In September 2023, Google announced its decision to wind down Google Jamboard. In this article, we’ll discuss why Google decided to discontinue Google Jamboard, when Google Jamboard is shutting down and what alternatives there are.

What is Google Jamboard?

Google Jamboard is a digital whiteboard that lets you collaborate in real-time using sticky notes, text, images and pens. It can be used on the physical Jamboard device (a 55-inch display), on the Jamboard website and on the Jamboard mobile apps.

Why is Jamboard Going Away?

Jamboard is winding down so that Google can focus on core content collaboration across Docs, Sheets, and Slides, according to their article in Jamboard Help Center. But what is the real reason? I think that Google simply don’t make enough money from Jamboard.

Google make money by selling Google Workspace to businesses (along with lots of other revenue streams like ads and search). At the time of writing, Google Workspace includes the following 12 applications: Gmail, Drive, Meet, Calendar, Chat, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Keep, Sites, Forms and AppSheet.

Do you think anyone would decide not to buy Google Workspace because it no longer includes Jamboard? I don’t think so, that’s why Google can make the decision to discontinue Jamboard with few ramifications. Other than a lot of unhappy Jamboard users, including me!

When is Jamboard Going Away?

Jamboard will become view-only on October 1, 2024 and will no longer be available after December 31, 2024. Google recommend that you export all of your “Jams” before the October 1 deadline, although in their help article, it implies that you will be able to export your Jams until December 31.

• After October 1, 2024, Google will start automatically converting all of your Jams to PDF “on a best-effort basis”.
• After December 31, 2024, the Google Jamboard app will be shut down and you will no longer be able to view or export your Jams. All Jam data will be permanently deleted.

Sounds scary, right? Let’s find you an alternative to Google Jamboard.

Google Jamboard Alternatives

I’ll be honest, there aren’t many. When you search for alternatives to Google Jamboard, you might be recommended Miro, LucidSpark, Figjam and others. However, none of them work like Jamboard. Instead of the familiar slide-based approach of Jamboard, the alternatives all tout infinite canvases and hundreds of tools.

That’s why I decided to build Jotboard!

Jotboard is an easy-to-use collaborative whiteboard with a slide-based interface and a set of tools similar to Jamboard’s. The generous free plan offers unlimited boards and up to 5 collaborators simultaneously. Sign up for free to try it out!