Anki handles images better than most flashcard tools, primarily because it stores images locally without compression and gives you full control over how they appear in your card templates. For subjects that are fundamentally visual, like anatomy, histology, art history, or circuit diagrams, this makes a meaningful practical difference.
This page covers image card creation in Anki, the image occlusion workflow, and how to organize large image-based decks.
Basic image cards in Anki are straightforward: paste an image into a card field and it is stored in your collection's media folder. The image appears at full resolution during review. For labeled diagrams and anatomy studies, the Image Occlusion Enhanced add-on (available on AnkiWeb) is the critical tool. It lets you open an image in a browser-based editor, draw rectangles over labels you want to hide, and generate a separate card for each occlusion. Studying a 20-label anatomy diagram produces 20 individual occlusion cards automatically. The workflow is: open add-on, import image, draw boxes, click Generate. Each box becomes one card. During review, all boxes appear grey except the one being tested, so you see the full image context while recalling one specific label.
Large image collections slow Anki's media sync and can grow unwieldy if not organized. Keep a dedicated image folder outside Anki for your source images so you have originals if cards need editing. Name images systematically before importing: 'anatomy_heart_anterior_view.jpg' is far easier to find than 'image_001.jpg' when you need to update a card. If you are building decks for a whole course, create one note type per subject with consistent image field sizing so all cards look uniform. Anki does not resize images by default, so if you import a 4K screenshot the card will display it at full size. Add max-width: 100% to your card CSS to ensure images scale to the review window without requiring horizontal scrolling.
Anki is the strongest choice for image-heavy subjects, especially with the Image Occlusion Enhanced add-on. Image quality is preserved, occlusion is powerful, and the local storage model means your image library stays with you. The setup investment is higher than simpler apps but the payoff for diagram-intensive subjects is significant. Gridually's spatial encoding is based on memory research from the University of Chicago, University of Bonn, and Macquarie University.
Image occlusion covers parts of a diagram or image during review, requiring you to recall what is hidden. You might study an anatomy diagram with one muscle label covered, answer, then see the label revealed. It is the most effective way to study labeled diagrams because it requires active recall of the specific part rather than passive recognition of the whole image.
Anki with the Image Occlusion Enhanced add-on is the strongest option for image-heavy subjects. It preserves image quality, supports occlusion, and handles large image sets efficiently. The trade-off is a more complex setup. Quizlet is easier to use but compresses images and lacks true occlusion. RemNote has built-in image occlusion without add-ons.
Most major apps support direct image paste or upload from your camera roll. Anki on desktop accepts drag-and-drop and clipboard paste. Quizlet's mobile app can access your camera roll directly. The main consideration is whether the app compresses the image on import, which affects readability for detailed diagrams or small-text screenshots.