Compare your rate with posted rates for the level you teach, then see what you keep per hour after platform fees, prep and travel.
Care.com's average posted starting rates, updated September 2025, are $24.40 an hour for elementary school tutors, $24.37 for middle school and $24.22 for high school. The tutors Care.com interviewed put college tutoring at $60 to $70 an hour and SAT or ACT prep at about $100. Its overall range runs from $18 to $21 at the low end to over $100.
Thumbtack lists algebra and general maths tutors at $40 to $50 an hour on average, with intensive test prep at $70 to $100. Tutoring centres such as Kumon or Tutor Doctor charge $50 to $75 an hour, according to a tutoring business owner Care.com quotes, and a full-service agency he worked for charged $200.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the May 2025 median wage for tutors at $20.84 an hour, and the mean at $23.10. That is pay from an employer such as a school or learning centre. Tutors working for themselves charge more because they find their own students and pay their own tax.
Wyzant keeps a 25% platform fee from every lesson, so tutors keep 75% of their posted rate, a structure in place since January 15, 2019, according to Wyzant's help centre. Students pay Wyzant a separate 9% service fee on top. A $40 rate on Wyzant pays you $30; to keep $40 you would post $53.33.
Varsity Tutors sets the pay itself. Its tutoring jobs page says rates vary by subject and differ for one-on-one and small group teaching, and it does not publish what share of the student's price the tutor receives.
Your own clients cost nothing per lesson. The cost is finding them: parents' groups, school newsletters, teachers who refer struggling students, and a short profile you can send. One referral from a happy parent is worth more than a month of platform listings, and nobody takes a quarter of it.
You keep your rate minus any platform fee. Real hourly pay spreads that over the session plus the unpaid minutes around it: prep before, and travel there and back if you teach in person. A $40 hour with 10 minutes of prep is $34.29 an hour of your time.
The year figure is what you keep per hour times session length, sessions a week and weeks a year. The default 40 weeks assumes you tutor during the school year and lose most of the summer, which is the usual pattern for school-subject tutoring. Exam prep can run year-round.
In person costs you travel. Care.com quotes one tutor who charges $10 less for online lessons than in-person ones. Picking in person in the calculator loads 30 minutes of travel per session, our placeholder, so you can see what the drive costs per hour before you agree to it.
Online usually pays more per hour of your time, even at a lower rate, because there is no travel. A $40 in-person hour with 30 minutes of travel and 10 minutes of prep is $24 an hour of your time. The same session online at $30 is $25.71.
Online also has more competition. A tutoring business owner Care.com quotes says it is not difficult to find highly rated tutors on Wyzant for $20 to $30 an hour, so a new online tutor competes with people across the country on price. In person, you compete with the tutors within driving distance, and families pay for someone who can sit at the kitchen table.
Small groups change the sums again. Two or three students from the same class at a lower rate each can pay you more for the hour than one student at your full rate, and Varsity Tutors pays different rates for small group teaching than for one-on-one.
Start near the posted average for the level you teach, then move up as reviews and results come in. Care.com's posted starting rates of about $24 are what a family sees first, so a high school student tutoring younger children can start there and raise the rate for returning families.
Subject moves the price more than who you are. Care.com's sources say maths and science tutors charge the most because the material is technical, and test prep sits higher again because the stakes are high. Tutors with special education training or experience with ADHD, dyslexia or autism also charge more.
Certified teachers can price toward the top of the range. One tutor Care.com quotes charges $75 an hour for in-person elementary tutoring in Chicago and Houston. Before you tutor a student from your own class or school, read your district's outside-employment and conflict-of-interest policy.
Raise it for new students first and keep current families at their rate until the next term. Offer packages: Care.com's sources say many tutors give a discount to families who buy several lessons up front, which secures the term's income and makes the next raise easier.
Track one result per student, such as a grade or test score. A sentence from a parent about a score that went up does more for your rate than any credential line in a profile.
Care.com's average posted starting rates are about $24 an hour for elementary through high school, while college tutoring starts around $60 to $70 and SAT or ACT prep around $100, according to the tutors it interviewed. Thumbtack lists algebra tutors at $40 to $50. Price by subject and level, then raise it as results come in.
Start near Care.com's average posted starting rate for the level you teach, about $24 an hour for elementary and middle school students. Charge more for maths, science and test prep, and raise your rate for returning families once you have reviews and a grade or score that went up.
Certified teachers can price toward the top of the local range. One tutor Care.com quotes charges $75 an hour for in-person elementary tutoring and $10 less online. Before you start, read your district's outside-employment and conflict-of-interest rules, especially about tutoring students from your own school.
Wyzant keeps a 25% platform fee, so tutors keep 75% of their posted hourly rate, according to Wyzant's help centre. Students pay a separate 9% service fee on top. To keep $40 an hour on Wyzant you would need to post $53.33.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the May 2025 median wage for tutors at $20.84 an hour. Self-employed tutors set their own rates and hours: at $40 an hour, six one-hour sessions a week for 40 weeks is $9,600 before tax with no platform fee.