What is Mcp Ankiconnect

mcp-ankiconnect is an MCP server that connects Claude conversations with AnkiConnect, facilitating easy spaced repetition learning through flashcards.

Use cases

Use cases include: managing daily flashcard reviews, tracking progress in learning, and integrating Claude’s conversational AI capabilities with Anki for enhanced study sessions.

How to use

To use mcp-ankiconnect, install the AnkiConnect plugin in Anki, configure Claude Desktop with the necessary settings, and then utilize the tools provided by the server to manage flashcards and reviews.

Key features

Key features include: 1) num_cards_due_today to get the count of cards due today, 2) get_due_cards to retrieve cards for review, and 3) submit_reviews to submit answers for reviewed cards.

Where to use

mcp-ankiconnect is primarily used in educational settings, particularly for students and learners who utilize spaced repetition for effective memorization.

mcp-ankiconnect MCP server

Connect Claude conversations with AnkiConnect via MCP to make spaced repetition as easy as “Let’s go through today’s flashcards” or “Make flashcards for this”

Components

Tools

The server implements three tools:

• num_cards_due_today: Get the number of cards due today

  • Optional deck argument to filter by specific deck
  • Returns count of due cards across all decks or specified deck

• get_due_cards: Get cards that are due for review

  • Optional limit argument (default: 5) to control number of cards
  • Optional deck argument to filter by specific deck
  • Optional today_only argument (default: true) to show only today’s cards
  • Returns cards in XML format with questions and answers

• submit_reviews: Submit answers for reviewed cards

  • Takes list of reviews with card_id and rating
  • Ratings: “wrong”, “hard”, “good”, “easy”
  • Returns confirmation of submitted reviews

Configuration

Prerequisites

• Anki must be running with AnkiConnect plugin installed (plugin id 2055492159)
  AnkiConnect can be slow on Macs due to the AppSleep feature, so disable it for Anki. To do so run the following in your terminal.

  defaults write net.ankiweb.dtop NSAppSleepDisabled -bool true
  defaults write net.ichi2.anki NSAppSleepDisabled -bool true
  defaults write org.qt-project.Qt.QtWebEngineCore NSAppSleepDisabled -bool true
  

Installation

Quickstart

1. Install the AnkiConnect plugin in Anki:

   • Tools > Add-ons > Get Add-ons…
   • Enter code: 2055492159
   • Restart Anki

2. Configure Claude Desktop:

   On MacOS: ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
   On Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

   Add this configuration:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "mcp-ankiconnect": {
         "command": "uv",
         "args": [
           "run",
           "--with",
           "mcp-ankiconnect",
           "mcp-ankiconnect"
         ]
       }
     }
   }
   

3. Restart Anki and Claude desktop

Debugging

Since MCP servers run over stdio, debugging can be challenging. For the best debugging
experience, we strongly recommend using the MCP Inspector.
First, clone the repository and install the dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/samefarrar/mcp-ankiconnect.git
cd mcp-ankiconnect
uv sync

You can launch the MCP Inspector via the mcp CLI:

uv run mcp dev mcp_ankiconnect/server.py

Upon launching, the Inspector will display a URL you can access in your browser to begin debugging.