Description
Khanmigo is Khan Academy’s AI tutor, built to guide a student toward an answer rather than hand it over — the way a good human tutor would. It’s $4/month or $44/year for parents and independent learners, and free for teachers, though giving a whole class of students direct access requires a school or district partnership rather than an individual teacher simply adding them.
Key Features
- Socratic tutoring: Works through a problem step by step with the student instead of supplying the final answer directly.
- Broad subject coverage: Math, science, reading, writing and debate practice, coding help, and career/college-admissions coaching.
- Free teacher tools: Standards-aligned lesson planning tied to Khan Academy’s content library, on-demand summaries of recent student work, and AI-crafted rubrics and exit tickets.
- Parent dashboard: Parents add their children, review a history of interactions, and receive moderation alerts.
- Grounded in Khan Academy content: Tutoring is anchored to Khan Academy’s existing lessons and exercises, not an open-ended model alone.
- Chat history: Learners and parents can revisit past conversations.
How It Works
A parent or teacher signs up for the relevant Khanmigo plan. Learners work through Khan Academy exercises alongside Khanmigo, which asks guiding questions rather than stating the answer, adjusting its questions based on where the student gets stuck. Teachers use a separate, free set of Khanmigo tools to draft lesson plans, generate rubrics and exit tickets, and get an on-demand summary of what students have recently struggled with — without needing to grant students direct access themselves, since that requires a school or district-level rollout.
Technical Architecture & Overview
- Core Engine: Large language models, developed in partnership with OpenAI, with guardrails designed to withhold direct answers and prompt reasoning instead.
- Deployment: Web-based, integrated into the existing Khan Academy platform and account system.
- API Surface: None public — end-user tutoring product.
- Known Limits: A teacher cannot independently grant individual students access; classroom-wide student access requires a school or district partnership with Khan Academy.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Explicitly designed to not just hand over the answer, matching how a real tutor works. | A teacher can’t add individual students without a school or district partnership. |
| Free for teachers, with lesson-planning and grading-support tools included. | Common Sense Media’s review flagged accuracy limitations in math reasoning, which Khan Academy has acknowledged. |
| Grounded in Khan Academy’s existing, vetted content library rather than an open-ended model alone. | Subscription cost, while low, is still a real barrier for some families versus fully free alternatives. |
| Affordable for individual families at $4/month or $44/year. | Full classroom rollout needs district-level buy-in, not just an individual teacher’s decision. |
Pricing
| Plan | Price |
|---|---|
| Teachers | Free |
| Learners & Parents | $4/month or $44/year |
Platform Availability
Web
Best For
Students who need step-by-step guided tutoring rather than direct answers | Teachers wanting free AI lesson-planning support | Parents who want a moderated, affordable AI tutor for their child
Similar Tools in This Directory
Also worth comparing: Microsoft Reading Coach, free AI reading fluency app | Read Along by Google, free AI reading-practice app | Photomath, AI math solver that shows every step | SchoolAI, teacher-supervised AI Spaces for guided student conversations | Grammarly, AI writing feedback that discloses AI use | Quizlet, AI flashcards built from your own notes | ChatGPT Study Mode, guided learning instead of direct answers
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Khanmigo cost?
Free for teachers; $4/month or $44/year for individual learners and parents.
Does Khanmigo just give students the answer?
No. It’s built to guide students toward the answer with questions and hints, the way a human tutor would, rather than stating it directly.
Can a teacher give their whole class access to Khanmigo for free?
Not independently. Classroom-wide student access requires a school or district partnership with Khan Academy.
Can parents monitor how their child uses Khanmigo?
Yes. The parent plan includes a dashboard showing interaction history and moderation alerts.
What subjects does Khanmigo cover?
Math, science, reading, writing, coding, and career/college-admissions coaching, built on Khan Academy’s existing content library.
