Study.com: Brief Overview
If you look up Study.com reviews online, you will likely be confused by how much they vary across different platforms. For example, the service is ranked 4.6/5 on Trustpilot yet only 1.5/5 on Sitejabber. Such a mismatch in users’ experiences with study.com warrants a more thorough investigation.
So, where do we begin?
First, study.com isn’t an academic writing service. It’s more similar to platforms like Coursehero or Preply, where learners can find helpful materials for any discipline imaginable and contract a tutor to help them improve their skills and knowledge.
Study.com’s popular competitors are equally divisive: some clients love them, while others deem them utterly useless. The same seems true with study.com, at least based on the comments you can find online. Hopefully, the in-depth review, which is written based on our researchers’ experience with the platform, will bring some clarity.
What’s Our Verdict on Study.com?
What is Study.com? It’s an online learning platform where students can find courses on almost every discipline they study in high school or college and improve their knowledge. It’s equally popular among learners, teachers, parents, and tutors. Teachers and tutors use it to plan classes or share extra materials with their class. Parents can brush up on their curriculum knowledge to be more involved with their children’s studies.
The major difference between Study.com and Preply is that Study.com is more about comprehensive courses than tutors. Tutors’ services are available, sure. However, based on everything we’ve seen in online comments about Study.com, most users are primarily interested in Study.com’s courses. They cover almost the entire K-12 curriculum as general knowledge courses from the first year of the college curriculum.
Is Study.com accredited? As Study.com isn’t a college, it’s not accredited and can’t substitute for a college degree. However, it can make getting one easier because of the helpful courses you can find there.
Treated as an extra source of knowledge that can help you with your studies, it might be a good stepping stone before you turn to a writing service like PaperHelp. With over 20 years in the market, this platform has garnered customer loyalty and numerous PaperHelp reviews, making it a popular choice for students seeking budget-friendly academic assistance.
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Study.com: The First Things You Need to Know
If you google information about Study.com, you will see that the platform sometimes calls itself “the ultimate place for learning.” Don’t be fooled, though - it’s not an accrual educational institution and doesn’t have a physical address. A more accurate way to describe Study.com would be “a database with learning materials based on K-12 disciplines and college courses.”
When creating an account on the platform, select one of the Study.com plans. We will discuss them in more detail below. For now, you need to know that Study.com isn’t free. Looking elsewhere is better if you hope to find high-quality learning resources to help you improve your grades and knowledge but don’t want to pay. Study.com is pretty expensive, especially on a student budget.
Also, if you’re a college student further along in your academic journey than in year one, you will likely find Study.com’s materials surface-level and rudimentary. The platform caters primarily to high schoolers (including homeschoolers). The college courses you can find there are quite disappointing. They are okay for revising but hardly anything beyond that.
Customer Support at Study.com
Before our researchers created an account to explore Study.com thoroughly, they tried to contact the platform’s customer support to ask a few questions. There’s no live chat on the website - which is uncommon and very inconvenient—so we had to text Study.com using the form on their website or the Study.com phone number.
We opted for the latter, and eventually, a customer support member answered our questions and helped us understand how the platform works. However, we had to wait for someone to respond, so our verdict on the platform’s customer service was less than complimentary.
If you have an urgent problem you need to fix ASAP, don’t count on Study.com’s support team. They aren’t very efficient or client-oriented, even more so if you’ve already paid for one of the plans. There are hundreds of negative comments online that claim that getting a refund from study.com is nearly impossible, even when the client was charged unfairly.
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Are Tutors at Study.com Competent? Do They Know Their Subjects?
Similarly to online learning communities akin to Preply, Study.com offers courses and study materials and one-on-one sessions with tutors that help struggling students understand the subject they are learning. However, if you check Study.com teacher reviews, you will see that many users are unhappy with the quality of tutoring.
Most admit that Study.com is an alright platform for teaching materials (if you’re a high school teacher) and learning materials (if you’re a student) but recommend going elsewhere for tutoring services. We agree with such reviews of Study.com. Based on what we’ve seen in other people’s comments and experienced ourselves, the qualifications of Study.com’s tutors are questionable at best.
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The Study.com Price: Is Study.com Worth the Money It Charges?
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The brief answer to this question is no. Study.com is a convenient platform with well-organized learning materials and easy to find. Whether you’re a teacher, a high schooler, or a college student, you will have no problem locating something that will make your academic life easier.
However, this doesn’t justify Study.com’s price per month. The cheapest plan costs $59.99 per month, and it gives you nothing except access to Study.com’s database of learning resources (including quizzes and other self-learning exercises). Those resources can be helpful, especially if you’re new to the subject or don’t like how the material is structured in your textbook. However, they aren’t worth $60 a month. Most of what you can find on Study.com can be found online for free or almost for free.
The only payment plan we think is justified is the so-called “College Saver Edition” for $235 monthly. It gives you access to the courses for which you can earn college credits. The problem, however, is that not all colleges cooperate with Study.com. You can only earn transferable credits if you’re a student of one of the colleges that do.
If you're looking for more personalized academic support, you might want to consider exploring Wyzant. Before diving in, you can read our Wyzant review to learn about our experience with them.
Quality of Study Materials
Your take on the quality of study.com’s learning materials will likely depend on your expectations. If you want an entry-level course to help you understand a topic you missed or get introduced to the subject area, you’re just starting to explore, great. You will probably be satisfied with the level of Study.com’s resources. We found videos particularly helpful.
However, don't bother if you’re looking for something more in-depth that matches the argumentation and reasoning level expected from a college student, don’t bother. Study.com was designed for K-12 students. If you’re no longer a high schooler, you will almost definitely find Study.com’s materials severely lacking in depth and quality.
By the way, we keep seeing people’s comments online asking, “When was Study.com published?” The platform is confusing, so we can see where this question originated. Still, to clarify things, Study.com is an online database and tutoring platform; it’s not a published collection of resources (at least not physically). The platform was launched in 2002, so it’s a well-established business, even if it’s far from perfect.
Does Study.com Cover Every Discipline?
Study.com claims to cover every discipline from the K-12 curriculum—from algebra to writing to environmental science. We mostly focus on college students, so we aren’t completely sure if that’s the case. Based on the basic K-12 curriculum one can find online, though, it’s true. If you’re still in high school, the likelihood of you finding what you’re looking for on Study.com is at least 90%.
However, if you’re already a college student, we recommend you find the courses you’re interested in before you pay for Study.com. The selection is vast, but it doesn’t cover everything a college student needs, even when it comes to general education classes. And if you’re not a freshman anymore, don’t even bother. Study.com’s materials will be too basic for your academic level.
Study.com’s Top Competitors
As you probably know, Study.com isn’t unique. It combines the features of other popular learning platforms, and some are far superior. So, let’s take a look at Study.com’s main competitors. Perhaps you will like one of them way more than study.com itself.
- Preply. If you’re looking for a tutor, Preply makes more sense than Study.com, even though it isn’t perfect.
- Britannica. For free, you can find most non-interactive learning materials available on Study.com on Britannica.
- Khan Academy. We find the quality of learning materials at Khan Academy higher, at least in K-12.
- Coursehero. If you’re a teacher looking for a platform with helpful classroom and homework materials, you might prefer Coursehero over Study.com.
- quizlet.com. Quizlet has way more practice quizzes than Study.com, and it’s cheaper.
And if your quest for the perfect writing service isn't over, delve into this comprehensive WritePapers review. It explores their services, prices, guarantees, and user experiences, offering valuable insights to help you determine if they're the right fit for your academic needs.
Study.com’s Pros and Cons: Is There Anything to Like?
Why is Study.com so expensive? Honestly, we have no idea. There are cheaper and better alternatives out there. The unique thing that Study.com brings to the table is a chance to earn transferable college credits. But given the high price, is it worth it?
Still, not everything about Study.com is that bad. Let’s sum up the platform’s pros and cons to remain unbiased.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Study.com legit to work for?
We have seen tons of complaints from the tutors who work at Study.com; there are also a lot of frustrated comments from the people who prepared Study.com’s learning materials yet didn’t get paid. So, no, Study.com doesn’t seem like a good workplace.
Is Study.com a credible source of learning materials?
If you’re interested in the K-12 curriculum (middle and high school classes mostly), then yes, Study.com is a credible source of learning materials. However, we wouldn't recommend it if you are in college already.
Is Study.com a scam?
No, don't be afraid to become a Study.com scam victim. Once you pay for a plan, you will get access to the materials you’re after. However, be careful with Study.com’s “risk-free” trial. It's not risk-free based on dozens of comments with people complaining about being charged unfairly.
Is using Study.com considered cheating?
No, using Study.com isn’t considered cheating. You can use it to expand your knowledge, practice something you’re learning at school to improve, or even earn transferable credits for college.
Is Study.com reliable? Can I trust the learning materials there?
Study.com’s materials developed based on the K-12 curriculum are reliable and match the knowledge and reasoning expected from a middle or high school student. However, Study.com’s college courses aren’t very reliable. You can use them to introduce a new discipline, but that’s pretty much it.
Is Study.com safe? Can I share my payment information?
Be careful when agreeing to try Study.com’s “risk-free” trial - you might still be charged for an entire month ($60), and getting a refund afterward is nearly impossible. Other than that, yes, your payment information is safe with Study.com.
*Screenshots used for review and criticism purposes fall under the 'fair use' doctrine of the United States Copyright Law.
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