# Small decks that finish

> Why a deck people complete beats a huge one they abandon.

## What & why

A deck that gets finished teaches more than one that gets abandoned. Big decks look
generous, but they scare learners off — 500 cards is a wall, and most people quit
somewhere around card 40, having learned a fraction and feeling like they failed. A
focused deck a learner can complete gives them a win, and a win brings them back.

## The rule

> Aim for **20–100 cards** in a first deck. Small enough to finish, big enough to
> matter.

## Bad → good

**Don’t**

**Complete English Vocabulary — 5,000 words**

Scraped from a word list. Impressive number, but no one reaches the end, and half
the words are ones a learner will never use.

**Do**

**English Irregular Verbs — the 100 you actually meet**

Finishable in a couple of weeks, every card worth knowing. Learners complete it —
and trust you for the next one.

## When it applies

Whenever you're tempted to make a deck "complete". Coverage isn't the goal —
usefulness is. If a subject really is huge, split it into a series of small decks a
learner can finish one at a time ("Irregular Verbs", then "Phrasal Verbs"), rather
than one giant deck they'll never see the bottom of.

A good gut check: would _you_ finish this deck? If the honest answer is no, it's too
big.

## Related

- [Planning a deck](https://www.deckberry.com/creators/guide/building/planning/)
- [One card, one fact](https://www.deckberry.com/creators/guide/deck-craft/one-fact/)
- [Title & description](https://www.deckberry.com/creators/guide/building/title-and-description/)

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[Read this guide on Deckberry](https://www.deckberry.com/creators/guide/deck-craft/small-decks/)