Tool profile
Nearpod: cost, fit and limits
Nearpod is an interactive lesson platform owned by the Renaissance group, where teachers deliver slides with embedded quizzes and formative assessments live or student-paced, with an AI Create question generator on paid plans and a free tier for individual educators.
What to know first
Nearpod has Silver (free), Gold at USD 159 per year, Platinum at USD 397 per year, and quoted school and district licenses. Quizzes live inside teacher-led lessons rather than as a standalone tool. AI Create starts at Gold. Gold and Platinum are annual and non-refundable, and the pricing page shows a dollar sign without a currency code. The vendor states no headquarters country.
Nearpod at a glance
| Maker | Nearpod Inc. (Renaissance group; terms published under Renaissance Learning, Inc.), Not stated by the vendor |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Entry price | USD 159 per year (Gold); Silver is free |
| API access | No |
| Category | Best AI Quiz Makers in 2026, rank 9 of 11 |
| Website | nearpod.com |
Who Nearpod is best for
Teachers who build lessons, not just quizzes
Silver gives 20-plus formative assessments and a library of 22,000-plus resources, so a teacher can borrow a lesson and add questions along the way.
Teachers who start from Google Slides
Gold lists a Google Slides add-on that imports a slide deck into a lesson, which saves rebuilding material already made.
Districts with rostering needs
School and district licenses list LTI and rostering integrations, shared district libraries and admin dashboards, with 250 student joins per lesson.
Nearpod plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Silver | Free ($0, no billing) | 300 MB storage, 40 student joins per lesson, 20-plus formative assessments, 22,000-plus library resources and real-time insights for an individual educator. |
| Gold | $159 per year | 1 GB storage, 75 student joins per lesson, the AI Create question generator, a Google Slides add-on, drag and drop and multiple sessions at once. |
| Platinum | $397 per year | 5 GB storage and 90 student joins per lesson, with everything in Gold plus student notes. |
| Schools and districts | Not published (request a quote) | Unlimited storage, 250 student joins per lesson, AI Create for multiple-choice questions, activities and lessons, shared district libraries, LMS, LTI and rostering integrations and admin dashboards. |
Checked November 2026.
What Nearpod does
- Quizzes inside lessons
- Assessments sit within slides that the teacher controls, delivered live or at the student's own pace, so a quiz is one step in a lesson rather than a separate game or exam tool.
- AI Create
- Gold has an AI Create question generator, and school and district plans extend AI Create to multiple-choice questions, activities and lessons, according to the pricing page.
- Google Slides add-on
- The add-on on Gold brings slide decks into a lesson, which helps teachers who plan in Google Slides and would otherwise retype content, and it is first offered on the Gold tier.
- Formative assessment library
- Silver includes 20-plus formative assessment types and over 22,000 library resources, giving a new teacher ready content to borrow and adapt before any paid plan is bought.
- Admin reporting
- School and district licenses add student accounts, admin dashboards and shared district libraries, so a principal or district lead sees usage across many classrooms at once.
How Nearpod handles your data
The privacy notice says Renaissance may keep personally identifiable information for as long as an account is active or as needed, with no specific periods. Most databases are stored in the United States, and some third-party storage providers may be outside it. The notice does not address whether customer content trains AI models. ISO 27001, SOC 2 and FERPA are not mentioned, and the only certification named is the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which a European buyer should ask the vendor to explain.
Where Nearpod falls short in practice
- AI starts at Gold. Silver lists no AI features, so a teacher on the free plan writes every question by hand. Generation needs a USD 159 annual plan or a school license.
- Annual and non-refundable. Gold and Platinum are paid yearly with no refund for partly used periods, so a teacher who changes schools mid-year cannot recover the unused months.
- Quiz features not mapped. The comparison table does not clearly show which quiz-specific features sit in each tier, and school integrations are not tied to a published price, so the cost of a full rollout is unknown.
Works with
Alternatives to Nearpod
Nearpod: common questions
Is Nearpod free for teachers?
Silver is free for individual educators, with 300 MB of storage, 40 student joins per lesson, 20-plus formative assessments and access to more than 22,000 library resources. The AI Create generator is not part of Silver. It starts on Gold at USD 159 per year.
How many students can join a Nearpod lesson?
The cap is 40 on Silver, 75 on Gold, 90 on Platinum and 250 on school and district plans. The limit applies per lesson, so a lecture hall with a few hundred students needs a school or district license rather than an individual plan.
Where is Nearpod headquartered?
The vendor pages read do not state a headquarters country. The terms are published under Renaissance Learning, Inc., and Nearpod Inc. is described as part of the Renaissance group. Ask the vendor directly if the country of the contracting entity matters for your purchase.
Does Nearpod train AI on my content?
The privacy notice opened does not address AI model training, so the vendor's position is unconfirmed. It says most databases are in the United States and that retention lasts while an account is active or as needed. Ask Nearpod in writing before using it with minors.
Can I get a refund on Nearpod Gold?
The pricing page says Gold and Platinum are annual and non-refundable, with no refund for partly used periods. Silver is free with no billing. Schools and districts request a quote, and their terms are not shown on the page, so a school should read its own contract before relying on any refund.