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Education & E-Learning · head to head

Blackboard vs Pear Deck

Blackboard logo

Blackboard

Education & E-Learning

Comprehensive learning platform for educational institutions

From
$10/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Pear Deck logo

Pear Deck

Learning Management

Interactive presentations that engage every student

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Pear Deck has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Blackboard user interface is outdated, cluttered, and unintuitive with hidden menus and excessive clicks; Pear Deck the Teacher Dashboard, draggable and drawing responses and Reflect and Review require Teacher Premium at $149 per year
  • They diverge on capability: Blackboard covers Course management, Pear Deck covers Interactive slides.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Blackboard and Pear Deck actually diverge.

Attributes where Blackboard and Pear Deck differ
AttributeBlackboardPear Deck
Starting price$10/yearFree
Pricing modelUnknownfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Chrome Extension
CategoryEducation & E-LearningLearning Management
Founded19972014

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Blackboard

  • Course management
  • Assessment tools
  • Discussion boards
  • Virtual classroom
  • Gradebook
  • Mobile app
  • Analytics
  • Accessibility

Only in Pear Deck

  • Interactive slides
  • Real-time responses
  • Formative assessment
  • Student-paced mode
  • Dashboard
  • Audio responses
  • Drawing
  • Vocabulary

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Blackboard

  • Course deliverynot Pear Deck
  • Student engagementnot Pear Deck
  • Assessmentnot Pear Deck
  • Virtual learningnot Pear Deck

Pear Deck

  • Turning slide decks into interactive lessons with student responsesnot Blackboard
  • Running formative checks for understanding during classnot Blackboard
  • Student paced review activities and assessmentsnot Blackboard

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Blackboard

  • User interface is outdated, cluttered, and unintuitive with hidden menus and excessive clicks
  • Slow response times and platform crashes when opening multiple tabs simultaneously
  • Cannot track detailed student activity beyond most recent login information
  • Limited ability to handle large file uploads for content and assignments
  • Minimal customization options for page and template design

Pear Deck

  • The Teacher Dashboard, draggable and drawing responses and Reflect and Review require Teacher Premium at $149 per year
  • Pear Assessment Premium is a separate $125 per year purchase from Pear Deck Premium
  • Standards aligned content, district library and efficacy reports are only in the Schools and Districts plan
  • SIS and LMS integration is only in the Schools and Districts plan
  • School and district pricing is by quote with no published rate

Pricing, plan by plan

Blackboard

$10/year

No published plan breakdown. See the Blackboard review.

Pear Deck

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 5 question types
    • Real-time responses
    • Student-paced mode
  • Premium$149.99/month
    • All question types
    • Audio responses
    • Flashcard factory
  • School/District$undefined/month
    • All Premium
    • Admin dashboard
    • Rostering

Which should you pick?

Choose Blackboard if

  • You need course management.
  • You also want assessment tools.
Blackboard review

Choose Pear Deck if

  • You need interactive slides.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Chrome Extension.
  • You also want real-time responses.
Pear Deck review

Questions people ask

Is Blackboard or Pear Deck better?
Neither clearly leads. Blackboard starts at $10/year and Pear Deck at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Blackboard or Pear Deck?
Pear Deck has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $10/year for Blackboard and Free for Pear Deck.
Does Blackboard or Pear Deck run on more platforms?
Blackboard runs on Web. Pear Deck runs on Web, Chrome Extension.
Can I use Pear Deck for free?
Yes. Pear Deck has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Blackboard starts at $10/year.
What is Blackboard best used for?
Blackboard is most often used for course delivery, student engagement, assessment, virtual learning. Of those, course delivery and student engagement are not what Pear Deck is typically brought in for.
What can Blackboard do that Pear Deck cannot?
Blackboard covers Course management, Assessment tools, Discussion boards, Virtual classroom. Pear Deck covers Interactive slides, Real-time responses, Formative assessment, Student-paced mode. Both handle Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Blackboard: What does Blackboard LMS offer?

Blackboard is a learning management system that includes course management, assignment and gradebook tools, discussion forums, and analytics for tracking learner progress in online, hybrid, and in-person courses.

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Related pages

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