7 Best Homeschool Activity Tracking Apps in 2026 (Honest Comparison)

Whether your state requires detailed homeschool records or you simply want to remember all those beautiful learning moments, having a reliable activity tracking app can make your homeschool life significantly easier. The right tool helps you meet legal requirements, build impressive portfolios, and — perhaps most importantly — spot educational patterns you might otherwise miss. When you can look back and see how a spontaneous trip to the tide pools sparked a month-long marine biology unit, you start to appreciate just how much learning is really happening.

We tested and compared the most popular homeschool activity tracking apps available in 2026. Here is our honest breakdown of seven options, covering everything from AI-powered photo documentation to detailed traditional record keeping.

1. Homeschool Moment

Best For: Photo-based documentation with AI

Homeschool Moment takes a refreshingly modern approach to homeschool documentation. Instead of filling out forms and spreadsheets, you simply snap a photo of your child's learning activity and let AI do the heavy lifting.

• AI-powered photo descriptions — Take a photo and the app automatically generates a detailed caption describing the learning activity, saving you time and capturing details you might forget.
• Automatic subject categorization — The AI recognizes subjects like math, science, art, and language arts from your photos, organizing your records without manual tagging.
• PDF portfolio generation — Export beautiful, organized portfolios filtered by child, subject, or date range, ready for state reviews or grandparents.
• Multi-caregiver support — Multiple family members can capture moments for the same children, so grandparents, co-op teachers, and both parents can contribute.
• Privacy-first design — Photos and data stay private and are never used to train AI models.

Pricing: Free tier (5 entries per month), $12/month, or $99/year for unlimited entries.

Pros: Best AI integration of any homeschool app, incredibly easy to use (just take a photo), strong privacy protections, and multi-caregiver support is perfect for families where both parents teach.

Cons: As a newer app, it is still building out features. No built-in curriculum planning or lesson scheduling yet.

2. Strew

Best For: UK and international home educators

Strew is designed with the international home education community in mind, particularly families in the UK where the homeschool culture and terminology differ from the US. The name itself reflects the "strewing" philosophy of placing interesting materials in a child's path.

• Rolling activity feed — A social-media-style feed that makes logging activities feel natural and low-pressure.
• AI-generated summaries — Summarizes your logged activities into coherent reports, helpful for local authority reviews.
• Study points system — A unique gamification approach that helps visualize how much time and effort goes into different subjects.
• Multi-philosophy support — Built to accommodate Waldorf, Steiner, Charlotte Mason, Montessori, and unschooling approaches without forcing a one-size-fits-all structure.

Pros: Excellent for unschooling and child-led learning families, genuinely international-friendly with terminology and features that work outside the US system, and the rolling feed format feels modern and approachable.

Cons: Less focused on photo documentation compared to photo-first apps. As a newer app, some features are still being developed.

3. HomeTrail

Best For: Budget-conscious families

HomeTrail proves that you do not need to spend money to keep good homeschool records. This free platform offers the essentials without any paywalls or premium tiers.

• Photo and note capture — Document activities with photos, written descriptions, or both.
• Organized portfolios — Group and organize your records into portfolios for review or personal keepsakes.
• Simple, clean interface — No learning curve to speak of, which is a real plus when you are already juggling teaching multiple subjects.
• Free access — All core features are available at no cost.

Pros: Completely free with no hidden costs, simple enough for anyone to use immediately, and gets the basics right.

Cons: Limited AI features compared to newer competitors, fewer integrations with other tools, and the feature set is more basic overall.

4. Homeschool Tracker

Best For: Structured and traditional homeschoolers

Homeschool Tracker has been a staple in the homeschool community for over 20 years, and that longevity shows in the depth of its feature set. If you need granular record keeping, this is the tool that does it all.

• Detailed record keeping — Track attendance, grades, assignments, reading lists, field trips, and virtually every aspect of your homeschool day.
• Lesson planning — Plan your curriculum down to individual assignments with scheduling and reminders.
• Comprehensive reporting — Generate transcripts, report cards, and attendance records that satisfy even the strictest state requirements.
• Multi-student management — Manage records for multiple children with individual tracking and reporting.
• Resource library — Catalog and organize your curriculum materials, textbooks, and resources.

Pros: Extremely detailed and thorough, excellent for families in compliance-heavy states like New York or Pennsylvania, and the longest track record of any app on this list.

Cons: Steeper learning curve than simpler apps, the interface can feel complex and dated compared to newer alternatives, and the depth of features can be overwhelming if you just want simple documentation.

5. Homeschool Hall

Best For: Progress tracking and grade management

Homeschool Hall strikes a balance between simple activity logging and detailed academic tracking. It is particularly strong for families who want to monitor grades and ensure they are meeting state requirements.

• Activity journal — Log daily activities with descriptions and categorization.
• Custom progress tracking — Define your own learning goals and track progress toward them over time.
• State requirement monitoring — Awareness of state-specific homeschool requirements helps you stay compliant.
• Grade tracking — Built-in gradebook functionality for families who assign and track grades.
• Scheduled reports — Set up automatic report generation on a schedule that works for you.

Pros: Strong grade tracking tools, awareness of state-specific requirements is genuinely helpful, and scheduled reports save you from last-minute scrambles before reviews.

Cons: Less emphasis on photo-based documentation, so it may not be the best fit if you want a visual record of your homeschool journey.

6. Homeschool Panda

Best For: Community-oriented families

Homeschool Panda goes beyond record keeping to offer a comprehensive homeschool management platform with a built-in community component. If you want planning, tracking, and social connection in one place, Panda aims to deliver.

• Planning and record keeping — Create lesson plans, track activities, and maintain records in one unified system.
• Built-in community — Connect with other homeschool families, share resources, and find local groups.
• Calendar views — Visual calendar for scheduling lessons, field trips, co-op days, and other activities.
• Budgeting tools — Track your homeschool spending on curriculum, materials, and activities.
• Resource planning — Organize and plan which curriculum and resources you will use for each subject.

Pros: The built-in community feature is unique and valuable for families who feel isolated, comprehensive planning tools cover everything from lessons to budgets, and the all-in-one approach reduces the number of apps you need.

Cons: The sheer number of features can feel overwhelming, especially for families who just want simple activity tracking. A subscription is required for most useful features.

7. Notion or Trello (DIY Approach)

Best For: Tech-savvy families wanting full customization

Some families prefer to build their own tracking system using general-purpose productivity tools like Notion or Trello. This DIY approach offers maximum flexibility but requires more upfront work.

• Complete customization — Design your tracking system exactly the way you want it, with custom fields, views, and workflows.
• Free or low-cost — Both Notion and Trello offer generous free tiers that are more than sufficient for homeschool tracking.
• Flexible structure — Use databases, boards, calendars, or any combination that matches your family's style.
• Integration ecosystem — Connect with hundreds of other apps and services through built-in integrations.

Pros: Completely customizable to your exact needs, generous free tiers mean low or no cost, and you own your system design.

Cons: Requires significant setup time and technical comfort, no homeschool-specific features out of the box (you build everything yourself), no AI features for automatic categorization or descriptions, and no built-in portfolio generation.

How to Choose the Right App for Your Family

With so many options, choosing the right homeschool activity tracking app comes down to understanding your family's specific needs. Here are some questions to guide your decision:

• How do you prefer to document? If you are a visual person who loves capturing moments with photos, Homeschool Moment's AI-powered photo documentation will feel natural. If you prefer written logs, Strew's rolling feed or Homeschool Tracker's detailed forms might be a better fit.
• Where are you located? US-based families will find more state-specific features in apps like Homeschool Hall and Homeschool Tracker. UK and international families should seriously consider Strew, which is built for non-US home education contexts.
• What is your budget? HomeTrail is completely free. Notion and Trello offer generous free tiers. Most other apps offer free trials or limited free plans so you can try before you commit.
• How structured is your homeschool? Traditional, curriculum-based homeschoolers will appreciate Homeschool Tracker's depth. Unschoolers and relaxed homeschoolers will likely prefer Homeschool Moment or Strew's more flexible approaches.
• Do you want community features? If connecting with other homeschool families is important, Homeschool Panda's built-in community is a unique advantage.
• How much time do you want to spend on documentation? If your answer is "as little as possible," Homeschool Moment's snap-a-photo approach is hard to beat. If you enjoy detailed planning and record keeping, Homeschool Tracker or Homeschool Panda will give you all the depth you want.

The best homeschool tracking app is the one you will actually use consistently. We recommend trying two or three options from this list to find the one that fits your family's rhythm. Most offer free trials or free tiers, so you can explore without commitment.