The Anki Decks That Got Me Through Step 1 (And Yours Can Too)

Let’s cut to the chase: you’re staring at a mountain of Step 1 material and wondering which Anki deck will actually stick. Been there. After helping dozens of students (and surviving Step 1 myself), here’s the real talk about decks that deliver.

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Why Anki is Your Step 1 Secret Weapon

*Caption: Me after completing all the day's reviews.

Anki isn’t just flashy tech – it’s how you’ll:

• Remember the 1000+ facts that seem to evaporate post-lecture
• Connect First Aid dots that look like alphabet soup at first
• Survive Pharm without mixing up every -lolol drug suffix

But here’s the kicker: the deck matters as much as the grind. Pick wrong, and you’ll waste weeks relearning what you could’ve nailed upfront.

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The 2025 Deck Hall of Fame

🥇 Anking Overhaul (v12) – The GOAT

“If Anki decks had a superhero, this would be Iron Man.”

• What’s inside: 30k+ cards tagging First Aid, Pathoma, Sketchy – even UWorld diagrams
• Why I love it: Found a random UWorld question about Kupffer cells? There’s a tagged card for that.
• Pro tip: Use the “#AK_Step1” filtered deck 6 months out. Trust me.

Caption: When you realize 80% of UWorld is already in these tags

Heads up:

• Feels overwhelming at first – start with organ systems you hate most
• Update through AnkiHub weekly (those errata fixes are clutch)

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🥈 Lightyear 2025 – For the “I Need Structure” Crew

“Boards & Beyond’s BFF”

• Perfect if: You get anxiety from 30k cards and just want a clear path
• Secret sauce: Cards follow BnB video timestamps – watch a video, crush the cards
• My hack: Pair with Pepper Micro/Pharm for Sketchy memory hooks

Why it works:

• No decision fatigue – just follow the video order
• The HY arrows → filter by these during dedicated

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🥉 Duke’s Pathoma – Histology Hero

“For when Robbins makes you want to cry”

• Saves you from: That “Wait, is this a basophil or a mast cell?” panic
• MVP feature: 500+ annotated Pathoma sketches (RIP Dr. Sattar’s handwriting)
• How I used it: Hammered Chapters 1-3 daily for 2 weeks pre-exam

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How to Pick Without Regrets

Ask yourself:

1. “Do I learn better with:

   • 🎯 Precision (Anking)
   • 🛣️ Structure (Lightyear)
   • 🧩 Gaps (Duke’s + AnKing combo)

2. “How much time do I have?”

   • 6+ months → Go full Anking
   • 3 months → Lightyear + Duke’s weak areas
   • 4 weeks → Dorian’s 420 (HY only) + UWorld incorrects

3. “Will I actually keep up with reviews?”
   (Be honest. If not, Lightyear’s shorter leash helps.)

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Pro Moves I Wish I Knew Earlier

• Image Occlusion Ninja Trick:
  Screenshot UWorld tables → make custom cards DURING reviews. Future-you will weep with joy.

• The Tag Triage:
  In Anking, search tag:#AK_Step1 -is:new during dedicated. Instant HY filter.

• Avoid the “Shiny Deck” Trap:
  Found a new viral deck? Check Anking’s update notes first – it’s probably already there.

Caption: Me adding memes to cards so I actually remember them

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“But What If I Hate All These Decks?”

Been there. Try:

1. Frankenstein Mode:

   • 70% Anking + 20% Duke’s Pathoma + 10% Anatomy Blueprints
   • Sync via AnkiHub to avoid conflicts

2. The Minimalist Approach:

   • Pepper Micro/Pharm + Lightyear’s BnB cards
   • Add 5 custom cards daily from UWorld

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The Cold Hard Truth

No deck is perfect. You’ll still:

• Curse the 20 ambiguous cards out of 30,000
• Debate deleting that 1990s-style histo image
• Consider rage-quitting during glycogen storage diseases

But: The right deck cuts your “WTF is this?” moments by 80%. And that’s worth its weight in UWorld subscriptions.

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P.S. Coffee > sleep during dedicated. You’ve been warned.