Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.
Mahatma Gandhi
There has been considerable controversy surrounding Facebook and its business model. There is now intense scrutiny over the type of content the platform promotes, how Facebook promotes it and its effects on its audience and members. And on the broader world. Facebook fallout is not limited to its billion-or-so subscribers.
One of the most striking observations to come out of the whole debacle is, "If you get to use a service at no cost, you're not a customer. You are the product." That assertion gained prominence in 2018 following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, which revealed how the social media platform was harvesting and reselling users' data. Those explosive revelations led to several data privacy reforms, most notably in the European Union.
Today, we have more goods and services available to us than we could consume. That forces goods and service providers to be ultra-competitive. They must find an edge, a hook, to make their product/service more valuable than their competitors, so that consumers will choose them over everyone else.
At Superprof, we've found that edge, the way of doing business that benefits everyone involved. Let us now explain what Superprof charges - how and why payments are structured the way they are, and how you can get the most for your money with Superprof.
The Superprof Backstory
In 2013, the year Superprof launched, the mainstream internet was still in its teenage years. Barely 18 years had passed since society's broad embrace of the home computer, and the most popular websites were social media pages - MySpace, WeChat, WhatsApp and, yes, even Facebook. Music sites also enjoyed regular, high-volume traffic. 2013 was the year of the Internet of Things.
Exponential advances in technology made new and improved methods of communication possible. Connecting disparate devices to the internet - from refrigerators to robotic hoovers was the next big wave. Anything was possible, and the internet had nowhere to go but up. With all the entertainment and information available on the internet in 2013, a gap in the market nevertheless remained. At the time, education was still primarily thought of as something to be delivered face-to-face, despite a long history of correspondence courses and distance learning, educational formats that had been in use for centuries.
In 2013, thanks to advances in Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and improved webcams, online education—especially one-to-one learning — surged, and Superprof was ideally positioned to ride that wave. In just one year, Superprof welcomed its 100,000th tutor to the platform. Two years later, Superprof went global. We'd already built a strong presence in France - we became the #1 tutoring service just a year after launching the programme, and other European countries keenly awaited their chance to debut the Superprof model for their students. The Superprof model isn't just a beneficial learning community; it's an economic exemplar of how an ideal business should run. After all, what Superprof does for students and tutors is unparalleled; we're so much more than just a tutoring platform.
2013
Launch in France
Superprof was founded in France as an online tutoring platform, quickly becoming the largest tutoring community in the country within just one year.
2014
100,000 Teachers Registered
The platform reached 100,000 tutors, a sign of early traction and rapid growth.
2015
International Expansion Begins
Superprof expanded into Belgium and Switzerland, then quickly into Spain, Brazil, Italy, Germany, the U.S., India, and Australia.
2017
1 Million Certified Tutors
The tutor base exceeded one million, with lessons offered across more than 250 subjects.
2018
Acquisition of The Tutor Pages (UK)
Superprof acquired UK-based tutoring company The Tutor Pages, strengthening its presence in the United Kingdom.
2020
Camille Lemardeley Becomes MD
Superprof’s first employee, Camille Lemardeley, stepped into the role of Managing Director, guiding the platform’s continued expansion.
2022
Acquisition of Kelprof.com
Superprof acquired one of France’s largest competitors, Kelprof.com, bringing its total number of acquisitions to 15 since its founding.
Today
Global Leader in Tutoring
Superprof now brings together 34 million teachers and 29+ million students in more than 60 countries, covering over 2,000 subjects.
A New Business Model
The Superprof team motto includes words like 'caring', 'involved' and 'utopic'. Indeed, those concepts and qualities drive our service aims. Still, despite our altruistic spirit, we are a business; we have to generate income to sustain what we do so well. In the relatively uncharted waters where Superprof began its operations, there were many ways to generate revenue:
- partnering with outside firms that would pay us to post ads on our sites
- collecting a commission from tutors' per-lesson fees
- charging students a percentage of their per-lesson fee
- setting up a subscription service to allow students the maximum availability and access to tutors
The first idea was a non-starter. We're about students getting the help they need and the tutors exercising their passion for teaching, not about promoting other companies' products. Collecting a commission from tutors' fees was likewise unfeasible. To give our tutors maximum flexibility, we insist on their right to set their own rates. It would be impossible for us and for them to run a business without knowing what income to expect. Besides that, why should we take anything away from tutors who sign up to our platform to exercise their passion for teaching? The same logic applies to fees from students, except that for them, it's a need to learn, not to earn.
The fourth option became our solution. Just as some retailers invite you to become a member - Costco, as an example, and others promote the use of rewards cards (lower prices in exchange for your permission to track your shopping habits and profit from that data), we concluded that offering subscriptions yielded the best possible value for your money. So, where other tutoring platforms may require their tutors and/or students to pay fees, Superprof makes things simple.
The Superprof Student Pass is a monthly subscription that gives students unlimited access to contact tutors across more than 20 million profiles worldwide. Instead of paying commission fees or hidden charges, students pay one flat monthly subscription, then book and pay tutors directly for their lessons. This keeps things transparent, simple, and fair for both students and tutors.
The student subscribes to our platform, has access to more than 22 million tutors worldwide, and the hourly rate listed on the tutor's profile page is the per-lesson amount that they will collect. Make no mistake.
around the world.
Just like with social media sites, if other platforms aren't charging you access fees, you are paying for access in different ways: through data harvesting, higher tutor prices and/or the tutors having to pay a fee to use the platform. You may also be subject to periodic adverts.
How Superprof Works for Students and Tutors
👩🎓 For Students
- Subscribe with the Superprof Student Pass for a monthly fee.
- Get unlimited access to contact tutors worldwide.
- Book private lessons online or in-person, with transparent hourly fees.
- Cancel your subscription anytime once you’ve found the right tutor.
👩🏫 For Tutors
- Create a profile for free and showcase your teaching subjects.
- Set your own hourly rate without commission cuts.
- Choose to offer a free first lesson if you like.
- Manage your own payments or use the platform’s secure system (10% fee applies if using Superprof’s processing).
Or, you may be required to sign a contract that could extend far beyond the time you need your tutor, obliging you to pay more in fees. You might say that Superprof for tutors is an efficient way for passionate mentors to launch their tutoring business, all while protecting students' interests and parents' pocketbooks.
through the Superprof platform.
Superprof Reviews
Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.
Nelson Mandela
Does the Superprof business model work? Besides the explosive growth the company has enjoyed over the past eight years, reviews and testimonials on sites such as Glassdoor, Indeed, and Trustpilot prove that, overwhelmingly, both tutors and learners are satisfied with the way things work at Superprof. Of course, there are negative reviews; it would be suspicious if there were none, even if nobody had any actual complaints to make.
For the most part, students' negative reviews address the monthly subscription fee. These critiques all point in the same direction: students were unaware that they were agreeing to a subscription when they signed up with Superprof. A typical experience goes something like this: a student browses through Superprof profiles, finds one they'd like to engage with, and clicks the contact button. They are then directed to a page that requests their details, including payment information.
On that page, you will find the terms of the agreement laid out, including a notice that you are signing up for a subscription, with the first month being free of charge. To make the point explicitly clear, Superprof goes into more detail about its subscription business model in its Terms of Use section. We also clearly outline the terms under which you are entitled to a refund and how to end your subscription. Before signing up for a Superprof membership or any other online service, you should educate yourself. Read the reviews and gather feedback from as many sources as possible.
And then, find out how Superprof works by reading through the terms and conditions listed on our site. Once you feel comfortable that your privacy will be protected and you understand what you're signing up for, including the protections afforded to you, only then should you hand over any payment details.
Let the Superprof CEO explain it.
Superprof's Charges and Fees
Let's get this out of the way: as a student, your relationship with the Superprof platform is separate from the relationship you have with any tutor you work with. Our business connects tutors with students; that's the extent of the company's involvement between you and your tutor.
It might help to think of us as three separate entities: you, your tutor, and the platform that brought you together. To gain access to Superprof's 20 million+ tutors, the fee you pay depends on the country you live in. In Ireland, the cost is 39 euros per month; your card will be charged when your lesson request is accepted.
💶 Costs
- €39/month for the Superprof Student Pass in Ireland.
- A separate hourly rate applies per tutor, depending on the subject and experience.
- An optional 10% fee if the tutor uses Superprof’s internal payment system.
☑ Benefits
- Direct contact with local and online tutors in hundreds of subjects.
- Unlimited access to over 20 million tutors worldwide.
- Cancel any time after finding your tutor. No lengthy contracts.
- Freedom to book, pay, and manage lessons flexibly.
Your subscription fee is separate from the per-hour fee your tutor advertises on their profile page. Once you connect with a tutor and both of you agree to take your partnership off the platform, you have the right to end your subscription. You will still pay your tutor their fee, though.
With the Student Pass active, students are free to browse tutors, book their first free lesson (if offered), and agree directly on payment terms for future lessons. Tutor fees vary depending on the tutor's teaching experience, qualifications, subject, and geographic location. This model ensures that students know exactly what they’re paying for, while tutors remain in control of their rates.
Note that, if you do not cancel your subscription, Superprof will continue to debit that fee from the account you listed on your payment page. Tutors are not charged a fee for setting up their profile; nor do they pay Superprof to maintain their profile page. Tutors are free to set their per-hour rates based on whichever criteria they feel is relevant, be it their level of education or teaching expertise, their geographic location - some places are more expensive to live than others, and/or the type of subject they teach.
though tutors aren't obliged to use it.
Should a tutor decide to filter their lesson payments through the Superprof platform, they will be charged a 10% processing fee; however, there is no mandate for any tutor to do so. They may set up their fee collections in any way they see fit. Also, note that tutors are encouraged to offer their first tutoring session at no cost to the student, but this is not a mandate.
Tutors on Superprof don’t pay to join the platform and can manage their accounts freely. They choose their own hourly rate, decide whether to offer a free first lesson, and select how they want to receive payments. A 10% processing fee applies if a tutor uses the built-in payment system; however, many tutors arrange their own payment methods with students. This freedom is a significant reason why Superprof attracts such a diverse range of passionate teachers.
There's a wide variety of tutors specialising in a host of different subjects on Superprof, ranging from academic subjects to those targeted at health and wellness, and everything in between. We're honoured to be the bridge between students and the subjects they want to learn more about. That's really what drives the Superprof model.
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Informative, but I’m trying to find out how to change to off-platform payments to me as a tutor, and not through PayPal.
Hi there!
Thanks for this question about receiving payments. If you would like to receive your payments privately rather than through PayPal, you are free to discuss this with your student to see if they are willing to pay you privately. The only downside is that we cannot take any responsibility for lesson payment issues which didn’t go through the website.
If you need some more information, please don’t hesitate to email us at helloireland@superprof.com where one of our team members will get back to you.
Have a great day!
Team Superprof
Does asking to confirm. So after I pay the €29 and contact a tutor, I can cancel the subscription and still take classes with the tutor?
Hi Noel,
That’s correct! Once your Student Pass expires, you will still be able to communicate and take lessons with tutors you have already matched with.
Please email us at helloireland@superprof.com if you have any further questions.
Have a great day!
Team Superprof