Best Sched Alternatives for Academic Conferences in 2025

Are you involved in planning a conference, symposium or any event that targets academic, research or scientific communities ? If so, you realize that reliable scheduling and event management tools are essential. Sched has been a popular choice for many event organizers, but as needs evolve for academic events, so do expectations around functionality, flexibility, and user experience. 

Whether you're organizing a hybrid symposium, a virtual research forum, or an in-person annual event, it may be time to explore Sched alternatives better suited for the complexity of today’s academic and resarch-focused conferences.

Why Look for Sched Alternatives?

Sched has long been a go-to scheduling tool for event organizers, especially those managing small events with in-person attendance. But as the landscape of academic conferences continues to evolve, blending hybrid formats, real-time collaboration, and increasingly complex workflows, many organizers are starting to question whether Sched still fits the bill. Here are the top reasons why many event organizers start looking for Sched alternatives.

Limited Support for Academic Conference Workflows

Academic events often involve multiple tracks, peer-reviewed submissions, speaker approval processes, and last-minute changes. Sched’s limited project management and automation features can make it difficult to keep up. For event planners used to spreadsheets, templates, or integrated dashboards, the platform can feel restrictive. There’s also no support for managing abstract submissions or reviewer feedback, which are key in academic conferences.

Inadequate Support for Virtual and Hybrid Events

As hybrid events become more common, event planners need tools that go beyond static scheduling. Real-time updates, integrated live streaming, and engagement metrics are important. While Sched offers basic support for online events, it lacks the depth and interactivity provided by newer event management software specifically designed for hybrid and virtual events.

Steep Learning Curve for Attendees

Ease of use matters, especially when your audience comprises a mix of tech-savvy researchers, students, and international attendees. Sched’s mobile app and interface can be unintuitive for first-time users, particularly when it comes to building personalized schedules or navigating multiple session tracks. This can lead to frustration, increased support needs, and lower overall attendee engagement.

Customer Support Limitations

Sched is known for offering responsive and helpful support for its scheduling software, which many organizers appreciate. However, when it comes to more complex academic events, especially those involving advanced functionality, some teams may find themselves needing more hands-on configuration support than what’s available out of the box. For those looking to scale up or streamline their academic event workflows, platforms with dedicated implementation services or higher levels of customization may be the solution to address your goals.

Best Sched Alternatives for Academic Events

If Sched no longer meets all your needs, the good news is that there are plenty of user-friendly event management solutions made for today’s academic realities. From hybrid-friendly features to customizable scheduling tools and real-time engagement options, these alternatives offer more flexibility without sacrificing ease of use.

Fourwaves: Best for Academic, Scientific and Research-Based Conferences

Fourwaves is designed specifically for the needs of academic and research conferences. It streamlines everything from abstract submissions to scheduling and registration, saving time on complex events. Whether you're planning a virtual, hybrid, or in-person conference, Fourwaves brings everything together in one intuitive platform.

What sets it apart is its focus on the needs of academic, scientific and research-focused events. You can choose which modules you want or use all of them. The platform includes:

• A fully customizable event website that's easy to edit;
• A customizable registration forms and payment system;
• Flexible and robust abstract submission forms, able to collect precise author information, presentation materials and more;
• Managing track/topic committees;
• Managing the peer-review that adapts to your own custom flow needs
• Publishing a detailed conference program
• Exporting a custom abstract booklet
• Sending mass emails to registrants and presenters
• Generating ready to print name tags.
• Sending certificates and more.

You don’t need any technical expertise when using Fourwaves. It was built so that an event can be set up in minutes, not weeks. No technical expertise is required and the learning curve is small.

Cvent: Best for Large-Scale Corporate Events

Cvent is a powerful event management platform for large, complex corporate events. With robust features for event registration, CRM integration, and analytics, it’s a solution for teams managing multiple stakeholders and high attendee volumes. Its scalability and automation tools make it especially useful for enterprise-level planning.

Whova: Best for Attendee Engagement and Networking

Whova focuses on creating interactive, engaging event experiences. Its mobile app makes it easy for attendees to build personalized schedules, connect with peers, and stay up-to-date in real-time. For organizers who prioritize networking and participation, Whova offers a solid balance of functionality and user-friendliness.

Bizzabo: Best for Brand-Driven Event Experiences

Bizzabo helps organizations deliver highly branded, polished event experiences. With tools for design customization, sponsor visibility, and audience insights, it’s for marketing and event teams that want full creative control. If brand consistency and high production value are top priorities, Bizzabo is a contender.

Airmeet: Best for Virtual-First Community Events

Airmeet, with virtual engagement at its core, is an option for community-driven events and webinars. Its features support real-time interaction, networking lounges, and branded experiences that go beyond simple video streams. For organizers prioritizing virtual-first formats with high attendee participation, Airmeet offers a flexible and interactive platform.

RingCentral Events (formerly Hopin): Best for Scalable Hybrid Events with Global Reach

RingCentral Event, formerly Hopin, is a platform for hosting large-scale hybrid events that reach audiences worldwide. With tools for virtual stages, live chat, networking, and sponsor visibility, it enables event organizers to oversee both in-person and remote participation seamlessly. If you're looking for a platform that can scale while keeping attendees engaged across time zones, Hopin may be worth looking into.

EventMobi: Best for Custom-Branded Event Apps

EventMobi gives organizers the tools to create fully branded, mobile-first event experiences. From custom apps to personalized agendas and push notifications, it keeps attendees informed and engaged. For teams that want a strong mobile presence without compromising on design or functionality, EventMobi offers a viable Sched alternative.

vFairs: Best for Trade Shows and Virtual Exhibitions

vFairs specializes in replicating the trade show experience in both virtual and hybrid formats. With features like interactive exhibit halls, 3D booths, and real-time chat, it’s well-suited for large events with multiple vendors and sponsors. If your focus is on showcasing exhibitors and facilitating networking at scale, vFairs is a platform you should check out.

Eventbrite: Best for Public Event Promotion and Ticketing

Eventbrite is a widely used platform for promoting public events and managing ticket sales. It’s especially useful for smaller in-person events, workshops, and community gatherings thanks to its straightforward setup and discoverability. As an event organizer, your priority is getting the word out and handling registrations with a user-friendly interface, Eventbrite keeps things simple and effective.

RSVPify: Best for Small Events with Simple Needs

RSVPify is a light platform for small events that don’t require complex scheduling or integrations. It handles invitations, RSVPs, and basic event registration with ease, making it a good option for workshops, meetups, or private functions. If you need a straightforward solution without the learning curve of larger platforms, RSVPify gets the job done.

Accelevents: Best for Fundraising and Nonprofit Galas

Accelevents combines event management features with features for fundraising, auctions, and donor engagement. It’s especially suitable for nonprofits planning galas, benefit events, or hybrid fundraisers. With an emphasis on ease of use and impact tracking, Accelevents helps teams run polished events while keeping fundraising goals front and center.

Webex (formerly Socio): Best for Enterprise-Grade Security and Compliance

Webex Events, previously known as Socio, was created for organizations that prioritize security, compliance, and reliability. With enterprise-grade features, advanced access controls, and integration with existing IT systems, it’s a trusted choice for regulated industries and large organizations. If data protection and platform stability are top concerns, Webex Events offers peace of mind and a lot of functionality.

Eventtia: Best for Registration‑Centric Events With Complex Agendas

Eventtia is best seen as an all‑in‑one registration, agenda‑building, and attendee‑engagement platform rather than a full scholarly‑workflow tool. Its registration module lets you set up custom forms, multiple ticket types, and integrated payments, while its agenda builder handles multi‑day programmes with parallel sessions and real‑time updates for attendees. Organizers can collect and vet speaker proposals through the built‑in “speaker submissions” feature and then push automated emails or mobile‑app notifications to keep everyone on schedule

Must-Have Features to Look For in Sched Alternatives

Scheduling tools are only part of what academic events require. When considering Sched alternatives, it’s worth focusing on platforms that understand the full scope of the academic and research-focused event. Think of these features as you scout out event management software.

All-in-One Platform Built for Research Events

Juggling multiple tools for registration, scheduling, abstract submissions, peer reviews, and communication often leads to inefficiencies and errors. The best Sched alternative should bring everything into a single platform, reducing the need for manual work and third-party integrations. The best solutions for academic conferences are those designed by researchers themselves or at least focused on that specific type of event!

An Interface Even First-Time Organizers Can Use

Not all conference organizers are full-time event planners. That’s why ease of use matters. Look for platforms that offer a clean interface, intuitive navigation, and templates, especially if your planning team includes faculty, students, or admin staff with limited tech experience.

End-to-End Workflows Designed for Academic Events

From call for abstracts to final session uploads, academic conferences follow a specific rhythm. A good platform should support that full timeline, including reviewer workflows, presentation scheduling, and last-minute updates, without the need to patch together external tools or additional spreadsheets.  

Built-In Abstract and Poster Submission System

Managing submissions manually or through third-party forms is complicated and risky. An abstract and poster submission system streamlines everything: authors can upload directly, reviewers can provide feedback in-platform, and organizers can easily schedule accepted content. It also reduces errors and makes for a more professional experience across the board.

Seamless Experience for Virtual, In-Person, and Hybrid Events

Whether your event is fully remote, hosted on campus, or combines both formats, the platform should adapt. Look for features like personalized schedules, live session links, integrated chat or Q&A, and a responsive design that works on mobile and desktop. A seamless attendee experience, regardless of location, is important to stoke attendee participation and engagement.

Ready to Experience a Sched Alternative Built for Academic Events?

Planning a research conference is already complex, your event software shouldn’t make it harder. If you’ve outgrown Sched or need features for academics, it may be time to try something that truly fits.

Fourwaves is designed to support your entire workflow, with tools like abstract collection, personalized schedules, and real-time updates—all in one platform.

Let’s make your next event simpler to manage. Schedule a demo and see what Fourwaves can do.