School is back in session and students are discovering just how much distance learning cost them in grade-level competency. That’s got millions of parents wondering where to find a tutor. A recent analysis by SideHusl.com found that the best tutoring sites neatly balance the needs of students and tutors, making the sites a win for everyone.
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What makes the best tutoring sites unique? They make it easy to find a tutor who suits the student’s specific needs, while offering plenty of flexibility to students and tutors alike. They also charge modest fees, so tutors don’t have to pad their rates to earn a decent living.
Best tutoring sites
It’s worth noting that the top site on this list — Wyzant — is recommended for every subject. However, the best tutoring sites for your student may depend on the topic and the student. Students gifted in music or coding, for instance, may find greater variety and more amenable tutors at a niche site, such as LessonFace or Juni Learning.
Here are the three best tutoring sites and what makes them work for both students and tutors.
Wyzant
If we had to pick just one site that offered the best experience for students and tutors alike, Wyzant would be it. Roughly 65,000 tutors have signed up at this site and they coach kids (and adults) in everything from English to geometry; physics to foreign language.
What makes the site great for students is that it’s easy to find exactly the tutor you want. This goes far beyond saying that you need to find an expert in, say, algebra. The site’s search engine also sorts by the tutor’s age and hourly rate. So, if you are on a budget, you can filter out tutors you can’t afford. If your child responds best to mature adults, you can search for tutors over the age of 40 — or vice versa. This search will bring up a wealth of tutor profiles that you can peruse to find the right match for your student. (You can search for a Wyzant tutor here.)
Comparatively, if you tried to find a tutor through Varsity Tutors, you would need to provide your name, zip code, phone number and talk to a Varsity Tutors sales representative before you ever had a chance to see a single tutor profile. Varsity Tutors also does not book individual tutoring sessions. You must agree to a tutoring “package” before you have a single session. (If you want to sign up, you can find Varsity Tutors here.)
Why tutors choose Wyzant
The ease of use and wealth of tutor choices make Wyzant a clear winner for students. but there are a wealth of reasons why tutors like Wyzant, too.
Specifically, tutors set their own rates and only pay a fee to the site when they’ve completed a job. Payments are prompt; and the site gets millions of visitors every month, so tutors are likely to find plenty of students here.
Better yet, tutors who have advanced skills can get paid handsomely. One advanced physics tutor, for instance, charges $139 an hour and has more than 1,500 reviews from satisfied students. (If you want to sign up as a tutor, click here and hit “start tutoring” at the top of the page.)
Music
While Wyzant also offers music lessons, a site called LessonFace may be a better site to find a music tutor, particularly if your child’s interests deviate from standard piano or guitar lessons.
LessonFace is all about music and, to a lesser degree, art. Drawing musicians from all over the world, students have the ability to learn everything from Flamenco guitar to djembe, cimbasso to Pan flute. Naturally, if your student’s interest is more common — violin or drums, for instance — LessonFace has that too. The site also has tutors specializing in song-writing, composition, and live performance.
LessonFace is all online, so you’re not limited to instructors near you. While tutors set their own rates, half-hour lessons typically run $30. (Sign up with LessonFace here.)
Beginners coding for kids
Kids who have a penchant for tech, can find college-age tutors through Juni Learning. While you can also find specialized tech tutors at Wyzant, Juni serves a narrow niche– beginning coders age 7 to 18. The site only hires top college students as tutors, believing that kids interested in coding will have a better experience with tutor/mentors closer to their own age.
For the college students enlisted to tutor, Juni also offers a nice proposition. The site hires tutors as employees, which means they pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your wages and deduct federal income tax withholding. For students unlikely to have other sources of income, this is helpful. It saves you both tax money and the headache of having to deal with making estimated tax payments during the year. Tutors are generally paid between $20 and $25 per hour. (You can learn more about Juni Learning here.)
However, those needing more advance tutoring — and tutors able to help college students — Wyzant is the better choice, offering higher pay and greater flexibility.
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