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LMS · head to head

Pear Deck vs Thinkific

Pear Deck logo

Pear Deck

LMS

Interactive presentations that engage every student

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Thinkific logo

Thinkific

LMS

Create and sell online courses your way

From
$36/month
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: Pear Deck the Teacher Dashboard, draggable and drawing responses and Reflect and Review require Teacher Premium at $149 per year; Thinkific no free plan, 14-day trial only
  • They diverge on capability: Pear Deck covers Interactive slides, Thinkific covers Course builder.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Pear Deck and Thinkific differ
AttributePear DeckThinkific
Starting priceFree$36/month
Pricing modelfreemiumUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Chrome ExtensionWeb, Mobile
Founded20142012

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

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 Pear Deck

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

Only in Thinkific

  • Course builder
  • Website builder
  • Quizzes
  • Certificates
  • Communities
  • Memberships
  • Marketing tools
  • Analytics

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Pear Deck

  • Interactive classroom presentations for teachersnot Thinkific
  • Student practice and assessment toolsnot Thinkific
  • Standards-aligned content delivery for schoolsnot Thinkific

Thinkific

  • Course creationnot Pear Deck
  • Membership sitesnot Pear Deck
  • Coaching programsnot Pear Deck
  • Corporate trainingnot Pear Deck

Where each one falls short

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

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

Thinkific

  • No free plan, 14-day trial only
  • Transaction fees on third-party payment processors (5% on Basic tier)
  • PayPal only available on Grow plan ($199/month), not on Basic or Start
  • Limited customization on lower-tier plans
  • Cannot embed courses in external domains or iframes
  • Limited number of spaces per plan
  • Less interactive community features compared to alternatives
  • Features continuously moved to higher-priced tiers
  • Payment processing delays reported (up to 90 days)

Pricing, plan by plan

Pear Deck

Free
  • Pear Start FreeFree
    • 40+ AI tools for teachers
    • unlimited usage
  • Pear Deck FreeFree
    • basic interactive presentations
    • anonymous responses
    • student-paced mode
  • Pear Deck Premium$149/year
    • Teacher Dashboard with named responses
    • drawing/draggable features
    • Reflect & Review
  • Pear Assessment FreeFree
    • basic assessment creation
    • autograding

Thinkific

$36/month
  • Basic$36/month
    • 1 course
    • Up to 500 students
    • Thinkific Payments (0% fees)
  • Start$74/month
    • Up to 3 courses
    • Up to 2,000 students
    • Third-party payment (3% fees)
  • Grow$149/month
    • Unlimited courses
    • Unlimited students
    • Third-party payment (0% fees)

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Thinkific if

  • You need course builder.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want website builder.
Thinkific review

Questions people ask

Is Pear Deck or Thinkific better?
Neither clearly leads. Pear Deck starts at Free and Thinkific at $36/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Pear Deck or Thinkific?
Pear Deck has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Pear Deck and $36/month for Thinkific.
Does Pear Deck or Thinkific run on more platforms?
Pear Deck runs on Web, Chrome Extension. Thinkific runs on Web, Mobile.
Can I use Pear Deck for free?
Yes. Pear Deck has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Thinkific starts at $36/month.
What is Pear Deck best used for?
Pear Deck is most often used for interactive classroom presentations for teachers, student practice and assessment tools, standards-aligned content delivery for schools. Of those, interactive classroom presentations for teachers and student practice and assessment tools are not what Thinkific is typically brought in for.
What can Pear Deck do that Thinkific cannot?
Pear Deck covers Interactive slides, Real-time responses, Formative assessment, Student-paced mode. Thinkific covers Course builder, Website builder, Quizzes, Certificates. Both handle Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Pear Deck: What is the price for individual teacher subscriptions?

Pear Deck Premium: $149/year; Pear Assessment Premium: $125/year. Pear Practice and Start have custom pricing for paid tiers.

Source
Thinkific: Does Thinkific have a free plan?

No. Thinkific does not offer a free plan but provides a 14-day free trial. Paid plans start at $36/month (Basic tier).

Source
Pear Deck: Are there free versions available?

Yes, all Pear Deck products offer free teacher plans: Pear Start, Pear Deck, Pear Practice, and Pear Assessment are free for educators.

Source
Thinkific: Are there transaction fees on Thinkific?

Thinkific charges no transaction fees when using their built-in Thinkific Payments. Third-party payment processors incur 5% fees (Basic) down to 0% (Plus), plus 3.6% for Stripe with subscriptions.

Source
Pear Deck: What features require payment in Pear Assessment?

Free version includes basic assessment creation and autograding. Premium ($125/year) adds advanced security, accessibility tools, state test interface mimicry, and rubric scoring.

Source
Thinkific: What payment methods does Thinkific support?

PayPal is locked to Grow plan ($199/month). Basic and Start plans do not support PayPal, limiting payment options for international creators and potentially reducing conversions.

Source
Pear Deck: Do schools get discounted pricing?

Yes, schools and districts receive custom pricing with additional features like standards-aligned content, shared libraries, and LMS integration.

Source
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