Parent Communication App: Stronger Connections for 2026 - brightwheel
The #1 childcare communication app
Stay connected with brightwheel’s childcare communication app
Your all-in-one app for engaging families and streamlining communication. See a demo of the childcare communication app loved by millions.
Communication app for childcare providers and parents
4.9 | 160,000+ reviews
The best childcare communication app
Parent communication has drastically improved thanks to brightwheel. We’ve seen better communication both from teachers to parents and parents to teachers, which has been so nice to see.
Cally B.
Assistant Director of MBCC Journey in Birmingham, AL
How brightwheel streamlines communication
Brightwheel’s childcare communication app boosts family engagement, saves time, and keeps all communication organized in one place.
Real-time messaging
Communicate instantly with families and staff. Send messages directly from the app or web platform.
Easier staff communication
Enable select staff to message families quickly and easily. Offer real-time support to your staff and respond to questions instantly.
SMS alerts and newsletters
Send SMS alerts, reminders, or newsletters. Communicate with an individual family, a whole classroom, or the entire program.
Centralized communication
Simplify family communication. Make it easy for families to get in touch with you and access messages in one place.
Build quality connections with families and staff
Improve communication with families
- Connect with families in real-time, keeping them informed and engaged with their child’s learning
- Enhance your message with attachments like photos, videos, or documents
- Review and filter all messages sent for easy tracking and management, with options to sort messages by unread or most recent
- Mark messages read and unread
- Encourage two-way communication with specific message threads between teachers, administrators, and families
Enhance staff experience
- Communicate individually with each staff member or in groups based on room assignments
- Save time and utilize ‘talk-to-text’ on a mobile device when messaging staff
- Add one-time or recurring activity reminders for diaper checks, bottles, and meal times
- Respond to questions instantly and foster daily connection with your team
Update families on their child’s day
- Monitor students’ activities and learning milestones through the real-time feed available in the app and on the web
- Keep families informed by scheduling daily report emails directly from the app
- Customize and filter each student’s activity feed by date or activity type
- Foster family engagement with the ability to like photos and videos and heart activities on student feeds
Use SMS alerts for urgent matters
- Send individual SMS text messages to families, in addition to an in-app message, for urgent matters
- Utilize the mass messaging Alert feature to quickly notify all families in an emergency
- Compose messages, alerts, and reminders from both the app or web platform
- Monitor and manage incoming messages to maintain open communication
Create engaging newsletters
- Add photos, headings, and custom text in each section for visually appealing newsletters
- Increase family engagement with your program by including monthly recaps, event highlights, or volunteer requests
- Save your work as a draft and come back to it later
- Copy previously sent newsletters with a simple click, making it easy to maintain consistent communication
Early education resources
Promote family engagement at your program
Build strong relationships with families in your program:
- Send effective updates about everything from student activities to changing tuition rates
- Write newsletters that help families feel connected to your program
- Turn difficult conversations with parents into positive ones
- Use brightwheel to manage family relationships with confidence and ease
Seamlessly switch to brightwheel from other childcare management software
Easy onboarding trainings
Get access to guided training through brightwheel Academy, a comprehensive learning tool to help you, your staff, and families master using brightwheel.
Speedy support team
Brightwheel has the industry’s largest support team and will ensure that you get quick answers through live chat whenever you need them (response times are less than 1 minute!). Brightwheel’s support team plays a pivotal role in enabling new users to maximize every feature of the software.
Roster and rate card upload tool
Switching to brightwheel is easy when you upload your student rosters. The brightwheel team will import your roster and tuition rates into your brightwheel account so you have all of the information you need from day one.
One simple, transparent price
You won’t pay more as you use more features on brightwheel. Your price is based on enrollment capacity and you get access to all features on the platform.
Brightwheel vs. Procare
Switch to brightwheel for a modern communication experience that lets you send photos in messages, mark conversations as read or unread, and enjoy real-time syncing across devices—all designed to keep teachers and families seamlessly connected.
Brightwheel has more ways to support your childcare program
Billing & payments
Send automated invoices, accept online payments, and get paid on time. 90% of preschools report that more families pay on time with brightwheel.
Center management
Simplify administrative tasks with brightwheel’s all-in-one app & save up to 20 hours per month. Stay compliant with digital check-ins, health checks, and room ratio tracking.
Experience Curriculum
Upgrade to get Experience Curriculum: A complete, easy-to-implement curriculum system with digital lessons in brightwheel and hands-on learning materials mailed to you.
Frequently asked questions about childcare communication apps
What is a childcare communication app?
A childcare communication app is a digital tool that helps childcare providers and teachers stay connected with families in real-time. It allows staff to share updates, messages, photos, daily reports, and important information—all in one secure place. Apps like brightwheel make it easy to keep families informed and engaged throughout the day.
Why use a childcare communication app in a preschool or daycare?
Using a childcare communication app in a preschool or daycare helps improve family engagement, saves teachers time, and keeps communication organized. It offers instant messaging, photo sharing, and daily reports, so families feel connected and confident about their child’s care and learning. It also reduces paperwork and streamlines operations for childcare programs.
How can brightwheel support our childcare center’s communication needs?
Brightwheel enables preschools and childcare centers to keep a continuous line of communication open among administrators, staff, and families. Real-time messaging, centralized communications, and easy-to-use tools enable staff to keep families informed and share children’s progress. It allows for both group and individual messaging, making it an effective and scalable solution for any size of organization.
How does brightwheel ensure secure communication with families?
At brightwheel, we prioritize the highest levels of security for all our accounts. We proudly lead the early education industry by utilizing two-factor authentication for additional protection and privacy. To learn more about brightwheel’s security practices, visit brightwheel’s Security FAQs here.
Can I restrict certain staff and teachers from directly messaging parents?
Yes, brightwheel enables administrators to assign specific permission roles to staff and teachers and restrict select individuals from messaging parents.
Some families prefer receiving less frequent communications. How can we manage their expectations via brightwheel?
Brightwheel offers families the flexibility to customize their account settings, allowing them to choose which notifications to receive. These notifications include messages, photo/video updates, check-in/check-out alerts, learning milestones, nap times, and more. It is strongly advised to keep message notifications enabled in order to foster effective communication among families, staff, and administrators.
Is the brightwheel app available in Spanish?
Yes. As a guardian or staff member, you can now select between English and Spanish for your brightwheel experience. Guardians can choose their language on both the web and mobile app, while staff can do so on the mobile app. Simply update your language preference in your Profile.
Can parents message each other directly in brightwheel?
No. Brightwheel does not offer parent-to-parent communication at the moment. However, if a program admin enables the Parent Directory, parents will be able to see each other’s phone numbers and email addresses to connect outside of the app. Please note that parents can choose to opt out of the Parent Directory if preferred.
How does brightwheel benefit our staff?
Brightwheel serves as an easy tool for staff to securely communicate with families and share children’s progress. It also fosters a sense of community by enabling staff to message each other individually or as a team. Two out of three staff members say they would rather work at a center that uses brightwheel than one that doesn’t.
Is the brightwheel communication app available for iOS and Android?
Yes, the brightwheel communication app is available for both Android and iOS devices. It can be downloaded from the App Store for iOs users or from the Google Play Store for Android users. The app is designed to provide a seamless experience on both platforms, and syncs in real-time with the desktop app so you never miss an update.
How brightwheel’s childcare communication app supports your program
Brightwheel’s childcare communication app offers powerful tools designed to simplify daily operations and build stronger connections between teachers and families. Here’s how it can transform your childcare center or preschool:
Strengthen family partnerships
Keep parents and guardians involved and confident about their child’s day with instant updates, photos, and messages. Build trust through transparent, real-time communication.
Save time for teachers
Streamline daily tasks and reduce paperwork. Teachers can quickly send updates and reports right from their classroom, giving them more time to focus on what matters most—teaching and caring for children.
Stay organized and secure
All communication, photos, and reports are stored securely in one place. No more scattered emails or paper notes, making it easy to reference past conversations or reports whenever needed.
Boost family engagement
Families feel more connected and engaged when they can see moments from their child’s day. Brightwheel makes it simple to share milestones, activities, and important announcements.
Improve professionalism
Using a childcare communication app signals modern, professional operations. Impress families with a tech-forward approach to communication and record-keeping.
Peace of mind with data security
Brightwheel’s childcare communication app is built with robust security and privacy features, ensuring that all sensitive information stays protected and compliant.