# Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) Flashcards and Anki
> Learn how to make NotebookLM flashcards and quizzes in Gemini Notebook, export cards as CSV, import them into Anki in 5 steps and get quizzes out too.
By Juli · Published Oct 26, 2026 · https://www.kortex-notebooklm.com/blog/gemini-notebook-flashcards
Flashcards are the fastest way to find out what you don't know yet. Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) writes them from your own lecture notes, papers and slides, and builds quizzes to match. It even downloads a deck as a CSV file, which is your way into Anki. Want cards that outlive exam week? Here's how to make and customize both, which quiz formats and study tools come with them, and how to move cards into Anki without retyping.
> **Key Takeaways**
> - Flashcards and Quizzes sit in the Studio panel, with settings for difficulty, topic and number ([9to5Google](https://9to5google.com/2025/09/08/notebooklm-flashcards-quizzes/), 2025).
> - Flashcards download as a CSV file that Anki imports.
> - Quizzes have no download, so use a chat prompt.
> - Space reviews about 2 days apart for a test a week away.
## How do you make flashcards in Gemini Notebook?
Select Flashcards or Quizzes in the Studio panel, or alternatively the pencil icon beside either to customize first. You can pick 1 of 3 difficulty levels: easy, medium or hard. A prompt sets the topic, audience or focus ([Gemini Notebook Help](https://support.google.com/gemininotebook/answer/16958963?hl=en), 2026). Here are the six steps:
1. **Open a notebook** that holds your course material. You need edit access.
2. **Select the pencil icon** on Flashcards or Quizzes in Studio.
3. **Pick the number** of cards or questions: fewer, standard or more.
4. **Set the difficulty:** easy, medium or hard.
5. **Write a prompt** that names the chapter, the exam and the kind of card you want.
6. **Generate**, and keep working while the set builds in the background.
A specific prompt beats a vague one, and the difference shows up in every card. For example, try something like this:
```
Cards on chapter 4 only. Key terms on the front,
a one-sentence definition on the back. Skip the case studies.
```
New to notebooks? Our [beginner's guide to Gemini Notebook](/blog/how-to-use-gemini-notebook) covers adding sources and the Studio panel.
## Studying with your deck and your quiz
Mark each card "Got it!" or "Missed it!" and Gemini Notebook remembers your progress, so you can pick up where you left off (Gemini Notebook Help, 2026). Subsequently, a results screen lets you review or retake. For flashcards, you can rerun 1 of 3 sets: the same cards, all cards or only the cards you missed. That last option is the one to use, because drilling only your misses spends time where it counts. Stuck on a card? Explain generates a detailed answer "with citations pointing back to the original source material" (9to5Google, 2025). Similarly, quizzes add a Hint button for "some help thinking about a quiz question." In addition, the flashcard controls shuffle the deck, delete a card you don't need, restart the session or go full screen. As a result, one deck can carry you through several sessions without a rebuild.
## Why are flashcards good for studying?
Because pulling an answer out of memory strengthens it more than rereading does. In Roediger and Karpicke's 2006 experiments, students read prose passages and then either took recall tests or restudied the text. After 5 minutes, notably, restudying looked better. After 2 days and after 1 week, however, the tested group remembered substantially more, even though restudying made students feel more confident ([Roediger & Karpicke](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16507066/), 2006). Researchers therefore call this the testing effect. **Retrieval practice** is the study habit built on it: quizzing yourself instead of reading your notes again. That's exactly what a flashcard deck does, and it's why the "Missed it!" button matters more than the cards you get right. In other words, the feeling of fluency you get from rereading is a poor guide to what you'll remember next week.
## Which quiz formats and study tools does Gemini Notebook have?
Google's study-tools update names 3 exam-prep upgrades ([Google](https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/products/gemini-notebook/new-study-tools-september-2026/), 2026). They are more quiz formats, a chat about your performance, and questions you can add or edit. The formats are short answer, multiple select and fill in the blank. Of the three, the performance chat is, in particular, the one to try first. Google says you can follow up on completed quizzes and flashcards by asking the notebook chat about your performance. For instance, "Which topics did I miss most, and what should I review first?" turns a score into a study plan. Likewise, editable questions help, since you can fix a card that's wrong instead of regenerating the set.
The same update describes interactive learning overviews under Reports. They weave summaries together with Studio outputs such as infographics, quizzes and flashcards (Google, 2026). Prefer to see the whole topic before you drill it? Our [Gemini Notebook mind map guide](/blog/gemini-notebook-mind-map) shows how to start with a map.
## How should you space your reviews?
Spread sessions out, and accordingly size the gaps to your exam date. Cepeda and colleagues tested more than 1,350 learners over gaps of up to 3.5 months ([Cepeda et al.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19076480/), 2008). With a test a week after review, the best gap between sessions was about 20 to 40% of that week. With a test a year out, in contrast, it fell to about 5 to 10%.
Run the maths for an exam a week away. 20 to 40% of 7 days is roughly 1.4 to 2.8 days, so a session every 2 days fits. Here's a routine built on Gemini Notebook's own buttons:
- **Day 1:** Generate a standard deck and a quiz. Go through every card once.
- **Day 3:** Rerun only the cards you missed, then ask the chat about your performance.
- **Day 5:** Take the quiz. Try the short answer format if your quiz settings offer it.
- **Day 7:** One pass through all cards, the day before the exam.
Taking a whole term instead of one exam? With Kortex MCP, included with Kortex Pro and Lifetime, a schedule can [summarize your newest lecture notes and make a fresh quiz every Sunday](/blog/gemini-notebook-daily-briefing), so a new quiz is waiting for you each week.
Past a week, however, let software do the scheduling. **Anki** is a spaced-repetition app that shows you cards "when you're about to forget them," and the easier a card is, the longer the gap before you see it again ([Anki Manual](https://docs.ankiweb.net/background.html), 2026). Hence the export below is worth the few minutes it takes. For the rest of the routine, read [how to study with Gemini Notebook](/blog/notebooklm-for-studying).
## Can you export Gemini Notebook flashcards to Anki?
Yes. In fact, the flashcard controls let you "Download your flashcards as a CSV file" (Gemini Notebook Help, 2026). Anki imports plain text files whose fields are split by commas, semicolons or tabs, and files with non-Latin characters must be saved as UTF-8 ([Anki Manual](https://docs.ankiweb.net/importing/text-files.html), 2026). The transfer takes 5 steps and no retyping:
1. **Download the CSV** from the flashcard controls.
2. **Open it in a text editor.** Delete the first line if it holds column names.
3. **In Anki, click File, then Import** ([Anki Manual](https://docs.ankiweb.net/importing/intro.html), 2026), and choose the file.
4. **Check the options.** Anki guesses the separator and lets you preview. Map questions to Front and answers to Back on the Basic note type ([Anki Manual](https://docs.ankiweb.net/getting-started.html), 2026), then pick a deck.
5. **Run the import** and study.
One Anki rule makes re-imports painless. Anki uses the first field to spot duplicates. By default, a matching note of the same type gets its other fields updated rather than copied, and its scheduling stays (Anki Manual, 2026). Consequently, you can fix an answer in Gemini Notebook, download again and re-import without losing your review history. That said, keep the front of each card word for word. With a deck per chapter, that download is the step you'll repeat most. It's also the step people search for most. When we analyzed 1,451 Google autocomplete suggestions in October 2026, we found 32 distinct searches about Gemini Notebook flashcards and quizzes, and 15 of them were about getting cards out through export, download, Anki or Google Forms.
Every flashcard deck you've made, in one table
Kortex puts the flashcard decks, quizzes and study guides from all your notebooks in one table you can search, file in folders and download. Free on Chrome.
Add Kortex to Chrome, freeSee the artifacts table
## How do you export a quiz to Anki?
In contrast, quizzes have no download option. The help center's quiz controls cover only full screen, hints and moving between questions (Gemini Notebook Help, 2026). Therefore, ask the chat for 2-column question and answer pairs on the same topic, save them as a UTF-8 text file and import them like the CSV.
```
Write 20 exam-style questions on chapter 4, with short answers.
Output one card per line in this format: question;answer
No header, no numbering, and no semicolons inside the text.
```
Then paste the reply into a plain text file and add #separator:Semicolon as the first line. Anki 2.1.54 and later read headers like that one and set the separator for you (Anki Manual, 2026). Save the file as UTF-8, then import it the same way. You may be able to skip the copy and paste, though. The help center says the chat can create downloadable files, including CSV and text files ([Gemini Notebook Help](https://support.google.com/gemininotebook/answer/16179559?hl=en), 2026). Google calls these functions experimental and in early development, so check every card against its source before you study it for weeks.
There's also a route that keeps the answer key. **Kortex MCP** is a connector that lets Claude or ChatGPT work with your notebooks, and it's included with Kortex Pro and Lifetime. Through it, your assistant can [pull every quiz question with its correct answer into the chat](/blog/gemini-notebook-studio-from-chat) and rewrite the set in the question;answer format above. We analyzed 776 answers to the Kortex MCP waitlist survey (Sep-Oct 2026), and 91 people asked to make audio, slides or quizzes from their AI chat. One put it simply: "request studio to do something directly inside of CHAT".
## Is there a flashcard or quiz limit?
Not a fixed daily one. Flashcards and quizzes draw on a compute-based allowance that refreshes every 5 hours until you reach a weekly limit, and how much a set uses depends on the models and features involved ([usage limits help](https://support.google.com/gemininotebook/answer/17670842?hl=en), 2026). Google's plan comparison lists notebook and source limits by plan, not a daily count of flashcards or quizzes ([Gemini Notebook Help](https://support.google.com/gemininotebook/answer/16213268?hl=en), 2026). Paid plans get multiples of the standard allowance:
| Plan | Usage limits |
|---|---|
| Free | Standard |
| Plus | 2x standard |
| Pro | 4x standard |
| Ultra | 5x or 20x Pro, by subscription |
- **Play Books sources** may block the CSV download.
- **Cards can be wrong.** Use Explain and the citations before you trust a card.
- **Students may get more room.** Eligible US college students can claim a free year of Google AI Pro, with 4x higher usage limits, until December 31, 2026. Students in 140+ other markets get Google AI Plus, with 2x (Google, 2026).
Not sure you qualify? Our guide to [whether Gemini Notebook is free for students](/blog/gemini-notebook-free-for-students) walks through the offers.
## How does Kortex speed up flashcards and quizzes?
**Kortex** is a free Chrome extension that gathers every artifact across your notebooks, including flashcards, quizzes, study guides and audio, into one table with folders. We built it so study material doesn't stay trapped in one notebook, and its users have run 200,000+ exports ([Kortex](/), 2026). Kortex's generation settings, meanwhile, set the amount and difficulty before you generate. Pro goes further: it generates several artifact types at once and lets you preview and edit them before download. Additionally, the Pro Auto-Researcher automation removes even that step. Add the #to-summarize tag, and a briefing doc and flashcards start generating on their own. When the exam is over, export every Studio note and artifact at once as PDF, Markdown or a ZIP. Pro costs $9.99 a month or $4.92 a month billed yearly ([Kortex pricing](/#pricing), 2026). Importantly, the table and its downloads work on the free plan.
Study material that never gets stuck in one app
Kortex keeps every flashcard and quiz set in one place and exports a notebook's Studio outputs at once, so your cards can go to Anki or anywhere else. Free on Chrome.
Add Kortex to Chrome, freeSee every export option
## Frequently asked questions
### Can Gemini Notebook make flashcards?
Yes. The Studio panel offers Flashcards and Quizzes built from your sources. The pencil icon sets 1 of 3 difficulty levels, a topic prompt and the number of cards: fewer, standard or more. Select Explain on any card for a detailed answer with citations to your material.
### How do I export Gemini Notebook flashcards to Anki?
Download the deck as a CSV file from the flashcard controls. In Anki, click the File menu, then Import, and choose the file. Check that the separator is a comma, map the question column to Front and the answer column to Back, pick a deck and import. Save the file as UTF-8 if it has non-Latin characters.
### Can I export Gemini Notebook quizzes?
Not with a button. The help center lists a CSV download for flashcards but none for quizzes. The workaround is to ask the notebook's chat for question and answer pairs on the same topic, one per line, then save them as a UTF-8 text file and import it into Anki.
### What quiz formats does Gemini Notebook have?
Google's study-tools update names 3 more quiz formats: short answer, multiple select and fill in the blank. You can also add or edit questions yourself, and ask the chat about your performance on completed quizzes and flashcards to see where to focus next.
### Are Gemini Notebook flashcards free?
Yes, on every plan. They draw on a compute-based allowance that refreshes every 5 hours until you reach a weekly limit, and Google doesn't publish a daily count. Paid plans get more: Plus has 2x the standard limits, Pro 4x, and Ultra 5x or 20x Pro's, depending on the subscription.
### Can I make flashcards in the Gemini Notebook app?
Yes. Google's help center lists flashcards and quizzes among the Studio features the mobile app supports, so you can generate or review them on your phone. Mind Maps are the exception, since the app can't generate them.
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*Editorial note: fact-checked against the official help pages and docs linked above on October 26, 2026. Spotted something out of date? [Contact us](/support) and we will fix it, or read more [about Kortex](/about).*