The test-prep journey of a highschool student is stressful in its own way, and the wide number of choices out there don’t exactly help. Choosing the right tutoring solution is a challenge parents and students need to address right at the start.
And even before we begin discussing the main UWorld alternatives, it’s important to point out one thing. As a student, your choice of a tutoring company significantly impacts your SAT scores - and thereby your career too.
That is precisely why you should analyse all the alternatives before you zero down on one.
But why should you look for UWorld alternatives in the first place?
Here’s a good reason to start: Trustpilot ratings of just 2.3 on 5, which is equivalent to ‘Poor’ as you can see.
For students and parents, it’s serious. There might be a number of reasons why a number of people rated UWorld so low. Understanding those reasons will clearly tell you if UWorld is a good fit for you.
But first, a quick word about UWorld.
UWorld is a test prep company. Founded in 2003 to tutor students for the USMLE, today it covers a wide range of exams as diverse as the CPA, CFA, LLM, SAT, NCLEX RN, USMLE - accounting, finance, college entrance, legal, medical, and nursing exams basically. Because of the unique nature of each exam, each test-prep course has a different module.
For the SAT, for instance, UWorld has a question bank and a study guide, in addition to a full course. In addition to this, you’ll find other resources like a mobile app, videos, mock tests, books, and detailed reports on test performance.
In many ways, that’s the answer: it’s just going barely okay and no better. When things are just okay or worse, chances are you won’t be any better off with the test prep course. The material may not be well-structured or engaging. For instance, the new digital SAT needs to be carefully curated and designed - that doesn’t seem to be the case here.
As a result, your scores may hardly change even after you take the SAT test prep course.
A recent review mentioned the UWorld courses aren’t updated.
The SAT is fully digital and adaptive and has transformed considerably. Even the ACT is offering a digital version: take a practice digital ACT to see for yourself. If your test prep course isn’t updated to reflect and address these changes, your actual test scores will take a big hit.
Unless you’ve already scored 1570 in your previous SAT attempt, you needs lots of practice questions. And it’s not only the number of questions, even the quality of questions should fully reflect the actual test. It takes a lot of expertise and efforts to create high-quality questions. For instance, at EdisonOS, here’s how we created the most accurate SAT practice tests ever.
Test-prep is challenging, because you’re juggling so many things while you prepare. So you don’t want to chase the customer support repeatedly for the same questions. Apparently UWorld users are rather dissatisfied with the customer support team there. And if that’s the status of your flagship course (UWorld started with the USMLE exams, remember?), well, it doesn’t do much good to the rest of the courses.
Students today learn on the move. So if you do have an app, it needs to be smooth and user-friendly. One of the reasons to actively look for UWorld alternatives is that its app is buggy. It not only ruins the user experience, but - more importantly - it impedes the student’s ability to learn and score higher.
5. Too wide a focus
While it may sound commendable that a single test-prep company caters to such a wide array of tests, the reality may be slightly different. By covering tests as diverse as pharmacy, college entrance, and accounting, UWorld may have spread itself too thin. We aren’t sure if they built any specialties, but chances are the test-prep help is average at best.
Now you know why it was important to look for UWorld alternatives. We found the top five UWorld alternatives and analysed each of them. We checked everything from features and question quality to their prices and tests.
Based on our study, here is the list of the best UWorld alternatives for 2025, each one with notes on their strengths, limitations, and suitability for specific needs.
EdisonOS isn’t just another test prep tool - it’s a comprehensive ecosystem for tutors and institutions to create, manage, and deliver assessments with unmatched speed, control, and insight. While others focus on only one part of the assessment process, EdisonOS builds a bridge between testing, teaching, and tracking outcomes - all under one roof.
Tutors can create assessments in under 15 minutes using EdisonOS’s 5,000+ question library or upload their own in just 60 minutes - a task that would typically take 150–300 hours/month.
EdisonOS enables real-time explanations when a student gets an answer wrong - students say it’s like having the tutor sitting beside them during practice.
This is important. EdisonOS mimics official test platforms screen-by-screen, complete with calculators, highlighters, timers, break buttons, and more.
Drag-and-drop, fill-in-the-blank, interactive charts - EdisonOS supports emerging question formats that match the digital shift in exams.
Tutors can schedule and conduct Zoom-style live sessions directly on the platform for weekly 1:1 sessions or group classes.
Students can see what kind of questions they got wrong, how much did they score in each section, and a note on why a particular answer choice was wrong. Naturally they will see a detailed explanation on what made a certain choice the correct answer.
After every test, EdisonOS provides a breakdown of:
Tutors can use this to fine-tune their lesson plans and help students focus on their weakest areas with precision.
You can see how a student performed on each question compared to peers. This is especially important for group classes, healthy competition, and motivation.
Where most platforms either lack customization, have limited reporting, or don’t support offline workflows, EdisonOS gives you the full stack - from creation to deep performance analytics, all built with tutors in mind. Add to that AI tools, public assessment sharing, and real-time learning aids, and it’s clear:
The Princeton Review is a well-known name in standardized test prep, and its ACT/SAT prep offerings are no exception. With a range of options - self-paced courses, structured classes, and one-on-one tutoring - the platform tries to cater to diverse student needs. Let’s examine it.
Other features:
1. High costs
2. Inconsistent user experience
3. Shallow answer explanations
4. Limited innovation
5. No custom pathways
The Princeton Review is a fair choice for students who prefer structure and are willing to pay a premium for brand recognition and live support. However, if you're looking for an affordable, flexible, and tech-driven alternative that still guarantees results, there are better options available.
Kaplan is a recognized name in the test prep industry. They have a partnership with the official ACT organization. While Kaplan offers several benefits, it also has a few key limitations that students and parents should be aware of before committing.
Thanks to Kaplan’s official partnership, you get access to over 2,000 real ACT questions and many full-length practice tests. That is valuable for students who want an authentic test experience.
Kaplan caters to different learning styles. For instance, for the SAT exam, you have:
The video lessons feature real instructors (not just voiceovers), keeping the sessions more personal and engaging. Each lesson includes:
For the ACT, for instance, Kaplan allows students to build quizzes from a 2,000+ question bank. You can filter by topic, difficulty, or question history. This can help for focused practice.
1. Unclear score guarantee
It offers a score improvement guarantee. Unlike some competitors, however, it’s not clearly mentioned how much you can expect your scores to improve.
As a result, even a 10-point increase on the SAT will be classified as improved scores and the guarantee fails to compensate you. Take a free digital SAT practice test and you’ll see a 10-point improvement is hardly a challenge.
2. Issues with navigation
If you were to register for a free test, you’d expect the Take a Free Test button to be clearly visible. Instead, there’s no button - just a link that’s hidden behind other material and easy to miss.
3. Incomplete tutor mode
While tutor mode is meant to offer in-test support, its answer explanations are often minimal. They will just state the correct answer without context.
Also, explanations aren’t well thought out for student’s convenience. Check the screenshot below.
4. Limited support in self-paced mode
If you choose the more affordable self-paced course, don’t expect one-on-one support. We couldn’t see live help or instructor Q&A access. This can be frustrating for students who need occasional clarification.
Kaplan’s prep courses are a fair option to consider for students who want authentic practice questions, flexibility, and video-led instruction. However, its lack of a clear score guarantee and limited student support make it less appealing for those seeking more hand-holding or assurance of results.
If you’re looking for a better-rounded option with greater support, mobile convenience, and impactful outcomes, you’ll need to keep looking.
If you’re looking for an affordable SAT/ACT prep course that’s accessible anytime, anywhere, Magoosh might catch your attention.
With a price tag of $129 (occasionally drops to $90) for the self-paced plan, it’s one of the most budget-friendly options available. But while it offers strong value, it’s not the perfect fit for every student.
In addition to the self-paced option, you also get a guided study plan option for your test-prep.
Both, the self-paced plan and the guided plan, have a validity of 12 months.
While Magoosh offers good baseline value, it does have a few downsides:
1. Different test interface: We took the free trial offer, and the test interface looked like this:
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2. Limited number of full-length practice tests: Surprisingly, the number of their full-length tests are nearly one-third or one-fourth of competitors. That is a major limitation.
3. Explanations can be better: We might be generalizing from a limited number of explanations, but some of them show you nothing more than what an average textbook would do. That extra attention to detail or student’s pain points is missing.
4. No paper-based resources: If you plan to take the paper-based ACT, remember that Magoosh doesn’t offer you paper-based resources. It is prepared only for the digital ACT for now.
5. No personalized learning path: They have some diagnostic testing available, but we couldn’t find any personalized learning path. There are some study schedules available, though the extent of personalization is limited, at best.
6. No in-person options: There is an option to avail on-demand classes - basically recordings of previous sessions. There’s no in-person or even live option.
Magoosh is an excellent option for budget-conscious, independent learners who want flexible, video-rich content. But if your child needs structure, better explanations, personalization, or blended formats, it might fall short.
PrepScholar is a popular ACT /SAT test prep platform known for its adaptive learning system. It offers a score-improvement guarantee. With a combination of text and video-based lessons, it appeals mainly to students who are comfortable learning at their own pace. But while there are things to like, PrepScholar is far from perfect.
PrepScholar’s claims to use an algorithm to create customized study plans. Students take a diagnostic test, and the system adapts lessons based on strengths and weaknesses.
Practice materials
Multiple study options
Course contents
The starting 4-hour tutoring plans costs you $995. It includes 40+ hours of online test prep practice.
If you wish to have more practice in a particular area, you can generate a quiz specifically from that area.
Get personalized study programs based on your skills and weaknesses.
The SAT courses come with a 160-point increase guarantee while the ACT courses come with a 4+ point increase guarantee - competitive with what other leading platforms offer.
Even if you wish to check out their free trial, you would need to submit your credit card details to register. While we can understand their wish to prevent fake users, it certainly stops genuine students from having a look before they pay up.
Not exactly a world-changing but a mobile app is a welcome feature today. In a mobile-first world, PrepScholar's lack of a companion app is a drawback. Competitors like Magoosh robust mobile experiences for on-the-go studying.
PrepScholar is a solid option for disciplined, independent learners who prefer structured study plans and don’t need much hand-holding. But if you're looking for more flexibility, better interactivity, or budget-friendly pricing, it might not check all your boxes.
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