Skyward Mobile Access vs Canvas Parent
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Skyward Mobile Access
Access student grades, attendance, discipline, payroll, and time off information on the go. This app connects directly to your school's Skyward system for instant updates.
- Student grades
- Attendance tracking
- Discipline records
- Payroll information
- Time off requests
- Automatic district location
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Skyward Mobile Access provides intuitive access for students, parents, and school staff that currently use Skyward’s Family Access, Student Access, or Employee Access. Skyward Mobile Access will automatically locate your district and take you instantly to your vital information such as grades, attendance, discipline, payroll, time off, and more! Please contact appsupport@skyward.com with questions, comments or concerns about the app. Note: Your school district must activate Skyward Mobile Access Automatic Setup in order for this application to locate your school district and connect to it.
Canvas Parent
This app allows parents and guardians to monitor their child's academic progress, communicate with teachers, and receive important updates. It helps families stay involved in their student's education by tracking grades, assignments, and feedback.
- Message teachers directly
- View grades and assignments
- Receive real-time notifications
- See teacher feedback
- Use calendar view for upcoming tasks
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Stay connected. Encourage success. Canvas Parent helps parents and guardians track student progress, support learning, and communicate with teachers in real time. What you can do • Communicate: Message teachers directly to ask questions or follow up on school updates or particular grade & page • Check progress: View grades, assignments, due dates, and homework across all courses • Get alerts: Receive real-time notifications for missing work, low scores, or new announcements • Encourage: See teacher feedback, celebrate milestones, and help your student stay organized • Plan ahead: Use the calendar view to track upcoming tasks, events, and class updates Canvas Parent is more than a grade monitor—it’s a progress tracker that helps families and schools work together.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Canvas Parent at 4.4 against Skyward Mobile Access's 1.8. Canvas Parent also leads on ratings volume (112K vs 3.8K). Skyward Mobile Access's advantage is chart position (#54 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.0). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Canvas Parent holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 1.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Canvas Parent has 112K ratings behind it against 3.8K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 13% of Skyward Mobile Access's written reviews are positive against 9% of Canvas Parent's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Skyward Mobile Access ships an update fortnightly, Canvas Parent monthly. Both last shipped on October 30, 2026.
| Parameter | Skyward Mobile Access | Canvas Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.8 (3.8K ratings) | 4.4 (112K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 13.5% of reviews — better | 9.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3.8K | 112K — better |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | #54 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 172 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Skyward Inc | Instructure Inc. |
Customer experience
Skyward Mobile Access
Canvas Parent
User reviews
Skyward Mobile Access
From 3.8K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Helpful for checking grades
- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 🔒 Secure with Face ID/password
- 💡 Convenient mobile access to school information
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🤯 Confusing and outdated user interface
- 😡 Unreliable notifications and sync issues
- 🤔 Inconsistent functionality between app and website
Canvas Parent
From 112K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Convenient for tracking assignments and grades
- 👍 Allows communication with teachers
- 🤖 Useful for remote/virtual learning
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable
- 🤯 Confusing and not user-friendly
- 🔍 Lack of visibility into student work and progress
- 🔀 Inconsistent implementation across teachers and schools
- 🤖 Struggles with remote/virtual learning needs
Bugs and requests
Skyward Mobile Access
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login issues and accounts getting locked out
- Inability to access grades and school information
- Blank screens and app freezes
- Notification icon not clearing even after reading messages
Requested features
4 requests- GPA calculator
- More detailed grade and assignment information
- Improved notification system
- Streamlined navigation and user experience
Canvas Parent
Reported bugs
4 issues- Frequent log-out issues
- Inability to access account or find school
- Delayed or inaccurate display of assignment statuses and grades
- Calendar view and other key features not functioning as expected
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to view submitted assignments and teacher feedback
- Better organization and sorting of assignments by due date
- Improved communication and coordination between parents, students, and teachers
- More consistent and intuitive user experience across the platform
In-app purchases
Skyward Mobile Access
No in-app purchases
Canvas Parent
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Skyward Mobile Access free?
Is Canvas Parent free?
Which has better reviews, Skyward Mobile Access or Canvas Parent?
Do Skyward Mobile Access or Canvas Parent have ads?
Which is updated more often, Skyward Mobile Access or Canvas Parent?
Other comparisons
