Canvas runs two separate quiz engines: Classic Quizzes, the original tool, and New Quizzes, its newer replacement. New Quizzes adds four question types Classic lacks, shows feedback by default, and cannot be reverted to Classic — but both still work with LockDown Browser in 2026.
The quick difference
Canvas is unusual in that it ships two quiz tools side by side, and a single course can contain quizzes built in both. The original engine is Classic Quizzes, and New Quizzes is the newer engine Instructure built to eventually replace it. They look similar once you start answering, so the differences are easy to miss until they affect your grade or your review options.
The fastest way to tell them apart before you start is the icon. Canvas marks quizzes with a rocket icon, and the two engines use different versions: Classic Quizzes shows an outlined rocket, while New Quizzes shows a solid, filled rocket. Once you know that, you can identify the engine from the quiz list without opening anything.
- Classic Quizzes: the original engine, frozen for new features, marked with an outlined rocket icon.
- New Quizzes: the newer replacement, actively developed, marked with a solid filled rocket icon.
- Both can appear in one course: older quizzes stay in Classic while newer ones are built in New Quizzes.
Question types compared
Both engines support the standard question set you already know: multiple choice, multiple answer, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, essay, file upload, formula, numeric, and matching. If your quiz only uses those, the engine barely changes how you answer.
New Quizzes goes further by adding four interactive question types that do not exist in Classic Quizzes at all. These are the formats most likely to surprise you if you have only ever taken Classic quizzes before.
The four New-Quizzes-only types
Categorization asks you to drag items into the correct groups or buckets. Ordering asks you to arrange a set of items into the right sequence. Hot Spot asks you to click a specific region of an image to answer. Stimulus attaches a shared passage, chart, or resource to several linked questions so you analyze one source across multiple items.
None of these appear in Classic Quizzes, so seeing any of them is a reliable sign you are taking a New Quiz. They are more interactive than a plain multiple-choice list, which means they can take longer to answer and reward careful reading of the instructions.
Feedback, settings & what you see
The engines also differ in how they handle feedback after you answer, and this catches students off guard. In New Quizzes, students see all feedback by default — the instructor has to actively hide it. In Classic Quizzes, you only see feedback if the instructor enabled it through the review options.
That flip in defaults means you should not assume anything about what a quiz will show you. A New Quiz is more likely to reveal correct answers and explanations right away, while a Classic quiz can stay completely silent unless the instructor chose otherwise. Check the quiz instructions rather than guessing based on a quiz you took earlier in the course.
Do not carry assumptions between engines. New Quizzes shows feedback by default; Classic hides it unless the instructor turns it on. The same course can hand you both behaviors in the same week.
Is Classic going away?
Classic Quizzes is no longer receiving new features. Instructure has put its development on hold while it invests in New Quizzes as the long-term replacement, so anything new that arrives for Canvas quizzes lands in the newer engine.
Following Instructure's deprecation timeline, many institutions began sunsetting Classic Quizzes from late 2025, roughly in the 2025–2026 window. That is not a single hard universal date — the exact cutoff depends on your school — so Classic may still be fully available where you study even as other campuses retire it.
One detail worth knowing: once a quiz is built in or migrated to New Quizzes, instructors cannot revert it back to Classic. The path only runs one direction. That is why you will often see a mix of both engines in the same course during the transition — older Classic quizzes stay as they are, while newer ones are permanently in New Quizzes.
Do both work with LockDown Browser?
Yes. Both Classic Quizzes and New Quizzes work with Respondus LockDown Browser, so the engine your instructor chose tells you nothing about whether the quiz is locked down. Either one can be configured to require the secure browser, and either can be paired with webcam proctoring through Respondus Monitor.
If a Canvas quiz launches inside LockDown Browser, treat it as a fully supervised exam. The locked browser blocks other tabs, apps, and tools for the duration of the quiz, and no on-page assistant is available in that environment.
How QuizSolve handles both
QuizSolve reads the questions that appear on a normal Canvas quiz page, and it works in both Classic Quizzes and New Quizzes because both engines present their questions as readable on-page text. You do not need to know which engine you are on for the on-page reading to work.
The newer New Quizzes types — Categorization, Ordering, Hot Spot, and Stimulus — are more complex to interact with, but their prompts and content are still text and DOM readable, so QuizSolve can read them the same way it reads a standard multiple-choice question. The interactive answering (dragging, clicking a region) is still yours to do.
The honest limit is the same everywhere: QuizSolve works on a normal web page and does not run inside LockDown Browser or any proctored browser, and it never bypasses proctoring. Use it for practice quizzes, open study, and understanding how questions are framed — not for supervised exams.
Free tier: 5 questions/day + 2 screenshot solves. Pro: $6.99/month for unlimited. Best for students who want quick, explanation-first help on unlocked Canvas quizzes across both engines.
Key takeaways
- The fastest way to tell the engines apart is the rocket icon: outlined means Classic, filled means New Quizzes.
- If your quiz has drag-into-category, drag-to-reorder, or click-the-image questions, you are on New Quizzes — those types do not exist in Classic.
- Do not assume feedback will appear; New Quizzes reveals it by default, but a Classic quiz stays silent unless the instructor enabled review options.
- Classic Quizzes still works today, but treat it as legacy — it is frozen for new features and being phased out at many schools.
- QuizSolve reads on-page questions in both engines, but it does not run inside lockdown or proctored browsers and never bypasses proctoring.
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FAQ
How do I know if my quiz is Classic or New Quizzes?
Look at the icon next to the quiz title on the Quizzes or Assignments page. Canvas uses a **rocket icon** to mark quizzes, and the two engines are drawn differently: Classic Quizzes shows an **outlined rocket**, while New Quizzes shows a **solid, filled-in rocket**. That single visual cue is the quickest way to tell them apart before you start. If you are still unsure, open the quiz and watch for the newer question styles — drag-into-category, drag-to-reorder, or click-on-image questions only appear in New Quizzes. Knowing which engine you are in matters because feedback behavior, question types, and available settings differ between the two, and those differences change how you should approach the quiz.
What question types does New Quizzes add over Classic?
New Quizzes keeps every standard type both engines share — multiple choice, multiple answer, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, essay, file upload, formula, numeric, and matching — and then adds four that Classic never supported: **Categorization**, **Ordering**, **Hot Spot**, and **Stimulus**. Categorization asks you to sort items into groups, Ordering asks you to arrange items into the correct sequence, Hot Spot asks you to click a specific region of an image, and Stimulus attaches a shared passage or resource to several linked questions. These interactive formats are the biggest practical reason a New Quizzes assessment can feel different from a Classic one, even when the underlying subject matter is identical.
Is Canvas Classic Quizzes going away?
Classic Quizzes is no longer receiving new features — Instructure has frozen it while it builds out New Quizzes as the replacement. Following Instructure's deprecation timeline, **many institutions began sunsetting Classic Quizzes from late 2025**, though the exact cutoff depends on your school rather than a single universal date. In practice that means Classic still works right now at many campuses, but you should treat it as legacy technology. If your instructor is building new assessments, they are increasingly likely to use New Quizzes. Check with your course or your school's LMS support if you need to know exactly when Classic will be turned off where you study.
Can an instructor switch a New Quiz back to Classic?
No. Once a quiz is created or migrated into New Quizzes, **instructors cannot revert it back to Classic Quizzes**. The migration path only runs one direction, from Classic toward New. This matters to students because it explains why you may see a mix of both engines in the same course during a transition period: older quizzes that were built in Classic stay in Classic, while anything the instructor rebuilds in the new engine is permanent. If a quiz looks and behaves differently from earlier ones in your course, this one-way migration is usually why, and it is normal to encounter both formats in the same term.
Do both Canvas quiz engines work with LockDown Browser?
Yes. **Both Classic Quizzes and New Quizzes work with Respondus LockDown Browser**, so your instructor can require the locked browser regardless of which engine the quiz uses. LockDown Browser prevents you from opening other tabs, applications, or tools during the assessment, and it may be paired with webcam-based Respondus Monitor for proctoring. This is an important honesty point: QuizSolve reads questions on a normal web page, but it does not run inside LockDown Browser or any proctored environment, and it will not defeat proctoring. If your Canvas quiz launches through LockDown Browser, treat it as a fully supervised exam and prepare accordingly rather than expecting any on-page assistant to be available.
