# SMART Notebook review (2026): is it any good? > Lesson-building software for SMART Board classroom displays Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. SMART Notebook is desktop software from SMART Technologies for creating and delivering lessons on a SMART Board. The company says it is free with a SMART Board and needs no subscription. It runs on Windows and macOS and can import PDF and PowerPoint files. - **Category:** Whiteboards & Mind Maps - **Made by:** SMART Technologies - **Website:** https://www.smarttech.com/products/smart-notebook - **Runs on:** Windows, macOS - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you don't own a SMART Board, as the pages frame it as free with one. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 12, 2026, SMART Notebook is free to use. - **Pricing model:** Free - **Free plan:** Described by the vendor as free with a SMART Board, with no subscription required. - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | With a SMART Board | $0 | Free with the purchase of a SMART Board; the vendor states no subscription is required. | Read from https://www.smarttech.com/products/smart-notebook on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with SMART Notebook before buying. ## Key features - **Lesson creation:** Teachers build and deliver lessons on a SMART Board from desktop software. - **Object awareness:** The software is designed so a teacher can pick up a pen or eraser and start writing without changing a tool on screen. - **Content import:** PDF and PPT files and other curriculum content can be imported into lessons. - **Document camera link:** A SMART Document Camera can be connected to bring physical material into a lesson. ## Good for - Schools that already own SMART Board displays - Teachers moving existing PDF and PowerPoint lessons onto an interactive board ## Worth knowing - The vendor frames it as free with a SMART Board; the pages read do not give a price for the software on its own. - Desktop only: Windows and macOS are the platforms named, with no web or tablet version listed. - Collaboration across student devices is a separate product, Lumio. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 1.8 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. SMART Notebook is desktop software for building lessons on a SMART Board, and the vendor says it's free with one. The pages read give no price for it on its own, it only runs on Windows and macOS, and student-device work is a separate product. Skip it if you don't own the board. - **Value for money: C.** The vendor says it's free with a SMART Board and needs no subscription, but gives no price for the software alone. The board is the real cost. - **Free plan and trial: D.** No standalone free plan or trial is stated. The software is free only as part of a SMART Board purchase. - **Features: C.** Lesson building, PDF and PowerPoint import and a document camera link. Student-device collaboration is a separate product, Lumio. - **Ease of use: C.** No store rating on record, and it's lesson-building software tied to a board, which takes some getting used to. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** Windows and macOS desktop only. No web or tablet version is listed. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from SMART Technologies's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among whiteboard and mind map tools - SMART Notebook's GPA of 1.8 is higher than 2 of the 61 other whiteboard and mind map tools we grade, and level with 1. - It stands best on value for money (C, above 7 of 61) and worst on free plan and trial (D, above 1). - SMART Notebook has no paid plan. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/whiteboards ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** SMART Notebook is free, so making your own would save you nothing. And it is not the kind of software a weekend replaces. That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 58 of the 61 other whiteboard and mind map tools grade higher. - You could not: An endless canvas that stays smooth with hundreds of things on it. - You could not: A slide editor. - You could not: A real app for macOS and Windows. Something home-made would be a web page. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## Works with SMART Document Camera, PowerPoint **Tags:** Whiteboard, Presentations ## Alternatives - [OpenBoard](https://toolgpa.com/tools/openboard): Free open-source interactive whiteboard software for classrooms. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/openboard-vs-smart-notebook) - [Explain Everything](https://toolgpa.com/tools/explain-everything): Teaching whiteboard with slides, video recording and collaboration. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/explain-everything-vs-smart-notebook) - [Microsoft Whiteboard](https://toolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-whiteboard): Free collaborative canvas built into Microsoft 365 and Teams. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/microsoft-whiteboard-vs-smart-notebook) - [Ziteboard](https://toolgpa.com/tools/ziteboard): Lightweight online whiteboard for tutoring and live teamwork. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/smart-notebook-vs-ziteboard) - [Limnu](https://toolgpa.com/tools/limnu): Freehand online whiteboard for quick sketching with others. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/limnu-vs-smart-notebook) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://www.smarttech.com/products/smart-notebook Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/smart-notebook Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).