AI Tools for Lesson Planning: 7 Compared
Which AI lesson planner suits your classroom? Each pick shows what it produces, what the free plan includes, what costs extra and where it falls short, checked on each vendor's own site.
By Dan Fitzpatrick, teacher, AI education specialist and bestselling author. Last updated . 138 tools and 499 educator reviews in the directory.
Short answer: MagicSchool and Chalkie AI are the quickest free starts for lesson planning. Teachmate suits UK teachers who want curriculum-aligned plans, and Toddle suits schools that plan whole units together. Brisk works inside Chrome and Google Docs, and Eduaide.Ai gives a small free monthly allowance. Pick by the job, then test two tools on one real lesson.
How we chose: all seven are listed in the AI Educator Tools directory, can create or support lesson plans and have a vendor page we read on 11 November 2026 (Brisk on 4 November). Ratings are from educators on this site. Prices and free plans change often, so check the vendor's page before you rely on one.
A generated plan is a first draft. You still decide what pupils need to learn, so read and adapt every plan before it reaches a class, and keep pupil names and sensitive details out of any tool your school has not approved.
What this guide can and cannot tell you
Use this directory to build a shortlist, not as a compliance decision. Tool details and policies change, and your institution remains responsible for its own legal, safeguarding, procurement and accessibility checks.
- Editorial picks are selected by AI Educator Tools. Star ratings and written reviews are separate contributions from signed-in community members; we moderate submissions but do not claim that every reviewer’s professional identity has been independently verified.
- GDPR, COPPA and FERPA labels report what a vendor declares. A 9ine badge means a separate 9ine assessment has been completed; neither label is a legal guarantee that a tool or a particular deployment is compliant.
- Counts on this page are live counts of public listings and reviews in this directory. They are not estimates of the total number of products, users or reviews in the wider education technology market.
- Paid tiers and featured positions are labelled. Commercial arrangements do not change community ratings, remove critical reviews or determine the editorial picks on this guide.
Official privacy and data-protection guidance
Check the rules and guidance that apply in your jurisdiction and ask your institution's responsible staff before processing student data.
- UK ICO: guidance on AI and data protection - Official UK regulator guidance for organisations using AI and personal data.
- US FTC: Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule - Official COPPA rule and regulator resources.
- US Department of Education: student privacy resources - Official FERPA and education privacy guidance.
The seven AI lesson planning tools
Grouped loosely by how teachers use them: all-round toolkits first, then UK-built and whole-school options. Each shows what the tool is best for and its main limitation. Offers and prices were checked on vendor sites on 11 November 2026 (Brisk on 4 November) and can change.
1. MagicSchool
Best for: An all-round teacher toolkit covering lesson plans, rubrics, quizzes and class writing feedback
The Forever Free plan includes 80 or more teacher tools, the Raina chatbot, quizzes and class writing feedback. 19 educators rate it 4.7 on this site, and it has a 9ine assessment listed. Main limitation: the free plan has no unlimited generations, output history or editing and no student tools; Plus costs 8.33 US dollars per user a month billed annually or 12.99 US dollars billed monthly.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Freemium · 4.7/5 from 19 educator reviews · 9ine security assessed
2. Chalkie AI
Best for: Slide-based lessons and activity sheets in minutes, with a clear weekly free allowance
The free plan lets you create up to five full-length lessons or activity sheets every seven days. 26 educators rate it 4.9 on this site. Main limitation: curriculum and standards alignment is listed on Pro only, which costs 6.65 US dollars a month or 79.80 US dollars a year, and the free plan stops at five resources a week.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Freemium · 4.9/5 from 26 educator reviews
3. Brisk Teaching
Best for: Creating and adapting lesson resources inside Chrome, Google Docs and Slides
Brisk's plans page, read on 4 November, shows a For Teachers plan at no cost with 20 or more tools and a standard language model. 35 educators rate it 4.8 on this site, and it has a 9ine assessment listed. Main limitation: it is a Chrome extension, the exact free limits are not clearly stated, and more tools sit on paid plans without published prices.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Freemium · 4.8/5 from 35 educator reviews · 9ine security assessed
4. Teachmate
Best for: UK teachers who want curriculum-aligned lesson plans with objectives, activities and assessment
Its site describes 160 curriculum-aligned tools built for UK teachers and schools, and its Lesson Planner produces objectives, activities, adaptation and assessment. 5 educators rate it 4.6 on this site, and it has a 9ine assessment listed. Main limitation: the page shows no free plan; Pro is 7.99 pounds a month, or 59.88 pounds in the first year when billed annually and 72 pounds a year after, and whole-school plans start at 414.75 pounds a year excluding VAT for five licences.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Freemium · 4.6/5 from 5 educator reviews · 9ine security assessed
5. Eduaide.Ai
Best for: Trying AI lesson plans, worksheets and games on a small free allowance
The free plan gives 24 credits a month, described as up to eight resources, with no card needed, covering lesson plans, worksheets, organisers and classroom games. One educator rates it 5.0 on this site, which is too few to judge. Main limitation: eight resources a month is a tight cap; Pro is 49.99 US dollars a year for unlimited generations, rubrics and translations.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Freemium · 5.0/5 from 1 educator review
6. TeacherMatic
Best for: Schools and colleges, especially in the UK, that want a large set of generators for planning and resources
Its site describes over 100 or 150 AI generators (the page gives both figures) for teachers, leaders and support staff, and lists UK colleges among its clients. One educator rates it 5.0 on this site, which is too few to judge. Main limitation: the page we read gives no prices or free trial terms, so ask the vendor before you plan on it.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Freemium · 5.0/5 from 1 educator review
7. Toddle
Best for: Schools that plan whole curricula, units and lessons together, including IB and English National Curriculum schools
Its Planning Pro plan covers curriculum maps and yearly, unit, weekly and lesson planning with an AI curriculum design assistant, and the site lists IB, the English National Curriculum, Cambridge and Australian and New Zealand curricula. 6 educators rate it 4.7 on this site, and it has a 9ine assessment listed. Main limitation: it is a paid, school-level platform with prices by quote and no free plan, only trials for schools.
Lesson Planning and Resource Creation · Paid · 4.7/5 from 6 educator reviews · 9ine security assessed
How to choose an AI lesson planner
Start with the output you need. Some tools write a full plan, some build slides and activities, and some map a whole curriculum. Then check curriculum fit, what the free plan leaves out and how easily you can edit the result.
- Full plans or resources: MagicSchool, Chalkie AI, Brisk, Teachmate and Eduaide.Ai generate lessons or activity sheets you edit afterwards.
- Curriculum fit: Teachmate is built for the UK, Chalkie AI lists curriculum alignment on Pro, and Toddle lists IB, English National Curriculum and Cambridge support.
- Whole-school planning: Toddle is a paid platform for curriculum maps and units rather than a quick generator.
- Free allowance: Chalkie AI gives five resources a week and Eduaide.Ai up to eight a month. MagicSchool's free plan does not state a numeric cap.
- Teacher in the loop: prefer tools where you review and edit output before pupils see it.
Free plans at a glance
Four of the seven describe a free plan on their own pages: MagicSchool, Chalkie AI, Brisk and Eduaide.Ai. Teachmate shows paid plans only, Toddle is quoted per school and TeacherMatic does not state its terms on the page we read. If you want to try before you pay, start with a free plan and compare two tools on the same lesson.
What the directory says about privacy
On the directory listings, none of these seven declares GDPR, FERPA or COPPA status. Those fields are blank, which means not said rather than no. Four of them (MagicSchool, Brisk, Teachmate and Toddle) have a 9ine assessment listed, which you can read but which is not a legal certification.
Ask your school's data protection lead before pupils or pupil data go into any tool, and read the vendor's own privacy documents. The Department for Education's guidance on generative AI is a good starting point for England.
Browse by category
- Lesson Planning and Resource Creation (35 tools) - Every lesson planning and resource creation tool in the directory, with ratings and pricing.
Frequently asked questions about ai tools for lesson planning
What is the best AI tool for lesson planning?
It depends on the job. MagicSchool and Chalkie AI suit quick lesson plans and have free plans, Teachmate suits UK curriculum planning, Brisk works inside Chrome and Google Docs, and Toddle suits whole-school curriculum planning. Try two on the same lesson before you choose.
Are there free AI lesson planning tools?
Yes. MagicSchool has a Forever Free plan, Chalkie AI allows five resources a week, Brisk has a free plan for teachers and Eduaide.Ai gives 24 credits a month. All have limits, so check each vendor's page, because offers change.
Which AI lesson planner suits the UK curriculum?
Teachmate describes itself as built for UK teachers and schools, and Toddle lists support for the English National Curriculum alongside IB and Cambridge. Check that the output matches your own scheme of work before you use it.
Can AI write a whole lesson plan for me?
It can draft one, but the draft needs your judgement on what pupils already know and what they need next. Treat the output as a starting point, check facts and adapt it to your class.
Is it safe to put pupil data into an AI lesson planner?
Do not assume so. You rarely need pupil names to plan a lesson, so leave them out. Use tools your school has approved, read the vendor's privacy documents and ask your data protection lead. Company privacy answers on our listings are declarations, not certifications.