Write Anki Notes in Visual Studio Code

This is a set of tools designed for people who love Anki’s spaced repetition system but prefer writing and managing notes in a normal text editor instead of Anki’s built-in editor.

The tools include:

• a Visual Studio Code extension for editing note files
• an Anki addon for importing such files

It enables a workflow where you:

1. Write notes in a simple human-readable text-based format.
2. Store them in a regular directory.
3. Import them into Anki automatically.

This makes it possible to:

• Use a real editor like Visual Studio Code.
• Version control your notes with Git.
• Collaborate with others.
• Avoid Anki’s proprietary binary deck format.

Example Note Files

File astronomy.note:

!type: Basic
!deck: Astronomy

!front: The first planet from the Sun.
!back: Mercury
~~~

!front: The second planet from the Sun.
!back: Venus
~~~

!front: The largest planet in the Solar System.
!back: Jupiter
~~~

File geography.note:

!type: Cloze
!deck: Geography
!tags: Capitals

!text: The capital of {{c1::Mongolia::country}} is {{c2::Ulaanbaatar::city}}.
~~~

!text: The capital of {{c1::Syria::country}} is {{c2::Damascus::city}}.
~~~

File math.note:

!type: Basic
!deck: Math
!tags: Algebra

!front: Quadratic Formula
!back: $$ x = \frac{-b \pm \sqrt{b^2 - 4ac}}{2a} $$
~~~

!front: Euler's Formula
!back:
$$
\begin{align*}
    e^{ix}  &= \cos x + i \sin x \\
    e^{-ix} &= \cos x - i \sin x
\end{align*}
$$
~~~

Anki Addon

To simplify importing notes, we developed an Anki addon that imports all note files from a specified directory.

The addon:

1. Asks the user to select a directory containing note files.
2. Recursively scans the directory.
3. Parses the note records.
4. Creates or updates Anki notes.

Visual Studio Code Extension

To make writing notes easier, this VS Code extension is available.

The extension provides:

• syntax highlighting for note files
• auto-completion
• structural validation
• note preview on the side

This makes writing Anki notes feel like writing documentation.

Features

Preview

todo

Syntax Highlighting

todo

Autocompletion

todo

Automatic Note ID Insertion

todo

Workflow

Typical workflow:

1. Write notes in Visual Studio Code.

notes/
  calculus.note
  algebra.note
  trigonometry.note

2. Version control them.

git add notes
git commit

3. Import into Anki using the addon.

File → Import Models and Notes...

4. Select the directory with your notes.

The addon will parse and import everything.

5. Maybe share your notes with others. Let them collaborate and contribute new notes.