Free flashcard templates

How to print double-sided flashcards

1. Pick a template above: PDF if you write by hand, Word if you want to type.
2. Print at 100 %. In the print dialog, choose “Actual size” or “100 %”, not “Fit to page”. Otherwise the cards shrink slightly.
3. Choose double-sided and “Flip on long edge”. All double-sided templates are portrait sheets, so long edge is always right.
4. Print one test sheet and hold it against a window. The dashed lines on front and back should sit on top of each other.
5. Cut along the dashed lines. A paper trimmer is fastest; a ruler and craft knife work too.

No duplex printer?

Use a fold-over template. Each card’s front and back sit side by side on one page. Print single-sided, cut along the dashed lines, then fold each card along the dotted line. Glue or tape the halves together if you want sturdier cards.

You can also print double-sided by hand: print only page 1, put the sheet back into the paper tray and print page 2. Mark the top of the sheet with a pencil first, because printers differ in which way the paper has to go back in.

Which template should you choose?

The A7 cards are 100 × 70 mm rather than the exact 105 × 74 mm. Exact A7 cards only fit on an A4 sheet without any margin, and no home printer prints right to the edge. The slightly smaller cards still fit every A7 card box.

Making flashcards in Word or Google Docs

Word: open the file, click into a box and type. The text stays centered and the boxes keep their size, so long text gets cut off instead of pushing the next card onto another page. Each front page is followed by its back page. On the A7 template, the columns on the back page are mirrored: the answer to the top-left card goes into the top-right box. A small note above each page reminds you.

Google Docs: in Google Drive, choose New, then File upload, and open the Word file with Google Docs. Check the page margins after importing. Google Docs lets boxes grow when the text gets long, so keep answers short.

Pages and LibreOffice open the Word files as well.

A font size of 14 to 18 points is easy to read on an index card. Keep one question per card and short answers.

Which paper works best?

Card stock of about 65 lb cover (around 175 g/m²) feels like a real index card and goes through most home printers. Check the maximum paper weight in your printer’s manual first. Regular 20 lb printer paper works too, but the cards bend easily and you may see the answer shining through.

Can you print directly on index cards?

Yes. Many inkjet printers take 3 × 5 and 4 × 6 cards in the rear or manual feed tray. In Word, set the paper size to the card under Layout, Size, More Paper Sizes, for example 5 × 3 inches, with margins of about 0.25 inches. Then print one card per page. The templates here are for regular letter or A4 sheets, which is usually cheaper.

Making the cards stick

A card is only as useful as the way you study it. Write one question per card, keep the answer short and put it in your own words. Our guide on how to make flashcards has eight rules with before-and-after examples. When you review, answer out loud before you flip the card. That’s active recall, and it works much better than rereading. Review the cards you get wrong more often than the ones you know, which is the idea behind spaced repetition. For language cards, our guide on how to memorize vocabulary has more ideas.

Paper cards have one weakness: they only work when you take them out. If your phone gets picked up more often than your card box, Braintoll puts your cards in front of the apps that distract you, with a review schedule built in. You can type in a set, import an Anki deck or let the AI turn your notes into cards.

Frequently asked questions

Are the flashcard templates free?

Yes. All templates are free to download, need no sign-up and have nothing printed on the cards themselves. A short printing note sits in the margin, which you cut away.

What size is a standard flashcard?

In the US, the standard index card is 3 × 5 inches, followed by 4 × 6 inches. In Germany and much of Europe, A7 (74 × 105 mm) and A6 (105 × 148 mm) are the common sizes.

Why don’t the front and back line up?

Check that you printed at 100 % and chose “Flip on long edge”. Even then, printers can shift the back by a millimeter or two, which is why the writing area keeps some distance from the cut lines. If your printer is far off, use a fold-over template.

Can I make flashcards in Google Docs?

Yes. Upload the Word template to Google Drive and open it with Google Docs. The layout carries over; only very long text can make a box grow.

How many flashcards fit on one page?

Eight A7 cards or two A6 cards fit on an A4 sheet. On US Letter, three 3 × 5 cards or two 4 × 6 cards fit. Fold-over templates hold half as many, because each card’s back is on the same side.

Braintoll is not affiliated with Microsoft, Google, Apple, or The Document Foundation. Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Apple Pages, and LibreOffice are trademarks of their respective owners.