDroid supports FSRS, which you enable in deck options. The classic Anki algorithm is based on SM-2, but according to the Anki FAQ it deviates from it.

Where checkst is different

checkst is not "AnkiDroid for iPhone" but its own app that works with Anki files. The differences that matter in everyday use:

AI cards without an add-on. You give checkst text, a PDF or a photo of your notes, and the app suggests cards. This runs on the device via Apple's Foundation Models or, if you prefer, via your own OpenAI key. For AnkiDroid, the research found no built-in card generation, only a separate companion project that is still in progress.
PDF and cards side by side. In the split-view creator the lecture handout is on the left and the new card on the right. Text recognition from photos (OCR) and read-aloud via speech output are built in.
Study groups. Share decks in a group, see progress on a leaderboard, invite people via link or QR code. A comparable feature in AnkiDroid did not turn up in the research.
Motivation that doesn't nag. Streaks, XP, achievements and home screen widgets. If you only want cards and intervals, you can ignore this. If you need persuading every day to open the app, you will probably like it.

And then there is taste. In a Reddit thread about the redesign of the AnkiDroid home screen, comments like "It's ugly" and "Long pressing a deck is unintuitive" came up. To be fair, in another thread someone praises the new study view as "super clean and minimal". The team is visibly working on the interface.

Switching devices: from AnkiDroid to checkst

This is the case checkst was built for. This is how you take your collection with you:

In AnkiDroid, export the deck and choose .apkg.
Leave Media and Scheduling information checked during export. According to the AnkiDroid manual, images and audio or your personal learning progress would otherwise be missing.
Get the file onto the iPhone (AirDrop from the laptop, Mail, Files app) and open it with checkst.

If you would rather stay in the Anki universe, AnkiMobile is the official iPhone app. It costs a one-time €29.99 in the German App Store and syncs with everything else via AnkiWeb. You can find the comparison under checkst vs. Anki.

Mixed study group: Android and iPhone

To be honest, this is where it gets awkward for checkst. Study groups in checkst only work with checkst, and checkst only runs on iOS. Your classmate with an Android phone cannot join the group.

What still works: export a deck as .apkg and pass it around. AnkiDroid imports .apkg, and so does checkst. You then study the same material, but each person in their own app, without a shared leaderboard.

If your group is half Android and you want to maintain the same decks live, Anki with AnkiWeb, meaning AnkiDroid plus AnkiMobile plus Anki Desktop, is the more robust solution.

Conclusion

Android phone, stay as you are: AnkiDroid. Free, open, FSRS, AnkiWeb. There is nothing to switch.
Switching to iPhone, you want AI cards, study groups and an app you like opening: try checkst and take your decks along via .apkg.
Switching to iPhone, you need live sync with Anki Desktop: AnkiMobile.