How to Create a Study Guide: Your Complete Guide

Key takeaways

Study guides are an effective way to achieve positive outcomes, regardless of what you’re learning.

• Study guides can improve learners’ performance by up to 34 percentage points, making them evidence-based tools for improving comprehension [1].

• Start by organizing your notes, then assess your knowledge by creating your study guide using active learning strategies and incorporating color or visuals.

• You can use AI or other applications to help you create your own study guide.

Learn how to write effective study guides that can help you succeed in both academic and professional settings. Strengthen your writing skills by enrolling in the Good with Words: Writing and Editing Specialization from the University of Michigan, where you can learn how to organize complex sets of information, use syntax creatively, and add nuance to your sentences

What is a study guide?

A study guide is a learning tool that helps you organize information effectively and enhance your comprehension of the subject, allowing you to prepare to demonstrate your understanding on a test or exam. A good study guide isn’t just a set of notes; it can be your roadmap for mastering a subject. Understanding the essential components of an effective study guide, along with useful options, can help you create a tool that works best for your learning preferences.

Study guides typically include a visual component and are available in various formats, such as outlines, concept maps, flashcards, comparison charts, concept cards, diagrams, timelines, and other visual aids. This versatile tool promotes long-term retention of material, and once you learn the basics, you can easily create a study guide template to adapt for multiple purposes.

Why creating a study guide helps learners

Study guides help students learn by enhancing comprehension, organizing information, reducing test anxiety, and fostering metacognition and engagement in the learning process. The active involvement required to create a study guide is a crucial reason why these tools are so effective in helping you excel on important exams.

Creating your own study guide helps consolidate your learning, transferring information from short-term to long-term memory. Research suggests that learners using study guides consistently perform better than those who do not. Across three studies, study guides increased learners’ scores by 15 to 34 percentage points, demonstrating that these tools can significantly improve learning outcomes [1]. By employing study preparation strategies and focusing on good study habits, you may also notice a decrease in test anxiety and stress associated with preparing for a big exam. 

How to create a study guide step by step

You can create an effective study guide by following some general guidelines, such as organizing your information, assessing your knowledge, and reviewing your work. Before moving into the actual creation of your study guide, take some time to determine your personal learning style and evaluate the type of information you’re studying. Both of these factors can influence the type of study guide you develop.

No matter what kind of study guide you choose to create, the following steps can help ensure your study guide includes everything you need to succeed.

Organize your notes.

Begin by breaking larger concepts into smaller, manageable chunks. Sort information according to common themes or concepts, or separate information by task type, such as content that requires rote memorization versus content that demands more critical thinking skills. Writing down important topics, keywords, phrases, formulas, or diagrams can also be beneficial. Refer to your notes, your teacher’s syllabus, or your textbook for guidance on significant topics.

Choose a place to start. 

While it’s important not to neglect the easier material, consider beginning your study guide with the material you find most challenging. This approach gives you ample time to seek help before the exam if needed.

Show what you know. 

After organizing your information and selecting a starting topic, it’s time to add content to your study guide. You can employ various methods, but using active studying strategies may enhance your learning more than more passive options.

Active strategies include:

• Connecting concepts and theories to real-life

• Annotating steps and working through problems

• Creating and answering higher-level, critical thinking questions 

• Simplifying the material for someone who may not have your background knowledge

• Organizing the material differently than it was presented to you, using a concept map, flow chart, or other visual aid

• Jotting down everything you know about a topic in your own words, using outlines, concept maps, mind mapping, or a “brain dump” within a set time 

Check your work.

It’s wise to ensure you haven’t overlooked any important information. If your teacher provided a study guide, compare it with yours and add any missing material. Attend review sessions or office hours, or check in with a classmate to compare notes and incorporate any new information that arises.

How to use AI to create a study guide

Even if you’re a complete beginner, you can use AI to create a study guide by following three simple steps:

1. Synthesize and organize your materials. Use the following prompt, or one that better suits your needs, to ask generative AI to summarize and highlight the key points in your notes:

• Help me create a summary of the two most important topics I need to include for a study guide on [subject] using my notes.

2. Create a study guide outline. Use the summary you generated from your notes to prompt AI to create a study guide outline:

• Create an outline to organize this information into the following sections: [X,Y,Z].

3. Customize. Finally, enhance your study guide by adding visuals, practice questions, or images according to your needs, with a prompt such as:

• Create a chart, table, or another appropriate visual to summarize how [point A] and [point B] relate to or differ from one another.

Remember to verify the responses you receive after each step to ensure the content is accurate and meets your requirements.

How to create a digital study guide

If you prefer to work online, you can apply the same strategies as you would when creating a physical study guide, with a few adjustments. Start by converting your handwritten notes into a digital format or by using a note-taking app from the beginning. Digital tools, such as note-taking apps, make it easy to search, edit, and organize your material without the hassle of managing physical paper. 

Cloud-based storage services, such as Adobe Document Cloud, Google Drive, or Dropbox, ensure your notes are always accessible and backed up. Once your notes are stored digitally, you can quickly turn them into a study guide by pasting them into a platform or app designed specifically for this purpose. 

Online study guides offer their own unique benefits, such as:

• Seamless sharing and collaboration 

• Ease in adding new information

• Effortless legibility

• Streamlined saving and access

• Easy access to engaging features, such as color coding and relevant images, emojis, or GIFS

What is the app that creates study guides?

You can find many apps to help you create a study guide. As of October 2025, a sampling of apps that create study guides includes:

• Piktochart

• Quizlet

• Mindgrasp

• Study Guide Maker

• Study Fetch

• NoteGPT

Features can vary significantly, so research to ensure the option you’re considering has the features you need before making an investment.

Tips on how to create a good study guide

Adding a variety of visual and organizational components to your study guides can help make them more effective by enabling you to connect concepts. Some tips to consider include:

• Incorporate color: Warm colors such as red and yellow may positively impact your perception of the content, motivating you to engage and interact with it more thoroughly.

• Integrate visuals: Presenting information visually, using diagrams, charts, or pictures, may offer increased benefits.

• Vary complexity: Include low-, mid-, and high-level questions on key concepts addressing factual recall, conceptual understanding, and critical thinking.

• Mix it up: Get creative with the methods you use to present your material. Interacting with the information in various ways can help you connect more deeply with the information. Combine active studying strategies such as vocalization, mind mapping, timelines, mnemonic devices, illustrations, and more.

Sharpen your study skills with free resources

Whether you’re currently a learner or contemplating enrolling in an educational program, subscribe to our LinkedIn newsletter, Career Chat, to stay current on topics related to whatever career path you choose. Learn more with the following free resources:

• Set daily goals: 8 Learning Tips and Tricks to Boost Study Skills for Online Learning

• Leverage AI: AI Study Buddy: Learn Smarter, Not Harder

• Bookmark for reference: Useful Generative AI Prompt Techniques for Everyday Work

Whether you want to develop a new skill, get comfortable with an in-demand technology, or advance your abilities, keep growing with a Coursera Plus subscription. You’ll get access to over 10,000 flexible courses. 

Build job-ready skills with Coursera Plus

Start 7-day free trial

• 
• 
• 
• 

Start 7-day free trial