Doing homework takes a significant amount of time and effort, especially for those who have busy schedules or find certain subjects challenging. As a result, many students look for homework help services that can take some of the workload off their plates and help ensure assignments get completed on time.
While there are certainly benefits to hiring someone else to do your homework, there are also downsides to consider. Having another person complete your assignments means missing out on the learning process and not developing problem-solving skills. It could also be considered academic dishonesty by your school.
Instead of outsourcing all your homework, there are better options available that can lighten the load in a more ethical way. Do-it-yourself homework help services exist where students can get affordable tutoring, homework assistance, and exam prep help directly from expert tutors. While not quite the same as having someone else do the work for you, these types of services can boost your understanding and give just the right amount of guidance to find solutions on your own.
With that in mind, here are some of the most affordable and credible do-it-yourself homework help options available:
Tutor.com
Tutor.com is an online tutoring service that offers affordable, on-demand tutoring for K-12 and college students. Subjects covered include math, science, social studies, English, and standardized tests like the SAT and ACT. Tutoring sessions are one-on-one with a live tutor via video chat. Rates start at $36/hour but drop with purchase of prepaid blocks of time. Discounted plans are available for low-income families as well. Tutors are qualified, applying students must complete a short quiz to determine placement level.
Khan Academy
While not live tutoring, Khan Academy offers fantastic free video lessons and practice exercises for math, science, computer programming, history, art history and more. Lessons are available anytime and cover topics from basic skills to AP/IB test prep. Interactive challenges and assessments help gauge understanding. While not replacing homework help completely, Khan Academy is great for reinforcing concepts, catching up if you’ve fallen behind, or prepping for upcoming tests and assignments.
Wyzant
Wyzant connects students with online and in-person tutors for test prep, homework help, ESL instruction, and more. Tutors set their own hourly rates which average $35-65 depending on qualification level and subject expertise. Students can view tutor profiles, ratings, and contact tutors directly to schedule sessions. Payments are made through the Wyzant system which protects students. Most tutors offer the first 30 minutes for free as an assessment session. Multi-session packages provide discounts.
Studypool
On Studypool, students post assignments or tasks they need help with and freelance tutors/subject experts bid to complete the work. Prices start around $5-$10 per page depending on type of paper, length, deadline, and level of difficulty. Customers can read reviews of tutors, view samples of past work, and communicate directly to ensure instructions are followed correctly. Once the work is completed satisfactorily, payment is released to the tutor via the Studypool marketplace platform.
Coache
For step-by-step homework help and exam prep guidance, Coache offers affordable 1-on-1 tutoring with expert high school and college tutors. Sessions are scheduled in advance via video chat and focus on fully explaining concepts, walking through examples, and assisting with assignments until students understand the material. Rates start at $25/hour and packages provide discounts on blocks of hours. Coache tutors have qualifications verified by the company. Students appreciate the personalized learning approach.
Socratic
Using artificial intelligence, Socratic can understand photos of math and science problems to provide step-by-step video explanations or worked solutions. Students snap a picture of the question and get visual help breaking it down. Socratic identifies the concepts and skills required to solve similar problems which aids understanding. While not a replacement for a live tutor, Socratic is extremely convenient for quick guidance, catching mistakes, or reviewing processes independently between study sessions. The app is free to use on mobile devices or online.
Course Hero
Course Hero has a huge database of step-by-step solutions to textbook problems, study guides created by subject matter experts, and sample papers covering many college and high school subjects. Materials are vetted and often include worked explanations. Users can also post their own questions to get free Expert Answers from qualified tutors. While not providing direct homework assistance, Course Hero is excellent for reinforcing concepts through additional practice problems and seeing worked examples to better comprehend assignments.
Sparknotes
For literature analysis and essay writing help, Sparknotes offers free study guides, chapter summaries, analyses of major themes, characters, historical context, and more for thousands of books, plays, and poems. Guides can help with close reading comprehension, outlining critical details, formulating thesis statements, and developing paragraphs for literary analysis papers. While the Cliff’s Notes style guides don’t replace assignments, they efficiently supply core understanding and analysis to build upon for homework and class projects related to works of fiction or non-fiction.
While studying independently using online resources ideally provides the most learning benefit, homework assistance services offer affordable options when extra support is needed, especially for difficult subjects. Look for services that explain concepts clearly rather than simply providing answers, to get the right balance of homework help without compromising the learning process or academic integrity. With the right approach, affordable DIY homework assistance is very achievable.
Andrew Stroud