A tutoring business is an accessible business model because you can, in theory, get started with nothing more than a laptop and an internet connection (though a qualification or expertise is advisable). Starting a tutoring business can be rewarding because, whether you’re teaching students who are falling behind with their work or trying to capitalise on their high potential, you can play a part in their academic success.
There is certainly a high demand for private tutors. According to a 2023 report from educational charity The Sutton Trust, 30% of 11- to 16-year-olds have had private tutoring, an increase on the 27% before the pandemic as parents were keen for their kids to catch up on all those lost teaching hours.
The same report estimated the UK private tutoring sector is worth around £2 billion. So there is money to be made, but how do you get started in this lucrative but highly competitive industry?
Why start a tutoring business?
Here are some great reasons to start a tutoring business:
- It’s accessible: You can start a tutoring business with just subject expertise and a laptop. It’s possible to run your entire business from home, using your computer to promote your business and hold online sessions with your students.
- It’s rewarding: It can be deeply satisfying to tutor a student who then goes on to achieve their goals, be it passing an exam or gaining confidence in a particular subject.
- Be your own boss: As a self-employed tutor, you’ll be free to choose how you work, your working hours and the students you teach.
- It’s varied: No two students are the same, and you’ll find you’re challenged and stimulated by working with a wide range of people every day.
Start a tutoring business in 5 steps
1. Research and choose your market
There are many types of private tutors, varying in terms of the scope, subjects and ages of the students they teach. Some offer one-to-one tuition, some take place exclusively online, while others do a little of everything.
One of the primary factors likely to influence what kind of tutoring services you offer is whether or not you have a specialist subject. After all, it’s unlikely you’ve entered the world of tutoring to take a punt on teaching a topic you don’t have expertise in. And while you don’t require specific qualifications to be a tutor, you may need to have qualified teacher status if you’re teaching academic qualifications.
However, some tutors are more general and teach younger students a broad range of topics to help them at different Key Stage levels.
It’s also important to understand where your potential clientele is based. A much larger share of those in the top quartile of household income (31.6%) have had private tutoring, compared to just 12.8% in the lowest quartile, according to The Sutton Trust. It’s a similar picture for those with professional (23.9%) and degree-level educated parents (25.8%). Just 11.1% of children in working-class families and 12.8% of children whose parents have no degree have had private tutoring.
That’s not to say that you should exclusively offer your services to families higher up the socio-economic ladder; just that you’re likely to find a higher demand for tutoring services if you live in, or can promote yourself in, a more affluent area.
You should also research what types of tutoring services are prevalent in your area or online. The Sutton Trust found that maths and English are by far the most popular subjects for tutoring in the UK, with 68% of 11- to 16-year-olds who have been tutored receiving maths tuition and 50% receiving English tuition. So, you could start a maths or English tuition business, but you may have a harder time breaking into the market and standing out from the competition.
Here are some of the different types of tutoring businesses. Note that these are not mutually exclusive:
- Primary school children: Parents may employ tutors to help their children increase their confidence and subject knowledge ahead of important assessments like Standardised Assessment Tests (SATs), the eleven-plus, or secondary school entrance exams. They may have a child who needs more academic support than the school can provide because they have a learning difficulty or simply because the school environment isn’t the best way for them to learn. Alternatively, they may have a particularly academic child who is keen to learn beyond their school curriculum.
- Secondary school children: Parents may want a tutor to help coach their child towards GCSE or A-level success, or they may want extra support for a child who is finding a subject challenging.
- Adult tutoring: It’s not just kids who use tutors. Adults returning to education after an interruption or simply to advance their learning can also benefit from tutoring services.
- Specialist: Whether it’s maths, English, music or psychology, many tutors are subject specialists and focus entirely on teaching one topic.
- Online: The advantage of online tutoring is that you’re not limited to teaching students in your local area and you don’t have to spend time and money travelling.
- In-person: The advantage of tutoring in person is that it can be easier to build a rapport with your student when you’re face to face, and it may be easier to demonstrate certain concepts if you’re in the same physical space
2. Create a budget for your tutoring business
Starting a tutoring business is a relatively low-cost opportunity. However, you should still create a business budget to work out how much capital or funding you need to get it off the ground.
- DBS check: A Disclosure and Barring Service check is a search through your criminal record to see if there is anything that would disqualify you from working with children or vulnerable adults. It costs £18 for a basic DBS check. If you’re self-employed as a private tutor, you’re not legally required to have a DBS, though parents may be wary of employing you if you don’t. However, if you offer your services through a tutoring agency, they may require you to have a standard or even enhanced DBS check.
- Curriculum materials: If you’re teaching school children, you should have the relevant curriculum materials, such as textbooks and past exam papers. While you’ll need to pay for textbooks, you can find recent exam papers free online
- Equipment: A laptop with a strong broadband connection will be essential if you don’t already have one, especially if you’re teaching online. You may also invest in some stationery if teaching in person. While not essential, studies have shown that some children learn better with pens and paper.
- Travel costs: Fuel or public transport costs should also be factored into your budget if you plan on visiting your students’ homes or meeting in an agreed-upon place.
- Insurance: If you’re a sole trader, there is no insurance you’re required to have. However, you could face a claim if a student is injured or you damage their property, or even a claim of negligence if a student fails to achieve a grade or pass. This last eventuality is why you might consider getting professional indemnity insurance to protect you against claims of negligence. Public liability insurance will protect you against injuries or accidents involving your students. You could also protect your laptop and phone with portable equipment cover. This insurance will cost from around £8 to £15 a month.
3. Register your tutoring business
With a market in mind and a budget drawn up, it’s time to think about the legal structure of your tutoring business.
First, decide which of these three structures best suits your circumstances and long-term plans. Research the following options, and once you’ve settled on one you’ll be ready to register your tutoring business and start sharing your knowledge with the world:
- Sole trader: Operating as a sole trader means retaining exclusive ownership of your tutoring business. This, in turn, entitles you to keep all of your post-tax profits, though the drawback of being a sole trader is that there is no legal distinction between you and your business. Just as the profits are yours to keep in the good times, any business losses will be your responsibility in the bad times. Sole traders need to register for self-assessment to pay their taxes to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
- Partnership: Business partnerships are formed when multiple people club together to share the responsibilities, risks, profits and losses which come with running a business. Depending on the structure of the partnership, you could form a general business partnership, a limited partnership or a limited liability partnership. Within every partnership is one ‘nominated partner’, who is responsible for filing the partnership tax return and must register with HMRC. All partners will need to submit their tax returns as individuals as well.
- Limited company: Unlike sole traders, owners of limited companies enjoy a legal and financial distinction from their businesses. If you were to set up your tutoring business as a limited company, you would have shares and shareholders to deal with, although your business would be able to keep any post-tax profits.
You can register your tutoring business as a limited company at Gov.uk.
» MORE: Should I register as a sole trader or limited company?
There are no standard qualifications or licences required for becoming a tutor in the UK. This means there are no obvious legal hurdles you’ll have to jump over before setting up your tutoring business.
But bear in mind that if you plan to run your tutoring business from your own home, you will be legally responsible for ensuring that this is a safe environment. We also recommend you read up on safeguarding and follow best practices in this field from the moment you set out on your business journey.
Now would be a good time to consider the advantages of undergoing a DBS check. As mentioned above, some parents may look for this before hiring you, while if you work for an agency it may be a prerequisite.
Consider taking out any relevant insurance to ensure that your tutoring business is protected from the get-go.
4. Fund your tutoring business
You can’t be expected to know, to the penny, exactly how much seed capital it will take to get your tutoring business off the ground. However, your budget should help you make an educated guess about start-up costs.
Because of the tutoring business model, it’s possible that you won’t need a fortune to get your business going. But you should still consider where your funding will come from. As a starting point, think about each of the following funding sources (bearing in mind that you can combine multiple sources if you need to):
- Personal savings: It’s possible that you already have enough in the bank to fund a low-overhead tutoring business – and if that’s the case then you can consider using your own money to get your business up and running. Paying start-up costs yourself comes with the big advantage that you can retain total ownership of your tutoring business, but just be careful to protect your own financial health in the process.
- Friends and family: If you turn to friends and family for a start-up loan (or a gift, if you’re lucky), then be mindful that mixing business and personal relationships can lead to problems down the line. To safeguard yourself and your tutoring business, consider drawing up a written agreement before borrowing any money. An estimated 19% of new UK businesses are launched using cash from the owner’s parents.
- Small business grants: There are start-up business grants available across the UK. Some grants don’t need to be repaid, while some are only partially repayable. Businesses in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can access specific grants, so be sure to check out the options for your tutoring business wherever you are in the UK.
- Government business loans: Your tutoring business may also benefit from various government business loans.
- Business loans: While traditional small business loans can be tough for start-ups to secure (since lenders generally prefer to back ventures with an existing track record), you can still try to secure funding from a business lender. Check out our guide to the UK’s most start-up-friendly business lenders for more information. Look through the terms and conditions, and eligibility requirements of any loan before you decide whether it’s likely to work for you and your business.
- Angel investors: If you haven’t heard of them before, angel investors are generally wealthy and successful individuals who back businesses financially and help them grow. Money from angel investors usually comes with additional support, like mentoring or oversight of business operations, and they may be able to leverage their connections to help your business. In return for their support and guidance, an angel investor is likely to demand a minority stake in your venture.
- Crowdfunding: Crowdfunding is often promoted through an online campaign, involving the contributions of multiple backers. In return for a (usually small) donation, crowdfunders will typically expect a reward, such as equity or early product access.
Once you have secured the money you need to start your tutoring business, you may need to open a business bank account.
For sole traders (assuming your bank account permits business transactions), this can be an optional step – although separating your finances may make life easier when you file your tax return.
Limited companies and partnerships, however, have a legal obligation to keep personal and business finances separate. In these cases, a business bank account is an absolute must.
5. Find your first tutoring customers
With many established providers and individuals vying for business from potential students, you’ll have to stand out from your competitors. Spend some time and effort marketing your services. Most people will probably search for a tutor online, so a website that is optimised with relevant keywords is a must as well as a compelling social media presence.
Ask for testimonials from satisfied students, or their parents, that you can display on your website and in your marketing materials. It will help to lend you credibility. Offline methods can also be very effective, especially if you’re offering services locally. Approach schools to ask if you can promote yourself to their students and advertise on online neighbourhood networks and in local shops or other public spaces.
Lastly, word of mouth is the best form of free advertising, and the way to benefit from it is simply to do a good job. Parents talk, and a recommendation of a good tutor from a friend is a very powerful marketing tool.
How much do tutoring businesses charge?
The amount you can charge for tutoring changes by region and subject matter. If you teach more in-demand or specialist topics, you can typically charge more for your services.
For example, while an hour’s lesson in Mandarin could cost over £50, a lesson in a subject such as English literature or psychology could be around £35. Charges in London and the home counties, where living costs are higher, tend to be more expensive than those in other areas.
The level of education your tutoring services are aimed at also affects how much you can charge. Research from First Tutors found that the average hourly rate of primary school tutoring was £35, rising to nearly £37 for GCSE level, and over £46 for A-levels.
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