Free Software for Education

Here are two lists of high-quality free/libre software applications that can be used in schools and educational institutions of all levels. The first one is a list of free/libre programs along with the popular proprietary (nonfree) applications they replace. The second one contains free/libre programs that do not necessarily replace a proprietary counterpart but can be very useful to students and teachers.

When we say these programs are free/libre, we mean they are released under a license that grants all users four essential freedoms: the freedoms to run, study, copy, modify and redistribute the program so as to contribute to the community. It does not necessarly mean zero price, although almost all these programs are gratis. This is a secondary additional benefit that schools may take into consideration.

Everyone should use free software, because only free software gives users the freedom that lets them control their own computers. Proprietary programs put the users under the power of the software developers. However, there are specific ethical reasons that apply to education.

In addition to the wrong of nonfree software, the use of third-party network services in schools poses yet another problem: the collection of students' (and teachers') personal data by companies. But even if the school never uses those services, one cannot be sure that the nonfree programs are not sending personal data somewhere. In fact, the source code of proprietary programs (with a few exceptions) is secret, so users can't know what the software is really doing.

Category Free/libre program Features Replacement for
Operating systems GNU/Linux Distributions Composed exclusively of software that respects your freedom. ChromeOS (Google)
ChromiumOS (Google)
Microsoft Windows (any version)
MacOS, iOS (Apple)
Web browsers Epiphany
GNU IceCat		 These browsers do not track users. Chrome, Chromium (Google)
Internet Explorer, Edge (Microsoft)
Safari (Apple)
Office LibreOffice Complete office suite. No need to upload documents to third-party servers. Microsoft Office, Office 365
Etherpad, EtherCalc Real-time collaborative text editor and spreadsheet that run in your browser. Google Docs, Sheets
E-learning platforms Moodle
  • Self-hosting (can be installed on private servers)
  • Desktop (GNU/Linux, Windows, MacOS)
  • Mobile App (Android, iOS)
Manage classrooms and courses, give lessons and assignments, create groups, take tests, synchronize data and collaborate in forums, chats and wikis.		 Google Classroom, Blackboard
File synchronization ownCloud
Nextcloud
  • Self-hosting (can be installed on private servers)
Allows collaborative document editing and bookmark synchronization as well.		 Drive, Calendar, Contacts (Google)
OneDrive, Outlook (Microsoft)
Media sharing GNU MediaGoblin
  • Self-hosting (can be installed on private servers)
Share all kinds of media in safety.		 YouTube, Google Photos, Picasa (Google)
Email Kolab
  • Self-hosting (can be installed on private servers)
Complete groupware solution which includes email, calendar, address books, file synching and tasks. Clients are based on Roundcube (web interface) by default but any other email client can be used. This way, only the school can read the students' mail, and nobody else.		 Gmail, Google Calendar, Contacts, Google Drive (Google)
Outlook, Live (Microsoft)
Conferencing (video, audio, chat, text) GNU Jami
  • Desktop (GNU/Linux, Windows, MacOS)
  • Mobile App (Android, iOS)
  • P2P (no centralized server)
  • Encryption, anonymity, no facial recognition, no data collection and storing.
Host small conferences, share and record your screen. Make audio/video calls and place your calls on hold. Send messages or chat in real time. Easily search your call history and manage your contacts. Thanks to the multi-language feature, you can do all this in your own language.		 Google Hangouts
Skype (Microsoft)
Microsoft Teams
Zoom
WhatsApp
Jitsi
Jitsi Meet
  • Self-hosting (can be installed on private servers)
  • Browser-based (WebRTC)
  • Desktop (GNU/Linux, Windows, MacOS)
  • Mobile App (Android, iOS)
  • Encryption, anonymity, no facial recognition, no data collection and storing.
Host small conferences or teach your classes with the useful raise/lower your hand feature, stream them or embed them in web pages. Share your screen and record videos, share and breakout rooms. Dial-in to a meeting. Chat in real time. Share documents. Thanks to the multi-language feature, you can do all this in your own language.
BigBlueButton
  • Video conferencing up to 150 users
  • Self-hosting (can be installed on private servers)
  • Browser-based (WebRTC)
  • LMS integration
  • Visual and audio accessibility (supports screen readers)
  • Encryption, anonymity, no facial recognition, no data collection and storing.
Host your conferences or teach your classes with up to 150 participants. Use the helpful mouse pointer and the multi-user whiteboard. Share and breakout rooms, share screens, record and store videos while enjoying the live closed captions. Share your PDFs as slides. Use the polling and voting systems for your surveys. Thanks to the multi-language feature, you can do all this in your own language.
Games Minetest Build, explore and play in vast cube worlds, alone or with friends. Create mods which aren't limited by proprietary restrictions. Minecraft (Microsoft)

Here's some additional free software useful for educational purposes:

Category Free/libre program Description
Art, graphics and design Blender 3D suite which includes a video editor and a game engine that can be used without programming (via logic blocks.)
FreeCAD High-quality parametric 3D CAD modeler.
GIMP Graphics editor suitable for image retouching, editing and drawing (case study.)
Krita Fully featured, easy to use digital painting program, suitable for students and professionals alike.
Tux Paint Graphics editor aimed at young children (case study.)
Games and educational activities GCompris Educational software suite comprising of numerous activities for children aged 2 to 10 (case study.)
Maths GNU Octave High-level interpreted language similar to proprietary MATLAB, primarily intended for numerical computations.
Physics FisicaLab Solve physics problems creatively. Focus in physics concepts while the program takes care of the mathematical details.
Music GNU Solfege Ear and music training program.
LMMS Professional-grade (but easy to use) music creation software and digital audio workstation.
MuseScore Fully featured scorewriter, with support for MIDI playback.
Programming GDevelop Codeless game development tool based on drag and drop. Ideal to teach students programming concepts while having fun.
Racket Programming language and environment suitable for both students and Lisp/Scheme wizards. Despite it being a fully-featured functional programming language, it was designed to be educational.
Ruby Well-known programming language described by its users as “beautiful, artful, handy, and practical.”

The lists above are a selection of free software applications suitable for the most common educational activities. The Free Software Foundation keeps a comprehensive database of educational software at the Free Software Directory. If you know about a free/libre program suited for schools and not listed here, please contact us at <[email protected]> to let us know.