Pick StudySmarter if…
- you want a per-subject study plan with a calendar and to-dos;
- you also want content shared by others;
- you need the interface in English, German or Spanish;
- ads on the free version don't bother you.
Comparison · StudySmarter review
Mindlet vs StudySmarter (Vaia): two all-in-one apps, two approaches
StudySmarter and Mindlet both promise to turn a course into revision, with AI, practice exams and spaced repetition. The differences are in the details: shared content, ads, AI providers, and how reviews are planned.
- Checked on October 22, 2026
- Sources at the bottom of the page
Mindlet StudySmarter At a glance
Mindlet and StudySmarter, side by side.
StudySmarter's French site shows no prices; we quote the UK site and the French App Store.
| Criterion | Mindlet | StudySmarter |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes, no time limit: 3 collections, 100 cards. Reviewing is always free. | Yes, with ads: flashcards, summaries, study plan, practice exams and shared content, according to the publisher. |
| Paid price (monthly) | From €5.99 a month on the web (€4.99 a month billed yearly). A bit more through the app stores. | Premium: £79.99 a year in the UK. French App Store: €9.99 a month; yearly plans listed between €19.99 and €89.99. |
| AI-generated cards | Yes, from your own material, in a dozen formats (flashcard, multiple choice, fill in the blank, open question…). | Yes: flashcards from your slides, PDFs, photos of notes or Word documents. |
| What you can import | PDF (even scanned), Word, PowerPoint, Excel, ePub, images, audio, video, YouTube, websites, text, Anki decks. | PDFs, lecture slides, photos of handwritten notes, Word documents. |
| Review scheduling | FSRS-6 spaced repetition, adjusted weekly to how you forget. | Spaced repetition announced by the publisher; algorithm not published. |
| Platforms | Web, iPhone, Android. | Web, iPhone, iPad, Android. |
| Interface language | French only. Content generated in 9 languages, English included. | English, German, French, Spanish. |
| Practice exams | Graded out of 20, sections and marking scheme shown, no feedback during the exam, online only. | AI-generated, "unlimited" practice exams with instant feedback, according to the publisher. |
| Ads | None, free plan included. | Yes on the free version; Premium removes them. |
| AI models | Mainly Mistral AI (France). | Provider not named in the policies we checked. |
| Your content and AI training | Mindlet does not use your content to train models (terms of use). | Not stated in the policies we checked. |
StudySmarter facts checked on October 22, 2026 on the publisher's own pages (listed in the sources). Offers change: tell us if something is out of date.
Background
StudySmarter became Vaia: what changed
StudySmarter started in Munich. On 31 July 2023 the company announced it would use the name Vaia in the US and Spain, keeping StudySmarter in German-speaking countries. In the US the app is listed as Vaia; in France it is still StudySmarter, and so is the UK site.
For you, little changes: it's the same product under two names depending on the country. StudySmarter claims more than 40 million users and says "94%" of them get better grades; that is the publisher's own figure, with no published method that we know of.
Testing yourself
Study plans and practice exams
StudySmarter builds a study plan per subject, split into chapters, with a calendar and to-do lists, and generates practice exams from your notes. That's one of its strengths: an overview of what's left to do before the exam.
Mindlet plans differently: FSRS-6 decides each day which cards to review, and the Learn tab offers a lesson path. The practice exam is tightly framed: multiple choice, written or mixed, timed, with no feedback during the exam, graded out of 20 with a mention and a breakdown by topic. Written answers are graded by AI with written feedback, and retaking the same paper is free. See the practice exam.
Cards
The quality of generated cards
Both apps generate cards from your documents. StudySmarter takes PDFs, slides, photos of notes and Word documents; Mindlet also takes audio, video up to four hours, YouTube and whole websites up to fifty pages.
Mindlet goes beyond flashcards: for each notion it picks from a dozen formats (multiple choice, fill in the blank, ordering, matching, map quiz, open questions graded by a model). We don't publish a quality comparison between the two: it depends on the course, and we haven't measured it independently. The best test is to try both on the same chapter.
Price and AI
Price, ads, and European AI
Most of StudySmarter is free, according to the publisher, with ads. Premium removes ads, adds offline mode and lifts AI limits; the UK site lists it at £79.99 a year, and the French App Store lists €9.99 for a month. The privacy policies we checked don't name the AI provider.
Mindlet has no ads. Its free plan has no time limit, paid plans start at €5.99 a month on the web (€4.99 billed yearly) and cost a bit more through the app stores. Models come mainly from Mistral AI, a French company, and Mindlet does not use your content to train models. See how we use AI.
Which one for you?
StudySmarter or Mindlet: it depends on you.
Pick Mindlet if…
- your courses also come as videos, recordings or websites;
- you want practice exams graded out of 20, with no feedback until the end;
- you want an app with no ads;
- you prefer mainly European AI (Mistral AI), and a French interface is fine.
Switching
Moving from StudySmarter to Mindlet
There's no StudySmarter import in Mindlet. Start again from your original documents: that's what Mindlet reads best.
-
Get your materials back
The PDFs, slides and photos you uploaded to StudySmarter.
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One collection per subject
Tap « Ajouter » (add), then drop one or more documents. You can add more later.
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If you have a text export
A CSV or text file of cards imports through « Importer un paquet Anki », where you pick the columns.
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Take a practice exam
Once the cards are ready, the « S'évaluer » (test yourself) tab offers the practice exam, to see where you stand.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is StudySmarter free?
Mostly. According to the publisher, the free version includes flashcards, summaries, a study plan and practice exams, with ads. Premium removes ads and lifts AI limits. As of 22 October 2026 the UK site listed Premium at £79.99 a year, and the French App Store at €9.99 a month.
Why is StudySmarter now called Vaia?
In July 2023 StudySmarter announced it would use the name Vaia in the US and Spain. German-speaking countries kept StudySmarter, and so did France and the UK. It's the same product, from the same Munich company.
Is StudySmarter good for exams?
It can be: study plans, flashcards, practice exams and shared content cover a lot of needs. Check that shared content matches your syllabus. Mindlet starts from your own courses and offers a practice exam graded out of 20: see university students.
What is a good StudySmarter alternative?
It depends: Anki for hand-written cards, free on desktop; Quizlet for a large shared library; Mindlet for cards and practice exams drawn from your own courses, with no ads and mainly European AI, if a French interface works for you. Our full comparison puts them side by side.
Does StudySmarter use spaced repetition?
Yes, StudySmarter says it uses spaced repetition for long-term memory. On the pages we checked, it doesn't publish the algorithm. Mindlet uses FSRS-6, an open algorithm, adjusted weekly to how you forget. See spaced repetition.
Sources and date checked
Checked on October 22, 2026, on the publishers' own pages and app store listings. Mindlet publishes this page and is one of the products compared: weigh it accordingly. Facts about Mindlet come from the product itself. Spotted an error? Write to support@mindlet.app.
Keep reading
Your next course, already in cards.
Drop a PDF, a link or a lecture recording. Mindlet does the preparation, you do the learning.
Free to start, no credit card · Web, iPhone, iPad and Android
