10 best free Kahoot! alternatives for student engagement

Let's face it, Kahoot! can be a classroom lifesaver. It injects instant energy, fosters friendly competition, and keeps students on their toes. But what if you're feeling a tad... un-Kahooted? 

There's a whole world of interactive student engagement platforms out there, each with its own unique flavor to keep your classroom engaged. In this article, we'll explore some Kahoot! alternatives that will make your teaching sessions anything but boring.

Best Kahoot! alternatives at a glance

1. Mentimeter

Great for: Interactive presentations

Kahoot! is awesome, no doubt. It injects some serious energy into reviews and keeps students on their toes. But what if you're craving something a little deeper? Enter Mentimeter, the all-in-one engagement platform that lets you ditch the kiddie themes and create truly interactive presentations.

Think polls, live Q&A, and instant word clouds — all wrapped up in a sleek, professional package. Mentimeter is perfect for higher education, where discussions and deeper understanding reign supreme. Gauge class comprehension with live polls, spark creative brainstorming sessions with word clouds, or have in-depth Q&A sessions — all without switching tools!

If you're looking for something beyond the quizzing battle royale, Mentimeter is a top choice. Find out why it was named National EdTech’s Best App for Teachers:

2. Quizizz

Great for: Gamification

Both Kahoot! and Quizizz are kings of the gamified quizzing world, but they cater to slightly different audiences. Quizizz leans even harder into the game aspect, offering features like live leaderboards, team mode, and adaptive difficulty that keep the competition fierce and the learning engaging. 

Imagine students racing to answer questions, strategizing with teammates, and having the difficulty adjusted based on their performance. This competitive spirit makes Quizizz a fantastic choice for review sessions, formative assessments, and keeping students motivated during practice rounds.

While Kahoot! offers a similar gamified experience, Quizizz boasts some additional features:

3. Brightful

Great for: Remote team building

While Kahoot! shines in live classrooms with its fast-paced quizzes, Brightful takes a different approach to remote learning. It's a virtual game platform designed to keep students connected and engaged, even when scattered across locations. 

Brightful offers a variety of social and creative games like "Would you rather" or "Describe it" — perfect for icebreakers, team building, and fostering a sense of community in online classes. It complements traditional learning by adding a layer of social interaction that can sometimes be missing in remote environments.

While Brightful can certainly be used in the classroom, it also excels as a faculty team-building tool. It's a great way to bring everyone closer together on your next Zoom or Microsoft Teams call while adding a bit of fun and excitement to the calendar invite. 

Here's a glimpse of how Brightful stacks up against Kahoot!:

4. Quizlet

Great for: Studying

When it comes to interactive learning tools, Quizlet and Kahoot! stand out as two popular choices among students and educators alike. But Quizlet offers tons of cool features to help students master information on their own time. 

Quizlet’s extensive database of user-created flashcards, quizzes, and study sets cover a wide range of subjects, from baking fundamentals to biochem. This technology enhanced learning experience adds the same interactive element as Kahoot! while bringing a serious study element to the table. The focus here is less on fun, lighthearted quizzes and more on understanding and retaining important information. 

Here's how Quizlet’s top features compare to Kahoot!’s:

5. Acadly

Great for: Project-based learning

Kahoot! is the king of fast-paced quizzes, but what if you want to go beyond the basics and delve into project-based learning?  

This is where Acadly steps in. Acadly is an interactive presentation and assessment platform that empowers educators to create rich learning experiences. This all-in-one tool allows teachers to take morning attendance, run real-time polls, quizzes, and Q&As, and upload full lessons and resources with ease. 

Students can also take advantage of Acadly with its easy-to-use drag-and-drop interface, ability to embed videos and images, and even branching scenarios that let them choose their own learning path. 

While Kahoot! is great for quick reviews, Acadly allows students to explore information in a more comprehensive and engaging way:

6. Beekast

Great for: Brainstorming and collaboration

Whereas Kahoot! focuses on testing knowledge, Beekast is all about creating it. This inclusive teaching platform boasts a suite of tools designed to spark creative brainstorming sessions, collaboration, and real-time engagement. 

Create a dynamic learning environment with mind maps to capture ideas visually, facilitated Q&As, and even real-time voting and feedback. Beekast is perfect for group projects, brainstorming activities, and fostering a sense of shared responsibility in the classroom.

Here’s a quick breakdown of how Beekast can serve as an alternative to Kahoot!:

7. Blooket

Great for: Adaptive learning

Blooket offers classroom games similar to Kahoot! but combines them with additive difficulty so students can level up at their own pace. Questions are based on student performance, so they’ll get harder or easier depending on how they’re doing. It’s basically teaching on auto-pilot. 

Blooket tailors the learning experience to each student, making it a fantastic choice for classrooms with mixed skill levels. Plus, it adds a layer of strategy and mastery to reviews, keeping students motivated as they collect power-ups and rewards to build their virtual educational arsenal.

If you’re considering Booklet, here’s a quick glance at how it compares to Kahoot!:

8. Gimkit

Great for: Review and practice

Gimkit is basically a learning computer game with Kahoot!-like quizzes built in. It offers a similar gamified experience where students answer questions to earn in-game cash, which they can use to buy power-ups and upgrades for their avatars. 

Unlike Kahoot!’s live quiz show approach, Gimkit is better suited for review and practice sessions. Its adaptive learning system offers tailored practice sessions for individual students so they can still learn at their own pace with added incentives. 

Here’s how this Kahoot! alternative stacks up:

9. Baamboozle

Great for: Young learners

Kahoot! is a blast for older students, but for younger learners, it can be a bit overwhelming. Enter Baamboozle, a simpler, more accessible alternative designed specifically for little ones.  

This platform focuses on live quizzes and interactive polls, keeping things engaging without the flashy graphics or complex features of Kahoot!. Bamboozle offers a variety of question formats, including live polls and word clouds, perfect for gauging understanding and fostering participation in a way that's tailored to younger attention spans.

Here’s why Baamboozle may be a better choice for little learners:

10. Slides With Friends

Great for: Collaborative presentations

While Kahoot! makes it easy for educators to drive student engagement and friendly competition, Slides With Friends puts students in the conductor’s seat. This interactive presentation platform allows students to create and deliver presentations together, fostering teamwork and communication skills.

But Slides With Friends isn’t your basic PowerPoint presentation. With options to add live polls, facilitated Q&As, and even word clouds, this Kahoot! competitor lets students take ownership of their learning and present information in a dynamic and engaging way. 

If you want to get your students involved in the actual presentation, Slides With Friends may be better suited for you:

Better engagement, better learning

We can see that there are plenty of options aside from Kahoot!, but if you’re looking to get away from the flashy colors and childlike themes, look no further than Mentimeter. 

Mentimeter offers a more mature approach to engagement, allowing educators to create dynamic presentations, quizzes, and polls that captivate students' attention while fostering active participation and comprehension.

From helping every student feel part of a large lecture to assessing progress with easy quizzes and polls, learn how Mentimeter can boost learning outcomes for your students.