UniNow

What UniNow does

UniNow GmbH is a German SaaS company, founded in 2016 and headquartered in Magdeburg, that operates a modular mobile campus platform serving universities, students, and student services organizations (Studierendenwerke) across all 16 German federal states. Its core product, the UniNow Campus App, centralizes timetable, grades, mail, library, cafeteria, newsfeed, calendar, and identity functions into a single iOS/Android application, with optional add-on modules including a Digital University ID Card (with Deutschlandticket integration), a Digital Booking System for sports/courses/rooms, a Login Gate, Two-Factor Authentication, Mobile Payment for canteens, and role-based access for students, staff, and guests. The platform is built on white-label-capable, modular architecture with TÜV SÜD-certified software quality (ISO/IEC 25051), GDPR-compliant German-hosted infrastructure, and deep integrations into university IT stacks via DFN-AAI/Shibboleth, SAML, OIDC, Microsoft Entra ID, LDAP, HISinOne, Moodle, Stud.IP, ILIAS, and Studierendenwerk payment systems (TL1, Cashcontrol, Vision Checkout, VisioLab).

The company monetizes through a freemium land-and-expand model: a free Basic Cooperation tier with a one-time setup fee serves as the entry point, while revenue is generated from annual subscriptions for White-Label Campus Apps, Standalone Digital ID Apps, and premium add-on modules. It has accumulated 115+ university partnerships, 69 white-label deployments, 60 digital ID rollouts, 30 booking system deployments, and 2.0M+ app downloads, with an average app store rating of 4.5. UniNow serves as the official software partner of the Allgemeiner Deutscher Hochschulsportverband (ADH) and publishes the annual Digital Campus Index ranking of German universities. Distribution is conducted by a six-person cooperation management team via direct enterprise sales, supported by integrations with the DFN research network and major canteen/POS providers; the company has raised approximately €1.0M in disclosed seed funding (bmp Ventures 2016, Aschendorff NEXT 2017) and operates as a privately held GmbH.

Name

UniNow

Legal name

UniNow GmbH

Website

https://uninow.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

UniNow is a German SaaS company that provides a modular white-label campus app platform for universities, students, and student services organizations, offering digital ID, booking, payment, and communication modules across 115+ institutions in all 16 German federal states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Magdeburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. University Licensing (White-Label/Basic Cooperation): Licensing fees from universities for campus app deployment. Basic cooperation is free for universities with a one-time setup fee. White-label apps with full customization are premium offerings with ongoing licensing costs.
2. Premium Module Add-ons: Additional revenue from premium modules such as Digital ID Cards, Booking Systems, Login Gate, Two-Factor Authentication, and Campus Facilities navigation.
3. Student Services Organizations (Studierendenwerke): Revenue from student services organizations for integrated solutions including Mensa payments, digital receipts, and service management.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

UniNow GmbH operates a modular, mobile-first campus app platform licensed primarily to German universities and Studierendenwerke. Its core offering bundles communication (newsfeed, email, push), organization (timetable, grades, calendar, to-dos, cafeteria, library), digital identity (QR-coded student and staff ID with Deutschlandticket and cashless payment), a digital booking system for sports, rooms, and equipment, and SSO-secured access control. Deliverables include white-label branded apps published under each university's name and a freemium Basic Cooperation tier alongside premium module subscriptions.

Product overview

UniNow offers a modular campus app ecosystem for German universities with three partnership tiers. The core UniNow Campus App serves as the central platform connecting universities, students, and student services. The Basic Cooperation (Basiskooperation) tier provides free access to fundamental modules including Newsfeed, Grades, Cafeteria, Library, Mail, Calendar, To Do's, Links, E-Learning, and Career Portal. The White-Label Campus App enables universities to deploy fully branded custom apps. Premium add-ons include the Digital University ID Card with Germany Ticket integration, Digital Booking System for sports/courses/rooms, Login Gate for access control, Mobile Payment for cashless cafeteria transactions, and advanced modules like Two-Factor Authentication, Campus Buildings navigation, and Campus Tours. The platform integrates with university systems including HISinOne, DFN AAI, LDAP, Shibboleth, SAML, Microsoft Entra ID, and learning management systems (Moodle, ILIAS, Stud.IP). All solutions are made and hosted in Germany with TÜV-certified software quality.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• UniNow Campus App Modular mobile-first campus app for German universities and higher education institutions, bundling newsfeed, timetable, grades, email, library, cafeteria, to-dos, and digital identity in a single application.
• White-Label Campus App Custom-branded campus app published in app stores under a university's own name and design, including ID, booking and additional modules with full feature access and ongoing maintenance.
• Digital University ID Card Digital student and staff identification card delivered as a mobile app with QR code, role-based functionality, access control, library card, canteen payment, and Deutschlandticket public-transport integration.
• Digital Booking System Web and mobile booking system with QR check-in, payment processing, and organizer dashboard for sports courses, language classes, rooms, and equipment at universities.
• Login Gate (Login-Schranke) Secure login barrier module using university SSO authentication (DFN AAI/Shibboleth/SAML/LDAP) plus guest access, controlling visibility of newsfeed profiles and posts based on verified roles.
• Student Services Platform (Studierendenwerke) Platform module for Studierendenwerke providing meal plans with CO2 and allergen info, push notifications for announcements, digital receipts, housing information, and POS integration for cashless canteen payments.
• Mobile Payment (Canteen) Cashless QR-code-based payment and digital receipt generation for canteens, integrating with TL1 (TalTech Interface 1), Cashcontrol, Vision Checkout, and VisioLab POS systems.
• Standalone University ID App Independent app focused solely on digital student/staff ID, published in app stores under university branding, with modular add-ons including Sichtausweis, Deutschlandticket, Mensa payment, library card, and access control.

Quantifiable outcome

• Universities can deliver campus information directly to students' smartphones without relying on traditional channels like email or bulletin boards
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration24 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ADH (Allgemeiner Deutscher Hochschulsportverband)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniNow serves as official software partner of the ADH (German University Sports Association). The partnership provides ADH member universities access to UniNow's digital booking system for sports course management. ADH's Sebastian Jochum (Geschäftsführer Hochschulsport Marketing GmbH) noted the booking tool as a strong solution for adh-member universities.
• Studierendenwerk SiegenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization using UniNow for integrated campus services including canteen management and digital payments.
• Studierendenwerk Schleswig-HolsteinminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization in Schleswig-Holstein using UniNow for integrated student services.
• Studierendenwerk GiessenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization using UniNow platform for campus service digitization.
• Studierendenwerk OberfrankenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization in Upper Franconia utilizing UniNow for student service management.
• Studierendenwerk KasselminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization in Kassel integrated with UniNow campus platform.
• Studierendenwerk München OberbayernminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization in Munich using UniNow for integrated campus services.
• Studierendenwerk DarmstadtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization in Darmstadt integrated with UniNow platform.
• Studierendenwerk MarburgminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent services organization in Marburg using UniNow for student services.
• DFN AAI (German Research Network)coreTechnology or IntegrationUniNow is a listed DFN-AAI service provider, enabling seamless integration with university SSO structures. Supports Shibboleth, SAML, and OIDC authentication frameworks for secure user login.
• System Integrations (HISinOne, Microsoft Entra ID, Shibboleth, LDAP, Stud.IP, Moodle)coreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology integrations with major university IT systems including HISinOne, Microsoft Entra ID, Shibboleth, LDAP, Stud.IP, Moodle, and other learning management systems. Enables automated data import and single sign-on.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Workday: Enterprise SaaS provider with a Student system of record and growing higher-education footprint (recruiting, retention, student experience); competes for university IT spend against UniNow from a much broader platform.
• PowerSchool: Large K-20 education technology vendor whose higher-education and student-information products place it in the same institutional RFP pools as UniNow.
• Microsoft Education (Teams for Education): Microsoft's bundled communications, collaboration, and student-engagement offering available largely for free to academic institutions — the most credible free/cheap incumbent threat to UniNow's campus communications modules.
• Anthology (formerly Blackboard): Global higher-education platform combining LMS, SIS, CRM, and student-experience capabilities; a large incumbent whose reach into European universities competes with UniNow for digital campus budgets.

Regional players

• HIS eG: German non-profit developer and operator of HISinOne, the dominant student information system in German higher education; controls the SIS data flows that UniNow integrates with and could expand upstream into engagement.
• Stud.IP: Open-source German campus management/LMS widely deployed at German universities; overlaps UniNow's calendar, newsfeed, course, and messaging modules and is the most direct German competitor at the engagement layer.

Direct peers

• Ready Education: North American student engagement and campus app platform serving higher-education institutions with branded mobile experiences, communications, and student-life modules — directly parallel to UniNow's core offering.
• Modo Labs: US-based mobile-first campus engagement platform offering branded student apps with similar modules (newsfeed, ID, calendar, maps, integrations). Closest product-level comparable to UniNow in the international market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/uninow-gmbh
• Instagraminstagram.com/uninow_app
• TikToktiktok.com/@uninow_app
• Xx.com/uninowapp

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about UniNow