Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Annual commission paid to platform
$8,400
Break-even rate if booking direct
$45.36
Discount you could offer and still net the same
$9.64
% of platform revenue you currently keep
80.0%
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How to use this
- 1Enter annual gross tutoring revenue on platform ($).
- 2Enter average platform commission (%).
- 3Enter current listed hourly rate ($).
- 4Enter direct payment processing fee (%).
- 5Read your annual commission paid to platform on the right — it updates as you type.
- 6Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Tutoring marketplaces charge commissions that often taper as a tutor logs more hours with a client, but many tutors never calculate the annual dollar cost of that taper or compare it to what direct booking (with their own payment processing and no lead generation) would net. This calculator computes annual commission cost at your volume and the discount you could offer for direct booking while still coming out ahead.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Annual gross tutoring revenue on platform: 42000 $
- Average platform commission: 20 %
- Current listed hourly rate: 55 $
- Direct payment processing fee: 3 %
Results
- Annual commission paid to platform: $8,400
- Break-even rate if booking direct: $45.36
- Discount you could offer and still net the same: $9.64
- % of platform revenue you currently keep: 80.0%
What each field means
Inputs
- Annual gross tutoring revenue on platform ($)
- The annual gross tutoring revenue on platform used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 42000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Average platform commission (%)
- The average platform commission used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 20 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–60 %.
- Current listed hourly rate ($)
- The current listed hourly rate used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 55 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Direct payment processing fee (%)
- The direct payment processing fee used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 3 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–10 %.
Results
- Annual commission paid to platform
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Break-even rate if booking direct
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Discount you could offer and still net the same
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- % of platform revenue you currently keep
- Returned as a percentage. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Is moving clients off-platform against the rules?
Most platforms explicitly prohibit soliciting clients to move off-platform while the relationship originated there, and some ban accounts for it — check your specific platform's terms before acting, since this is a contractual and sometimes legal issue, not just a financial one.
Why would a tutor ever want to stay on a high-commission platform?
Lead generation, payment handling, scheduling tools, and dispute protection all have real value, especially for tutors who don't want to run a small business on the side. The commission is partly a marketing and admin cost, not pure margin loss.
How do taper structures change this calculation?
If commission drops after a client's first N hours, compute a blended rate using your actual mix of new versus repeat client hours rather than the platform's headline commission percentage, since the effective rate is usually lower than advertised for tutors with many repeat clients.
Does the discount output mean I should always undercut my platform rate?
It shows the ceiling discount that keeps your take-home flat — you don't have to use all of it. Many tutors offer half that discount for direct booking, keeping some of the margin gain rather than passing all of it to the client.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Online Tutoring Platform Take-Rate Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/online-tutoring-platform-take-rate
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/online-tutoring-platform-take-rate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Online Tutoring Platform Take-Rate Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Online Tutoring Platform Take-Rate Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/online-tutoring-platform-take-rate) (2026).