Comparison

LessonNote vs Planbook Mobile

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

LessonNote

This tool helps educators document classroom lessons by tracking student interactions, capturing notes, and recording time spent in various learning modalities. It facilitates data-driven conversations to improve teaching and learning outcomes.

Highlights
  • Track student interactions and conversation duration
  • Record handwritten notes and observations
  • Capture photos of student work
  • Measure time spent in different learning modalities
  • Review data for student-focused discussions
  • Ideal for peer observation and coaching
Features
Read full description

LessonNote is an innovative classroom observation tool for documenting the flow of a lesson and its impact on students. Capture both quantitative and qualitative data: • Track who is talking to whom, when, and for how long. • Jot handwritten, time-stamped notes about what is being said and what students are doing. • Take photos of student work. • Capture time spent in different modalities: whole-class, individual work, group work. Begin by creating a seating chart with icons representing the teacher, students, groups, and display areas such as blackboards or projection screens. Record observations by selecting an icon, or linking two icons for a note about an interaction. Take photos of student work. After a lesson, efficiently review your data for a student-focused conversation that improves teaching and learning. A small seating chart shows exactly who or what a note is about, so you don't need to know the names of the students. A timeline shows how much time was spent in whole-class lecture or discussion, individual work time, and group work time. LessonNote helps you create a fact-based and non-judgemental record of the lesson and its impact on students. LessonNote is ideal for peer observation, coaching, instructional rounds, and of course for Lesson Study. For administrators, LessonNote improves on simple checklists or rating scales by helping document how lessons affect students—which is, ultimately, what teaching is all about. Work with your colleagues and use LessonNote to improve teaching and learning! Read the Terms of Service at: https://LSAlliance.org/LessonNote/terms-of-service.html.

About

Planbook Mobile

This is a comprehensive online lesson planning tool designed for educators. It offers a wide array of features, meticulous student learning standards, and excellent support. A free trial is available to experience its capabilities.

Highlights
  • Comprehensive lesson planning
  • Meticulous student learning standards
  • Extensive features for educators
  • Outstanding support and tutorials
  • Continuous improvement based on feedback
Read full description

Welcome to Planbook! With over one million teachers and one billion lessons, Planbook is the established leader in online lesson planning! Why is Planbook preferred by educators? * We offer the most features for teachers and schools * At $20 per year, we offer the best value on the market * Outstanding support plus knowledge base and tutorials * Our student learning standards are meticulous * Our product is always improving thanks to educator feedback Download and take advantage of our 90 day free trial!

Screenshots

LessonNote4 screens
Planbook Mobile4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: LessonNote at free with in-app purchases against Planbook Mobile's subscription. LessonNote also leads on review sentiment (65% vs 51%). Planbook Mobile's advantage is ratings volume (7.2K vs 10) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.6). On price, rating, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. LessonNote sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $29.99 per 3 months and Planbook Mobile sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for LessonNote against 4.8 for Planbook Mobile. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Planbook Mobile has 7.2K ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 65% of LessonNote's written reviews are positive against 51% of Planbook Mobile's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

LessonNote ships an update monthly, Planbook Mobile every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 1, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
LessonNote versus Planbook Mobile: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLessonNotePlanbook Mobile
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (10 ratings)4.8 (7.2K ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.2% of reviews — better50.6% of reviews
Number of ratings107.2K — better
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.613.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size62 MB83 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLesson Study AlliancePlanbook Inc.

Customer experience

LessonNote

All ratings10 ratings
Positive90.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews23 reviews
Positive65.2%
Neutral17.4%
Negative17.4%

Planbook Mobile

All ratings6,987 ratings
Positive96.0%
Neutral1.8%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews85 reviews
Positive50.6%
Neutral10.6%
Negative38.8%

Bugs and requests

LessonNote

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Planbook Mobile

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Unable to add school year dates
  • Login page issues (keyboard blocking screen)
  • Inability to use Gmail account for sign-up
  • Lesson plans deleted without explanation

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add copy and paste feature
  • Improve mobile app experience (e.g., biometric login, portrait mode)
  • Enhance integration with other platforms (e.g., Canvas)

In-app purchases

6 purchases

LessonNote

Subscriptions3
  • 3 Months of Pro$29.993 Months
  • 6 Months of Pro$44.996 Months
  • 1 Year Pro$64.991 Year
One-time3
  • 6-month LessonNote Pro subscription$89.99
  • 1-year LessonNote Pro subscription$149.99
  • 2-year LessonNote Pro subscription$249.99
3 purchases

Planbook Mobile

One-time3
  • 1-Year Planbook Subscription$20.00
  • 2-Year Planbook Subscription$36.00
  • 3-Year Planbook Subscription$48.00

Questions

Is LessonNote free?
LessonNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Planbook Mobile free?
Planbook Mobile is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, LessonNote or Planbook Mobile?
Planbook Mobile is rated higher. LessonNote averages 4.7 out of 5 from 10 ratings, while Planbook Mobile averages 4.8 from 7.2K ratings.
Do LessonNote or Planbook Mobile have ads?
Neither LessonNote nor Planbook Mobile shows ads.
Which is updated more often, LessonNote or Planbook Mobile?
LessonNote ships an update monthly, and Planbook Mobile every 2 months. Most recently, LessonNote was updated on October 1, 2026 and Planbook Mobile on October 1, 2026.

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