How Xamina compares — including where it loses.
Most buyers looking at us are also looking at a test-centre network, a large assessment suite, or the quiz tool already inside their LMS. Here is the honest shape of that choice, with the cases where you should pick one of the others.
Every statement about another provider here is limited to what that provider publishes about itself — the delivery models they advertise and the products they name. We make no claims about anyone else’s pricing, reliability or quality, and “varies by vendor or plan” means exactly that: the answer depends on which product and which contract, so check it with them rather than taking our word for it.
0
Test centres your candidates have to travel to
2 weeks
From first conversation to a real exam being sat
1
Supplier who signs your providers up for you
The capability grid.
| Capability | XaminaOnline-first, managed onboarding | Test-centre networksPearson VUE, Prometric | Enterprise suitesLarge assessment platforms | LMS quiz toolsMoodle, Canvas and similar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate sits from anywhereA properly supervised exam, sat at their own desk. No venue to travel to. | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan |
| Physical test-centre networkSupervised rooms with locked-down computers, in cities around the world. | No | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | No |
| ID checked before the exam opensThey photograph their ID and their face, and the two have to match. Not just a password. | Yes | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | No |
| Choose what gets watched forPhones, empty chairs, wandering eyes, a second person — each one switched on or off separately for each exam. | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | Varies by vendor or plan | No |
| Everyone gets a different paperEveryone gets a different set of questions, and you can still bring back the exact paper any one person sat. | Yes | Yes | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan |
| See how each question performsYou can see how every single question performed, not just who passed. | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| They set up your providers for youThey sign up your approved providers, set up their staff logins and train them — instead of leaving it to you. | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | No | No |
| Providers kept properly apartOne provider genuinely cannot reach another provider’s candidates — built in, not a setting. | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | Varies by vendor or plan | No |
| Certificates that can be checkedNumbered, checkable by an employer online, and you can withdraw one if you need to. | Yes | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | No |
| People book their own slotPeople pick their own time from the slots you can actually supervise. | Yes | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | No |
| Works for a few hundred a yearThe price still makes sense for a small awarding body or a training company. | Yes | Varies by vendor or plan | No | Yes |
| Live within weeksFrom the first conversation to a real group sitting a real exam. | Yes | No | No | Yes |
- Yes
- Varies by vendor or plan
- No
The actual difference
Most platforms sell you software. The hard part was never the software.
If your qualification is delivered through approved providers, your real cost is not the licence fee. It is signing up every provider, training their staff, controlling what each one may deliver, and making sure none of them can see another’s candidates. Buy a platform and that work lands on your team. With us it lands on ours.
How managed onboarding worksQuestions worth asking any vendor
- Who signs up my approved providers, and how much of my team’s time does that take?
- If somebody disputes their result, can you show me the exact paper they sat?
- Can one provider see another provider’s candidates? Show me why not — do not just promise.
- What is the smallest group you are actually interested in selling to?
- How long from signing to a real person sitting a real exam?
Ask us these too. If our answer is worse than somebody else’s, you should know before you sign, not after.
Put us next to your shortlist.
Tell us who else you are considering and what your scheme actually requires. If we are the wrong fit we will say so.