ACTIVE Camp & Class Manager

Overview

ACTIVE Camp & Class Manager (CCM) brings registration, payments, scheduling, attendance and communications together for camps, classes, schools and enrichment programs. It is best suited to agencies that need parent and staff workflows alongside reporting and API access. Its broad operational scope is a strength, but account-specific fees and a registration-interface restriction make it important to check fit before committing.

Key features

Online registration combines form tracking, automated waitlists, confirmation emails, multi-child sign-up and a self-serve parent portal. That makes CCM useful for programs handling family enrollment at scale. The new consumer registration interface cannot be enabled when Session Groups or Membership is enabled on the agency account, a meaningful constraint for organizations built around either configuration.

Integrated payments support multiple payment options, merchandise sales at checkout and inventory tracking. Registration fees apply per registration, while credit card and eCheck payments also incur processing fees; account-specific rates come from the account manager. Payments are integrated into the workflow, but operators should establish their likely total costs before comparing budgets.

Scheduling supports one-to-one booking and lesson schedules; attendance tools track check-in and check-out and capture electronic signatures. Email marketing, text messaging, authorized-pickup management and mobile alerts through ACTIVE Captivate extend the system into family communications. Customizable automated, financial and real-time participant reports, along with credit-balance expiration, give administrators tools for both program oversight and account follow-through.

The API covers organization data such as seasons, sessions, registrations, payments, people and family relationships, with new API access using API keys. ACTIVE Connect gives staff a mobile option for participant check-in and check-out, while Captivate lets agencies offer consumers a dedicated, agency-branded app through the iOS and Android app stores. These options matter most to organizations that want mobile workflows or need to connect program data with other systems.

ACTIVE says its payment processing has Level 1 Payment Processor Certification, undergoes a mandatory PCI compliance audit and is tested against more than 200 controls. It also says it has tools and processes for GDPR requirements and is independently assessed against security standards to protect participant information.

Pricing

Camp & Class Manager: custom pricing, available from an account manager. The plan includes online registration, payment processing, a parent portal, activity scheduling and staff roster management. ACTIVE also charges per-registration fees and processing fees for credit card or eCheck payments, with account-specific rates. This model suits organizations seeking a broad, integrated system and willing to get a tailored quote; it is harder to assess against a fixed software budget without first confirming both the plan price and transaction charges.

Support packages include 24/7 Help Center access, email case submission, weekday phone support from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central and live chat. Higher tiers add a 24-hour email response time or a technical account manager, which may suit organizations that need more defined response expectations or account-level technical help.

Platforms

CCM supports web, Android and iOS, and provides an API. The staff-facing ACTIVE Connect app supports participant check-in and check-out; ACTIVE Captivate supports an agency-branded consumer experience through iOS and Android app stores.

Who it's for

CCM fits camps, classes, schools and enrichment providers that want enrollment, payment, scheduling, attendance and family communication in one system, especially those that can make use of reporting, mobile apps or API access. It is less suitable for agencies that require the new consumer registration interface while using Session Groups or Membership, or for buyers who need a clear fixed price before discussing account-specific rates.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Broad program coverage: registration, payments, scheduling, attendance and communications are part of the same system, reducing the need to piece together those workflows.
• Family and staff mobile tools: Captivate supports an agency-branded consumer app, while Connect handles staff check-in and check-out.
• Useful data access: customizable reports and APIs covering registrations, payments, people and family relationships support operational oversight and integrations.

Cons

• Account-specific costs: custom pricing plus per-registration and payment-processing fees makes total cost dependent on the agency's rates and activity.
• Registration compatibility limit: agencies using Session Groups or Membership cannot enable the new consumer registration interface.
• Enhanced support requires a higher tier: a 24-hour email response time or technical account manager is an addition to the listed core support package.

Alternatives

• eCamp is a free option with a public source code under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0; choose it if open-source availability and a no-cost plan matter more than CCM's described integrated workflows.
• Simply Camps offers a free plan with a 2% platform fee on payments and a paid plan at $99 a month for up to 250 enrolled campers. Consider it if a published starting price or free tier is more important than CCM's account-quoted pricing.
• SixSevenBall Camp Management has a free plan for one team, up to 12 players and three saved plays, plus a Pro Coach plan at $29 a month. It is a more limited-scope option for readers whose needs match those team and player limits.
• Camp Network offers a free pay-as-you-go plan, with transaction charges typically paid by participants. Choose it if avoiding a fixed subscription and shifting payment costs to participants suit your registration model.
• nextRec is another paid option for web, Android and iOS.
• AMES has a free plan and a standard starting rate of 1.25% per contact on successful payments collected through AMES. It may suit buyers who prefer a stated transaction-based starting rate.
• Arly offers a custom-quote Learning Experience plan with enrichment curriculum, a resource library, professional development, dashboards, analytics and reporting, and surveys. Consider it when those learning and curriculum resources are a closer match to your needs.
• CampOrganizer offers usage-based pricing at €0.25 per participant per event or €1 per participant per day, with no fixed monthly subscription. It is worth considering if usage-based charges and unlimited sessions, staff and parents are preferable to CCM's custom quote and per-registration fees.

See the Camp Management Software directory for more options.

Verdict

Choose ACTIVE Camp & Class Manager if your camp, school or enrichment program needs registration, payment, attendance and communications workflows tied together, with mobile tools and API access available. Its strongest case is breadth across both administration and family-facing tasks. Look elsewhere if a predictable published price is essential or if your agency relies on Session Groups or Membership and needs the new consumer registration interface.