Disclosure: This comparison is published by Labbaik. We've tried to represent MaktabMate fairly using publicly available information, but we naturally know Labbaik in greater depth. If you spot something outdated, let us know.
At a glance
| Feature | Labbaik | MaktabMate |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes — Safar, free forever, no card, no expiry | 30-day trial, then paid |
| Student limits on entry plan | Unlimited from day one | 10 students on Lite, 100 on Pro |
| Teacher limits | Unlimited | 2 on Lite, 5 on Pro, unlimited only on Max |
| Cost when madrasah collects nothing | £0 | Monthly subscription regardless |
| WhatsApp parent messaging | Full — fees, attendance, reminders, broadcasts, two-way | In-app messaging + push only |
| Stripe fee collection | Built-in, reconciled, from 1.5% on Safar | Fee tracking only — no integrated payment processing |
| Self-serve onboarding | ~10 minutes, no sales call | Sign up self-serve; demo via WhatsApp expected |
| Mobile-first design | Built for phones — teachers on the floor, parents on the go | Clean, modern — desktop-first experience |
| UK GDPR + ICO registered | Yes (ZC136003) | Yes |
| Attendance tracking | Yes — multi-session, late, authorised absences | Yes — multi-session, late, authorised absences |
| Quran & Hifz progress | Yes — purpose-built, juz-by-juz, sabaq logs | Yes — juz-by-juz, sabaq logs |
| House points & rewards | Yes | Yes |
| Homework tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Staff clock in / out | Yes — geolocation + QR | Yes — geolocation + QR |
| Incident logging | Yes | — |
| Multi-branch | Yes | — |
| PDF reports & Excel export | Yes | Yes |
| Public educational page | Hosted page + embeddable SDK + public API | — |
| Sibling discounts | Yes — flexible rules | Yes |
| Charitable giving | Sadaqah-aligned roadmap | 10% of revenue donated |
| Beyond maktab & madrasah | Yes — donations, events, certificates & non-educational classes | Not part of the platform |
| Online classes (Zoom/Meet, OAuth cloud recordings) | Included — auto WhatsApp/email alerts, auto attendance, catch-up recordings | Not publicly documented |
| Alimiyyah / kitab-level tracking | Upload your own PDF syllabus, tracked kitab → section → page | Not publicly documented |
| Recurring compliance & admin tasks | WhatsApp alerts for renewals & overdue deadlines | Not part of the platform |
MaktabMate is a newer UK maktab app with a clean interface, attendance tracking, Hifdh progress and a parent portal — a credible early-stage entrant. Labbaik is the mobile-first alternative built around a free-forever plan, unlimited students from day one, full WhatsApp integration, Stripe fee collection and a public educational page with an embeddable SDK and API. Both products can work well for different schools.
Where MaktabMate shines
MaktabMate is well-built for an early-stage product. The interface is clean, the core feature set covers what most small maktabs need on day one — attendance, Hifdh tracking, parent portal, homework, house points, staff clock in — and the 10% revenue-to-charity pledge is a thoughtful touch. Pricing is openly published. For a small, brand-new maktab that wants something simple on a fixed monthly bill, it's a credible pick.
More than a maktab or madrasah tool
MaktabMate is scoped to maktab administration — attendance, Hifz, fees, homework, house points. Labbaik covers the same ground, then extends further: donation campaigns, community events and bookings, and verifiable Nikah, Shahada and ijazah certificates — useful whether you're a mosque-run maktab or a standalone madrasah with its own community programmes.
| Masjid & madrasah tools | Labbaik | MaktabMate |
|---|---|---|
| Sadaqah & Zakat donations | One-tap giving, campaigns, recurring donations, full reporting | Not part of the platform |
| Community events | Publish, sell tickets, take RSVPs, manage capacity | Not part of the platform |
| Bookings & class capacity | Included for events and non-educational classes | Not part of the platform |
| Nikah & Shahada certificates | Verifiable, institution-branded | Not part of the platform |
| Non-educational community classes | Same registration & payment tools as the maktab | Not part of the platform |
| One login, one bill | Yes — same platform | Maktab admin only |
Committee admin: compliance tasks that can't be missed
Running a masjid or madrasah isn't just the maktab register. Committees also carry a stream of dates that are easy to lose track of in a spreadsheet or someone's inbox: utility and insurance renewals, scheduled maintenance and annual servicing, Charity Commission report deadlines, safeguarding and DBS renewals, fire safety checks, and more.
Labbaik lets committees set these up as recurring administrative tasks with an owner and a due date, then sends WhatsApp alerts as renewals approach and if the most important deadlines go overdue — so nothing safety- or compliance-critical slips through because an email got buried. We found no equivalent task or compliance-reminder tooling in MaktabMate.
Kitab-level Alimiyyah tracking
MaktabMate's progress tracking covers juz-by-juz Hifz with sabaq logs, but we found no publicly documented support for structured Alimiyyah or year-group kitab tracking.
Labbaik lets institutions running Alimiyyah or other Islamic studies programmes upload their own PDF syllabus — Bahishti Zewar, Zad ut-Talibeen, Mishkat, Hidayah, whatever the curriculum requires — and automatically breaks it into trackable sections. Teachers log progress kitab by kitab, section by section, page by page, and that progress is reflected live in the student and parent portal.
| Alimiyyah & Islamic studies | Labbaik | MaktabMate |
|---|---|---|
| Alimiyyah / year-group tracking | Included, standard | Not publicly documented |
| Custom syllabus import | Upload your own PDF — auto-split into sections | Not offered |
| Kitab tracking granularity | Kitab → section → page | Juz-by-juz Hifz with sabaq logs (maktab-style) |
| Pre-loaded kitab library | Bahishti Zewar, Zad ut-Talibeen, Mishkat, Hidayah & more, or add your own | Not offered |
| Non-Hifz Islamic classes (Tajweed, Tafsir, Fiqh, Arabic, etc.) | Any class type, same tracking tools | Maktab-focused |
| Parent/student visibility of kitab progress | Live in the portal as teachers log it | Not offered |
| Alimah/Aalim completion certificates | Verifiable, institution-branded, print-ready | Not offered |
Where Labbaik wins
- Free forever, not 30 days. Safar covers attendance, Hifz tracking, student records and parent messaging — no card, no expiry.
- Unlimited students from day one. No 10-student or 2-teacher cap. Most maktabs grow past MaktabMate's Lite tier quickly.
- Real WhatsApp integration. Fee reminders, attendance alerts, broadcasts and two-way chat on the channel parents actually read (~98% vs ~20% for push/email).
- Stripe fee collection, not just tracking. End-to-end collection with reconciliation, sibling discounts and automatic chase-ups.
- Mobile-first for both audiences. Teachers mark attendance and Hifz on the floor from a phone. Parents do everything from WhatsApp.
- Branded parent portal that converts. Parents see attendance, Hifz progress and fee balances — and pay instantly via Stripe from one link.
- Public page, SDK and API. No website? Get a hosted page out of the box. Already have one? Embed live student counts, announcements and registration with no developer.
- Incident logging and multi-branch. Built-in for trustees, governance and any maktab running more than one site.
- Cost-neutral to the madrasah. Add ~3% to fees and parents cover Labbaik + Stripe — every pound stays with the school.
- Online classes with OAuth-connected Zoom, Drive & Dropbox. Start a live class on Zoom and Labbaik automatically alerts enrolled students by WhatsApp and email the moment it begins. Students and parents join straight from the portal, with attendance marked present automatically — no register needed. Recordings publish from your own Google Drive or Dropbox so anyone who missed the session can catch up, and Labbaik only ever sees the specific files your organisation publishes, never your whole Drive or Dropbox. We found no equivalent in MaktabMate.
- Kitab-level Alimiyyah tracking. Upload your own PDF syllabus and Labbaik breaks it into sections; teachers track progress page by page, visible live in the parent/student portal.
- Genuinely serves the whole masjid or madrasah. Sadaqah/Zakat donations, ticketed community events, bookings and verifiable Nikah/Shahada certificates alongside the maktab, not just a maktab-only tool.
- Compliance task reminders. Recurring admin tasks — insurance/utility renewals, servicing, DBS, fire safety, Charity Commission deadlines — with WhatsApp alerts before they're overdue.
Pricing — side by side
Labbaik publishes pricing openly: Safar is free forever, with a platform fee from 1.5% on payments processed through Stripe on Manzil. If a madrasah collects nothing in a month, it pays Labbaik nothing. No per-student caps on the free plan, no setup charge, no annual contract.
MaktabMate charges a monthly subscription after a 30-day trial: Lite £9.99/mo (£4.99 early bird) capped at 10 students and 2 teachers, Pro £24.99/mo (£12.49 early bird) capped at 100 students and 5 teachers, Max £39.99/mo (£19.99 early bird) for unlimited. The cost is fixed regardless of whether the madrasah collects fees that month.
Which should you pick?
Choose MaktabMate if you're a brand-new maktab with under ten students and want a clean attendance and Hifdh app on a fixed monthly bill.
Choose Labbaik if you want to start free forever, run unlimited students from day one, let teachers mark attendance and Hifz progress from their phones on the classroom floor, give parents a branded portal where they can pay fees instantly via Stripe, and ship a polished public page (or embed the SDK on your existing site) without writing code.
The basics — attendance, Hifdh, homework, house points — both apps cover. The decisive questions are usually: free forever or paying monthly from day 31; how many students you plan to grow to; where parents prefer to read messages; and whether you want the platform to actually collect the fees rather than just track them.
Compare the costShow ▾
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Frequently asked questions
Is MaktabMate better than Labbaik?
MaktabMate is a clean, credible early-stage product for a small maktab on a fixed monthly bill. Labbaik covers the same core features, then adds unlimited students and teachers from day one, built-in Stripe fee collection, full two-way WhatsApp messaging and a public educational page with an embeddable SDK and API — plus a free plan that never runs out.
Does MaktabMate support Hifz tracking?
Yes — juz-by-juz progress with sabaq logs. Labbaik covers the same ground with Sabaq, Sabqi and Manzil tracking built around UK maktab routines.
Does Labbaik include payroll?
Yes. Labbaik runs HMRC-compatible UK payroll on every plan — PAYE, National Insurance, pension and student loan deductions calculated automatically, with payslips and P45/P60 generation included. MaktabMate doesn't currently offer a payroll module.
Which is better for a small UK madrasah?
Both are aimed at smaller maktabs, but Labbaik's Safar plan has no student or teacher cap and no monthly bill regardless of usage — MaktabMate's Lite tier caps at 10 students and 2 teachers before you need to upgrade.
Can I migrate from MaktabMate to Labbaik?
Yes. Student, class and fee records can be imported from a CSV export, and our team can help with a guided migration — get in touch and we'll walk you through it.
Does MaktabMate have masjid tools like donations or events?
No — MaktabMate is scoped to maktab administration (attendance, Hifz, fees, homework, house points). Labbaik covers the same ground, then adds donation campaigns, community events and certificates in the same system.
Does MaktabMate support Alimiyyah or kitab-level tracking?
MaktabMate's progress tracking covers juz-by-juz Hifz with sabaq logs, but we found no publicly documented support for structured Alimiyyah or year-group kitab tracking. Labbaik lets institutions upload their own PDF syllabus, automatically breaks it into sections, and lets teachers track progress kitab by kitab and page by page, visible live in the parent/student portal.
Does MaktabMate remind committees about compliance deadlines like DBS or Charity Commission reports?
Not part of the platform, as far as we could find. Committees can set up recurring administrative tasks in Labbaik — utility and insurance renewals, scheduled maintenance and annual servicing, Charity Commission report deadlines, safeguarding and DBS renewals, fire safety checks and more — with an owner and a due date, and Labbaik sends WhatsApp alerts as renewals approach and if the most important deadlines go overdue.
Does MaktabMate support online classes with Zoom and cloud recordings?
Not publicly documented — as far as we could find, MaktabMate doesn't offer this. Labbaik connects your own Zoom account by OAuth to run live online classes, automatically alerts enrolled students by WhatsApp and email when a session starts, marks attendance automatically the moment they join from the student/parent portal, and lets you publish recordings from your own Google Drive or Dropbox so students can catch up on missed sessions. Labbaik only ever sees the specific files you choose to publish — never your whole Drive or Dropbox account.
Is MaktabMate mobile-first for teachers?
MaktabMate's interface is clean and modern, but built desktop-first. Labbaik is built phone-first — teachers log attendance and Hifz progress from their phone on the classroom floor, not a desk.
We compared Labbaik and MaktabMate using publicly available product information as of September 2026. Where possible, we checked the pages below directly rather than relying on secondhand summaries. Feature availability and pricing can change — the source is the most up-to-date word on either platform.
Weighing up more than one option? See our full round-up of the best MaktabMate alternatives for UK madrasahs.
Labbaik isn't only maktab and madrasah software — the same platform also runs donations, community certificates, events and non-educational classes, so a masjid can run its whole community on one system.
Send us whatever you're using today — a spreadsheet, e-Maktab, IBEAMS, IlmFlow, or a folder of paper registers. We'll set Labbaik up for you and migrate every student, family, class and fee balance across ourselves, at no cost.
If your committee isn't ready to take its first register yet, that's fine too — we'll finish the whole setup so it's ready the moment you are. Get in touch and tell us what you're moving from.
Compare Labbaik with another platform
See how Labbaik stacks up against more of the alternatives UK maktabs and madrasas evaluate.