MindTap vs Thinkific

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Our analysts compared MindTap vs Thinkific based on data from our 400+ point analysis of LMS Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Product Basics

MindTap is an online learning software owned by Cengage that provides educational content and some class management. Among its assets are coursework, textbooks and print with over 1,300 options. The subjects it covers span across business, economics, humanities, math, professional disciplines, science, social science and technology. Some of its educational modules include grading, testing, homework submissions and a mobile app. Instructors can inform students of due dates and encourage underperforming class members.
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Thinkific is a software platform that creates, sells, markets and delivers online courses. It enables people to learn online and turn unique skills and expertise into a sustainable business. Users can quickly customize an online class’s look, feel, and functionality and create content that aligns with a company, brand and vision with the system’s App Store. Some of the content includes PDF, audio, files HTML, quizzes, surveys and resources such as Articulate, Storyline and Typeform.

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$160 Annually
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$49/Feature, Monthly
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Tailored to your specific needs
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Product Assistance

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Videos
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24/7 Live Support
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Product Insights

  • More Confident Students: Give learners more tools to succeed by increasing core competencies. Personalize materials and deliver feedback to reach people by highlighting text and annotations. Increase completion rates and security through smartphone accessibility and the ability to identify at-risk pupils.
  • Saves Time: Access information in one unified location. Automate grading processes to save the time of tediously entering grades. Integrate with other tools to ensure all needs are met without needing to hunt down individual applications.
  • High-Quality Content: Find and share interactive textbooks or create a resource library for employees so workers and students can peruse information at their leisure. Create a shareable, professional-looking collection of assets.
  • Greater Engagement: Increase students’ motivation to learn and boost engagement through improved coursework. Establish clear communication lines between trainer and trainee. Use StudyHub to follow notes, bookmarks and selected text. Students can also create study guides.
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  • Easy to Set Up: Get complete control of content and data and make decisions about online course business based on what’s best for the brands and audiences. Customize every platform part to match the brand and continue to scale without missing a beat. 
  • Bonus Resources: Access premium training templates, programs and unique opportunities after subscribing to the Basic or Pro plan. 
  • Expert Advice: Get in-depth guidance on finding the most suitable course topic, pricing, creating content, marketing and selling. Access content and training from industry leaders in the online education business. Sell online courses at a professional level and ensure more students get success during the learning experience. 
  • Quick and Effective: Explore downloadable guides, templates and use the swipe copy capability to take all the guesswork out of structuring and launching new online courses. 
  • Convenient: Review workshops and summit replays and watch videos of industry experts as per convenience to level up online education business. 
  • More Secure: Take advantage of reliable, 24/7 monitoring and safe cloud hosting with SSL certificates. 
  • Exclusive Opportunities: Get unique discounts and offers on popular content creation tools and stand unique among competitors. 
  • Flexible: Sell knowledge in bundles, standalone courses, memberships and digital downloads. 
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  • Course Management: Instructors can grade and curate content, facilitate online discussions and walk students through sample assignments. Provide quizzes, assessments and interactive homework. Let learners see current and upcoming homework as well as individual progress. Clone courses easily to repeat units for different classes, adding information, copying and changing dates.
  • Learning Path: Create a path by selecting material to customize a course. Add or delete material when needed and move activities around for personalized experiences. Encourage pupils to track progress and reach out to trainers.
  • Mobile App and eReader: Give employees and students access to an ebook that works on or off the internet through the smartphone app. Use interactive elements to keep people engaged. Take attendance with geolocation and polls to ensure learners are present. Provide other tools like online flashcards, practice quizzes and alerts for homework and due dates. Make annotations and notes in the online textbook. Embed videos into the reader, share highlighted notes and emphasize key text to demonstrate what’s important in testing. Give students access to a text speaker that reads aloud.
  • Suggested Content: Customize information for specific students to increase engagement with education guides. Suggest videos and assignments that reinforce learning, offered by class or by chapter.
  • Integrations: Connect with more full-service LMSs like Blackboard, Brightspace, Canvas, Moodle or other solutions. Integrate with other Cengage platforms such as SAM, WebAssign and Cengage Unlimited. Use the same login to access material. Some major products auto-sync grades, so instructors don’t have to duplicate work. Communicate with various programs with IMS Basic LTI standards and additional functionality for more common products.
  • Reporting: Dig deep and understand where students are failing or succeeding with real-time analytics that measure 12 different metrics and deliver actionable insights.
  • Subjects: Let learners consume content, software and textbooks that cover a variety of topics like agriculture, anthropology, art, astronomy, biology, college skills, communications, counseling, early childhood education, film, history, humanities, human services, mass communication, music, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion, social sciences, theatre, world languages and more.
  • Aplia: Connect concepts to real-world situations. Elevate critical thinking with feedback, algorithmic questions, review problems and other elements.
  • Pathbrite Portfolio: Showcases learner work through videos, images, documents and other assets. Give a visual representation of accomplishments and skills.
  • Cengage Unlimited: Work with several Cengage learning solutions aimed at specific subjects, including:
    • CengageNOWv2: Study for accounting, business statistics and taxation. Complete assignments, study for exams and succeed academically. Give workers and students practice opportunities to help them master content.
    • OWLv2: Save time with coursework in chemistry classes. Help finish assignments, study for exams and give learners other tools to help with success.
    • SAM: Cover Microsoft Office and computer concepts. Practice and apply skills to prepare for the Microsoft Office environment. Auto-grade assignments and use flexible reporting to report the outcomes.
    • WebAssign: Study STEM technology. Acquired in 2016, it has former educators on its development support teams to ensure the pedagogy of the experience.
    • Discontinued Programs: The iLrn, eSAM and iLrn Advance products aren’t for sale for students and can’t be accessed as of December 31st, 2020.
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  • Live Lessons and Cohorts: Deliver world-class learning experience on live, blended or on-demand classes. 
  • Assessments and Certificates: Gain access to a wide range of engagement surveys, comprehensive quizzes, assignments, exams and certificates that offer a premium learning experience. 
  • Progress Tracking: Track student progress through in-depth reporting and provide certificates to validate their efforts. 
  • Drag-and-Drop Website Builder: Create a customized school or storefront or to display class and course value and advantages.
  • E-Commerce: Accept payments in more than 100 countries with NIL transaction fees. 
  • Website Themes: Rest easy with beautiful and easy-to-use website themes and advanced customizations and deliver a professional look to the website without the extra cost. 
  • Connect Tools: Add professional and personalized domain to the website, mailing lists or CRM. 
  • Academy: Access premium webinars and courses curated by industry experts who help in taking courses to the next level. 
  • A Community of Experts: Share inspiration and strategy with a community of more than 50,000 course creators and get ideas to make the product more comprehensive and effective. 
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Product Ranking

#39

among all
LMS Software

#57

among all
LMS Software

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Analyst Rating Summary

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Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

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AI-based Capabilities Assessments Collaboration Compliance Content And Course Management ECommerce Learning Delivery Mobile Capabilities Platform Capabilities Reporting And Dashboard User Management And Gamification 7 70 58 0 93 100 67 87 98 77 77 0 25 50 75 100
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User Sentiment Summary

Excellent User Sentiment 13 reviews
Excellent User Sentiment 491 reviews
92%
of users recommend this product

MindTap has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 92% when considering 13 user reviews from 1 recognized software review sites.

91%
of users recommend this product

Thinkific has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 91% when considering 491 user reviews from 4 recognized software review sites.

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4.7 (171)
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4.49 (155)
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4.6 (133)
4.6 (13)
4.2 (32)

Awards

MindTap stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award

Thinkific stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Improved Student Engagement: MindTap offers a variety of interactive activities and assessments that can help to keep students engaged with the material. This is in contrast to traditional textbooks, which can be passive and unengaging.
Personalized Learning: MindTap can be customized to meet the individual needs of each student. This means that students can focus on the areas where they need the most help, and they can learn at their own pace.
Accessibility: MindTap is accessible from any device with an internet connection. This makes it easy for students to access their course materials from anywhere, at any time.
Data and Analytics: MindTap provides instructors with data and analytics that can help them to track student progress and identify areas where students are struggling. This information can be used to improve instruction and better support student learning.
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Ease of Use: Thinkific is known for its user-friendly interface and intuitive design, making it easy for both course creators and students to navigate the platform and manage their learning experience.
Customization Options: The platform offers a wide range of customization options, allowing course creators to tailor their courses to their specific branding and style preferences. This includes the ability to customize the look and feel of the course, as well as the content and structure.
Marketing and Sales Tools: Thinkific provides built-in marketing and sales tools to help course creators promote their courses and reach a wider audience. These tools include features such as email marketing, coupons and discounts, and affiliate marketing.
Community and Support: Thinkific has a strong community of users and offers excellent customer support. Course creators can connect with other users, share ideas, and get help from the Thinkific team.
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Cost: Students have expressed concerns about the additional cost associated with purchasing access to MindTap, especially when required course materials are already expensive. This can create a financial burden for students, particularly those on a tight budget.
Technical Issues: Users have reported encountering technical problems with MindTap, such as glitches, errors, and compatibility issues with certain devices or browsers. These issues can disrupt the learning process and cause frustration for students who rely on the platform to access course materials and complete assignments.
Learning Curve: Some students have found MindTap's interface to be complex and not intuitive, requiring a significant investment of time and effort to learn how to navigate the platform effectively. This can be a barrier for students who prefer a more straightforward and user-friendly learning experience.
Integration Challenges: Integrating MindTap with existing Learning Management Systems (LMS) can sometimes present challenges, leading to synchronization issues, broken links, and difficulties in accessing grades or assignments. This can create confusion and inconvenience for both students and instructors.
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Limited Course Design Options: Thinkific's course builder might feel restrictive for users who want to create highly customized learning experiences. The platform's strengths lie in delivering content in a straightforward manner, but it may lack the flexibility needed for intricate branching scenarios or complex gamification elements.
Marketing and Sales Features: While Thinkific provides basic marketing tools, users seeking advanced features like sophisticated email marketing automation or intricate sales funnels might find the platform's capabilities somewhat limited. Integrating third-party tools can address this, but it may introduce additional complexity and costs.
Pricing Structure: Thinkific's pricing structure, particularly for higher-tier plans with advanced features, can be a concern for budget-conscious users or smaller organizations. Evaluating the cost-benefit ratio and exploring alternative platforms with more competitive pricing for similar features is recommended.
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Let's tap into the minds of MindTap users and see what they have to say. User reviews from the past year suggest MindTap offers a robust platform for learning and course management, but it's not without its quirks. Reviewers frequently praise MindTap's ability to integrate seamlessly with learning management systems (LMS) like Blackboard and Canvas, making it a convenient hub for accessing course materials, assignments, and grades. The platform's interactive features, such as quizzes, flashcards, and simulations, receive positive feedback for enhancing engagement and comprehension. However, some users find the interface a bit clunky and overwhelming, especially for those new to online learning platforms. Technical glitches and occasional syncing issues can also disrupt the learning flow. Despite these drawbacks, MindTap stands out for its comprehensive content library and alignment with Cengage textbooks, making it a valuable tool for students seeking additional support and practice. Ultimately, MindTap is best suited for students who prefer a structured learning environment with readily available resources and are comfortable navigating a feature-rich online platform. Those who value simplicity and a more intuitive interface might explore alternative options.

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Thinkific has garnered a reputation as a user-friendly and affordable platform that empowers businesses and individuals to create and deliver online courses. Users appreciate the intuitive drag-and-drop course builder, built-in payment system, and comprehensive reporting dashboard, making it a breeze to get started. The platform's flexibility allows for customization to match individual teaching styles and content requirements, while its affordability makes it accessible to a wide range of users. However, some users have expressed concerns about limited customer support and a lack of advanced features compared to competitors like Kajabi or Teachable. Thinkific's strength lies in its simplicity and ease of use, making it ideal for those new to online course creation or who prioritize a straightforward platform. Thinkific is best suited for solopreneurs, small businesses, and educators who are looking for an easy-to-use and affordable platform to create and deliver online courses. Its intuitive interface and essential features make it a great starting point for those new to the world of e-learning. However, users with more complex needs or who require extensive customer support may want to explore alternative options with more robust feature sets and dedicated assistance.

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