Comparison

Pathway Degree Planner vs CourseMate

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

Head to head
About

Pathway Degree Planner

This app helps college students plan their academic journey by visualizing degree requirements, course schedules, and progress towards graduation. It allows users to map out semesters, track credits, and identify potential issues before registration.

Highlights
  • Map out semesters to graduation
  • Add courses from school catalogs
  • Track credits and requirement coverage
  • Identify overloaded semesters
  • See which requirements courses satisfy
  • Record completed courses and grades
  • Track GPA
Features
Read full description

College gives you plenty to think about. Figuring out which class counts for which requirement shouldn’t be one more mystery. Pathway turns your degree requirements, prerequisites, credits, and semesters into one clear plan. See your entire road to graduation without maintaining a heroic collection of spreadsheets and browser tabs. BUILD A PLAN THAT MAKES SENSE • Map out every semester from now through graduation • Add courses from your school’s supported catalog • See credits, prerequisites, and requirement coverage as you plan • Find overloaded semesters and prerequisite problems before registration • Adjust your timeline whenever college refuses to go exactly according to plan SEE WHERE EVERY COURSE COUNTS No more staring at a course description and wondering, “Does this actually help me graduate?” Pathway shows which requirements a course may satisfy, updates your degree progress as your plan changes, and makes remaining gaps easy to find. • Track total credits, general education requirements, majors, and minors • Review progress requirement by requirement • Record completed courses and grades • Track your GPA using your school’s supported grading scale • Record approved exam, transfer, and other outside credit BUILT AROUND YOUR SCHOOL Pathway uses catalog information from supported colleges and universities instead of forcing every student into the same generic template. School and catalog-year coverage varies and continues to grow. Not ready to enter your own degree yet? Explore the built-in demo university first and see how everything works. DO MORE WITH PATHWAY+ Pathway+ is an optional upgrade offered as a monthly or annual subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase. Pathway+ includes: • Schedule Optimizer - add possible sections, work commitments, and priorities, then generate a conflict-free schedule that fits them • What-if plans and Compare - explore possibilities like graduating early, adding a minor, or studying abroad without changing your main plan • Private AI planning help - ask questions about your plan and receive on-device suggestions on supported devices; Pathway does not send your plan to an external AI service • Smart checks - scan for sequencing risks, heavy semesters, and easy-to-miss gaps • GPA forecasting • Advisor-ready exports • Unlimited what-if plans • Course color tags YOUR PLAN IS YOURS Pathway does not require a Pathway account. Your information is stored on your devices, synced through your personal iCloud account, and when chosen, shared for data improvement purposes only. No advertising. No sale of your personal data. No cross-app tracking. A QUICK ACADEMIC NOTE Pathway is an independent planning tool. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an official service of any college or university. Catalogs, degree requirements, prerequisites, transfer equivalencies, course availability, and institutional policies can change. Pathway does not replace your institution’s official degree audit, registrar records, or academic advising. Always confirm important academic and graduation decisions with your college or university. Supported schools, catalog years, courses, requirements, and features may vary. SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Pathway offers auto-renewing monthly and annual Pathway+ subscriptions, as well as a separate one-time lifetime purchase. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when the purchase is confirmed. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current subscription period. Your Apple Account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours before that period ends. You can manage or cancel subscriptions in your App Store account settings. Prices may vary by country or region. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula Privacy Policy: https://pathwaydegreeplanner.com/privacy.html

About

CourseMate

Features
Read full description

YOUR DEGREE, IN FOCUS. CourseMate helps university students understand where they stand, what they need next and how their results could shape their final degree. Keep your modules, marks, targets and important dates together in one simple place. KNOW WHERE YOU STAND See your current degree estimate based on the results, year weightings and course structure you enter. CourseMate turns your academic progress into a clear overview that's easy to understand. SEE WHAT YOU NEED Working towards a First, 2:1 or another target? CourseMate calculates the average you need across your remaining counted work, so you can see exactly what you're aiming for. PLAN DIFFERENT SCENARIOS Wondering what would happen if you averaged 65%, 70% or 75% from here? Test different scenarios and instantly see how they could affect your projected degree result. TRACK MODULES AND MARKS Keep your academic progress organised: • Add modules across different study years • Record module credits and assessment results • Track how much of each module has been marked • Keep previous results alongside your current modules KEEP IMPORTANT DATES TOGETHER Stay on top of university life with CourseMate's built-in calendar: • Coursework deadlines • Exams • Group meetings • University events and other important dates Mark events as completed when they're done and keep your active schedule focused on what's coming next. BUILT AROUND YOUR DEGREE Every degree is different. CourseMate lets you customise: • Study years • Degree weightings • Placement years • Which years count towards your final result • Your target degree grade PRIVATE BY DESIGN No CourseMate account is required. Your academic data is stored on your device, with iCloud sync available across your iPhone and iPad. IMPORTANT CourseMate is an independent student planning tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any university. Calculations and projections are estimates based on the information you enter. Official marks, degree classifications and academic regulations are determined by your university.

Screenshots

Pathway Degree Planner4 screens
CourseMate4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CourseMate at none against Pathway Degree Planner's 3. CourseMate also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, ads and device support 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. Pathway Degree Planner sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. CourseMate asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Pathway Degree Planner versus CourseMate: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPathway Degree PlannerCourseMate
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (6 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings6 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size37 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperZane AloiaJoshua Rout

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Pathway Degree Planner

Subscriptions2
  • Pathway+ (Monthly)$1.991 Month
  • Pathway+ (Yearly)$9.991 Year
One-time1
  • Pathway+$19.99
None

CourseMate

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pathway Degree Planner free?
Pathway Degree Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CourseMate free?
CourseMate is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Pathway Degree Planner or CourseMate have ads?
Neither Pathway Degree Planner nor CourseMate shows ads.

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