Average Pay Rates for Academic and Test Prep Tutors
By Kevin Organisciak, M.Ed.
If you have wondered how much to charge as a tutor or how much to pay a tutor if you are an owner-operator, we analyzed average pay rates for test prep and popular academic subject tutoring.
We used open-source data as well as our own internal recruiting data to get a sense of average pay rates. Spoiler: local programs almost always pay their tutors better than big-box tutoring companies or tutor-matching sites.
The data is directionally useful but it may not reflect your local pricing structure. We drilled down a bit into the larger metro areas to try and get a sense of some of the tutoring pay rate averages in those locales as well. Hope it helps!
Nationwide Averages, 2023.
| Job Title | Average Pay Rate (Indeed) | Average Pay Rate (TPAPT) | Average Pay Rate (Glassdoor) | Average Pay Rate (Wyzant after 25% reduction) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAT Test Prep Tutor | $36.10 per hour | $42.50 per hour | $24.00 per hour | $28.13 per hour |
| ACT Test Prep Tutor | $35.72 per hour | $38.18 per hour | $25.00 per hour | $28.69 per hour |
| Math Tutor | $43.03 per hour | $47.44 per hour | $25.00 per hour | $33.75 per hour |
| Physics Tutor | $27.90 per hour | $31.54 per hour | $25.00 per hour | $21.75 per hour |
| English Tutor | $28.30 per hour | $30.74 per hour | $24.00 per hour | $22.88 per hour |
| AP Test Prep Tutor | $34.20 per hour | $37.45 per hour | $22.00 per hour | $28.88 per hour |
| College Admissions Essay Tutor | $38.60 per hour | $55.00 per hour | $35.00 per hour | $32.31 per hour |
| In-Person Tutor | $28.27 per hour | $32.00 per hour | $25.00 per hour | $22.13 per hour |
As we can see, on average, SAT and ACT test prep tutors appear to earn the highest hourly rates across all sources. Math tutors also earn high rates, with average pay rates ranging from $33.75 to $47.44 per hour. In English tutors earn relatively lower rates, with averages ranging from $21.75 to $31.54 per hour and $22.88 to $30.74 per hour, respectively. However, if you are an English Tutor, take heart because writing is in high demand in the form of college essay coaching.
The average pay rates for college admissions essay tutors vary widely between sources, with an average rate of $40.25 per hour on Indeed, $55.00 per hour through TPAPT members, $35.00 per hour on Glassdoor, and $32.31 per hour on Wyzant after a 25% reduction.
This could suggest that there is less consistency or standardization in pay rates for this type of tutoring job, or that there is a greater variation in demand and supply for college admissions essay tutors among different job marketplaces and tutoring companies. At any rate (pun intended, English teachers are usually well-suited for this type of tutoring.
| Metro Area | Average Rate of Pay for SAT Test Prep Tutoring |
|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $43.30 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $38.15 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $36.20 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $33.39 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $32.63 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $45.42 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $30.20 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $36.22 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA | $36.60 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $46.59 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | $27.71 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA | $54.61 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $31.51 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $29.62 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $44.70 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $33.13 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $36.01 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $27.44 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $36.21 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | $30.17 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $34.43 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $30.87 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $29.30 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | $29.70 per hour (according to Indeed) |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $34.25 per hour (according to Indeed) |
Sources:
Indeed. (n.d.). Average SAT Tutoring Salaries in the United States.
Metro Area - ACT Test Prep Tutoring
| Metro Area | Average Rate of Pay for ACT Test Prep Tutoring |
|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $35.75 per hour |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $33.23 per hour |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $30.96 per hour |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $28.97 per hour |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $29.80 per hour |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $36.91 per hour |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $28.71 per hour |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $31.05 per hour |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA | $29.75 per hour |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $38.67 per hour |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | $27.05 per hour |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA | $38.09 per hour |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $27.05 per hour |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $28.03 per hour |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $32.77 per hour |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $29.25 per hour |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $33.23 per hour |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $26.14 per hour |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $30.67 per hour |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | $26.50 per hour |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $30.11 per hour |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $27.25 per hour |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $27.12 per hour |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | $26.30 per hour |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $31.32 per hour |
References
Indeed. (n.d.). Average Math Tutoring Salaries in the United States.
https://www.indeed.com/career/math-tutor/salaries.
Indeed. (n.d.). Average SAT Tutoring Salaries in the United States.
https://www.indeed.com/career/sat-tutor/salaries.
Indeed. (2022). ACT Tutor Salaries in the United States.
https://www.indeed.com/salaries/act-tutor-Salaries.
Kevin Organisciak et, al. (2022), TPAPT Average Tutoring & Test Prep Salaries for Member Posted Positions.
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