Pearspark vs Alma SIS
For small private schools & micro schools · pricing verified July 2026 · written by the Pearspark team (how we compare)
The short answer
Alma is a modern K-12 SIS with strong reviews and customized per-school pricing — you request a quote. Pearspark publishes its price ($50/month including 20 students, then $2.50/student stepping down to $1.00 at volume), sets up self-serve, and bundles library, volunteers, and equipment booking — a fit for small private schools.
Pearspark
All-in-one platform for small private schools — records, academics, admissions, library, volunteers, scheduling, portal.
Pricing: $50/mo including 20 students, then $2.50/student/mo stepping down to $1.00 at volume. No setup fees, no contract.
Alma SIS
A modern, well-reviewed K-12 SIS serving independent, charter, and district schools.
Pricing: Alma prices by customized package per school or district — no published list price (as of July 2026). Reviewers frequently describe it as affordable for what it includes.
What each costs at small-school sizes
| Students | Pearspark | Alma |
|---|---|---|
| 25 students | $62.50/mo | Quote required |
| 50 students | $125/mo | Quote required |
| 100 students | $250/mo | Quote required |
Alma does not publish pricing; figures shown are the best public information we could verify as of July 2026 — see sources below. Always confirm current pricing with the vendor.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Pearspark | Alma |
|---|---|---|
| Student records (SIS) | ||
| Attendance | ||
| Gradebook & report cards | ||
| Standards-based grading & mastery | ||
| Records protected if the school closes | ||
| Transcripts & GPA | ||
| Missing-data reports & scheduled delivery | Partial | |
| Admissions pipeline | ||
| Class scheduling & rooms | ||
| Lending library & checkout | ||
| Equipment & room booking | ||
| Volunteer tracking & check-in | ||
| Parent & student portal | ||
| Messaging | ||
| Self-serve transcript & gradebook import | ||
| Tuition billing & payments | ||
| Published pricing (no sales call) |
= varies by plan or not published — check with the vendor. We mark unknowns as unknowns rather than counting them against Alma. Underlined feature names open the Pearspark page for that capability, so you can check what our ✓ actually means.
Where Alma shines
- Modern, well-designed interface teachers tend to like
- Strong reviews on ease of use and support
- Scales from single independent schools to districts and even state level
Worth knowing
- No published pricing — buying starts with a demo and a quote
- Built for a broad K-12 market, not specifically for micro-school workflows
- No volunteer-tracking or equipment-booking module in its published feature list, and no built-in lending library — Alma lists library management as an integration with Follett Destiny, a separate system the school buys and runs
When Alma is the better choice
Alma fits an independent or charter school growing past a couple hundred students that wants district-grade state reporting and has time for a proper procurement cycle. It's a well-reviewed modern SIS; the trade is quote-based pricing and a footprint sized well past what a 20-student school needs.
When Pearspark is the better choice
Pearspark is built for small private schools — from a dozen students to several hundred: micro schools, classical schools, Montessori programs, hybrid academies, and homeschool co-ops. Everything is included at one published price: student records, a spreadsheet-style gradebook with built-in student analytics (trends, score distributions, missing-work tracking), report cards, printable transcripts with GPA, school-year attendance calendars, admissions, class scheduling, tuition billing with online payments, a lending library with barcode checkout, equipment booking, volunteer check-in, messaging, and a parent/student portal. Setup is self-serve, and built-in migration tools import your rosters, transcripts, and gradebooks from Alma CSV exports with a dry-run preview.
The parts this comparison turns on
Common questions
How much does Alma cost compared to Pearspark?
Alma doesn't publish pricing — packages are customized per school, so you'll need a demo and quote. Pearspark's full price is public: $50/month including 20 students, then $2.50/month per additional student (volume bands to $1.00). A 40-student school pays exactly $100/month, no quote needed.
Can I migrate from Alma to Pearspark?
Yes. Export rosters, transcripts, and gradebooks to CSV from Alma and use Pearspark's built-in import tools — every import shows a dry-run preview of what will be created before anything is written.
Who should pick Alma over Pearspark?
Charters with state compliance reporting needs, or anyone standardizing across multiple large campuses. Pearspark is purpose-built for the small private school that wants everything in one place at a flat published price.
See Pearspark for yourself
Poke around a real school — admin, teacher, and parent views — no sales call. Sample data resets daily.
Sources
- Alma (getalma.com)
- Capterra: Alma SIS
- Alma solutions (102-feature list)
- Alma integrations (library = Follett Destiny)
- Alma school features (validations, custom reporting)
Last reviewed July 2026. Spotted something out of date? Email us and we'll fix it.