Spaced Repetition Done Right: FSRS and SM-2 in QuickCards
Cramming wastes your time. Spaced repetition shows each flashcard right before you forget it — and the research on it is overwhelming. Here's how QuickCards built a faster, cleaner spaced repetition system than the legacy tools, what's under the hood, and how to use it tomorrow morning.
Why spaced repetition crushes cramming
In 1885 the German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus mapped the now-famous forgetting curve: a steep drop in retention within 24 hours, leveling off into a long-tailed decay. Re-exposing yourself to the material just before you forget it flattens that curve. Each successful review pushes the next one further out — 1 day, then 3, then 7, then two weeks, a month, six months.
The result is roughly 2–3× the long-term retention of cramming, for a fraction of the study time. Med students, language learners, and bar exam takers have used spaced repetition for decades. The science is settled. The only real question is whether your tool gets out of your way.
The SM-2 algorithm, in plain English
SM-2 (SuperMemo 2) is the algorithm Anki and most modern SRS apps are built on. After each review, you grade how well you knew the card. SM-2 adjusts two things:
- Interval — how many days until you see the card again.
- Ease factor — how quickly that interval grows. Easy cards expand faster; cards you keep missing collapse back to almost-immediate review.
In QuickCards, the four grade buttons map to SM-2 like this:
Reset to ~10 min. Lapse counter +1. Ease shrinks.
Shorter interval (~1.2×). Ease shrinks slightly.
On-track interval: 1 day → 6 days → ×ease factor.
Bigger jump (4 → 8 → ×ease×1.3). Ease grows.
That's it. No fiddling with deck options, no "new card limits" buried under three menus. Just press the button that matches how you felt about the card.
Why we built our own (instead of telling you to use Anki)
Daily review should feel like part of your class routine, not a software setup project. QuickCards keeps editable cards, a unified review queue and practice tools together, with scheduling controls you can change when your workload changes.
Flip a toggle on any deck. We seed every card automatically.
One /review page pulls due cards from every active deck.
Confirmed grades and next-review dates are stored on your account.
Space to flip, 1–4 to grade. Fly through reviews on desktop.
Choose FSRS per deck and adjust your desired retention.
"Next review in 3 days" instead of vague streak counters.
FSRS: more control over your review schedule
FSRS (Free Spaced Repetition Scheduler) estimates the next review from your recorded recall history and desired retention. It is available on Pro and Pro Max, including their lifetime plans. Your grade still matters: answer honestly so the schedule reflects what was difficult.
QuickCards lets eligible accounts choose SM-2 or FSRS for each deck. Switch in the deck's scheduling settings; existing review history is preserved and future grades use the selected scheduler.
How to start (it takes 30 seconds)
- Open any deck — yours or one you imported from the community.
- Click Edit and toggle Spaced repetition on. (You can also flip it on from inside Study Mode.)
- Head to your dashboard — the Daily Review widget shows you exactly how many cards are due.
- Click Start Review. Flip a card, grade it 1–4, repeat. Sessions usually take 5–15 minutes.
Plan limits
- Free: spaced repetition on up to 3 decks with SM-2.
- Basic: 10 active SRS decks (SM-2).
- Pro and Pro Max, including lifetime plans: unlimited SRS decks, FSRS or SM-2, review analytics.
FAQ
No. Spaced repetition is additive — your normal Study Mode, swipe stats, and streaks all keep working.
Anytime. Toggling spaced repetition off keeps your review history; re-enable later and pick up where you left off.
Yes. The Daily Review screen is touch-first with big grade buttons. Keyboard shortcuts kick in on desktop.
Study Mode loops a single deck until you mark every card mastered. Spaced repetition tracks long-term memory across days, weeks, and months — so a card you nailed in October still comes back at the right time in December.
Stop forgetting what you study.
QuickCards' spaced repetition takes 30 seconds to enable and replaces hours of re-reading. Free forever on up to 3 decks.