Jenzabar One is the default pick for most small private and community colleges that want one vendor for student records, finance, human resources, financial aid, and advancement, while Populi is the best low-cost switch for small colleges under 100 students. Only two of the eight systems in this list publish a price: Populi at $199 per month plus $9 per month per billable student, and Classe365 Core at $100 per month for 1 to 100 students. Ellucian completed its acquisition of the Anthology student information system and enterprise resource planning business on 31 December 2025, adding more than 260 customers, so Anthology Student now sits inside the Ellucian house.
Pick by enrollment first, then by how much of the campus you want on one system. A college with fewer than 250 students can run on a published monthly price, while a university with thousands of students will need a quoted enterprise contract and a migration plan. The eight systems below cover both ends of that range.
On this page
Jenzabar alternatives: comparison table
Swipe the table sideways on a phone to see every column.
| # | Name | Best for | Starting price | Free plan / trial | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jenzabar One | Small private and community colleges | quote only | No | Visit |
| 2 | Ellucian Student | Large public and midsize colleges | quote only | No | Visit |
| 3 | Workday Student | Large universities on Workday | quote only | No | Visit |
| 4 | Anthology Student | Existing Anthology campuses | quote only | No | Visit |
| 5 | Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions | Large universities with PeopleSoft | quote only | No | Visit |
| 6 | Populi | Small colleges and seminaries | $199 per month | No | Visit |
| 7 | Classe365 | Small schools and colleges on a budget | $100 per month for 1 to 100 students | Free trial (15 days) | Visit |
| 8 | Campus Cafe | Small and midsize colleges and career schools | quote only | No | Visit |
The 8 best jenzabar alternatives, in detail
Jenzabar One
Best for: Small private and community colleges
Jenzabar One is the named product in this search, and it stays a real option for the colleges it was built for. It combines student records, registration, advising, finance, human resources, financial aid, and advancement in one cloud platform. Jenzabar also offers SONIS for smaller institutions, which covers admissions, registration, grading, billing, and course management online.
- The trade-off is price transparency and project time.
- Jenzabar does not publish pricing, so a college must request a quote that names the modules, the number of users, implementation, training, and renewa
- Rogue Community College planned an 18-month implementation toward an August 2024 go-live.
- Choose Jenzabar One when you want one higher education vendor for a small or midsize campus.
Pros
- One cloud platform for Student, Finance, HCM, Financial Aid, and Advancement
- Jenzabar SONIS suits smaller institutions
- mobile portal for students
Cons
- No published price, so every budget needs a written quote
- implementation can run 18 months, as shown by the Rogue Community College plan
Ellucian Student
Best for: Large public and midsize colleges
Ellucian Student is the current name for the Ellucian software as a service student system, powered by Banner or Colleague underneath. Banner is typically found at larger public institutions, while Colleague is typically found at private and community colleges, and both sit beside Ellucian Finance and Ellucian Human Capital Management. Ellucian introduced this packaging at Ellucian Live in April 2025.
- The scale is the main draw and the main cost driver.
- One public university approved a five-year Ellucian Banner software as a service contract for $10,157,746 in July 2026, which shows the size of an ent
- Choose Ellucian Student when your campus is large and your reporting needs are heavy.
- Avoid it when you need a published price or a fast, light switch.
Pros
- Banner suits large public institutions and Colleague suits private and community colleges
- SaaS editions cover student, finance, and human resources
- Ellucian reports more than 2,800 customers
Cons
- No published price, so budgeting needs a written quote
- the Banner and Colleague choice adds a second decision before pricing
Workday Student
Best for: Large universities on Workday
Workday Student unifies recruiting and admissions, academic planning, registration, advising, student finance, and graduation on the same cloud core as Workday Financial Management and Workday Human Capital Management. Students get real-time visibility into their path, their courses, and their balances, and staff work from one set of records. That single-platform design is the reason a university already on Workday will look at Workday Student first.
- The limits are cost opacity and maturity.
- Workday does not publish pricing, and the student product is newer than the finance and human resources products, having launched in 2018.
- Workday said more than 650 higher education institutions had selected it and 85 were live on Workday Student in October 2025, so the live community is
- Choose Workday Student when your campus already runs Workday and you want one cloud platform for the whole institution.
Pros
- One cloud platform for student, finance, and human capital management
- mobile-first tools for academic planning and registration
- Workday reports more than 650 higher education institutions as customers
Cons
- No published price, so every deal is a custom quote
- Workday said only 85 institutions were live on Workday Student in October 2025, so peer references are still limited
Anthology Student
Best for: Existing Anthology campuses
Anthology Student is a configurable student information system for higher education, with student profiles, enrollment, academic records, transcripts, and a student portal. Its Finance and HCM products are built on Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations, and cover student accounts, grants, procurement, and payroll. For a campus already on Anthology Student, staying put avoids a full migration.
- The change to note is ownership.
- Ellucian completed its acquisition of the Anthology student information system and enterprise resource planning business on 31 December 2025, adding m
- That makes Anthology Student a sensible pick for an existing Anthology campus and a less clear pick for a new buyer, who should ask Ellucian in writin
- Choose it when you already run it and want continuity.
Pros
- Configurable student records, enrollment, academic records, and transcripts
- Finance and HCM built on Microsoft Dynamics 365
- student portal with account summary and transcript tools
Cons
- No published price, so costs come only in a written quote
- the business now sits with Ellucian after the 31 December 2025 acquisition, so the roadmap is no longer independent
Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions
Best for: Large universities with PeopleSoft
Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions is the long-running enterprise student system from Oracle, and it remains in wide use at large universities. It covers Campus Community, Recruiting and Admissions, Student Records, Academic Advisement, Financial Aid, Student Financials, Contributor Relations, and Campus Self Service. Oracle announced in October 2025 that it was the first student information system certified on the 1EdTech Edu-API standards.
- Oracle extended rolling support for PeopleSoft through at least 2037, so a campus on Campus Solutions 9.2 is not forced into a rushed move.
- A buyer should still ask Oracle to put the migration path to Oracle Student in writing, with dates and costs, before signing.
- Choose PeopleSoft Campus Solutions when your university already runs PeopleSoft and needs deep, proven student administration.
Pros
- Full student lifecycle from prospects through enrollment to alumni management
- Campus Solutions 9.2 covers recruiting, student records, advising, financial aid, and student financials
- PeopleSoft support extended through at least 2037
Cons
- No published price, so costs come only in a written quote
- on-premise heritage means cloud migration needs a separate plan and budget
Populi
Best for: Small colleges and seminaries
Populi is the clearest price in this list. The price is $199 per month plus $9 per month per billable student, with all of Populi, all updates, customer support, and implementation included. A billable student is a full-time, part-time, or auditing student who takes at least one course in a calendar month, so a 50-student college pays $649 per month and a 100-student college pays $1,099 per month.
- The plan is month-to-month, with no long-term contract.
- Populi includes 2,000 GB of file storage and 200 GB of data transfer per month, plus 50,000 emails and 5,000 text messages per month for United States
- Extra storage is 10 cents per GB per month, extra data transfer is 15 cents per GB per month, extra emails are 0.05 cents per recipient, and extra tex
- Choose Populi when your college has 10 to 2,500 students and you want one published price with no multi-year lock-in.
Pros
- Published price with month-to-month terms and implementation included
- one system for admissions, academics, financial aid, billing, and advancement
- 2,000 GB of file storage and 50,000 emails per month included
Cons
- Cost scales with every billable student, so a 100-student college pays $1,099 per month
- extra storage costs 10 cents per GB per month and extra texts cost 2 cents per recipient
Classe365
Best for: Small schools and colleges on a budget
Classe365 is a modular student management system for schools, colleges, universities, and academies, and its Core plan is the lowest published starting price in this list. Core costs $100 per month for 1 to 100 students, $250 per month for 101 to 250 students, and $500 per month for 251 to 500 students, with annual billing saving 10 percent. The Core modules cover academics, students and parents, teachers and administrators, assessment and grade book, transcripts, health records, messaging, social learning, administration, reporting, and apps.
- Each add-on module costs $75 per month, and the add-ons include CRM enrolment and forms, LMS, fee and invoicing, finance and accounting, e-commerce st
- The 15-day free trial gives access to all modules with no card required.
- Choose Classe365 when your institution is small and you only need Core plus one or two add-ons, since five add-ons at $375 per month can triple the Co
Pros
- Core plan at $100 per month for 1 to 100 students, with annual billing saving 10 percent
- 15-day free trial with access to all modules and no card required
- Core covers academics, grade book, transcripts, health records, messaging, and reporting
Cons
- Each add-on module costs $75 per month, so LMS, fee and invoicing, and finance add up fast
- onboarding bundle costs a minimum of $5,000 or $2 per student, whichever is higher
Campus Cafe
Best for: Small and midsize colleges and career schools
Campus Cafe is a single-database student information system for small and midsize colleges, universities, career schools, continuing education, and community colleges. It unifies admissions, student services, business office, and alumni development functions, with modules for recruitment, registration, transcripts, billing, career tracking, and attendance. The buying risk is scope.
- Campus Cafe prices by module and enrollment, and it does not publish a price list, so a buyer should ask for a written quote that names every module,
- Choose Campus Cafe when your college is small or midsize and you want one database for the whole student lifecycle.
- Compare it with Populi when price transparency matters.
Pros
- Single database for admissions, student services, business office, financial aid, alumni, and career tracking
- built for small and midsize higher education institutions
- company founded in 1986
Cons
- No published price, so every quote varies by enrollment and modules
- modular pricing means the scope must be confirmed in writing or costs can grow as modules are added
How we chose
We shortlisted systems that serve higher education student administration, cover admissions, registration, academic records, and billing, and are still sold and supported in 2026. We kept Jenzabar One in the list because it is the named product and a real option for its target colleges. We did not test any tool hands-on. Prices and plan limits come from official vendor pricing pages and product pages opened on 2026-11-12, and quote-only entries mean the vendor publishes no price list.
Which system fits your size and budget
| Institution size | Best starting point | Monthly cost to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Under 100 students | Populi or Classe365 | $199 plus $9 per student with Populi; $100 for Core with Classe365 |
| 100 to 500 students | Populi or Classe365 | $1,099 per month at 100 students with Populi; $250 to $500 per month for Core with Classe365 |
| 500 to 2,500 students | Populi, Campus Cafe, or Ellucian Colleague | Populi scales at $9 per student per month; Campus Cafe and Ellucian need a written quote |
| Over 2,500 students | Ellucian Student, Workday Student, or Oracle PeopleSoft | Quote only; one public five-year Banner contract was $10,157,746 |
Frequently asked questions
How much do Jenzabar alternatives cost?
Most enterprise systems in this list publish no price, so Jenzabar One, Ellucian Student, Workday Student, Anthology Student, Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions, and Campus Cafe are all quote only. Populi publishes $199 per month plus $9 per month per billable student, and Classe365 publishes Core at $100 per month for 1 to 100 students.
Which is the best Jenzabar alternative for a small college?
Populi is the best pick for most small colleges and seminaries, because it publishes its price, includes implementation, runs month-to-month, and covers admissions, academics, financial aid, billing, and advancement in one system. Classe365 is the best budget pick when you only need Core plus one or two add-ons. Jenzabar SONIS is worth a quote when you want a Jenzabar system sized for a smaller institution.
Which is the best Jenzabar alternative for a large university?
Ellucian Student is the best starting point for most large universities, because Banner suits large public institutions and Colleague suits private and community colleges, with finance and human resources beside the student system. Workday Student suits a university already on Workday, and Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions suits a university already on PeopleSoft with support through at least 2037.
Is Anthology Student still a separate company?
No. Ellucian completed its acquisition of the Anthology student information system and enterprise resource planning business on 31 December 2025, adding more than 260 customers, and said it will continue to maintain the existing systems. Existing Anthology campuses can stay, but new buyers should ask Ellucian in writing how Anthology Student relates to Banner and Colleague over the next five years.
How long does it take to switch student systems?
Published campus timelines for Workday, Jenzabar, and Ellucian projects mostly run 18 to 33 months from launch to full student go-live. Rogue Community College planned an 18-month implementation for Jenzabar One. Small colleges moving to Populi or Classe365 can move faster, but data migration and training still need a written plan.
Does Populi charge per student?
Yes. Populi charges $199 per month plus $9 per month per billable student, and a billable student is a full-time, part-time, or auditing student who takes at least one course in a calendar month. A 50-student college pays $649 per month and a 100-student college pays $1,099 per month. The plan includes 2,000 GB of storage, 50,000 emails, and 5,000 texts per month.
Sources
- https://www.jenzabar.com/
- https://www.jenzabar.com/jenzabar-one?r=cfo-eerp
- https://www.ellucian.com/products/ellucian-student
- https://www.workday.com/en-us/products/student/overview.html
- https://www.anthology.com/
- https://www.oracle.com/ae/applications/peoplesoft/
- https://populiweb.com/
- https://populiweb.com/pricing/
- https://www.classe365.com/
- https://www.classe365.com/blog/school-management-software-for-k-12-schools-what-features-do-you-actually-need/
- https://www.campuscafesoftware.com/
- https://campuscafesoftware.com/student-retention-sis/
Prices and features were read on each company’s own website in November 2026. They change often, so confirm the current offer on the official site before you sign up or buy.