# Lesson Ideas vs SmartTeach

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Lesson Ideas at 78% against SmartTeach's 24%. Lesson Ideas also leads on iOS requirement (6.0 vs 15.0). SmartTeach's advantage is rating (4.8 vs 3.0) and update cadence (monthly vs every 53 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

SmartTeach holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SmartTeach has 1.2K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 78% of Lesson Ideas's written reviews are positive against 24% of SmartTeach's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Lesson Ideas ships an update every 53 months, SmartTeach monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 13, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Lesson Ideas | SmartTeach |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lesson-ideas/id697855842/reviews) | **[4.8 (1.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smartteach/id1663286926/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 2 | **1.2K** |
| Positive reviews | **77.8% of reviews** | 24.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 53 months | **Monthly** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 24 MB | 103 MB |
| Requires iOS | **6.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [madebyeducators](https://appshunter.io/developer/668446587) | [Teaching Strategies, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/571518842) |

## What reviewers say

### Lesson Ideas

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lesson-ideas/id697855842)

This app offers a collection of teaching starters, plenaries, and other tips for educators. It features contributions from a school's teaching and learning group and other members of the teaching profession.

**Highlights:** Teaching starters, Plenaries, Top tips for educators, Professionally submitted ideas, Collaborative content creation

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### SmartTeach

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smartteach/id1663286926)

This app helps early childhood educators streamline daily classroom tasks. It simplifies documentation, classroom management, and family communication with easy-to-use tools for online and offline use.

**Highlights:** Create documentation and share insights, View and teach from daily schedule, Communicate with families, Save and share photos/videos, Assess from curriculum resources, Track attendance and care routines, Conduct health screenings

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy and awesome app to track notes and submit to Teaching Strategies Gold
- 👍 Brings together curriculum and assessment
- 👍 Convenient and easy to use

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent technical glitches and bugs
- 🐛 Performance issues
- 🐛 Login issues
- 🐛 Messaging and communication problems
- 🐛 Delayed or failed uploads

**Reported bugs**

- Screener not working when clicking plus sign
- Inability to log in through app, but able to log in on website
- Delayed or failed message delivery
- Uploaded documentation still showing in app, causing confusion

**Requested features**

- Add ability to select and apply objectives to multiple pieces of documentation at once
- Add ability to select and delete multiple photos/videos at once
- Add ability to change date on add documentation page
- Add landscape mode support for easier typing
- Improve translation and communication features for ESL families


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Lesson Ideas free?

Lesson Ideas is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is SmartTeach free?

SmartTeach is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Lesson Ideas or SmartTeach?

SmartTeach is rated higher. Lesson Ideas averages 3.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while SmartTeach averages 4.8 from 1.2K ratings.

### Do Lesson Ideas or SmartTeach have ads?

Neither Lesson Ideas nor SmartTeach shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Lesson Ideas or SmartTeach?

Lesson Ideas ships an update every 53 months, and SmartTeach monthly. Most recently, Lesson Ideas was updated on September 13, 2026 and SmartTeach on October 15, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*