freesciencelessons vs Save My Exams: Full Comparison

freesciencelessons and Save My Exams can both help with your science revision, but they do it in different ways. 

freesciencelessons is best known for its short teaching videos, with PLUS and printed workbooks giving you extra question practice. 

Save My Exams brings together revision notes, exam questions, past papers and personalised study tools, with video explanations also available in some Science resources.

This guide compares freesciencelessons vs Save My Exams to help you work out which platform could be most useful for your revision.

Key Takeaways

• Save My Exams brings together specification-aligned revision notes, exam questions, flashcards, past papers and mock exams to support you throughout your exam preparation.

• freesciencelessons provides free science teaching videos, with GCSE content focused on AQA Biology, Chemistry and Physics.

• Save My Exams supports different science qualifications and exam boards, as well as a wide range of your other exam subjects.

• freesciencelessons is particularly useful if you learn well from short, focused videos, with PLUS and workbooks giving you extra question practice.

What Is Save My Exams?

Save My Exams is an online revision platform that helps IGCSE, GCSE, A Level, IB and AP students prepare for their exams. It combines a library of revision resources with AI-powered study tools.

Students gain access to revision notes, exam questions, past papers and mock exams. A Premium membership adds AI tools that mark your answers, explain where you went wrong and suggest what to revise next.

Everything on the website is made by trusted examiners, and is matched to your exact specification. On average, students improve by 2.6 grades using Save My Exams.

Save My Exams offers a wide range of revision tools, including:

• Revision notes written by experienced teachers and examiners.

• Flashcards for quick, active revision.

• Exam questions with worked solutions and model answers.

• Past papers with mark schemes to build exam confidence.

• Mock exams to practise under exam conditions and identify areas to improve.

• Smart Mark, our AI marking tool for personalised, exam-specific marking and feedback.

• AI study tools, including Revision Note Chat, Exam Question Chat, Guided Study and Guided Practice.

What Is freesciencelessons?

freesciencelessons is an online science learning and revision resource created by former science teacher Dr Shaun Donnelly.

It is best known for its free teaching videos. GCSE resources cover AQA Biology, Chemistry and Physics, including Combined Science and separate sciences. A Level videos are also available for Biology and Chemistry.

freesciencelessons resources include:

• Free GCSE Science teaching and revision videos.

• AQA Biology, Chemistry and Physics content for Combined Science and separate sciences.

• A Level Biology and Chemistry videos.

• PLUS online courses for AQA GCSE Triple and Combined Science, with structured learning, question practice, instant feedback and progress tracking.

• Printed GCSE Science workbooks with questions and detailed answers.

• Specimen papers written by freesciencelessons for additional exam practice.

Shaun Donnelly has a PhD in Biochemistry and around 20 years of science teaching experience. He founded freesciencelessons in 2013 and still creates the teaching videos himself.

Save My Exams vs freesciencelessons: Feature Comparison

Save My Exams and freesciencelessons both support science learning and exam preparation, but in different ways.

Revision Notes and Content Quality

Save My Exams provides specification-aligned revision notes written by experienced teachers and examiners. You'll also find flashcards and exam-style questions with worked solutions and exemplar answers. Past papers help you apply what you've learned in exam conditions.

AI-powered tools can provide extra support on selected courses. Revision Note Chat can explain concepts or generate questions from the notes. Guided Study takes you through a topic step by step.

freesciencelessons takes a video-led approach. Its short, focused videos can help you learn a science topic or go back over something you haven't fully understood.

The videos are designed to work alongside active practice. PLUS combines the teaching content with questions and instant feedback. The printed workbooks also provide hundreds of questions with detailed answers, so you can test your understanding after watching the relevant videos.

Exam Board and Specification Coverage

One of Save My Exams' main strengths is its exam-board-specific approach. Resources are organised by qualification, exam board, subject and topic, helping you focus on the content included in your course.

At GCSE, freesciencelessons focuses on AQA Science. Its Biology, Chemistry and Physics resources cover Combined Science and separate sciences, with videos updated for the current AQA specification.

There is overlap between exam boards, so if you take another specification, you may still find some of the teaching useful. However, you'll need to check that a video matches the content required by your own specification.

Practice Questions and Exam Technique

Save My Exams provides structured exam practice through exam-style questions, worked solutions, past papers and mock exams. These resources help you understand how marks are awarded and develop your exam technique.

freesciencelessons encourages active revision alongside its teaching videos. PLUS provides thousands of questions with instant marking and feedback, while the printed workbooks contain questions linked to the topics covered in the videos.

The workbooks also include specimen papers for exam practice. These are written by freesciencelessons to reflect GCSE-style questions rather than being official AQA past papers.

Personalisation and Study Support

Save My Exams helps you focus your revision through tools such as Smart Mark, Strengths & Weaknesses and Guided Practice. Study Planner provides further support.

These tools can help you spot knowledge gaps and target weaker topics. They can also help you decide what to revise next.

With freesciencelessons, you choose what to study. You can select individual videos when you need help with a topic or work through them alongside your course.

PLUS provides a more structured approach. You work through teaching and question activities, with your progress saved so you can keep track of what you've completed.

Ease of Use and Student Experience

Save My Exams organises resources by qualification, exam board, subject and topic, making it straightforward to find the resources you need. The structured layout is particularly useful when you're revising an entire course or preparing for multiple exams.

One of the strengths of freesciencelessons is how easy it is to get started. The teaching videos are freely available, so you can go straight to a topic you need to revise without creating an account or paying for a subscription.

The videos are short and focused, which can be useful when you want a quick explanation of a particular topic. PLUS offers a more structured experience if you want teaching and question practice in one place.

Level Coverage

Save My Exams provides dedicated revision resources for:

• GCSE

• IGCSE

• AS Level

• A Level

• IB

• AP

• O Level

freesciencelessons provides resources for:

• GCSE Science

• A Level Biology

• A Level Chemistry

At GCSE, freesciencelessons combines free videos with PLUS and printed workbooks. At A Level, it provides video lessons for Biology and Chemistry rather than the same range of revision resources available at GCSE.

Subject Coverage

Save My Exams supports a wide range of subjects across GCSE, IGCSE, AS Level, A Level, IB, AP and O Level, with coverage varying by qualification and exam board.

You can browse the Save My Exams website or use the subject search function to see the full range of subjects covered.

freesciencelessons specialises in science. Its GCSE resources cover:

• Biology

• Chemistry

• Physics

At A Level, videos are available for Biology and Chemistry.

Pricing and Value for Money

Save My Exams and freesciencelessons both provide free resources, but their access models are different.

Save My Exams offers Free, Essential and Premium levels of access, so you can choose the option that suits your revision needs. You can find more details in our guide: Is Save My Exams Worth It?

A major advantage of freesciencelessons is the amount of teaching content you can access for free. Its science videos are available without a paid subscription.

If you want more structured question practice, you can pay for PLUS access. Printed workbooks are also available to buy separately through Amazon.

Pros and Cons of freesciencelessons

Frequently Asked Questions

What are alternatives to freesciencelessons?

If you're looking for a broader range of science revision resources, Save My Exams can support you from learning and revisiting topics through to exam practice. It provides specification-aligned revision notes, video explanations on some courses, flashcards, exam-style questions with worked solutions, past papers and mock exams.

Other science revision options include Cognito, Educake and Tassomai.

Is freesciencelessons legitimate?

Yes. freesciencelessons was created by Dr Shaun Donnelly, who has a PhD in Biochemistry and around 20 years of science teaching experience. He founded the freesciencelessons YouTube channel in 2013 and has since developed PLUS courses and GCSE Science workbooks.

Is freesciencelessons free?

Yes, the freesciencelessons teaching videos are available free online.

There are also paid options if you want additional resources. PLUS provides structured online learning and question practice, while printed GCSE Science workbooks can be purchased separately.

Can I use Save My Exams and freesciencelessons together?

Yes. You could use freesciencelessons when you want a short, focused explanation of a science topic, then use Save My Exams for further revision and exam practice.

Using both can give you a useful mix of video explanations, revision notes and question-based practice, as well as access to official past papers through Save My Exams.

Can parents and teachers use Save My Exams and freesciencelessons?

Yes. Both platforms can support students with science revision and exam preparation.

Parents can use Save My Exams to help their child revise independently at home, while freesciencelessons provides free videos and other resources students can use alongside their studies.

Save My Exams also provides resources and tools for teachers, including Test Builder, classroom resources and progress monitoring. freesciencelessons offers PLUS school licences, school visits, student masterclasses and teacher CPD.

Final Thoughts

Save My Exams and freesciencelessons both provide strong support for science revision, but their strengths are different. Save My Exams combines specification-aligned revision resources with exam practice, past papers and personalised study tools across science and your other subjects.

freesciencelessons is particularly useful if you learn well from short, clear science videos. A large amount of its teaching content is available free, while PLUS and the workbooks give you more opportunities to test what you've learned.

You don't necessarily need to choose between them. You could use freesciencelessons when you need a clear explanation of an AQA Science topic, then use Save My Exams for further revision, exam practice and your other subjects.

Whichever tools you use, make sure you're actively revising and practising how to apply what you learn in exams. The more practice you get, the more confident you'll feel using your science knowledge. Good luck with your revision!