Mochi uses spaced repetition to help you remember information more effectively over time. Instead of showing every card every day, Mochi automatically schedules reviews based on how likely you are to forget the information.
Spaced repetition basics
When you first learn a new piece of information, the probability that you can recall that information drops rapidly over time. This decline in recall is known as the forgetting curve.
However, it has been shown that each successive repetition (active recall) flattens the curve such that the rate of forgetting goes from hours to months after only a few repetitions. This technique is known as Spaced Repetition.
The spaced repetition system in Mochi
In Mochi, active recall repetitions are represented by Reviews (the cards in Due today). Every time you review a card and mark it as Remembered:
The interval (days) until the next review gets longer
When the card is marked as Forgot:
The interval becomes shorter
Card states in Mochi
It helps to understand the basic card statuses in Mochi:
New — cards you’ve created or imported but have not been reviewed yet.
Learned — cards that have been reviewed added to the schedule.
Archived — cards that will be ignored by the review system.
Note: Archiving a Learned card will retain its learned state and review history.
The two-step review process
Before a card becomes part of spaced repetition, it passes through the Learn phase, where you decide whether you know the content well enough to begin scheduling it.
Learn phase → Review each new card until you’re ready to add it to SRS
This two-step process ensures you truly learn a card before the long-term scheduling begins.
Re-reviews
If you forget a card during the review phase, Mochi doesn’t immediately reset its progress. Instead, it moves the card into a re-review queue, which gives you another chance to recall the information.
Forget once → the card enters re-review.
Forget again during re-review → the card’s interval is reset and the card begins relearning.
Remember during re-review → the card keeps a short interval and continues normally.
Re-reviews ensure that difficult material gets extra reinforcement before the final interval is set.
Managing your review queue
A healthy review habit is consistent and manageable. Here are a few tips to prevent overwhelm:
Limit new cards per day
The first step in managing your review queue is to limit the number of new cards that enter the system. You can either do this manually by keeping track of how many cards you add each day, or you can set a hard limit in the Review Settings.
I recommend an average of 10 cards per day at a maximum. Any more and the review queue can quickly add up to an unmanagable amount of reviews per day.
Archive when needed
If a card is no longer relevant — or isn’t worth the mental effort — archive it.
Archiving:
Removes the card from spaced repetition system entirely
Preserves review state and history
Can be undone at any time
Break reviews into small sessions
Long sessions can be draining. Instead:
Do a few reviews throughout the day
Learn new cards separately from reviewing scheduled cards
Mix in cramming sessions for short-term goals (e.g. test prep)
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