PlanbookEdu

PlanbookEdu is a lesson-planning service for teachers who want to organize classes around flexible schedules and standards. It suits solo teachers as well as schools that need administrators to review plans; its strongest draw is unlimited weekly planning at no cost, while sharing and attachments are paid features.

Overview

Built by a teacher and a developer, PlanbookEdu has been operating since 2004. It combines lesson planning with standards tagging and tools for sharing plans with colleagues. The free tier makes it possible to use the planner without a recurring fee, but teachers who need collaboration, attachments, or export will need Premium.

Key features

The Free plan includes unlimited weekly plans, A/B-day and rotation schedules, and a word-processor-style editor. That removes a plan-count ceiling and accommodates timetables that do not follow a standard weekly pattern. A calendar view adds another way to organize plans.

Premium adds file attachments, Common Core and state standards, sharing and collaboration, printing, Word and PDF export, search, and spell check. Standards tagging is useful for teachers who need to connect lessons to formal frameworks; exporting helps when plans must be shared or kept outside the service. These features make the paid tier a better fit for collaborative or administrative workflows than for teachers who only need a private planner.

School and district administrators can manage teacher accounts centrally, review submitted plans, and leave comments. School accounts also support Google Workspace for Education single sign-on. These controls suit coordinated school use, although an individual subscriber’s account is for that person alone and cannot be shared.

PlanbookEdu can be accessed on Android, iOS, and the web. It supports browser printing and Word and PDF exports. The company says it does not rent or sell personally identifying information and limits service-provider access to those who need it and agree not to disclose it. The terms restrict use to people aged 13 and older. Email support is available, and the Help Center says replies usually come the same school day.

Pricing

Free: free, billed free forever. It includes unlimited weekly plans, A/B-day and rotation schedules, word-processor editing, and use on iPad and phone. This is the right starting point for an individual teacher who can plan without attachments, standards tagging, collaboration, or document export.

Premium: $30 a year, billed $30/year. It includes everything in Free plus attachments, Common Core and state standards, sharing and collaboration, printing and Word or PDF export, search, and spell check. Teachers who need those tools for submissions or team planning get the most from this tier. A 14-day trial gives prospective subscribers a chance to evaluate the paid features before committing.

Premium costs more than the free tier, so teachers who only need weekly schedules and an editor can stay on Free without losing those core planning tools. School and district account pricing is custom pricing, making it a better route for institutions that need centralized management than for a single teacher comparing individual plans.

Platforms

PlanbookEdu is available on Android, iOS, and the web. Its plan information highlights use on iPad and phone, while browser printing and Word and PDF exports offer ways to work with plans beyond the service.

Who it's for

PlanbookEdu is best for teachers who want a no-cost planner with unlimited weekly plans, especially those using A/B-day or rotating schedules. Premium is more compelling for teachers who align lessons to standards, attach files, or work with colleagues. School and district administrators can use its account management and review tools, and Google Workspace for Education sign-on supports school accounts. It is less suitable for anyone under 13 or for users expecting to share one individual account.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Free includes unlimited weekly plans and nonstandard schedule options, so teachers can plan without a plan-count cap.
• Pro: Premium combines standards tagging, attachments, collaboration, and export for teachers whose plans need to support team or school workflows.
• Pro: Central account management, plan review, and comments give school and district administrators a role in the planning process.
• Con: Attachments, standards, collaboration, and Word or PDF export are paid features, limiting the free tier for teachers with those needs.
• Con: Individual accounts cannot be shared, so teams need their own accounts rather than one common login.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison, see Lesson Planning Software. Consider Planboard for another free lesson-planning option with Android, iOS, and web access. SchEDU may suit teachers seeking automated term planning, though its free tier is capped at two lifetime lesson plans. Common Planner is an option for teachers looking for AI-assisted lesson planning and Google Classroom posting. Lesson Maker Pro is worth considering when generated lessons and teaching materials are the priority, with monthly free quotas. Lessonly offers a free-forever plan with no credit card required. TeacherHero is another web-based option with a free account and trial. Ignite is a free web-based alternative. Planbook has free and paid plans for individual teachers as well as school and district accounts.

Verdict

Choose PlanbookEdu if you want unlimited weekly planning for free, or need standards tagging and school-level plan review in one service. Premium is worthwhile when collaboration, attachments, or export are part of your workflow; teachers who need only a private planning calendar can stay on Free, while those seeking automated or AI-assisted planning should compare alternatives.