From £20 marketplace lessons to £100-an-hour independents: what every route costs in 2026 and where the value sits.
Rates checked on public listings and provider price pages, August 2026
Every figure below comes from a public listing or a provider's own price page, checked in August 2026. Prices move, so treat the bands as the going rate rather than a quote.
| Route | Typical hourly rate | What you get | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online marketplace | £20 to £40 | Choice of hundreds of profiles; vetting and fit are your job | Tutorful, MyTutor |
| Group and centre classes | £15 to £35 a class | Structured teaching shared with a small group; the budget end of organised tuition | Saturday School, Kip McGrath, Central Tutors |
| Specialist tuition company, online | £45 | Vetted PVG-checked tutor, chosen for your child, same tutor weekly | Educamus Tuition |
| Specialist tuition company, at home | £50 | As above, taught at your own kitchen table | Educamus Tuition |
| Advanced Higher and post-16 | £55 | Specialist tutors for the hardest courses, online | Educamus Tuition |
| Premium independent tutor | £68 to £100 | A full-time professional with thousands of hours; one person, one diary | Our independent list |
Educamus Tuition prices include VAT. Marketplace and independent rates are as listed by each tutor; some agencies add VAT or booking fees on top of headline rates.
The spread looks wild until you see what each band is charging for. At £20 to £40 on a marketplace you are buying teaching alone, and the checks are yours to do. The £45 to £55 band buys the same one-to-one hour with a company behind it: Educamus Tuition vets every tutor for PVG compliance, a course consultant chooses the tutor, your child keeps that tutor every week, and of the 2026 results families reported back, 94.9% were passes. At £68 to £100 you are paying for one individual's reputation, and the format does not change.
Two costs never show up on a price list. A tutor who does not know the SQA courses wastes paid hours on the wrong material, whatever the rate. And waiting until spring shrinks the pool: the good diaries fill after Christmas, months before the exams start in late April.
Between £20 and £100 an hour in 2026, depending on the route. Online marketplaces list tutors from about £20 to £40. Specialist tuition companies sit in the middle: Educamus Tuition charges £45 online, £50 for home tuition and £55 for Advanced Higher and post-16, VAT included. Premium independent tutors charge £68 to £100 an hour.
Around £40 to £60 an hour with an established service. Educamus Tuition, our best overall pick for 2026, charges £50 an hour for one-to-one home tuition across Scottish cities and towns, VAT included, with vetted PVG-checked tutors and the same tutor every week.
Because they can fill their diary at that rate. The premium independents have thousands of one-to-one hours, long review histories and waiting lists, and a small number of families will pay top rate for that track record. The teaching format is the same one-to-one hour a specialist company delivers for £45 to £55.
Not always, so check. Independent tutors below the VAT threshold usually quote a final price. Some agencies add VAT or a booking fee on top of the headline rate. Educamus Tuition quotes prices with VAT included, so £50 an hour for home tuition is what you actually pay.
Per hour, yes. Centre-based and group classes run from roughly £15 to £35 a session at services such as Saturday School and Kip McGrath. The trade-off is shared attention: for a student with specific gaps, one focused one-to-one hour often beats two hours in a group.
Usually the same at any given service. Educamus Tuition charges identical rates for maths and English: £50 at home, £45 online. Rates rise with level rather than subject, so Advanced Higher and post-16 tuition costs more than National 5 almost everywhere.
Established services hold their prices through the year, but availability tightens sharply after Christmas as prelims and the late-April SQA exams approach. The practical cost of waiting is a weaker choice of tutor. Booking in autumn costs the same and buys more improvement.
For one-to-one SQA tuition from a vetted, PVG-checked tutor, £45 to £55 an hour is the going rate with a reputable Scottish company in 2026. Cheaper is available on marketplaces if you are happy to do the vetting yourself; above £70 you are paying for an individual's reputation rather than a different format.