🟨 Sticky Notes Add-on for Anki Desktop

A powerful, Markdown-enabled sticky notes add-on for Anki with an intuitive live preview editor.

[Update] : 31/01/2026 : This release adds presets, templates, image export, and expanded keyboard shortcuts.

Presets

Presets let you save a style for sticky notes. You can now mark any preset as your default and the new notes will be in the preset style only. Four premade presets are included:

• Small (150x150)
• Wide (300x150)
• Tall (150x300)
• Large (300x300)

In a preset you can edit color, size (width and height), font family, font size, Font style (bold/italic/normal).

You can edit, delete, or create your own presets.

Templates

Templates are reusable text, snippets or Markdown blocks.

They help you start a note quickly.

Templates are useful for:

• Markdown Tables
• Todo Lists
• Any long text that you do not want to write again and again. You can create, edit or delete templates at any time.

Other updates

• Sticky notes can be exported as images. This helps with sharing or saving notes outside Anki.
• More keyboard shortcuts are available. They help you create notes faster. Press F1 in the sticky notes dialog to see all shortcuts.

[Update] : 28/11/2025 : Image and GIF Support added into sticky notes

• Images or GIFs can be imported using Image tool in the toolbar.
• Images can be directly pasted from the clipboard as well. (Unlike GIF due to lack of metadata while copying a GIF)
• GIFs can be either imported from local files (without internet) or use GIF tool from toolbar to search tenor GIFs (requires internet connection).

Installation

Install via AnkiWeb or GitHub Releases.

1. Download the .ankiaddon file from the Releases page or install via AnkiWeb.
2. In Anki, go to Tools → Add-ons → Install from file...
3. Select the downloaded file.
4. Restart Anki.
5. Press Ctrl+Shift+S on any card review/answer screen to create your first note.

How to Use

To use this add-on, simply install it from AnkiWeb or GitHub Releases and follow the steps below:

• After installing the add-on, restart Anki Desktop.
• Visit the card where you want to add sticky notes, and open the review or answer screen (back side of the card).
• Press Ctrl+Shift+S to add a sticky note (you can also find the Add Sticky Note button under the More menu in the bottom-right corner).
• This will open the sticky notes live preview Markdown editor.
• Create your sticky note and press Save to add it to the review screen.
• Later, hover over the card to see the Edit and Delete options for the sticky note.

Features

Rich Markdown Support

Write notes using full Markdown formatting:

• Bold, Italic, ~~Strikethrough~~, Inline Code
• Headings (H1, H2, H3)
• Bullet lists
• Links [text](https://...)
• Horizontal rules (---)

Keyboard Shortcuts

Here are the keyboard shortcuts for the markdown editor:

Text Formatting

• Ctrl+B - Bold text
• Ctrl+I - Italic text
• Ctrl+Shift+X - Strikethrough

Headings

• Alt+1 - Heading 1
• Alt+2 - Heading 2
• Alt+3 - Heading 3

Lists & Blocks

• Ctrl+Shift+L - Bullet list
• Ctrl+Shift+Q - Blockquote
• Ctrl+Shift+H - Horizontal rule

Code & Links

• Ctrl+` - Inline code
• Ctrl+K - Insert link

Images and GIFs

• **Ctrl+Shift+I - Import Images and GIFs (You can also copy and paste images directly into editor)
• ** Ctrl+Shift_G - Tenor GIF image search (requires Internet connection to search and view GIFs)

Smart Visual Editor with Markdown Toolbar

The editor provides a live preview of your sticky notes as you write:

• Select text and click a toolbar button to instantly wrap it in formatting.
• Toggle formatting on/off with a second click.

Live Preview

See exactly how your note will appear on the card as you type.

Customization Options

• Six color themes: yellow, green, blue, pink, purple, orange
• Adjustable font size and family
• Configurable sticky note width and height

Sticky Notes Storage & Syncing (IMPORTANT)

Your sticky notes data is stored inside your Anki profile's collection.media folder. These files sync along with your media.

However, this approach has one drawback: Sticky notes cannot be searched in the Card Browser.

I chose this method because making sticky notes searchable would require adding an extra StickyNotes field to every note type, which would break updates for shared decks on AnkiHub—deck updates are controlled through fields.

If someone finds a solution, please submit a PR or share suggestions.

Since all sticky notes are stored in a single _sticky.json file inside the media folder, the notes sync correctly.

Here is an example of sticky notes stored for a card with ID 1763368231436:

{
  "1763368231436": [
    {
      "data": "**Hello World**\n",
      "color": "yellow",
      "font_size": 18,
      "font_family": "Comic Sans MS",
      "width": 300,
      "height": 150
    },
    {
      "data": "### Hello\n_This is a note_",
      "color": "pink",
      "font_size": 19,
      "font_family": "Verdana",
      "width": 200,
      "height": 100
    }
  ]
}

Import & Export Sticky Notes

Sticky notes can be imported or exported as JSON files, specific to decks. You can import/export all sticky notes belonging to a particular deck.

Automatic Grid Layout

Notes are automatically arranged using a clean grid layout—no overlaps, no manual dragging required.

This is powered by PackeryJS, which creates a Bento-style layout automatically.

Workflow

• Keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+S on the review/answer screen to add or open sticky notes.
• Export/Import: Back up and share your notes.
• Compatibility: Works with Anki 2.1.66+ including the latest Qt6 versions (25.09+).

Basic Operations

• Add Note: Ctrl+Shift+S or right-click → Sticky Notes → Add
• Delete Note: Hover over the card for the Delete button, or open the editor and click Delete

Use Cases

This add-on is great for:

• Students adding quick explanations or mnemonics to complex diagrams
• Language learners adding example sentences or grammar notes
• General study adding supplementary information without modifying the original card

Markdown support ensures clean and readable formatting without cluttering card templates.

Technical Details

• Built with PyQt6 and Packery.js
• Lightweight custom Markdown parser
• Tested on Windows and macOS
• Compatible with Anki 2.1.66+ (including Qt6 versions)

License

This add-on is free and open source.

Support the Development

I am a solo developer dedicating my time to create and maintain this add-on for the Anki community.

If you find this add-on helpful, please consider supporting its development.

Indian patrons: UPI ID: ankit.upa007@oksbi

International patrons: PayPal: paypal.me/thisisankitupadhyay

Contributions and feedback are welcome. Report bugs, request features, or submit a PR. For contact, email: theankitnet@gmail.com