2.1/5
Trustpilot rating
customer reviews
Report
Should I Use PowerSchool?
Depends
DependsBuy only if you run a large K-12 district needing a full SIS suite with dedicated admin staff.
Market-leading K-12 SIS for big districts; heavy, breach-scarred, and overkill for small schools.
Confidence: Medium
From $7/student/mo
Starting price
SIS, per Software Advice
4,024 orgs
Adoption
tracked PowerSchool users
$5.6B
Acquisition
Bain Capital, 2024
Value for money
2
Per-student fees balloon with modules
Ease of use
3
G2 praises ease; teachers complain
Feature depth
5
Broadest K-12 suite: SIS, LMS, enrollment
Support quality
2
2.1/5 Trustpilot; complaint threads abound
Security posture
1
Major 2024 breach; missed basic controls
Pros
Cons
Gotchas
- highDec 2024 breach triggered class-action lawsuits; expect security scrutiny in procurement
- highMid-size implementations reportedly drag on for years and burn out staff
- mediumPer-student pricing ($5-15/mo) plus module fees; real totals are opaque
- mediumHigh switching costs lock in even dissatisfied districts
Best for
- Large K-12 districts
- Multi-school systems wanting SIS + LMS from one vendor
- Schools with dedicated IT/registrars
- Districts prioritizing parent engagement
Not for
- Small schools — far too heavy and costly
- Non-K-12 buyers (tutors, training businesses)
- Teams without dedicated SIS admin staff
- Anyone needing a fast, low-pain rollout
Companies that use it
- Excell Academy
Pricing
SIS entry plan
From $7/student/month
- Core student information system
- Single plan listed by Software Advice
Full range with modules
$4.95-$30/student/month
- Varies by modules and school size
- Add-ons: LMS, enrollment, finance
Security
Major Dec 2024 breach exposed student/teacher data; active XSS CVE; basic security step reportedly missed.
- December 2024 data breachThreat actor accessed student and teacher data; class-action lawsuits and criminal charges followed.⁶
- CVE-2026-12425Reflected cross-site scripting flaw in PowerSchool Employee Access Center.⁷
- Missed basic security stepPrivate assessments found a missed basic security step enabled the hack, per NBC News.⁸
What users say
Reviews split sharply: G2 reviewers praise ease of use while Trustpilot raters (2.1/5) and many teachers on Reddit report frustration.
“PowerSchool is by far the best one.”
“Do Teachers think powerschool sucks?”
Alternatives
Compare PowerSchool with each alternative.
Infinite Campus
Common SIS swap among districts leaving PowerSchool
Skyward SIS
Top-rated PowerSchool alternative on Gartner
FACTS SIS
Frequent head-to-head competitor for faith-based schools
PowerSchool vs FACTS SISNavEd
Lighter option pitched directly at small schools
PowerSchool vs NavEdFull analysis
Based on 50+ public sources: review sites, Reddit, breach disclosures, CVE databases, and pricing pages.
Sources
- Read Customer Service Reviews of powerschool.comtrustpilot.comreview
- PowerSchool SIS Reviewsg2.comreview
- PowerSchool SIS Reviews, Pricing & Featuressoftwareadvice.comreview
- Do Teachers think powerschool sucks?reddit.comreview
- PowerSchool Cybersecurity Incidentpowerschool.comsecurity
security
- CVE-2026-12425 Detailnvd.nist.govsecurity
- PowerSchool hack: missed basic security stepnbcnews.comnews
- Bain Capital Completes $5.6B Acquisitionmarketbrief.edweek.orgnews
- K-12 Student Information Systempowerschool.comofficial
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