The 5 best security awareness apps on the market in 2026

Offering your employees security awareness training via mobile apps enable easier access and higher participation. But which apps are the best on the market right now? In this article, I’ll share my findings.

Why a strong security awareness training program needs a mobile app

Legacy security awareness programs have always offered their training via desktop. With this, they cover most of their target audience: office workers who sit behind a computer for at least some part of their day.

Here’s why that’s not enough in this day and age:

• Microlearning: Mobile experiences lend themselves to bite-sized learning (let’s be real, who would ever play Duolingo on their desktop?), which has been proven to increase retention and engagement.
• Access: Not everybody has access to a computer during work hours (i.e. frontline workers like those in retail or hospitality).
• Participation: It can be challenging to get employees to participate in training. A mobile app makes it easier to participate during a break or on the train to work.
• Notifications: Notifications for a new training session are often sent by email, but can be overlooked. Smart phone notifications add another way to engage users.
• Modern expectations: People expect the same convenience from workplace tools as from consumer apps. A mobile-friendly experience aligns with how people already learn and engage digitally.

There are hundreds of security awareness programs out there, yet there are only a few that offer a native mobile app. I’ve found the best ones and listed them below 👇

The 5 best security awareness apps on the market

1. Guardey
2. KnowBe4
3. SC Training
4. Aware
5. Pistachio

1. Guardey

Guardey’s mobile security awareness app has been built in the spirit of language learning app Duolingo:

• Weekly micro-learnings (one training takes 3-5 minutes)
• Gamificatied elements such as badges and a compelling storyline to boost engagement
• A leaderboard to enable friendly competition between colleagues
• Subtle notifications that tangibly improve participation (without ever spamming the user)
• Special training programs for specialized sectors and professionals (such as education, healthcare, government, and developers).

Guardey offers a truly native mobile app experience, where most others only allow you to log into their browser version (which surprise, surprise: isn’t the most user-friendly). What truly sets Guardey apart is the way it stimulates friendly competition among colleagues. Many users have set up competitions within their organization and hand out prizes for winners of each season, which proves to be a great way to boost participation.

You can try out Guardey during a 14-day free trial or schedule a demo to learn more.

→ Schedule a demo with Guardey

2. KnowBe4

KnowBe4 also offers a mobile experience in the form of its Learner App. The app gives users access to its wide library of training content and sends notifications about upcoming training.

However, the app is mostly a mini version of the web portal instead of a purpose-built mobile learning app. Most of KnowBe4’s content wasn’t originally designed for desktop delivery. When you scroll through their modules on the app, many of them carry the label ‘Not recommended for mobile.’ I will say that even though this can be annoying, the width of their library does make up for it a little bit.

In short: the app extends access, but doesn’t necessarily make for a smooth learning experience that you would expect.

3. SC Training

SC Training (previously known as EdApp) is a mobile-first learning platform for frontline workers. It offers courses on a very wide range of subjects, such as driver safety, diversity and inclusion, and also cyber security awareness.

The app was built solely for people without constant access to desktops to be able to do training that is necessary to do their work well and/or safely.

Each training consists of short micro-lessons that take a few minutes to complete. The program uses gamification to keep users engaged and also offers offline access for employees without constant internet connection. Push notifications and automatic reminders are used to drive completion rates.

While SC Training completely nails the mobile learning experience (since that’s its core business), the security awareness course is limited. However, if you’re looking for a tool that offers more than just security awareness, this could be the perfect fit for your organization.

4. Aware

Aware falls in the category of KnowBe4. They offer a more traditional approach to security awareness training (phishing simulations + e-learning modules). You can use the web version or the mobile app for on-the-go training.

Aware was built by EC-Council, which is a well-known course library for a large variety of cyber security topics. Examples of other courses include Certified Cybersecurity Technician, Certified CISO, and Certified Cloud Recovery Engineer. Again, another provider that isn’t 100% specialized in security awareness, but offers a broader spectrum of courses.

Aware leans on the theory that you should first send out phishing simulations and train a user when they fail. Although I believe this can be effective for some people, it can also easily make people annoyed with training. You have to ask yourself if you want a training program to feel like punishment or not.

5. Pistachio

One of the more unique approaches I’ve run into doing research was by Pistachio. Instead of asking employees to log into a platform every once in a while, it sends out security awareness challenges directly to the users’ inbox or smartphone.

In the challenge, users are confronted with scenarios such as a questionable link or a potential phishing link. Next, they have to decide how they would respond. After that challenge, they are done, which makes the training very short and to the point, which is a perfect fit for a mobile experience.

What it has in uniqueness, it lacks in features that may be important for compliance-heavy organizations. The content library is relatively limited compared to other solutions, and it doesn’t include gamification mechanics like a leaderboard or points that can help to further improve engagement. Their focus is on automation, minimum effort for both admin and user, not depth.

I like the proposition as its clear and you know exactly what you get. However, it’s not a replacement for traditional security awareness training, moreso a supplement. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Conclusion

Mobile-first learning is no longer a nice-to-have in security awareness training. It’s becoming the standard. Whether it’s gamified platforms like Guardey, enterprise giants like KnowBe4, or AI-driven challengers like Pistachio, the best solutions are the ones that meet employees where they already are: on their phones.

Each app has its own philosophy.

Guardey stands out for its playful, gamified design and community feel.

KnowBe4 wins on content volume but lags in mobile experience.

SC Training shines with usability and microlearning but isn’t completely awareness-focused.

Aware connects phishing simulations with training but feels more compliance-driven.

And Pistachio delivers an elegant, lightweight way to build awareness without the admin burden.

The right choice depends on your goals. If you want something that actually builds long-term engagement and security culture — not just compliance checkmarks — go for a solution that was built for a Duolingo-esque from day one, like Guardey.