Kangarootime

Pros

I like that the app and the website have the same set up and system functionality. It was easy as a parent to use the system, once I was set up into it. Payments were a breeze in the system, as well. The check in system was helpful and secure.

Cons

The pictures would glitch and freeze in the app, even when properly updated. On the website version of the software, once pictures were in the system for more than a week, they were unable to be opened.

Pros

This software has features that allow childcare centers to communicate with families as well as send pictures of their children.

Cons

The app does not notify families when a photo has been sent and our teachers find it difficult to manage the "rooming" feature. The function of tagging children in photos seems to be more difficult and has more steps than other apps that I have used in other daycare centers.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

I really like that you can tell the parents everything about their child's day, daily! It's nice to be able to communicate with them using the messaging portion of the app as well.

Cons

There are some aspects of Kangarootime I would change. For Education: When uploading pictures, it would be nice to be able to upload more than 2-3 pics at a time. Also, I would love to see more "milestone" options to click when observing what they learned.

Pros

That it is all inclusive for out industry. Billing, daily reports for children, employee time cards, etc.
The customer service is fantastic. I really love this program!

Cons

I don't have any cons about this software. The cons that I did have they have corrected or are in them process of fixing.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

The excellent customer support we always receive. And the fact that they take our ideas and implement them the best they can.

Cons

Invoices don't go through like they are supposed to on some families. Which causes frustrations.

Pros

I like that we can send mass emails to all of the parents at the same time, the children's dailies can be sent electronically, pictures can be taken of the children for the parents to see daily, can keep an up to date account of the parents tuitions.

Cons

Our parents have had some issues with the app and setting up their accounts. We have also had issues with the charges

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Switched From

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

I like the ease of use for our parents and our Staff. We like that it allows the administration staff to see the staff to child ratio at all times.

My favorite feature is the automation of the billing cycle. I do not have to push a button every week to push the invoices out and I do not have to run parents payments.

Cons

That we can not add both parents at registration. We can only add one and they have to invite the other parent, this has caused some issues with some families.

Pros

I love the Point of Care app, which is an upgrade from the K1 website. Moving teachers from room to room is easy, and communication with the buildings various populations is much easier on K2!

Cons

Our parents don’t seem to love it as much as K1.

Pros

The ease of Kangarootime. Easy to communicate with parents. Check in for parents is fast and easy.

Cons

Once in awhile you run into a glitch. Sometimes families are not able to check in their child.

Pros

I like the ease, and the communication that we can provide to our families.

Cons

The only thing that I dislike is when you change and invoice, and its stops the auto payments from going through.

Pros

Kangarootime makes daily operations easier. I can check attendance to see how many kids I am expecting. Staff and parents can communicate during the day through the messaging app. Multiple people can be included in a message through a feature to message an entire classroom or the entire center! Billing is done right through the app; parents setup automatic payment through their bank account or credit card so weekly all I need to do is verify the charges. Parts of billing can be confusing like when charges for next week are visible to the parent. It is easy to identify children with allergies because a yellow ring appears around their "face". Parents can put contact information into the app which makes it easier for staff to contact parents.

Cons

I wish the messages part of the software could be organized, for instance sort messages into different folders; or filter by date or classroom or search word. It is time consuming to sort through an inbox to find what you are looking for.

Pros

I use the childcare aspect of the software. It is easy to use once you know how it works. The communication between the parents and teachers is wonderful. It's easy to use especially for the parents. Billing is easy to use also. I like seeing the centers and which children are in the room and how many. It's very helpful. Signing in for the day is easy and if someone forgets to punch in or out, it's easy to correct. All the different features are easy to use and very helpful. If I'm not sure how to do something Kagarootime does respond in a timely manor.

Cons

The scheduling app is not that friendly. But it is getting better. Also it doesn't update quickly when checking in/ out children, I'm always refreshing it.

Pros

I really appreciate the classroom and daily note sections of KT as well as the messaging features.

Cons

It would be nice to be able to move employees in between facilities and have the immunization section easier to input informmation.

Pros

User-friendly interface. If the report isn't there, Kangarootime will create it for you.

Cons

There could be more beneficial information in there on a 'dashboard' that pulls metrics on a daily basis. I believe K2 will be able to do this.

Pros

We can't believe how much time we have reclaimed since beginning with KT. The parents love the real time updates and the staff loves the visual cues and intuitive use. I love that parents can pay online and I now receive over 90% of tuition in the first week of each month!

Cons

Wishing I could upload a word document right into class notes so that we can upload flyers and lesson plans.

Pros

I like the ease of looking up children, family information, and all accounts are put together.

Cons

There are options that could be improved or some are missing. Sometimes (especially on the parent end), the software glitches.

Pros

I like that I can set up the billing process and leave it to run everything.

Cons

Pulling reports is a bit trying. Putting in an excel doc instead of just giving info needed. After getting the excel spreadsheet, I then have to manipulate it to get the exact info I need out of all the info it gives me.

Pros

It's slick looking and has all of the pieces you'd want as a parent of a child in daycare. Photos, notes, messages, check in/out

Cons

No notifications other than messages. Other apps will allow push notifications for all updates provided by the facility and this one doesn't. Also, on the activity feed, there is no time stamp. It rounds up/down to the closest hour (e.g. "about an hour ago") instead of saying "38 minutes ago" which is pretty useless when I need to know when the next meal or nap is due.

Pros

The ability to digitally communicate with clients/parents/coworkers, upload and store photos, and share special milestones

Cons

There are some bugs to work out from time to time but their customer service team is very responsive and always willing to take suggestions

Pros

Helps with handling billing and payments

Cons

Needs a home button on all pages. Some features are hard to use or find.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

What I like most about the software is the tracking and reporting ability for anything we might need.

Cons

What I like least about this software is some of the functions require lots of steps that sometimes I forget.

Pros

I love that I can digitally communicate with parents throughout the day to send photos, anecdotes, and reminders. It has changed how we communicate with them and eliminates all of the unnecessary paperwork.

Cons

There are still some bugs to work out but I can see that the team is working hard to make improvements

Pros

I like the Customer service most about this software.

Cons

I like the billing Features least about this software.

Pros

The ability to see who has checked in and when

Cons

Parents have a hard time setting up or editing profiles

Pros

I like having all of the parent communication piece and my management piece in one software. like being able to look at what the teachers are inputting.

Cons

Not having the Employee section ready and not having the Federal Food Program forms ready. Right now not being able to sumbit this form

Pros

I like the messaging feature. It makes it easy to communicate with parents and staff.

The customer support is wonderful, especially Eric. He is my go-to guy!

Cons

I wish there was an easy way to receive a notification on the Admin side. I know parents receive a notification when they have a message, it would be nice if Admin could receive a notification on their phone or computer when they have a new message. Often, I am away from my desk, so this would make it easier.

Pros

Kangarootime has truly transformed our childcare facility's operations, especially in maintaining proper ratios. With its seamless interface, we've seen a remarkable increase in monthly finances as we efficiently collect payments and empower parents with financial control. The platform's reporting tools are excellent.

Cons

The admin dashboard could improve its view of student-teacher messaging. Increase/enhance employee-focused reports.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Switched From

Pros

I love how easy it is to input your classroom's daily happenings. It's very user-friendly to check kids in and out and move them from one class to another.

Cons

I don't like that we can't message one class at a time. You can either message the whole school or a single child but you can't select classes to message.

Pros

Their support and staff are incredible. They go out of their way to help and listen to any concerns or suggestions.

Cons

I sometimes need forms or documents that cannot easily be generated.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

I'm not a tech guy AT ALL. Even found it easy to use

Cons

not able to send videos (BUT THEY ARE ABLE WHEN K2 DROPS)

Pros

Parents love the updates on the app, pictures are easy to see, and it shows each days report. Billing is much easier and auto pay can be turned on and you will see detailed messages if payments are returned, pending or failed with an explanation. Multiple parents can be set as primary guardian and can get message notifications.

Cons

You cannot send individual messages to the staff.

Pros

Kangarootime is always there for me and my team whenever we have questions or need a solution! Kangarootime is always thorough and makes sure that their customers are happy and able to run their school as safe as they possibly can!

Cons

Right now my biggest complaint with Kangarootime would be that Point of Care can only be used on a tablet or Mac (able to get the app). My work computer is a desktop and I do not always have access to a tablet. I wish that Point of Care was able to be accessed on the computer AND tablet! I love that there is an app, just wish there was an option for admin. who do not always have access to a tablet.

Pros

I love how Kangarootime is a multi-functioning app! I can process billing, maintain attendance records, keep contact information for all families, manage a healthy communication system with families, send photos to families and manage a secure keyless entry system for entry into my center.

Cons

I don't have much negative feedback on Kangarootime. Overall, I am very pleased with the service.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

How much customer support comes with the company and how easy it is to use.

Cons

I will when we receive messages from families we received an email stating they messaged us.

Pros

I love that I can track a child's immunizations and records easily and know who is out of date for shots.
Having the messaging system between teachers and parents help without having to answer the phone during class.

Cons

That we only have the ability to onboard one parent when registering a family.
There's no way of searching old messages by sender or topic. We have to go through pages of days to find an older message.

Pros

That it is very user friendly. Customer service is outstanding when needing help.

Cons

Not being able to have an app for admin and not being able to get message notifications.

Pros

-Customer Service: [sensitive content hidden] was and is excellent. He has helped our company (6 childcare sites) set up Kangarootime and get everything started at each location. He is always available and has been beyond patient with us learning the new technology so we can meet our families needs. [sensitive content hidden] goes above and beyond!

Cons

-Ease of use at times for teachers in POC
-Technology disruptions within the app--cannot provide accurate info to needed personnel due to this
-Messaging feature-crashes and lose message

Pros

Customer service is top notch. We have enjoyed working with the KT team and look forward to our continued partnership. The platform is simple to use for the end user. The apps work great and the reporting is better than any we have seen.

Cons

There have been some hiccups as we work on making the system work for us. However, KT's customer support has worked with us nonstop on addressing any concerns we have.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

This is the first software program that our center has used. The billing and auto pay is wonderful! There are a lot of options so that we can personalize the billing. I never have any past due accounts with online & auto pay. This is also a good tool to share daily information and pictures with the parents. One of the things I like most about Kangarootime is the people. Customer service is very responsive and helpful in finding answers to questions and problems. They also listen to the needs of the customer and add needed features into the software.

Cons

My older teachers have struggled to learn to use the program. The user interface isn't as intuitive as it could be.

Pros

As a childcare director - it was very important to me to have a program that the parents feel included. KangarooTime helps us communicate effectively with our parents, and organize our tuition and paperwork. We love the checking in and out feature.

Cons

There needs to be an admin / staff app instead of fully web-based. The interface of the daily reports (circles in circles) is not user-friendly. Billing is too complicated.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Switched From

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

Software gives our Administrators constant visibility to room attendance and staffing. Parents love the smartphone app and the ability to communicate directly with Teachers and Administrators. Teachers love how the software helps them easily enter updates on the children without having to type out full sentences on the tablet.

Cons

The software is relatively new so they are still adding and improving some functionality. Billing lacked some features that we wanted initially but they have been responsive to requests for improvements. Reporting is also limited but is expanding.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

Kangarootime maintains records - from financial to children/family files & attendance in one streamlined package. Because it is maintained in the Cloud, it is much more secure than paper documents in a physical location; however documents scanned & uploaded can be easily retrieved & printed by both school administration & parents.

Kangarootime is not a finished product. It continues to grow & change to accommodate users' needs.

Cons

Because Kangarootime was initially created for Daycare facilities, the billing structure is a bit different that the way our 10 month nursery school program bills. We have, however, managed a work around & the Support Staff are FANTASTIC!

Pros

We chose Kangarootime because it was a small company with a big heart. It has completed changed the way we bill and receive payments. It is the main reason we have the software.

Cons

We are disappointed in the messaging platform. We are used to constant contact and miss the ability to make beautiful emails. Only one attachment per email is frustrating.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

This is very user friendly and combines what we were using 2 or 3 softwares to do into one package. Our goal was to have better and more consistent communication with our customer base and this does it and more!

Cons

Dislikes would be not being about to put all the children to sleep at once in the rooming module, which I have reported to the company and this is coming as a change in the future.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Kangarootime

Reasons for Switching to Kangarootime

Pros

Kangarootime is a great software program to use in child care settings! Both staff and parents love utilizing the app. The app is great for communication, allergy updates, medical alerts, billing payments, and sending pictures. I love being able to see all the kiddos on my grouping screen throughout the day, as well as my staff.

Cons

There is nothing I don't like about KT! Everything is very user friendly, we enjoy using KT!

Pros

I like the ability to see the amount of children in the building and the amount of children enrolled.
As well as the ability to take pictures.

Cons

I don't like how outdated this software seems.
I compare to tadpoles and I like that Tadpoles is particular with the tablets that can be used for their software and the tablets take phenomenal pictures. The quality of pictures sent home are a disappointment.
I do like the way the pictures come out when teachers log into Kanagrootime from their phone. I just feel like the software is so outdated. I always think that when it comes to billing there's no way to fix a mistake. No easy way. I think it's silly to have to "credit" or add line instead of delete a billing mistake.
I don't like how glitchy the app is. If I look through my gallery and keep scrolling it crashes.
I don't like how I have to explain to parents to view the breakdown of their billing on the browser because the app does not offer it.
If a child is "tagged" in a photo with other children (group photo) that photo shouldn't be able to be downloaded. That's another thing I love about Tadpole and how up to date it is with technology. as a mother, I would be very upset if someone posted my child on their social media without my consent.

Pros

I like how easy it is to communicate with the parents! The parents love it too. Also billing is easy and understandable for the most part! Customer Service is also AMAZING!!! They have helped so much and made it a very easy experience!

Cons

I feel there are a few things with Billing that I wish were a little more user friendly!

Pros

I LOVE That this program is easy to access and that the staff at Kangarootime are so available to help and assist with any questions, concerns or suggestions that you may have!

Cons

I wish that we were able to move staff from center to center without having them recreate a new account. My understanding is that it will come in Kangarootime.

Pros

One stop shopping without extensive software purchases - this software combines a childcare center database, daily reporting app for parents, document manager, child attendance, employee timecard, parent and staff messaging, billing and merchant service (payments), reporting/analytics

Cons

Billing is not intuitive and difficult to learn. It does not integrate easily with our accounting software (quickbooks). Check in/out module can be difficult to use on a tablet due to small size of icons (recommend using the largest tablet you can afford, otherwise icons are tiny). Software does not allow admin to restrict staff to a certain IP address, meaning staff are clocking in/out from anywhere (potential for abuse if staff are clocking in from the parking lot, etc.)

Pros

This software is very easy to use. It gave us a way to communicate with our parents efficiently and effectively. The parents are able to see how their child's day has been as it's happening in the classroom. Collecting payments from parents has become easier since everything is done through the app and they receive invoices daily. As a administrator of three sites I like being able to see what is happening at all three locations while not having to be on site.

Cons

While in the rooming setting it is often hard to see the child's pictures in each classroom. It would be nice to have those enlarged. We would also like to have the guardians face flashing on the child instead of the bouncing kangaroo so we know exactly who is picking up the child without having to take a couple extra steps.