Skip to main content
TrustRadius
Blackboard Collaborate

Blackboard Collaborate

Overview

What is Blackboard Collaborate?

Blackboard Collaborate is an online, collaborative learning platform well-suited for the education industry and corporate learning needs. It includes features such as screen and application sharing, web conferencing, and integration with Blackboard Learn.

Read more

Learn from top reviewers

Amazing educational platform! Would not use exclusively, but in tandem it's great!

Rating: 9 out of 10
December 20, 2022
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We use Blackboard Collaborate to provide students with digital spaces for online classes. Often times we pair Blackboard Collaborate with other platforms in order to provide a...
Continue reading
Verified user
Employee
Blackboard Collaborate4 years of experience

Makes a Student's Life much Easier - Improves Communication Skills

Rating: 8 out of 10
August 24, 2022
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Blackboard is being used by the whole Campus of the University, and it is helping students to catch up on their course work and also be punctual on all their assignments as we...
Continue reading
Verified user
Former Employee
Blackboard Collaborate1 year of experience

Engage Learners & Support Online Teaching with Blackboard Collaborate

Rating: 9 out of 10
November 23, 2021
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Blackboard Collaborate is primarily used as a web conferencing tool for teaching & learning in higher education, but we have also used it for technical support, academic s...
Continue reading
Mariann Hawken
Director - Information Technology
Acting Director, Instructional Director
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Blackboard Collaborate10 years of experience

Solid solution for activity-based learning

Rating: 7 out of 10
June 4, 2021
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
In this difficult time of COVID-19, it is hard for the students to present in all the classes in person. Blackboard Collaborate is the virtual classroom solution that address ...
Continue reading
Akhilesh Arya
Professional - Other
Assistant Professor
Geetanjali Institute of Technical Studies, Udaipur
Blackboard Collaborate1 year of experience

Blackboard for Universities

Rating: 9 out of 10
June 1, 2021
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Blackboard Collaborate was used by many professors and teaching assistants at our university to conduct classes, review and study sessions, lectures, presentations, etc. Black...
Continue reading
Verified user
Analyst
Blackboard Collaborate2 years of experience

Good product for online instruction

Rating: 8 out of 10
February 13, 2021
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Instructors have many options to choose from for doing online instruction, but Blackboard Collaborate is the easiest to use in our LMS. With the advent of COVID-19, all of our...
Continue reading
Verified user
Professional
Blackboard Collaborate2 years of experience

There are far better tools to use for less money and better integrations

Rating: 5 out of 10
January 31, 2021
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
This feature was used across the entire organization. Before March 2020, it was used by a few departments that wanted to be "ahead" with using technology, but starting in Marc...
Continue reading
Verified user
Administrator
Blackboard Collaborate1 year of experience

Blackboard Collaborate for Education

Rating: 5 out of 10
December 3, 2019
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We use Blackboard Collaborate for our virtual meetings and in our virtual classrooms.
Continue reading
Rita Wheeler
Technician - Information Technology
Instructional Technology Coordinator
Moberly Area Community College
Blackboard Collaborate4 years of experience

Blackboard Collaborate for Virtual Classrooms

Rating: 1 out of 10
December 2, 2019
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Across the whole college, we use Blackboard Collaborate for virtual classrooms.
Continue reading
Rita Wheeler
Professional - Professional Services
Instructional Technology Specialist and Adjunct Instructor
Moberly Area Community College
Blackboard Collaborate4 years of experience

Blackboard Collaborate- a big step up from Skype

Rating: 7 out of 10
April 23, 2018
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
This program is used in academic support services for online tutoring and academic coaching, which are increasingly needed as more and more degree programs are offering online...
Continue reading
Becca Guler
Program Manager - Other
Learning Specialist
University of Houston-Clear Lake
Blackboard Collaborate1 year of experience

Great for small groups of online students

Rating: 7 out of 10
February 1, 2018
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Blackboard Collaborate is generally used across our e-school. Teachers use the software to present live and recorded lessons to our students across the state of Florida. It al...
Continue reading
Verified user
Team Lead
Blackboard Collaborate5 years of experience

Collaborate in Education with Blackboard Collaborate (Ultra)

Rating: 10 out of 10
December 18, 2017
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We've been using Blackboard Collaborate since back when it was Elluminate (then Blackboard Collaborate, and now Blackboard Collaborate Ultra). The Ultra version is browser-bas...
Continue reading
Joseph Axenroth
Administrator - Other
LMS Administrator
Westfield State University
Blackboard Collaborate7 years of experience

Collaborate with Ease

Rating: 8 out of 10
October 3, 2016
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We use Blackboard Collaborate for meetings and for tutoring students, one-on-one or in groups. Our department, the instructional department, is the only department that uses i...
Continue reading
Verified user
Professional
Blackboard Collaborate7 years of experience

Blackboard Collaborate for Optimal Company Communications!

Rating: 8 out of 10
September 29, 2016
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Blackboard Collaborate is utilized by my company for teachers to hold office hours for students within the online courses provided by the company. It is also used to hold virt...
Continue reading
Carly Pietrzyk, PhD
Consultant - Other
Teacher/Curricululm Consultant
Robert Morris University
Blackboard Collaborate3 years of experience

Blackboard Collaborate

Rating: 9 out of 10
June 3, 2016
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
Collaborate is a excellent online and remote classroom training tool that allows students to connect to class via a remote session. Features like: whiteboard, sync across devi...
Continue reading
Verified user
Project Manager
Blackboard Collaborate3 years of experience
Log in with LinkedIn to see content from your network

Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Return to navigation

Pricing

View all pricing

Classroom

$300.00

Cloud
per year

Department

$9000.00

Cloud
per year

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services
Return to navigation

Product Details

What is Blackboard Collaborate?

Blackboard Collaborate is an online, collaborative learning platform well-suited for the education industry and corporate learning needs. It includes features such as screen and application sharing, web conferencing, and integration with Blackboard Learn to provide a complete learning management system (LMS).

Blackboard Collaborate offers a browser-based web conferencing tool to facilitate interaction between instructors and students. It has a classroom chat feature that offers a messaging platform for students to share images, text, audio, and video. It also supports live captioning to meet the accessibility needs for deaf and hard of hearing students with its Blackboard Live Closed Captioning Service feature.

Its interactive Whiteboard feature is used for conducting presentations using PowerPoint slides for engaging multiple participants with a single presentation. However, Whiteboard content can be added or edited directly from Blackboard Collaborate without opening PowerPoint. And despite being browser-based, Blackboard Collaborate does offer some features through its Blackboard Collaborate ™ Mobile app.

Blackboard Collaborate Video

Blackboard Collaborate: A one click virtual classroom

Blackboard Collaborate Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

Blackboard Collaborate is an online, collaborative learning platform well-suited for the education industry and corporate learning needs. It includes features such as screen and application sharing, web conferencing, and integration with Blackboard Learn.

Reviewers rate Support Rating highest, with a score of 8.9.

The most common users of Blackboard Collaborate are from Enterprises (1,001+ employees).
Return to navigation

Comparisons

View all alternatives
Return to navigation

Reviews and Ratings

(117)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

Synchronous Environment: Users appreciate the software's synchronous environment, with many reviewers stating that it allows for real-time interaction and feedback. This feature is particularly beneficial in online and hybrid courses where students can ask questions and receive immediate responses from instructors.

Video Option: The video option is highly regarded by users, who believe it adds a personal touch to the learning experience. Many reviewers mentioned that seeing their professors' faces humanizes the online course and makes it more engaging, especially for 100% online courses.

Record Option: The record option is praised for its usefulness in accommodating various needs such as students who cannot attend classes, those with special needs, enrichment/supplement sessions, and content reviews. Several users found this feature valuable for creating training materials or reviewing sessions at a later time.

Challenging Login Process: Several users have found the login process of Blackboard Collaborate to be challenging, particularly for those who are not computer literate. They mention that it is time-consuming and requires several steps, leading to frustration.

Compatibility Issues with Java: Some users have experienced compatibility issues with Blackboard Collaborate due to its reliance on an updated version of Java. This has caused difficulties for students and parents, as well as frustrations related to browser and operating system compatibility.

Cumbersome Access to Recorded Sessions: Users have reported that accessing recorded sessions in Blackboard Collaborate can be cumbersome, especially for professors who are not proficient with computers. They suggest the need for more customizable options on professors' webpages and expanding the range of acceptable file formats for presentations.

Users commonly recommend Blackboard Collaborate for the following reasons:

  1. Users find the platform easy to use and convenient due to its user-friendly interface and lack of software installation requirements.

  2. Many reviewers praise Blackboard Collaborate for its effectiveness in facilitating web conferencing or virtual classrooms, highlighting its seamless experience for online meetings, presentations, and interactive discussions.

  3. Users appreciate the range of features and functionality offered by Blackboard Collaborate, including screen sharing, chat capabilities, breakout rooms, and collaborative whiteboarding. These features enhance collaboration and engagement during virtual sessions.

Reviews

(1-25 of 30)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why

Amazing educational platform! Would not use exclusively, but in tandem it's great!

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized
December 20, 2022
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
4 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
I would say it is very useful for group collaborations online, as well as virtual classrooms where you wish your students/guests to collaborate in an adaptable environment; however I would advise against using the shared screen to display audio or video, nor would I encourage the use of the shared board with a group of people with disciplinary issues (as there is no accountability for who wrote/drew what).

Makes a Student's Life much Easier - Improves Communication Skills

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized
August 24, 2022
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
1 year of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
Using Blackboard Collaborate is great especially when you have to go out of city for an important task and you can't attend a course class, but you want to be up-to-date with what happens. With blackboard, if used properly you can keep yourself up-to-date with everything and at any time that you want.

Engage Learners & Support Online Teaching with Blackboard Collaborate

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized
November 23, 2021
MH
Mariann Hawken
Acting Director, Instructional Director
University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Higher Education, 1001-5000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
10 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate is well suited for teaching and learning, especially online classes. When used with learning management, Collaborate allows for seamless sign-on between the users' course sites and the web conferencing platform. Collaborate is ideal for launching virtual discussions, lectures, office hours, and more. Users can easily upload files to display or share their desktop/specific applications, which is great for demonstrating course principles and meeting learning objectives. Collaborate is really good for breakout rooms, where users join or are assigned to small groups for discussions or team-based learning activities.

Solid solution for activity-based learning

Rating: 7 out of 10
Incentivized
June 04, 2021
AA
Akhilesh Arya
Assistant Professor
Geetanjali Institute of Technical Studies, Udaipur (Higher Education, 51-200 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
1 year of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
It is well suited when you have to do activity-based learning where you can breakout your class in small groups and interact and assign them activities separately. For regular classes, it is a somewhat expensive solution in comparison to Google Hangouts Meet and Zoom. We are using it for project classes where students are divided into the teams of five to six and every team is assigned a different project.

Blackboard for Universities

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized
June 01, 2021
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
2 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate worked very well for classroom settings with probably less than 50 or so participants including the teacher. This allows for as many people to be seen, heard, or able to participate in the chat without being drowned out by hundreds of messages. It’s not great for a very interactive class, unless you are simply doing a question and answer situation, I’d recommend another platform.

Good product for online instruction

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized
February 13, 2021
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
2 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
It's good for instruction. I could see that it might not be as good a fit for meetings. The ability to share screen and camera (separately) is very helpful. It would be nice if we could share both at the same time (like picture-in-picture, with the speaker over in one corner of the screen).

There are far better tools to use for less money and better integrations

Rating: 5 out of 10
Incentivized
January 31, 2021
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
1 year of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard has been in business for a long time and many users—students, faculty, and staff—are very familiar with the tool. It is a very stable product with rare scenarios where you have to call support. But they are lacking a modern approach to applications. Their system looks outdated (style), it is missing features to connect to other services. Integrations are not easy or they cost a lot of money. It is a very pricy tool with not a lot to offer. Blackboard used to be ahead of everyone, now it is playing catchup games with competitors instead of staying ahead and being proactive

Blackboard Collaborate- a big step up from Skype

Rating: 7 out of 10
Incentivized
April 23, 2018
BG
Becca Guler
Learning Specialist
University of Houston-Clear Lake (Higher Education, 1001-5000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
1 year of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
It's useful for a classroom video session with a professor, as multiple students can access it at once (it will stream better if only the instructor uses video and others just use chat) and both lecture or answer questions, employing the Whiteboard feature as necessary. There is a hand raising option students can use to signal that they have a question, or they can just put a question in on the chat section.
It is not as interactive as some video tutoring platforms I have seen, but it is something that our support services at school have access to with a site license, so it's ideal for us.

Great for small groups of online students

Rating: 7 out of 10
Incentivized
February 01, 2018
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
5 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
I think it's great for online instruction in groups less than 100. I do not feel it is the best option to support a large group. I have seen issues with the software freezing in large groups of 500+.

Collaborate in Education with Blackboard Collaborate (Ultra)

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized
December 18, 2017
JA
Joseph Axenroth
LMS Administrator
Westfield State University (Higher Education, 1001-5000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
7 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate Ultra is great for office hours, virtual training, virtual guest speakers, virtual lectures, and more. While it has a focus for pedagogical needs, its use is not limited to just that. It also supports up to 500 people in the session at one time (with the option to request support up to 1,000).

Collaborate with Ease

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized
October 03, 2016
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
7 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
It is great when you want to communicate, but need to have a visual. It allows for writing on the whiteboard and an uploaded PowerPoint. Also, the polling, private rooms, and other tools make it good for group activities.

Blackboard Collaborate for Optimal Company Communications!

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized
September 29, 2016
CP
Carly Pietrzyk, PhD
Teacher/Curricululm Consultant
Robert Morris University (Education Management, 501-1000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
3 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
It definitely is well suited for department meetings and communication between students and teachers for online tutoring. I actually think it could be useful for a variety of companies, especially for employee training purposes. It may be a bit too complicated for generic communications with clients.

Blackboard Collaborate

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized
June 03, 2016
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
3 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
It is best suited for classroom presentation and less for online meetings. However, I think the goal of Collaborate is to allow those students not in the physical classroom to be able to better participate and to feel more a part of the class. This is what Collaborate does best. And of course the integration with other Blackboard features makes it a quite seamless tool.

Blackboard Collaborate -- Great for teaching or being taught!

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized
May 03, 2016
MR
Mallory Rice
Staff Assistant
Harvard Medical School (Higher Education, 10,001+ employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
3 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate is great for large groups, such as online classes, study groups, or remote meetings. It probably isn't necessary for smaller groups, especially for those that don't need all the extra features such as recording, or screen share.

Blackboard Collaborate Student Review

Rating: 8 out of 10
Incentivized
March 08, 2016
BC
Brandon Cluff
Web Developer
Brighton Collectibles (Retail, 1001-5000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
2 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
I thought it was perfect for online education. I really have a hard time sitting down and reading a textbook when I'm at home. Blackboard collaborate kept my attention and helped me absorb the material by using visuals and being able to actively participate during class lectures and/ or discussions.

Stop! COLLABORATE and Listen!

Rating: 7 out of 10
Incentivized
February 05, 2016
LA
Laura Abercrombie
Adjunct English Professor
Polk State College (Higher Education, 201-500 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
5 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
As a composition professor, there is less need for me or my colleagues to use it--though I have in the past. I see it especially beneficial for math professors because the whiteboard feature allows symbol notation for math problems, and students can see how the problems are worked out synchronously. I also have used it in the past for literature discussions in a small-group setting after class, as well as for content reviews before exams.

Stop COLLABORATE and listen

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized
December 16, 2015
Verified User
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
3 years of experience
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate is best used to host a live session. While there is the ability to record, I do not think it is a best practice to pre-record sessions then send out a link.

Collaboration at the next level

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized
December 14, 2015
BP
Bridget Powell
Program Manager and Online Instructor
University of Wisconsin-Madison (Higher Education, 10,001+ employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
8 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate works well to bring people together for online learning sessions. In my previous job we used it to bring together students from all over the world to participate in group work and discussions, and it works well for that. It can be a little iffy trying to use it to screen or app- share, as you can't always tell what the participants are seeing, and when you have students trying to connect from, for example, a forward operating base in Afghanistan, the connection can be slow.

Happy Blackboard Collaborate User

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized
December 04, 2015
CP
Christine Paige
Manager of Technology Integrations
Southern New Hampshire University (Higher Education, 5001-10,000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Blackboard Collaborate
6 years of experience
View profile
Likelihood to Recommend
Blackboard Collaborate is great for online meetings when you are a distributed institution. It is also perfect for our adult student population because it is intuitive and easy for them to launch and participate.
Return to navigation