Akros vs. Math Academy
Built for every child, on paper.
Math Academy is a screen-based course for students with a strong aptitude for math, starting in 4th grade. Akros works for every child from Kindergarten through Grade 8, whether they are ahead or behind. Your child works on paper, and AI reads every step they write, coaches the step where they went wrong, and moves them ahead as fast as their answers allow.
7-day money-back guarantee · Siblings half price · Cancel online anytime
How Akros and Math Academy compare
| Akros | Math Academy | Why it matters for your child | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it’s for | Every child from Kindergarten through Grade 8, ahead or behind | Students “with an aptitude for math and the dedication to learn,” from 4th grade | Your child doesn’t have to be a math star to start. |
| Where your child works | On paper, then you snap a photo | Scratch paper, with answers entered on a screen | Every step stays on paper, where Akros can read it. |
| What gets read | Every step your child writes | Only the answer your child enters | A wrong step gets fixed where it happened instead of practiced again. |
| After a mistake | The problem returns with a hint aimed at the exact step that went wrong | A worked solution, then more practice | Your child works out the fix, which is what makes it stick. |
| Price | From $19.99 a month; every sibling half price | $49 a month per student | Two children on Akros cost $29.98 a month, less than one Math Academy seat. |
Why Akros is the better choice for your child
Every child can start, from Kindergarten up.
Math Academy’s first course expects times tables to 12 and independent reading. Akros starts in Kindergarten and meets each child where they are. It repairs gaps below grade level as readily as it moves a strong student ahead.
Pencil and paper help learning stick.
Writing by hand engages more of the brain than typing, and that engagement goes hand in hand with better learning and memory. In a randomized study, kindergartners who learned new letters by hand named 92% of them correctly, compared with 76% for children who typed. Across 24 experiments, students who took notes by hand scored higher on later tests than students who typed.
Akros reads the work, not just the answer.
Math Academy sees only the final answer, so it knows your child was wrong but not why. Akros reads every handwritten step, pinpoints where the thinking broke, and names the kind of mistake: a careless slip, a wrong method, or a step left out. When researchers compared computer tutors, those that gave feedback on each step produced more than twice the learning gains of those that checked only the final answer.
Your child fixes each mistake themselves.
Every missed question comes back the next day with new numbers, chosen so the same mistake can’t produce the right answer, and a one-sentence hint aimed at the step that went wrong. The hint never gives away the answer, because working out an answer yourself is one of the most reliable memory boosters in psychology. After this coaching, children get that type of question right on a later lesson 97% of the time, with no hints. That’s proof the coaching works: nearly every mistake gets fixed, and your child does the fixing.
No lucky guesses.
Every Akros answer is written out by hand, never picked from a list or tapped on a screen, so a guess can’t pass for understanding. Your child’s first lesson, the Skills Check-Up, uses written answers to find exactly where they stand, and the next few lessons quietly double-check every miss.
Advanced children race ahead.
Akros pre-tests each Math Topic and skips what your child already knows. Children who clear topic after topic take bigger steps, past grade level as soon as their answers show they’re ready.
Every skill comes back right before it would fade.
Each topic comes back 2 days after it’s taught, then at widening intervals: a week, 2 weeks, a month, 2 months. Fragile skills return sooner and strong skills later. Memory research finds that this widening spacing is one of the best defenses against forgetting. Every review uses fresh questions, so your child recalls the method instead of recognizing an old problem. As a result, 85% of fixed mistakes are still answered correctly a week or more later: what your child learns stays learned.
School tests get their own plan.
On Akros Premium, School Help turns photos of a study guide into a plan that gets your child ready for test day. When the graded test comes back, Akros reworks every missed question.
What Akros does for real children
of questions answered correctly on brand-new topics after one Akros lesson, up from about 25% before it
of missed questions fixed: answered correctly on a later lesson, with no hints
of those fixes still answered correctly a week or more later
A tutor’s job for less than one tutoring session a month
Every first payment comes with a 7-day money-back guarantee, and you can cancel online anytime.
Choosing between Akros and Math Academy
Is Akros challenging enough for an advanced child?
My child is in second grade. Can they start Math Academy?
Can Akros read messy handwriting?
Sources, checked November 2026. Paper vs. screen reading: Delgado et al. (2018) and Støle et al. (2020). Handwriting: Ibaibarriaga et al. (2025) and Flanigan et al. (2024). Feedback on each step: VanLehn (2011). Working out answers yourself: Bertsch et al. (2007). Math Academy price, audience and courses: Math Academy and its course list. Akros results: real Akros students, as reported on our homepage.
You’re the coach.
Akros is the math teacher.
Start today, because every lesson builds on the one before: your child’s first lesson shows exactly where they stand, and tomorrow’s is built from it. Siblings are half price, and every first payment comes with a 7-day money-back guarantee.