Google Classroom for Coaching Institutes: Is It Free, What It Costs, and an Alternative

Google Classroom at a glance

Sikhami wrote this comparison, and we make Sikhami, so please read it with that in mind. We checked every detail about Google Classroom on its own website on 18 October 2026. Prices and features change, so check them again before you decide. Google Classroom is a trademark of its owner; Sikhami is not connected with it.

Classroom is part of Google Workspace for Education. Teachers post assignments, grade them with rubrics and comment banks, and return marks. Quiz assignments are built in Google Forms, which can grade them automatically and send the grades to Classroom. Class files are saved in folders in Google Drive. The Classroom app works on Android, Chrome and iOS devices, and Classroom has no ads.

Students join a class through a class link, a class code or an email invite from the teacher.

Who can use it, and what is free

Google's Classroom help centre lists four groups who can use Classroom:

• Schools using Google Workspace for Education.
• Organisations using Google Workspace for Nonprofits.
• People over 13 with a personal Google Account. The age may vary by country.
• Any Google Workspace edition except Google Workspace Essentials.

Workspace for Education Fundamentals, which includes Classroom, has no charge for qualifying institutions. Google's rules say these are government-recognised, accredited K–12 schools and degree-granting higher-education institutions. Its list of organisations that do not qualify includes tutoring programmes, for-profit education companies, language schools and examination companies.

A private coaching institute usually fits those descriptions. Its teachers can still use Classroom with personal Google Accounts. Google's help pages list no fee for this, and they set the limits shown below. Google also says that in a school setting you must use a school-provided Workspace for Education account.

What the paid editions add

Education Plus is Google's paid edition, sold as a yearly subscription. Google's India page shows it as Contact for pricing. An institution needs Education Fundamentals before it can upgrade, and partners can set up a 60-day trial with 50 licences. Compared with Fundamentals, Google's comparison table lists:

• Meet calls for up to 1,000 people, instead of 100.
• Unlimited originality reports with peer comparison, instead of 5 per class.
• YouTube live streaming inside your domain, for up to 100,000 viewers.
• 20 GB more shared storage for each licence, on top of 100 TB for the institution.

Google also sells add-ons. Google AI Pro for Education shows ₹1,520.00 per user per month with a one-year commitment, or ₹1,824.00 per user per month billed monthly. Education Plus customers buying 50 to 999 licences get 25% off, which the page shows as ₹1,140.00. The Teaching and Learning add-on shows no price.

Google Classroom and Sikhami side by side

This table compares the two for a coaching institute. Each row uses facts we could confirm for both.

When Google Classroom is the better choice

• Your teaching runs on homework and written work. Classroom is built for assignments, rubrics, comment banks and returning marks, with files in Google Drive.
• You and your students already use Google accounts, Docs, Drive and Meet every day.
• You want quizzes made in Google Forms that grade themselves and send marks to Classroom.
• Some students use iPhones or iPads. Classroom has an iOS app as well as Android and Chrome apps.
• You are a qualifying school, and you want guardian email summaries and originality reports with Workspace for Education.
• You want a class tool with no ads.

When Sikhami is the better choice

Google's Classroom pages describe how to teach, set work and grade classes you already run. They do not describe selling a course or listing it for new learners. Sikhami covers those parts:

• You want to sell recorded courses. Set prices for 6 months, 1 year, 2 years or lifetime. Learners pay by UPI, card or net banking on the website, or through Google Play in the Android app.
• You want new learners to find you. Your institute and every course get a public page, and learners browse the categories you teach.
• You run classroom batches. A weekly timetable, attendance and a fee book with numbered receipts are free.
• You want certificates. A learner who finishes every lecture and passes every test gets a certificate of completion with its own verification page.
• Your lectures are on YouTube. Import a playlist as a free course and add tests.
• You want to know what you will earn. Before you save a price, Sikhami shows what you will receive per sale on the website and in the app.

Setting up and using Sikhami is free, with no subscription. It keeps a share only when a learner buys something paid online, and Google Play also takes its fee on purchases in the Android app. Batch fees are paid to you directly, and Sikhami takes nothing from them. See everything Sikhami's free LMS includes.

How to use Google Classroom and Sikhami together

You do not have to drop Classroom. Keep it for homework, and use Sikhami for courses and the office work.

1. Sign up on Sikhami, open Learning studio and choose New institute. Finish the Details tab and publish your institute.
2. Under Batches, create a batch for each class, with its weekly timetable and your Meet link.
3. Add students to each batch by their Sikhami username, and mark attendance after every class.
4. Under Fees, give each student a fee plan, and issue a receipt for every payment you collect.
5. Turn your recorded lessons into a video course, free or paid, and share its link in your Classroom stream.
6. Keep homework, written work and Google Docs in Classroom.

Our guides to a student attendance app and fee management software show these parts in more detail.

Questions to ask before you choose a class tool

• Does your institute qualify for the free education edition, or will you use personal accounts and their limits?
• How many students sit in your largest class?
• How long are your live classes, and does the meeting limit fit?
• Do you want to sell courses online, or do parents pay you directly?
• Who keeps attendance and fee records, and where?
• Do students study on Android phones with mobile data? Test one chapter on a real phone.
• Can you export students' work and marks if you move?

If you are also weighing Moodle, read our Moodle vs Google Classroom comparison.

Good to know before you start

• Sikhami has no homework hand-in, essay marking or shared documents. Its tests are multiple choice with one correct answer.
• Live classes are not hosted on Sikhami. Use Meet or Zoom, and keep the link in the batch.
• There is no parent login, and Sikhami sends no fee reminders.
• Students need a free Sikhami account to enrol, apply or join a batch.
• Sikhami does not give you your own app or your own web address.
• Video courses are made on the website. Batches, attendance, fees and your team also work in the Android app.