Grove vs Classmates.com
Find your classmates, then run the reunion.
Grove is one connected place to plan the reunion, organize the group, manage who is coming and paying, and keep what happens afterward. Classmates.com connects school alumni, with a yearbook archive and free reunion pages. Here is how they compare, with every Classmates detail taken from Classmates.com's own page.
About Classmates.com
Classmates.com connects school alumni. It is free to set up an in-person or virtual reunion and for all alumni to register; invitations go to registered classmates on your class list, and non-registered alumni can join free to RSVP. It has a yearbook archive (it says over 480,000 yearbooks), with full yearbook photos on its paid CM+ upgrade.
About Grove
Grove is one connected place for a reunion. Plan it (invite page, schedule, budget, tasks). Organize the family (households, branches and a family tree). Manage participation (RSVPs, card payments with Essentials, schedule, committees and group chat). Then keep what happens afterward: memories, recorded stories and a handoff to the next organizer.
| Feature | Classmates.com | Grove |
|---|---|---|
| Reunion setup | Free to set up an in-person or virtual reunion, and free for all alumni to registerVerified availableSource: Classmates blog page | Free to start; can read an old flier to fill in the details |
| Family and class reunions | School class reunions. Family reunions: not publicly verifiedLimited or plan-dependentSource: Classmates blog page | Family reunions, plus class, church and other group types |
| Invitations and RSVP | Invitations go to registered classmates on your class list; others join free to RSVP; attendees show on a public attendee listVerified availableSource: Classmates blog page | Invite page, a personal link for each guest, household RSVPs |
| Households | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verifiedSource: Classmates blog page | Household RSVPs and headcounts, family branches |
| Payment tracking | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verifiedSource: Classmates blog page | Payment tracking for cash, check and payment apps (Essentials and up) |
| Online payments and fees | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verifiedSource: Classmates blog page | Card checkout at RSVP on Essentials and up. Grove fee per card payment: 1.5% + $0.49 on Essentials, 0.75% + $0.29 on Pro, separate from standard card processing. No Grove fee on payments recorded by hand |
| Schedule, activities and polls | A discussion board where planners share event details and pollsLimited or plan-dependentSource: Classmates blog page | Schedule, polls and a potluck board (Free) |
| Committees and volunteers | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verifiedSource: Classmates blog page | A treasurer and up to 3 co-organizers on Essentials; up to 10 co-organizers and 20 committees on Pro |
| Family communication | Email invitations to registered classmates and a discussion boardLimited or plan-dependentSource: Classmates blog page | Family Feed, group chat and direct messages, email reminders |
| Video meetings | A Virtual Reunion option lets alumni attend online; "some restrictions may apply"Limited or plan-dependentSource: Classmates blog page | No video on Free (new signups) or Essentials. Pro includes 2 video hours in total; Grove Live plans add more |
| Family tree and memories | Yearbook archive; full yearbook photos need the paid CM+ upgrade. Family tree: not publicly verifiedLimited or plan-dependentSource: Classmates blog page | Family tree, Story Circle with voice answers, memories and a post-reunion capsule |
| AI planning help | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verifiedSource: Classmates blog page | Auntie, a premium AI helper, on a monthly plan ($12, $29, $49 a month) |
| Phone experience | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verified | Works in the phone browser; guests RSVP from their link with no account |
| Privacy and ads | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verifiedSource: Classmates blog page | A private family space with no ads inside Grove |
| Pricing | Reunion tools free; CM+ is a paid upgrade. CM+ price: check current pricing on classmates.comLimited or plan-dependentSource: Classmates blog page | Free; Essentials $79 or Pro $149, once per reunion; Annual $299 a year |
| After the reunion | Not publicly verifiedNot publicly verified | Essentials and Pro never expire; the Family Feed stays open after the reunion, with a handoff for the next organizer |
Classmates.com details verified on November 9, 2026 from Classmates.com's own public pages (see Sources below). "Not publicly verified" means we did not find it on those pages, not that Classmates.com lacks it.
Pricing
Classmates.com
- Reunion pages: free to set up, and free for alumni to register and RSVP.
- CM+: a paid upgrade for full yearbook photos. Check current pricing on classmates.com.
Grove
- Free: $0. Planning, invite page, roster and household RSVPs, schedule, polls, potluck, family tree, stories and memories.
- Essentials: $79 once per reunion. Card checkout at RSVP, payment tracking, a treasurer and co-organizers. Grove fee of 1.5% + $0.49 per card payment, separate from standard card processing.
- Pro: $149 once per reunion. Everything in Essentials, a lower Grove card fee (0.75% + $0.29) and 2 video hours of video meetings in total.
- Grove Annual: $299 a year, Pro for up to 3 reunions each paid year.
- Grove Live video plans: $39 or $79 a month for one reunion.
- Auntie (premium AI helper): $12, $29, $49 a month per family.
- No Grove fee on payments you record by hand. No video on Free (new signups) or Essentials.
Pricing verified 2026-11-09. Classmates details are from its class reunion website blog page on that date; the rest of classmates.com did not load for our check, so the CM+ price is not shown. Grove prices are Grove's current published prices. Prices change, so check each product's pricing page before you buy.
Strengths
Classmates.com
- -Class lists of registered alumni, so invitations can reach classmates you lost touch with.
- -A yearbook archive that Classmates says holds over 480,000 yearbooks.
- -Reunion pages are free to set up and free for alumni to join.
- -Non-registered alumni can join free to RSVP, and attendees show on an attendee list.
- -A virtual reunion option for alumni who cannot travel.
Grove
- -One connected place: planning, the family roster, RSVPs, payments, chat and memories share the same records, so nothing is copied between tools.
- -Organizes the family itself: households RSVP together, branches show headcounts, and the family tree lives next to the guest list.
- -Manages participation: a personal RSVP link for each guest with no account, card checkout at RSVP on Essentials ($79 per reunion), schedule, polls, potluck, committees and group chat.
- -Keeps what happens afterward: memories, Story Circle with voice answers, a post-reunion capsule and a handoff brief for the next organizer.
- -A generous Free plan: planning, invite page, household RSVPs, schedule, polls, potluck, family tree, stories and memories.
- -Class tools: find missing classmates, turn tips from classmates into invitations, and see the class on a Class Map.
Limits to know about
Classmates.com
- -Collecting reunion payments was not found on the page we read.
- -Full yearbook photos need the paid CM+ upgrade.
- -Households, committees, a schedule and a family tree were not found on the page we read.
Grove
- -Card checkout needs Essentials ($79) or Pro ($149), and each card payment carries a Grove fee on top of standard card processing.
- -Video meetings are not on Free (new signups) or Essentials; Pro includes 2 video hours in total, and more needs a monthly Grove Live plan.
- -Auntie, the AI helper, is a premium monthly plan, not part of Free, Essentials or Pro.
- -Grove does a lot, so there is more to learn than a single event page.
Who each one fits best
Classmates.com fits best if
- -You want to reach classmates already registered on Classmates.com
- -You want yearbook photos as part of the reunion
- -You only need a free listing and RSVP for a school reunion
Grove fits best if
- ✓You want the plan, the family and its history in one place instead of four apps
- ✓Households RSVP together and you want headcounts by branch
- ✓You collect reunion fees and want to see who has paid, in cash, check, payment apps or card
- ✓Your family gathers again and again and you want each reunion to start where the last one ended
- ✓You want to find classmates, collect reunion fees and run the weekend from the same place
Finding classmates is step one. Then comes the reunion.
For reaching alumni and browsing yearbooks, Classmates.com is built for that, and its reunion pages are free.
If you want to find classmates and then plan the reunion, collect fees, run the schedule and keep the memories in one place, start a Grove reunion free and see how it fits.
Start your reunion freeSources
Every Classmates.com detail on this page comes from these public pages, read on the dates shown. Grove details come from Grove's own pricing and feature records.
- classmates.com/blog/best-class-reunion-website (checked November 9, 2026)