Pros & Cons
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- Many uses, from business training to student learning
- Encourages interaction in a fun way
- Simple to use as a creator or player
- Players don't require an account
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- Strict 120-character limit in the question text field
- No auto-advance option; host must manually move to the next question or slide
- Participants' selection screen should be more detailed
Kahoot! Specs
| Some Courses Free | |
| User Created Classes |
To make a meeting, class, or lecture more engaging, it helps if people participate. Kahoot! is an online service that lets you create and host interactive content, which the site calls "Kahoots!" (In this review, we use "quiz" or "game" for clarity.) You can make quizzes, polls, or requests for feedback, and it's remarkably easy to use. We classify Kahoot! as an online learning tool because it's used for education and training. However, it differs from more traditional services due to its user-generated content and more casual vibe. Our Editors' Choice winners in the category are Khan Academy for academic subjects and MasterClass for inspiration from A-listers in their fields.
What Is Kahoot!?
With Kahoot!, you create, host, and play simple, quiz-style games directly in your web browser. The service has Android and iOS mobile apps, too, which double as remote controls for participants to use.
Kahoot! has three key areas: education, training, and engagement. Besides those serious use-case scenarios, you could also use it just for fun. For example, you could create a quiz to play at a baby shower and have all attendees participate simultaneously, using their mobile phones to enter their answers to each question.
(Credit: Kahoot!/PCMag)Kahoot! lets you play with people physically in the same room or remotely using a video calling app and its screen-sharing function. If you've played games on Jackbox.tv or interacted with a presentation using Slido, Kahoot! will feel familiar, depending on how you use it (more on that later). The primary difference between Jackbox and Kahoot! is that Jackbox is limited to games created by its team; Kahoot! uses your custom games and quizzes (or those created and shared by someone else).
Plans and Prices
Kahoot! has several plan types, depending on how you intend to use the tool. They fall into three categories: Education, Business, and Home.
Educators can utilize the free Basic plan, which accommodates up to 40 players or participants in any game. This plan is sufficient for a lone teacher who wants to try out Kahoot! or occasionally use it in the classroom. Paid plans cost between $48 and $299 per teacher per year. More advanced plans include AI tools and integration options for learning management systems. School administrators can also contact Kahoot! To ask about custom pricing for large school districts.
Business plans start at $468 per host per year (Kahoot! 360 Pro Plus) and go as high as $708 per host per year (360 Pro Max). The host is the person who creates the quiz or game content. There's also an enterprise account with custom pricing. The less expensive plan allows up to 1,000 participants per session, while the more expensive option supports 2,000. The 360 Pro Max tier also includes AI tools, the ability to add company branding, and the option to use Kahoot for commercial and advertising purposes (rather than in-house only).
(Credit: Kahoot!/PCMag)For personal (Home) use, you can use Kahoot! for free and create games that accommodate up to 10 people. Alternatively, you can pay to get more features and increase the player limit. Prices range from $36 to $240 per year.
Creating Quizzes and Games
Kahoot!'s interface will seem familiar if you've used presentation software like Apple Keynote, Google Slides, or Microsoft PowerPoint.
Creating a quiz is a straightforward affair. Initially, the app asks if you want to work from scratch or use a template. You can also make a quiz by uploading a PDF and letting Kahoot! extract questions from it. Alternatively, you can feed the system a topic, URL, or Wikipedia page and let its AI generate questions based on the material.
If you start from a blank canvas, you add questions one slide at a time. A text field at the top holds your question, though it's limited to 120 characters. In the center, you can place either a custom image or add a stock image from a connected library of royalty-free options. At the bottom, you choose what type of answer is possible, whether multiple choice or something else, and indicate the correct response when applicable. You can also adjust the amount of time respondents have to answer and the point value for the question.
Similar to a presentation app, each question you create appears on the left side rail in thumbnail view. If you have a free Kahoot! account, you can view which features are locked until you upgrade, as they are all indicated by an icon.
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As a creator, you can save your quizzes, organize them into groups, and view reports showing how many people completed them. Overall, it's fairly simple to get up and running with quizzes and games.
Exploring Kahoot!'s Content
In addition to allowing you to create custom quizzes, Kahoot! offers content for use in class or for entertainment purposes. On the education side, the site gives you filters for finding interactive content based on subject matter, content type, grade level, and language.
Among the branded content are several well-recognized names, such as Britannica, Disney, and National Geographic. Educators from around the world have also made some of their Kahoot! content available on the site to others.
If you're an educator considering using some of the preexisting Kahoot! content, you can quickly preview what it contains, which includes each question, possible answers, and the correct answer. That way, you can verify that the content is accurate and appropriate for your group. In testing, for example, I found a short quiz on legal versus illegal drugs that seemed to be for a general audience, until there was a question about a drug enforcement agency that doesn't exist in the U.S. That quiz was clearly developed for another region.
The Kahoot! Experience
To start a game, the host launches their quiz on a computer or laptop, and they can optionally project it to a screen for better viewing. Remote groups can use video chat apps such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Skype, or Zoom, and the host can share their content using the screen-sharing feature.
(Credit: Kahoot!/PCMag)To start, each person must have their own device and use the Kahoot! app or a mobile browser to load the website. In a nice touch, the players do not need to create a Kahoot! account. When the host begins, the first screen displays a PIN that every player must enter into Kahoot!, allowing everyone to join the same game.
Once everyone has joined, the host begins by showing the first question. Participants read the questions and, for multiple-choice questions, choose the image on their screen that matches the correct answer. You proceed similarly through all the questions. Some questions may have multiple ways to answer, such as selecting options in the correct order or typing a response.
The interface that players see could use improvement. See the image above for an example. The host's screen is on the left, and the players' screen is on the right. Although we appreciate that it's accessible, as it utilizes color and a geometric shape icon to help people choose the desired answer, it would be much easier to use if all possible answers were displayed in full. The way it's set up, the player must look between their device and the host's screen.
Another minor annoyance is that the host must manually click to advance the quiz. It would be nice to have an option to automatically move to the next screen after a few seconds.
Additional Features for Business Users
In addition to using Kahoot! to liven up meetings or to host training sessions, there's more that businesses can do with the service than simply make quizzes.
(Credit: Kahoot!/PCMag)For example, business users receive templates for surveys, brainstorming meetings, interactive presentations, and employee feedback polls. If you have an existing slideshow presentation, you can upload your deck and make it interactive by sprinkling questions throughout. Not every slide must have a question. You can ask for feedback at the end of a meeting, for instance, or ask participants to share their knowledge. Business users also get tools for tracking participation and engagement.
Kahoot! could be a valuable business tool for large companies that frequently use it, but it's not necessary for inserting the occasional question into a slideshow. Slido gets the job done for free in that use case. If you pay for presentation tools, there's a chance that they may already come with that option.
Final Thoughts
(Credit: Kahoot!)
Kahoot!
Kahoot! lets you create and host content that adds engagement to get-togethers, whether in the classroom, conference room, or living room, but it could benefit from some interface upgrades.