Save My Exams vs Private Tutoring: Which Is Right for You?

Revision season can be stressful. Exams are creeping closer, you’ve got a mountain of content to get through, and you're not sure where to start. 

You might be wondering if an online revision platform like Save My Exams or a private tutor could help you feel more confident and prepared.

This article breaks down both options clearly, comparing cost, flexibility, personalisation, and effectiveness, so you can make the choice that works for you.

Key Takeaways

• Save My Exams is cheaper than private tutoring, with subscription plans starting from a fraction of the hourly rate of a tutor.

• Private tutoring offers one-to-one support, but Save My Exams features tools like the Strengths and Weaknesses tracker to help you focus on your weak spots.

• Save My Exams lets you study anytime, anywhere. Private tutoring requires scheduled sessions that fit around a tutor's availability.

What Is Save My Exams?

Save My Exams is an online revision platform designed for school students preparing for exams. It's used by over 2 million students, parents and teachers across the UK and internationally.

The platform covers a huge range of subjects, from Maths and Sciences to English and Economics, plus so many more, across major exam boards including AQA, Edexcel, OCR, Eduqas, WJEC, and CIE.

Resources include: 

• Examiner-written revision notes - aligned to your exam board, so you only revise what you need.

• Topic questions - to help you become familiar with exam question formats. 

• Official past papers and mark schemes - so you know what examiners award marks for.

• Flashcards - for on-the-go and short burst revision.

• Mock exams - to nail your time management and boost your exam confidence.

Students use Save My Exams to consolidate their classroom learning, practise exam-style questions, and identify and plug gaps in their knowledge, all at their own pace.

What Is Private Tutoring?

Private tutoring means working with a qualified teacher or subject expert in one-to-one (or sometimes small group) sessions. 

Sessions can take place in-person or online via platforms like Zoom or Teams.

Most students find tutors through:

• Word of mouth

• Tutoring agencies

• Online tutoring platforms

Usually, a session lasts around an hour and might involve going over topics the student is struggling with, working through past paper questions together, or getting detailed feedback on written work.

Private tutoring is popular because it offers direct, personalised attention. Your tutor adapts their teaching to your specific needs and can answer your questions in real time.

Next Steps: You can use Save My Exams instead of a private tutor, but our article on alternatives to private tutors gives you more options to consider.

Key Differences Between Save My Exams and Private Tutoring

Before digging into the detail of Save My Exams vs private tutoring, take a look at this general overview of the key differences between them:

Cost Comparison

Private tutoring is a serious financial commitment. In the UK, private tutors charge between £35 an hour for GCSE private tuition up to £100+ an hour for expert Oxbridge preparation (opens in a new tab). These rates may vary depending on your location or the expertise of the tutor you choose.

Some students may try to save money by being tutored by a university student rather than a teacher with years of experience. This can be a good idea, as many university students make great teachers! 

When I was a university student, I often tutored Maths GCSE students. Rather than working through learning content, I’d help my tutees get to grips with the exam itself. 

I’d show them how to show their working out and how to spend their time wisely depending on the marks awarded for each question. My tutees found this input really useful, and I was a lot less expensive than a tutor with decades of experience!

Save My Exams is much cheaper than a private tutor. The platform operates on a subscription model that allows students to access thousands of resources across multiple subjects for less than the cost of a single tutoring session.

For families on a budget, or students revising across several subjects, Save My Exams offers exceptional value.

Next steps: Have a read of our ‘How Much Does a Tutor Cost?’ article for more detailed information on tutoring costs. 

Personalisation and Support

This is where private tutoring has a clear advantage. A good tutor:

• Gets to know your individual learning style

• Spots your specific misconceptions

• Adapts their explanations in real time

That level of bespoke support is hard to replicate.

That said, Save My Exams isn't a one-size-fits-all experience. The platform's Strengths and Weaknesses tool analyses your performance on practice questions and highlights the topics where you need more work. This means your revision stays focused and efficient, rather than time wasted on stuff you already know.

So while a tutor can offer a more human, reactive form of personalisation, Save My Exams gives you a smart, data-driven way to target your weak spots independently.

Flexibility and Accessibility

Save My Exams is available 24/7 from any device. Whether you want to revise at 7 am before school or squeeze in some practice questions on a Sunday evening, the platform is always there.

Private tutoring works around scheduled sessions, which means you're dependent on your tutor's availability. If life gets busy, or you have a last-minute panic the night before an exam, a tutor may not be on hand to help.

For students who prefer learning at their own pace, or who have unpredictable schedules, Save My Exams offers much greater day-to-day flexibility.

Coverage and Resources

Save My Exams covers a wide breadth of subjects and qualifications, including: 

• GCSEs

• IGCSEs

• A Levels

• IB

• AP

All revision notes and questions are carefully mapped to the official exam specifications, so nothing important gets missed.

And perhaps most importantly, all content is written and reviewed by qualified teachers and experienced examiners. That means you're getting expert-level insight into what the mark schemes are looking for.

Private tutors can be experts in one subject, but if you need support in more than one, you'd need many different tutors. For students revising multiple subjects, this quickly becomes impractical and expensive.

With Save My Exams, all of your subjects - including the content you’re finding tricky - are in one place and accessible whenever you need.

Effectiveness and Results

Research consistently shows that (opens in a new tab)active retrieval practice (opens in a new tab) (testing yourself with questions rather than passively reading notes) is one of the most effective revision strategies.  (opens in a new tab)

Save My Exams is built around this principle, with thousands of practice questions and past paper content. Even short best revision with flashcards encourages you to recall facts, formulae, quotes, and dates quickly.

It’s this active recall approach to revision that benefits students. On average, students who use Save My Exams report improving by 2.6 grades, and 99% of members would recommend Save My Exams to other students.*

Private tutoring can also be highly effective, especially for students who are behind or need targeted intervention in a specific area. However, effectiveness varies greatly depending on the tutor's quality and the student's engagement in sessions.

* 1917 Save My Exams students were surveyed in September 2025

Which Option Is Best for Different Learners?

There's no single right answer. It really does depend on your situation. Here's a quick guide:

Using Both Together

You don’t have to use one or the other. Save My Exams and private tutoring aren't mutually exclusive. In fact, they work brilliantly alongside each other.

Many students use Save My Exams to consolidate what they've covered in tutoring sessions. After a session, they'll use the platform's practice questions to reinforce new concepts while they're still fresh.

Equally, students can use Save My Exams to identify their weak areas using the Strengths and Weaknesses tool, then bring those specific topics to their tutor for targeted support.

Think of it this way: your tutor fills in the gaps and explains tricky concepts, while Save My Exams gives you the structured practice and resources to make that learning stick.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use Save My Exams alongside private tutoring?

Yes. The two work really well together. 

Save My Exams gives you structured, exam-board-aligned content and practice questions you can work through independently, while your tutor provides the one-to-one guidance and real-time feedback. Using both means you're getting the best of both worlds.

Will a private tutor help me more than Save My Exams?

It depends on what kind of support you need. 

A tutor can offer highly personalised, real-time guidance, but a great tutor is expensive and can only cover so much ground per session. 

Save My Exams gives you an almost tutor-like experience through expert-written notes, detailed model answers, and a smart tool that identifies exactly where you need to focus. 

Does Save My Exams cover all exam boards?

Save My Exams covers a wide range of exam boards and qualification levels, including GCSE and A Level content for AQA, Edexcel, OCR, and WJEC. Plus, the platform covers AP, IB, and IGCSE qualifications too.

It's worth checking the Save My Exams website directly for the most up-to-date list of subjects covered, as new content is regularly added.

Save My Exams vs Private Tutoring: The Choice is Yours

Both Save My Exams and private tutoring have real strengths, and the right choice depends on your needs, your budget, and how you learn best.

If you want flexible, affordable, expert-led revision resources that cover a huge range of subjects and exam boards, Save My Exams is a no-brainer. 

If you're struggling significantly with one subject and have the budget for regular sessions, a good tutor can make a real difference.

The key is choosing the support that helps you feel confident and in control of your progress, because effective revision isn’t all about the method you pick. It’s about how well it works for you. Good luck with your exams!

References

Wise - Tutoring Rates Per Hour in the UK: What You Should Be Charging in 2026 (opens in a new tab)

PubMed - Active recall strategies associated with academic achievement in young adults: A systematic review (opens in a new tab)