ASAP vs Canvas

Sawyer

iClassPro

ProClass

Sawyer is a cloud-based class registration tool that helps kids' activity businesses process payments, customize class schedules, and communicate seamlessly with parents.

iClassPro is a cloud-based class management software designed to help activity centers manage administrative operations such as attendance tracking, class scheduling, billing, and more. Key features include key performance indicator (KPI) monitoring, self-service portal, and skill assessment.

ProClass is an online dashboard-based solution for class and events organizers, with features spanning registration, membership management, scheduling and more

ASAP is full-featured and affordable software for online registration and management, popular with schools, universities, communities, and more. Choose your own set of features, reporting tools and level of customization with no long-term contracts. Trust the company that has been in the industry for 30 years.

Admissions Management

Assessment Management

Attendance Management

Attendance Tracking

Attendee Tracking

Billing & Invoicing

Bookstore Management

Built-in LMS

Calendar Management

Class Management

Class Registration

Class Scheduling

Client Management

Contact Management

Curriculum Management

Customizable Forms

Employee Management

Enrollment Confirmation

Event Management

Event Registration

Event Ticketing

Facility Management

Faculty/Staff Management

Financial Management

For Higher Education

Group Registration

Independent/Private

K-12

Learning Management

Marketing Automation

Online Calendar

Online Payments

Online Registration

Onsite Registration

Parent/Student Portal

Payment Processing

Promotions Management

Refund Management

Registration Management

Remote Access/Control

Reporting/Analytics

Scheduling

School District

Self Check-In/Check-Out

Staff Management

Student Information/Records

Student Management

Support Audio/Images/Video

Surveys & Feedback

Transcripts

Wait List Management

ASAP

Web-based

iPad

Android

iPhone

Basic

Director

User interface is flat and uninteresting with limited customization.

Ease of Use

User Interface

Freelancers

Small Business

Large Enterprises

Mid-size Business

Vanco

Moodle

With hundreds of millions of users around the globe and translated into over 100 languages, more organisations choose Moodle to support their education and training needs than any other system in the world.

Q10 permite a las instituciones educativas digitalizar y centralizar su operación en una sola plataforma, administrando la información de todo el ciclo de vida del estudiante desde la gestión comercial y la admisión hasta la gestión académica, financiera, la educación virtual y el egreso.

Blackboard

Help learners, instructors and institutions achieve their goals with Blackboard Learn by Anthology, a market-leading Learning Management System (LMS) that integrates with the world’s most holistic EdTech ecosystem.

Assistant Professor of Instruction

Even more frustrating is the Canvas/Instructure support website, with its arcane, verbose design and overreliance on "community" message boards instead of dedicated agents to solve problems.

Web Designer

The platform's commitment to accessibility, seamless integration, and responsive customer support further enhance its overall functionality.

Canvas is a modern, cloud-based LMS that helps organizations of all sizes deliver impactful learning. Whether you're teaching students, onboarding new hires, or running a training program, Canvas makes it simple to build, manage, and scale engaging learning experiences.

Academic/Education

Access Controls/Permissions

Activity Dashboard

Activity Management

Activity Tracking

Alerts/Notifications

Analytics

Assignment Management

Asynchronous Learning

Audio/Video Recording

Benchmarking

Blended Learning

Block Websites/Applications

Built-in Course Authoring

Certification & Licensing

Chat/Messaging

Classroom Management

Class Summary

Collaboration Tools

Commenting/Notes

Communication Management

Compliance Tracking

Conferencing

Content Library

Content Management

Corporate/Business

Course Authoring

Course Library

Course Management

Course Publishing

Course Tracking

Curve Scores

Customizable Branding

Customizable Questions

Customizable Reports

Customizable Templates

Data Import/Export

Discussions/Forums

Document Management

Document Storage

Drag & Drop

eLearning Companies

Email Management

Employee Training

Engagement Tracking

Enrollments/Onboarding

Event Calendar

Feedback Management

File Sharing

For Classroom

For Schools

Gamification

Gradebook

Grade Calculations

Individualized Assessments

Instructor-Led Courses

Interactive Content

Interactive Learning

Interoperability

Learner Portal

Learning Paths/Tracks

Lesson Planning

Media Import

Media Management

Mobile Access

Mobile Learning

Multi-Language

Multimedia Support

Offboarding

Parent Portal

Progress Reports

Progress Tracking

Quizzes

Real-time Broadcasting

Real-Time Data

Real-Time Notifications

Real-Time Reporting

Reminders

Report Cards

Reporting & Statistics

Scoring

SCORM Compliance

Screen Sharing

Self-paced Learning

By industry, Canvas reviewers are most commonly professionals in education management (21%). The most frequent use case for Canvas cited by reviewers is higher education (41% of reviewers).

Users and use cases

Some reviewers find Canvas offers a generous free plan with useful templates and storage, and they appreciate affordable upgrades for advanced features. However, some users report high costs, paywalls, hidden fees, and limited pricing flexibility.

Value for money

The Canvas integrations most frequently cited by reviewers are: Google Docs (a document management product rated 4.7 out of 5 for its integration with Canvas), Google Drive (a cloud storage product, 4.7), and Zoom Workplace (a video conferencing product, 4.6).

Integrations

Canvas is a higher education solution with key features that include course management, a student portal, tests and assessments, an activity dashboard, student information management, alerts and notifications, and more.

Open Source

Canvas

Windows

Chromebook

Schoology

Brightspace

Google Classroom

Class for Web

360Learning

Olympus

Blackbaud Learning Management System

ClassDojo

Cumbersome email and messaging

Student

Canvas alerts and emails take ridiculously long to send. If something has changed on a canvas page, an email alerting that change has taken up to two weeks to send to my email.

49% of reviewers feel negative about Canvas’s email communication features. Users report that the messaging system lacks robust contact management, making it hard to create groups or find frequent contacts. They say email alerts can be delayed or inconsistent, and that separating messages from announcements causes confusion. Some reviewers find it difficult to track conversations or ensure messages reach the intended recipients, especially when Canvas’s internal email does not sync well with institutional email systems. This leads to missed communications and extra effort.

Overwhelming and inconsistent notifications

Marketing manager

The interface can feel dated, and the default notification settings often lead to an overwhelming flood of emails for minor updates.

Freelancer

As I have experienced delayed alerts regarding newly posted homeworks and announcements, I had to manually check the notifications section daily, which is a bit of a pain considering there are a lot of them.

54% of reviewers feel negative about Canvas’s notification system. Users indicate that the default settings can flood their inboxes with excessive emails and alerts for minor updates, creating digital clutter. They say important notifications are sometimes delayed, missed, or not clearly visible, leading to confusion about deadlines or announcements. Some reviewers find it tedious to customize notification preferences, and note that alerts don’t always sync well between devices. The volume and inconsistency of notifications are commonly cited as sources of frustration.

Complicated file upload process

Editor in Chief

Once I started to be an administrator responsible for uploading files into Canvas, I realized why file retrieval could be so hard from the user end.

42% of reviewers feel negative about Canvas’s file upload functionality. Users report difficulties uploading large files, limited batch download options, and confusing workflows for attaching documents. They say inconsistent file formats and restrictions on media size hinder their ability to share or access materials efficiently. Some reviewers mention that file management is not intuitive, leading to misplaced or inaccessible documents. These challenges are particularly problematic for instructors handling multiple submissions or students working with diverse file types.