Best Ellucian Smart Plan Alternatives in 2026
The top Ellucian Smart Plan alternatives are EAB Navigate360, Civitas Advising and Watermark Student Success & Engagement: 15 academic advising software our editors would look at instead of Ellucian Smart Plan, in our ranking order.
Ellucian Smart Plan: A deep planning solution for Ellucian institutions managing complex student pathways. Where it falls short: pricing requires a contact-sales process.
Switching from Ellucian Smart Plan? For most academic advising software buyers the best Ellucian Smart Plan alternative is EAB Navigate360, built for institutions needing comprehensive advising and care. FlightPath has a free plan.
Why People Look for an Ellucian Smart Plan Alternative
- Pricing requires a contact-sales process
- Evaluation begins with a scheduled demo rather than a self-serve trial
- Its focus is academic planning and registration rather than broader advising workflows
Quick Picks by What You Need
- Best overallEAB Navigate3608.8
Institutions needing comprehensive advising and care
Visit EAB Navigate360 - Best free optionFlightPath7.5
Has a free plan
Visit FlightPath
All 15 Ellucian Smart Plan Alternatives, Ranked
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
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Best forInstitutions needing comprehensive advising and care
- Better than Ellucian Smart Plan:
- Editor score 8.8 vs 8.1
A comprehensive advising and care platform for institutions coordinating student success.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
8.8/10★★★★☆Visit EAB -
Best forInstitutions wanting mobile, collaborative advising
- Better than Ellucian Smart Plan:
- Editor score 8.6 vs 8.1
A connected advising workspace for institutions coordinating planning, alerts, outreach, and support.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
8.6/10★★★★☆Try Civitas Advising -
Best forInstitutions needing mobile student success tools
- Better than Ellucian Smart Plan:
- Editor score 8.4 vs 8.1
A broad advising and engagement suite for institutions prioritizing mobile student support.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree planning
- Student planning portal
8.4/10★★★★☆Visit Watermark -
Best forTeams needing practical student-success workflows
- Better than Ellucian Smart Plan:
- Editor score 8.2 vs 8.1
A broad student-success platform for coordinating alerts, advising, planning, and interventions.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree planning
- Student planning portal
8.2/10★★★★☆Visit EAB -
Best forInstitutions focused on alerts and advising operations
A strong fit for institutions prioritizing alerts, case management, and advising operations.
- Intervention workflows
- Early alerts
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Ellucian -
Best forInstitutions prioritizing integrated degree planning
A broad advising platform for institutions that want planning, alerts, workflows, and analytics together.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit Stellic -
Best forInstitutions needing broad planning and integrations
A broad advising system for institutions that need planning, audits, alerts, and integrations.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
7.7/10★★★★☆Visit CoreCampus -
Best forBudget-conscious institutions wanting open source
A flexible open-source option for institutions that need advising, planning, and degree audits.
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
- Student planning portal
7.5/10★★★★☆Visit FlightPath -
Best forInstitutions centered on retention interventions
A focused retention platform for alerts, advising cases, and intervention workflows.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree planning
- Student planning portal
7.2/10★★★★☆Visit ConexED -
Best forInstitutions focused on validated academic plans
A validated planning workspace for colleges and universities managing degree pathways.
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
- Student planning portal
7.1/10★★★★☆Visit CollegeSource -
Best forEnterprise degree-audit administration
A configurable degree-audit system for complex curricula, transfer work, and batch reporting.
- Degree audit
- Student planning portal
- Early alerts
7.0/10★★★★☆Visit CollegeSource -
Best forAdvising teams needing affordable retention workflows
A paid advising platform for scheduling, retention workflows, and multi-center student support.
- Intervention workflows
- Student planning portal
- Early alerts
6.9/10★★★☆☆Visit TracCloud -
Best forEnterprise degree audit and planning
A broad degree audit and planning suite for institutions using Ellucian and SIS systems.
- Intervention workflows
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit Ellucian -
Best forInstitutions focused on planning and analytics
A planning and analytics suite for institutions managing degree progress and advising risk.
- Degree audit
- Degree planning
- Early alerts
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit AdviseU -
Best forPeopleSoft institutions needing degree roadmaps
A PeopleSoft-focused planner for roadmaps, prerequisite checks, and what-if advising.
- Degree planning
6.4/10★★★☆☆Visit HighPoint
Ellucian Smart Plan Alternatives: Common Questions
What is the best alternative to Ellucian Smart Plan?
EAB Navigate360: #1 in our Academic Advising Software ranking, with an editor score of 8.8 out of 10. A comprehensive advising and care platform for institutions coordinating student success.
Is there a free alternative to Ellucian Smart Plan?
Yes. FlightPath has a free plan or a free tier.
Why do people look for Ellucian Smart Plan alternatives?
Pricing requires a contact-sales process; Evaluation begins with a scheduled demo rather than a self-serve trial; Its focus is academic planning and registration rather than broader advising workflows.
How do I switch from Ellucian Smart Plan?
Export your data from Ellucian Smart Plan (most tools have an export in their settings). Sign up for the alternative; start on its free plan or trial if it has one. Import your export and set up the integrations your team relies on. Run both side by side for a short while, then cancel Ellucian Smart Plan.
How to Switch from Ellucian Smart Plan
- Export your data from Ellucian Smart Plan (most tools have an export in their settings).
- Sign up for the alternative; start on its free plan or trial if it has one.
- Import your export and set up the integrations your team relies on.
- Run both side by side for a short while, then cancel Ellucian Smart Plan.
Ellucian Smart Plan vs Each Alternative
| # | Tool | Paid from | Degree audit | Degree planning | Early alerts | Intervention workflows | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Ellucian Smart Plan | Yes | Yes | 8.1 | |||
| 1 | EAB Navigate360 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8.8 | |
| 2 | Civitas Advising | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8.6 | |
| 3 | Watermark Student Success & Engagement | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8.4 | ||
| 4 | Starfish | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8.2 | ||
| 5 | Ellucian Advising | Yes | Yes | 8.0 | |||
| 6 | Stellic | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 7.8 | |
| 7 | CoreCampus | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 7.7 | |
| 8 | FlightPath | Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | 7.5 | |
| 9 | ConexED Retain | Yes | Yes | Yes | 7.2 | ||
| 10 | uAchieve Planner | Yes | Yes | 7.1 | |||
| 11 | uAchieve Degree Audit | Yes | Yes | 7.0 | |||
| 12 | TracCloud | Yes | Yes | 6.9 | |||
| 13 | Ellucian Degree Works | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 6.8 | |
| 14 | AdviseU | Yes | Yes | Yes | 6.8 | ||
| 15 | HighPoint Degree Planner | Yes | 6.4 |
Head-to-Head
- Ellucian Smart Plan vs EAB Navigate360
- Ellucian Smart Plan vs Civitas Advising
- Ellucian Smart Plan vs Watermark Student Success & Engagement
- Ellucian Smart Plan vs Starfish
- Ellucian Smart Plan vs Ellucian Advising
- Ellucian Smart Plan vs Stellic
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
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