StudyVisually vs Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)
StudyVisually and Gemini Notebook side by side: prices, free plans, AI from your notes and spaced repetition, with where Gemini Notebook is the better pick.
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Which should you choose?
Choose Gemini Notebook if
your main job is researching and asking questions about many documents, not memorising them over weeks.
Choose StudyVisually if
you need to remember the material for an exam or interview, not just find answers in it.
How do they compare?
| StudyVisually | Gemini Notebook | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | StudyVisuallyStudying is free. Basic is $4 a month or $40 a year; Premium is $8 a month or $80 a year. | Gemini NotebookFree with a Google account. Google AI Plus, Pro and Ultra plans raise the limits. |
| What the free plan includes | StudyVisuallyEvery ready-made subject and study mode, with progress saved in your browser before you sign in. After signing in, 5 AI decks a month. | Gemini NotebookUp to 100 notebooks with 50 sources each. |
| AI study material from your own notes or PDFs | StudyVisuallyYes. PDFs, text files or pasted notes become concept cards, flashcards, practice questions, explain-it questions and diagrams (uploads up to about 20 pages on Free). | Gemini NotebookYes. Chat with your sources, and generate flashcards and quizzes from them with the difficulty and number you choose. |
| Spaced repetition | StudyVisuallyYes. FSRS with a 90% target, and each rating button shows the gap it will set. | Gemini NotebookYou mark flashcards "Got it" or "Missed it" and progress is remembered; Google's help page doesn't describe a review schedule. |
| Ways to study | StudyVisuallyConcept cards, flashcards, Quiz questions, timed Interview answers, step-by-step diagrams, a roadmap and a 20-minute daily mission. | Gemini NotebookChat with your sources, flashcards, quizzes with explanations, and Audio Overviews. |
What StudyVisually does differently
Concept cards with four sides
Each idea gets four sides: plain English, an everyday analogy, an example and where it shows up in real work. Ready-made subjects and AI decks fill all four.
Step-by-step diagrams
Processes, cycles and sequences become diagrams you tap through one step at a time, with each step explained. AI decks draw one whenever your notes describe a process.
60-second explain-it answers
Interview questions give you 60 seconds to explain an idea in your own words, then show a model answer to check yours against. On Premium you can speak your answer and it is typed out for you.
FSRS with nothing to set up
Flashcards follow FSRS, a modern review scheduler, from the first card, aiming for 90% recall. No settings to change and no add-ons to install.
Where Gemini Notebook is better
- It can answer questions across up to 50 sources in one notebook, even on the free plan.
- It is free with a Google account and works alongside the Gemini app.
- Audio Overviews turn your sources into something you can listen to.
Where StudyVisually is better
- Seven ways to study one topic: concept cards, flashcards, predict-the-answer, timed explain-it answers, step-by-step diagrams, a progress map and a 20-minute daily mission.
- Nothing to set up: open the app and study, without an account.
- Flashcards are scheduled with spaced repetition, so reviews come back just before you would forget.
- A daily mission and a streak tell you what to study each day, and the map shows how far you have got.
Can you use both?
Research in Gemini Notebook, where asking across many sources shines. When you know what you need to remember, put the key material into StudyVisually so spaced repetition and daily missions keep it in your head.
Sources
Prices and features change. We read each fact on the company's own pages; tell us through the contact page if one is out of date.
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Try it with today's mission.
Open the app and spend 20 minutes on a free subject or your own notes. Start without signing up, no card needed.
Start studyingSee you tomorrow?