How Many Times Should You Review Flashcards?

5 min read · FlashDeck

How many times should you review flashcards? For a card you get right each time, a handful of spaced reviews (often somewhere around four to six) spread over a few weeks is usually enough to hold it through a test. Cards you miss need more. But the count matters less than the gaps: reviewing a card five times in one night does far less than reviewing it five times across three weeks.

If you are never sure whether a card needs another look or can be left alone, FlashDeck decides when each card comes back so you do not have to guess: Build my study plan.

Short answer

• Cards you know: a few reviews at growing gaps, for example after 1 day, 3 days, 1 week, then longer.
• Cards you miss: start over with a short gap, then grow it again.
• Before a test: make sure every card has been reviewed at least once in the last several days.
• Every day? Review the cards that are due every day, not every card every day.

These numbers are a practical guide, not a rule from one study. Your own count will depend on how hard the material is and how far away the test is.

Why the count matters less than the gaps

Here is the idea behind spaced repetition. When you review a card right before you would forget it, pulling the answer out takes a bit of effort, and that effort seems to make the memory stronger. When you review it five minutes after you last saw it, it is still fresh, so the review is easy and does little.

Researchers call the benefit of spreading out practice the spacing effect. In a 2013 review of common study techniques, distributed practice was one of only two techniques rated "high utility," along with practice testing (Dunlosky et al., 2013).

Cramming vs spacing, same number of reviews

Same five reviews. Very different results. So when you ask how many times you should go through flashcards, the better question is "how far apart?"

Typical reviews for a card you know

Here is what a spaced flashcard review schedule can look like for a card you keep getting right, using the kind of expanding gaps FlashDeck uses:

1. Day 0: You learn the card.
2. Day 1: First review. Knew it.
3. Day 4: Second review (three days later). Knew it.
4. Day 11: Third review (a week later). Knew it.
5. Later: Fourth review after a longer gap. Knew it.
6. Even later: Fifth review after a longer gap still.

By the third or fourth correct review, the card is spending most of its time out of your daily pile. That is why your daily reviews stay manageable even as the deck grows. For how many new cards to add each day, see How Many Flashcards Should I Study a Day?.

Cards you keep missing

Some cards just will not stick. Every deck has them. Here is what to do:

Let them come back sooner

A missed card should come back tomorrow, not next week. Short gaps until you get it right, then let the gaps grow again.

Fix the card, not just your memory

If you have missed a card several times, the card might be the problem:

• Too big: split it into two or three smaller cards.
• Too vague: make the question more specific.
• Too similar: if you mix up two terms, make a card that asks for the difference.
• No hook: add a memory trick, like an acronym or a silly image.

More ideas are in How to Memorize Flashcards Fast.

The tracking problem

Doing all this by hand means knowing, for every single card, when you last saw it, whether you got it right and when it is due again. For a 300-card deck, that is 300 little calendars.

How FlashDeck handles it: each day it shows only the cards that are due. Tap Knew it and a card comes back after a day, then three days, then a week, then longer. Tap Missed it and it comes back tomorrow. The count takes care of itself. Build my study plan

When a card is done

A card is "done" for now when:

• You have gotten it right several times in a row, at growing gaps.
• You can answer it quickly, without hesitating.
• The gap before its next review would land after your test.

After an exam, you can let a deck rest. If the material matters for a final or a cumulative AP exam, keep reviewing; the gaps will be long by then, so it costs very little time.

A quick "is it done?" checklist

• Right on the last three reviews in a row
• Answered in a few seconds, no peeking
• Next review would fall after the test
• Not on a cumulative final or AP exam later

If you tick all four, you can stop worrying about that card for now.

Should I delete cards I know?

Only if you truly will not need them again. For cumulative exams like AP tests, keep them in the deck. They will come up rarely once the gaps are long.

Stop counting reviews and start trusting the schedule

The honest answer to how many times you should review flashcards is "enough times, at the right gaps," and that is exactly what is hard to track alone. Paste your notes into FlashDeck, delete anything you do not need, and let it serve up only today's due cards in about 10 minutes.

Build my study plan

FAQ

Should I review my flashcards every day?

Review the cards that are due every day, but not every card every day. Reviewing cards you already know well every day wastes time you could spend on cards you are still learning.

How often should you review flashcards before a test?

Start at least a week or two before if you can, and review due cards daily. In the last few days, do one quick pass through the whole deck to make sure nothing has slipped.

How many flashcards should you review per day?

Review all the cards that are due that day. The total depends on how many new cards you have been adding; if reviews get too long, add fewer new cards for a while.

Are flashcards effective if I only review them once?

Much less so. One review mostly tells you what you do not know. The memory benefit comes from repeated, spaced reviews over several days or weeks.

How many times should you go through flashcards the night before a test?

A pass or two is fine as a final check, especially on cards you have been missing. But if that night is your first real review, the material will likely fade soon after the test.