Nearpod vs Poll Everywhere (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Nearpod grades higher than Poll Everywhere: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Nearpod grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Nearpod
Interactive K-12 lessons with built-in questions and activities
Poll Everywhere
Live audience polling that works inside slide decks
Which one is for you
Pick Nearpod if
- Fits if you teach a class of up to 40 and want to see every student's answer live
- Works for schools that buy a district licence and want LMS rostering
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 300 MB and 40 students a lesson, and Gold lifts that only to 75
- Pricey if you want AI Create, the Google Slides add-on or sub plans, as that is Gold at $159 a year
- Skip it if you need co-teaching, student accounts or LMS links, as those are school and district licences with no public price
- Watch out: Nearpod Math and Social Studies are listed as school and district programs
Pick Poll Everywhere if
- Fits if you ask a room of up to 40 questions from inside your slides
- Works for presenters who need 700 people on one poll, on Present
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 40 people in the audience and 10 AI prompts a month
- Pricey if you want to drop the Poll Everywhere logo, as that starts at Teams, $84 a month for 2 seats
- Skip it if you want monthly billing at the low end, as Present is annual only
- Watch out: these are business prices, and the Education tab has its own list that we did not read
How we grade them
| 2.4GPANearpodFair | 2.2GPAPoll EverywhereFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CGold is $159 a year, about $13 a month, and Platinum is $397 a year. Schools get a quote. | CPresent is $10 a month for one seat, billed yearly, which is the category's middle. Engage is $49 and Teams $84, each for 2 seats, and extra seats cost $120 to $499 a year. |
| Free plan and trial | BSilver is free for good, with 20+ formative question types, 40 students a lesson and 300 MB of storage. One teacher can live on that, until a class goes over 40. | CIntro is free with unlimited questions, but the audience stops at 40 and AI prompts at 10 a month. |
| Features | CInteractive lessons, a library, file import and real-time results. Co-teaching, live annotation, student accounts and LMS links are on school licences. | CMany question types, slide integrations, AI prompts, reporting and attendance. Archived results and attendance management are on Engage. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Teachers build or adapt lessons from slides, and rosters need school set-up. | CNo store rating on record. You build questions and link them into your slide software before you present. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iOS and Android, with Google Slides, PowerPoint, YouTube and LMS links. No desktop app is listed. | BWeb, with PowerPoint, Google Slides and Canva connections. No desktop or phone app is listed. |
| Best for | interactive lessons for a classroom | live polls inside PowerPoint and Slides |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Nearpod and Poll Everywhere. How we grade
Where they differ
- Poll Everywhere also covers surveys and reports.
At a glance
| Nearpod | Poll Everywhere | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $159 per year (Gold, individual educators) | Free; Present $10 per month, billed annually ($120) |
| Free plan | Silver is free: 300 MB of storage and up to 40 students joining each lesson, with the core features. | Intro plan: all basic features, a 40-person audience, 10 AI prompts a month and unlimited questions. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Nearpod (part of Renaissance Learning) | Poll Everywhere |
| Price read from | nearpod.com | polleverywhere.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Nearpod
- Individual plans cap how many students can join: 40 on Silver, 75 on Gold and 90 on Platinum.
- Silver's 300 MB of storage also limits how much of the library a teacher can save.
- Co-teaching, live annotation, student accounts, LMS and LTI integrations are on school and district licenses, which are quoted.
- Nearpod Math and Nearpod Social Studies programs are listed as school and district features.
Poll Everywhere
- The free Intro plan caps the audience at 40.
- Additional seats cost extra: $120, $294 and $499 a year on Present, Engage and Teams.
- These are the Business & non-profit prices; the page has a separate Education tab whose prices were not read.
- Present is sold annually only, and the Teams plan is the first to remove Poll Everywhere branding.
Key features
Nearpod
- Interactive lessons
- Lessons, videos and activities combine slides with 20+ formative assessment types and can be run live or student-paced.
- Nearpod Library
- A library of standards-aligned lessons, activities and interactive videos, said to be made with 70+ publishers. Free and individual plans can save items up to the storage limit.
- Import your own files
- Existing PowerPoint, PDF and Google Slides files can be uploaded and turned into interactive lessons.
- AI Create
- Generates multiple-choice questions on Gold and above, and activities and lessons on school and district licenses.
- Real-time insight
- Teachers see live responses and get post-session reports. Schools get admin reporting dashboards.
- District tools
- School and district licenses add co-teaching, shared libraries, student accounts and LMS, LTI and rostering integrations.
Poll Everywhere
- Every question type
- All plans list every question and poll type, folders for organizing polls, and worldwide response coverage.
- Slide integrations
- The homepage says live polls embed into PowerPoint, Google Slides, Canva and PDFs. PowerPoint integration is listed on every plan.
- AI prompts
- Monthly AI prompts: 10 on Intro, 100 on Present, unlimited from Engage.
- Reporting and attendance
- Reporting starts at Present; attendance management and importing participant groups start at Engage.
- Branding
- Removing the Poll Everywhere logo, custom themes and custom usernames start at Teams.
- Two experiences
- The site offers both the classic Poll Everywhere and a refreshed Poll Everywhere 2.0, each with its own join address.
Plans
Nearpod
Silver$0
300 MB storage and 40 student joins per lesson, with 20+ formative assessment types and access to the Nearpod Library up to the storage limit.
Gold$159
per year, for individual educators
Adds the AI Create question generator, Google Slides add-on, drag and drop, sub plans, 1 GB storage and 75 student joins per lesson.
Platinum$397
per year, for individual educators
Everything in Gold plus student notes, 5 GB storage and 90 student joins per lesson.
Schools & districtsCustom
Unlimited storage, 250 student joins per lesson, co-teaching, LMS and rostering integrations, admin dashboards and a customer success manager. Request a quote.
Poll Everywhere
Intro$0
Basic polling for up to 40 audience members, 10 AI prompts a month, unlimited questions.
Present$10
per month for 1 seat, billed annually ($120, annual only)
Up to 700 audience members, 100 AI prompts a month, reporting and full email support.
Engage$49
per month for 2 seats, billed annually ($588; $99 billed monthly)
Audience up to 700, unlimited AI prompts, attendance management and access to archived results.
Teams$84
per month for 2 seats, billed annually ($999; $249 billed monthly)
Everything in Engage plus removal of the Poll Everywhere logo, custom branding, custom username and URL, phone support.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom audience size, shared polls, single sign-on (SAML) and a dedicated success manager. Sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
Nearpod
No public discounts listed.
Poll Everywhere
- Annual discount
Save up to 50% with annual billing
The plans page says paying annually saves up to 50%, for example $588 a year on Engage against $99 billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Nearpod or Poll Everywhere?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Nearpod starts at $159 per year (Gold, individual educators), and Poll Everywhere starts at Free; Present $10 per month, billed annually ($120).
Which has a free plan, Nearpod or Poll Everywhere?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Nearpod and Poll Everywhere have a free plan.
Which platforms do Nearpod and Poll Everywhere run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Nearpod lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.