A parent’s guide · October 2026

Khanmigo vs Sophie.
Which helps with AP Calculus?

Both help your teen think instead of copying an answer. They work in very different ways. Here is how each one works, what it costs, and how to choose.

Start with the short answer

By the Sophie team A guide for parents

Pencil, paper, and someone to talk to.

A note from us. We make Sophie, so we are not neutral. Khan Academy does not pay us. We used Khan Academy’s own pages for every fact about Khanmigo.

See our sources

The short answer

Khanmigo types.
Sophie talks and watches the page.

Khanmigo is a low cost helper inside Khan Academy. Sophie is a tutor your teen talks to while they work on paper.

Khanmigo fits: Teens who like to type, practice on Khan Academy, and work on their own. $4 a month.
Sophie fits: Teens who learn by talking it through and do their math on paper. $8 to $10 an hour. See one problem, two ways
Before you choose: Think about how your teen does homework today: on a screen or on paper, alone or out loud.

What is Khanmigo?

Khanmigo is the AI helper built into Khan Academy, the nonprofit with free lessons and practice in math and many other subjects. It uses technology from OpenAI and first launched in 2023.

It sits in a chat panel next to Khan Academy’s videos and exercises. Your teen types a question, and Khanmigo answers with a question back, to guide them toward the answer.

Khan Academy has free AP Calculus AB and BC courses, with practice and mastery tracking. Khanmigo works alongside them.

What Khanmigo costs.

$4 a month, or $44 a year, plus sales tax. That is the price of a learner plan or a parent plan. One parent plan covers up to 10 children.

Teachers use Khanmigo for free.
Some school districts give it to students through a Khan Academy partnership. A single teacher cannot turn it on for a class.
Plans for families need a US billing address.
Khan Academy’s lessons and practice stay free, with or without Khanmigo.

Of the options parents look at for math help, this is one of the least expensive.

How your teen uses it.

Mostly typing. Your teen writes in a chat box. A microphone button turns speech into a typed message. Khanmigo can read its replies aloud. It is not a live spoken conversation.
Photos of written work. On the website, in the Tutor Me activity, your teen can attach a photo of their work with a typed question. Khanmigo looks at that photo. The Khan Academy app does not take photos.
Not during tests. Khanmigo is turned off during quizzes, unit tests and course challenges.
Guiding, not telling. Khan Academy says Khanmigo does not just give answers. It asks questions so your teen finds the answer.

What it does well.

A low price. $4 a month is less than a single hour with most tutors.
A big free library. Khan Academy’s AP Calculus courses are thorough, with videos, practice and mastery tracking.
Parents can see the chats. The parent dashboard shows the full chat history. If a message is flagged, the parent gets an email and an alert.
Many subjects. One plan helps with most of what Khan Academy teaches.

Good to know.

Your teen has to reach for it. In August 2026, Sal Khan wrote that the first version of Khanmigo “did not change student learning as much as many of us hoped”. A study in Tennessee middle schools found most students declined its help most of the time. Khan Academy is now building it into practice problems.
One photo at a time. Khanmigo sees written work when your teen sends a photo. It does not follow the page while they write.
Typing math is slow. Limits, fractions and exponents are easier on paper than in a chat box.

One homework problem, two ways.

Your teen is stuck on find the derivative of x² sin x. They wrote two lines on paper, and the second one is wrong.

The same homework problem with Khanmigo and with Sophie
Step	With Khanmigo	With Sophie
Asking for help	Opens Khan Academy on the website and types the problem, or sends a photo with a typed question.	Says “I’m stuck on number 4.” Sophie already sees the page.
Finding the slip	Khanmigo asks what they tried. Your teen types their steps or sends a photo.	Sophie sees the second line and asks how they took the derivative of a product.
Fixing it	Your teen types an answer to each question until the step is right.	Your teen says “product rule” and rewrites the line. Sophie watches the new line.
Next problem	Starts the next exercise and asks again when stuck.	Your teen moves on. Sophie keeps watching the page.

Neither one does the problem for your teen. The difference is how they ask and where the math happens: in a chat box, or on paper, out loud.

Which one fits?

Khanmigo, if your teen

likes to type and work on a screen,
practices on Khan Academy already,
needs help in several subjects,
is on a small budget.

Sophie, if your teen

does math on paper,
learns by explaining out loud,
gets stuck and stops, instead of asking,
is taking AP Calculus AB or BC.

Many families use both: Khan Academy’s free AP Calculus practice, and Sophie for the homework that gets stuck. You can also read our guide to Wyzant alternatives if you are weighing a human tutor.

A note about Sophie · Our own product

For AP Calculus, someone to talk it through.

Sophie supports your child through AP Calculus AB and BC, from this week’s homework to the exam in May.

Your child explains their thinking out loud. A phone on a stand lets Sophie see the work on paper all session, and she follows each step as they write. She asks a question or gives a small hint. Your child does the math, so the understanding is theirs.

Khanmigo and Sophie compared
Feature	Khanmigo	Sophie
How they talk	Typed chat. Speech can become text, and replies can be read aloud.	A spoken conversation, like a tutor beside them
Work on paper	One photo at a time, with a typed question, on the website	Sees the page all session through a phone on a stand
Price	$4 a monthOr $44 a year. Up to 10 children per parent plan.	$8 to $10Per hour, in packs. No subscription.
Subjects	Most of Khan Academy	AP Calculus AB and BC only
When	Any time, on Khan Academy	Whenever your child needs help

Sophie is a live online tutor, not a person. She focuses on AP Calculus AB and BC. If your teen needs many subjects, or likes to type, Khanmigo may be the better fit.

See Sophie's prices Start with this week's homework

For parents

Questions parents ask.

How much does Khanmigo cost?

Khanmigo costs $4 a month or $44 a year, plus sales tax, for a learner or a parent plan. One parent plan covers up to 10 children. Teachers use it for free. Khan Academy's lessons and practice, including AP Calculus AB and BC, stay free.

Can Khanmigo see my child's handwritten work?

On the website, in the Tutor Me activity, your child can attach a photo of their work with a typed question. Khanmigo then looks at that one photo. The Khan Academy app does not take photos.

Can my child talk to Khanmigo out loud?

Not as a live conversation. A microphone button turns speech into a typed message, and Khanmigo can read its replies aloud in English and a few other languages.

Does Khanmigo give the answers?

Khan Academy says Khanmigo guides students to find the answer themselves instead of giving it. It is turned off during quizzes and unit tests.

Is Sophie cheaper than Khanmigo?

No. Khanmigo costs $4 a month. Sophie costs $8 to $10 an hour, in packs of hours with no subscription. Sophie talks with your child and follows their work on paper as they write, for AP Calculus AB and BC.

Which is better for AP Calculus, Khanmigo or Sophie?

It depends on your teen. Khanmigo and Khan Academy are a good fit for a teen who likes to type and practice on their own, on a small budget. Sophie fits a teen who learns by talking it through and works on paper, and who wants a tutor to follow each step.

Sources

The sources we used for this guide. Prices and plans can change.

Khanmigo types.Sophie talks and watches the page.