Issue with Re-downloading AnkiMobile Flashcards - Already Purchased (Purchase Restoration)

AnkiMobile (iPhone/iPad) Help
1

Dear Anki Support Team,

I am writing to report a payment verification issue regarding the AnkiMobile Flashcards app on iOS.

I purchased the application on December 3, 2024, for the price of 699,000 VND (approximately $25 USD). It was a one-time purchase.

Recently, I had to delete the app due to storage issues. On January 25, 2026, when I attempted to re-download it from the App Store using the same Apple ID, the Store is asking me to pay for the app again instead of offering the download button.

Steps I have taken:

I contacted Apple Support. They verified my transaction history and confirmed that I have successfully paid for this service permanently.

Apple Support advised me to contact the developer (Ankitects) directly to resolve this licensing issue.

I have attached the proof of purchase (Apple Receipt) to this email.

Could you please check my status and advise on how I can restore my purchase to re-download the app without being charged again?

My Details:

Apple ID Email: thaotranthi2k2@icloud.com

AnkiWeb Email: thaotranthi2k2@gmail.com
Date of Purchase: December 3, 2024

Order ID: MKQYQBYM0G

Thank you for your assistance. I love using Anki and hope to resolve this quickly.

Best regards,
Thi Thao Tran

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2

Quoting the FAQs:

We have heard reports that some Apple Support representatives, when refusing a refund, are suggesting you contact us instead. That is misleading, as they know we do not have access to your payment details, and cannot confirm you’ve purchased the app, or remove your access to it. If Apple have refused to refund you, unfortunately that is not something we can change.

1 Like
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This seems to be some sort of Apple App Store app bug where the purchase isn’t being reflected in the app listing. It’s an issue that would have to be fixed at the App Store app level.

Things you might want to try are:

  • Sign out out of the app store (profile icon in the upper right corner, then scroll to the very bottom to the “Sign Out” button), and then sign back in with your Apple Account ID.
  • Powering off and then powering back on the phone.
  • Consider whether your phone or account might have been changed to a different region than the one when you originally made the purchase. (I don’t think this would cause any problems, but I’m not sure.)
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4

Instead of the AnkiMobile page, go into your profile to your “Purchased” apps – Reinstalling - AnkiMobile Manual .

But if you don’t see AnkiMobile in you “Purchased” apps, that would also be a question you need to direct to Apple Support. View your purchase history for the App Store and other Apple media services - Apple Support

[You should feel free to remove your personal details (address, email address) from your post above, if you don’t want them displayed publicly.]

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5

I think that the UI may have changed slightly on later versions of iOS. On my phone with iOS 26, the steps I had to follow are slightly different than in the Anki documentation:

  • Open the App Store on the device you want to install AnkiMobile on.
  • Tap on your profile icon in the top right
  • Tap on Apps
  • Tap on My Apps (I assume that if the app is available through Family Sharing, you would instead need to tap on the person who actually purchased the app.)
  • Tap on Not on this iPhone (optional, but helpful)
  • When you’ve located AnkiMobile, tap on the cloud icon to download it.

Edit: Added: The Anki docs say to “Tap on Purchased”, but there is no “Purchased” button when I look at the page. Instead, I see a “Purchase History” button. However, that just leads to the list of purchase receipts.

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That’s good to know, thanks! The instructions still work on older OS versions, but we’d welcome a PR updating that page to add the newer-OS instructions – GitHub - ankitects/ankimobile-docs: AnkiMobile's manual.

The App Store continuing to show the purchase price instead of showing that the app is already owned by the account/family-group is a frequent point of confusion for AnkiMobile users. [While Apple claims they won’t actually charge a 2nd time, it’s asking a lot to expect folks to just trust them on that and click the button!]