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Google Classroom vs Totara Learn comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 19, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Google Classroom
Ranking in Learning Management Systems (LMS)
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Totara Learn
Ranking in Learning Management Systems (LMS)
10th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Learning Management Systems (LMS) category, the mindshare of Google Classroom is 2.8%, down from 6.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Totara Learn is 1.5%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Learning Management Systems (LMS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Google Classroom2.8%
Totara Learn1.5%
Other95.7%
Learning Management Systems (LMS)
 

Featured Reviews

Wafaa Salah - PeerSpot reviewer
Professor at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
User-Friendly Platform with Valuable Features but Needs Improvement in Pool of Questions and Statistics
The integration with Google Workspace is great because we have many tools such as Google Meet, Google Sheets, and Google Drive. However, the space is very limited. We purchased extra space until it reached 100 gigabytes. I have been using Google since having a Gmail account in 2001 when I was a student. Google Classroom allows me to make quizzes and assignments for students with random ordering, but I would appreciate having a pool of questions feature. For example, having 1000 questions and extracting 20 for each student would allow every student to have a different version. Currently, while using quizzes, every question appears to every student, though the order might differ. Adding the pool of questions would be beneficial. Having statistics while students take their exams would be helpful - showing how many students submitted, how many are in progress, and how many have not started the quiz. Having a log file to track students who opened documents would be valuable. In Moodle, I can see which students opened files, downloaded them, or watched videos. This feature is not available in Google Classroom, which is why I prefer other applications with more powerful statistics to trace student performance.
SK
Developer, Tech Lead at iT corner
Plug-and-play LMS and allows for separate instances for different organizations or departments
The look and feel is not good. Totara Learn needs to improve its look and feel and make it easier to use and more user-friendly. The interface is okay, but sometimes it's messy. Totara needs to improve the UI part as well and make it easier to use for the admin side. AI capabilities are in beta phase. I think they have implemented some AI features in the model, but right now, I'm not aware of what AI features have been implemented. So, Totara also needs to implement some AI things in the model, like suggesting courses according to users' needs or interests.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I like that Google Classroom is free and integrates with the entire Google Suite, which includes Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive, etc. I also like its flexibility, which makes it perfect for synchronous, asynchronous, and blended courses, and including live and archived webinars, as well as other kinds of content."
"I can see all the submissions in a central place."
"The product is easy to use."
"The most valuable feature of Google Classroom is security."
"Google Classroom is very effective for communication and excellent for assigning homework and resources."
"What I like about Google Classroom are the video lessons. I enjoy using it because it makes my life easier, for example, I can easily change my class and my lecture notes."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its performance."
"The features I found most valuable in Google Classroom are live chatting, sending messages, notifications, and accessing documents, which is very easy, simple, and user-friendly."
"The tool's deployment is not complex."
"The multi-tenancy features of Totara Learn are the most useful for training efficiency."
 

Cons

"Students used to have points that were accumulated and the letter grades, such as A's, B's, C's, et cetera. Google Classroom should add a feature by which you can toggle in between both of them. It's more than only accumulated points, which are not going to mean that much for students unless there's a prize at the end or some type of reward for the effort. However, if there's a way to toggle in between allocating points versus allocating a grade, it would be nice."
"The initial setup is not very easy. It has modern complexity."
"It would be helpful to add voice or audio capabilities to the classrooms instead of text only."
"There are certain things that I can do on PowerPoint that I cannot do on Google Presentations and Google Slides, such as using PowerPoint's animation feature, I have found that PowerPoint is generally more feature-rich and offers a wider range of tools that I can use to prepare and enhance my presentations."
"Technical support from Google has been very frustrating in unrelated areas like Google Pay and Google Wallet. It has been quite challenging, with unresolved tickets and a lack of response creating lots of frustration."
"I would like to see a master list of documents with folder names so that it is more convenient for students to know whether they have submitted a particular document. At present, you need to go to each classroom to check what you have submitted."
"The user interface of Google Classroom could improve by being more user-friendly."
"There can often be language barriers when you're not dealing with local technical support, which can be challenging."
"Totara Learn needs to improve the look and feel, and make it easier to use, more user-friendly."
"The challenge was understanding the entire solution, particularly its capabilities for managing training within a distributed organization. As part of a group of companies, some with training hubs and others working differently, the need for different tenants arose. This helps organize the training offerings centrally, addressing the challenge of a multi-tenant solution, which wasn't fully grasped initially."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We did not need a license to use Google Classroom."
"The solution is affordable."
"The price of Google Classroom has been reasonable."
"For Google Classroom, you don't need to pay for its license because they offer free access to the platform."
"I'm using a free version of Google Classroom, so it's a product I don't pay for."
"We are an educational institution, and it is free of charge for us. Normally, if you are a private company, you have to pay a lot of money to get this service, but they are giving it for free to schools."
"Google Classroom is a free solution."
"My child's school made payments on a subscription-based model to use Google Classroom."
"It's not expensive. It's user-based."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
22%
University
16%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Performing Arts
8%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Construction Company
7%
Insurance Company
7%
Media Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise10
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Google Classroom?
The product's UI is good and user-friendly.
What needs improvement with Google Classroom?
The integration with Google Workspace is great because we have many tools such as Google Meet, Google Sheets, and Google Drive. However, the space is very limited. We purchased extra space until it...
What is your primary use case for Google Classroom?
I'm not creating classrooms using Google Classroom, as I join courses that other professors have created. Our university works with Outlook and Teams, but I still use Google Classroom when joining ...
What needs improvement with Totara Learn?
The look and feel is not good. Totara Learn needs to improve its look and feel and make it easier to use and more user-friendly. The interface is okay, but sometimes it's messy. Totara needs to imp...
What advice do you have for others considering Totara Learn?
For people who need a highly scalable, multi-tenant LMS on a low budget, this is a good option. It's a very good option in the market, low-priced, and a very good LMS. Overall, I would rate it an e...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Totara Learn?
It's not expensive. It's user-based. If you want to plug in, you can use that plan. It's not expensive. I think it's around $100 or something if you want to use it. You can buy the system and imple...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Google Classroom is used in major urban school districts throughout the United States, including: * Los Angeles Unified School District * Chicago Public Schools * New York City Department of Education * Houston Independent School District * Miami-Dade County Public Schools * Dallas Independent School District * Broward County Public Schools * Clark County School District (Las Vegas) * Philadelphia School District
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Google Classroom vs. Totara Learn and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.