How to Launch an Online Tutoring Website in UK

Published on 08th May, 2025

The online tutoring sector in the UK has seen significant growth over the past few years, driven by increasing demand for flexible learning, technological advancement, and a shift in educational preferences. This online tutoring services market in the UK is expected to reach revenue of US$ 1,119.9 million by 2030, growing at a rate of 12% from 2025 to 2030. 

It presents lucrative opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs in the UK to enter this space and achieve success. Whether you’re an individual educator, an ed-tech startup, or a well-established institute, the opportunity to start an online tutoring business in the UK is stronger than ever. This guide will walk you through all the crucial steps needed to launch an online tutoring website in the UK, helping you turn your vision into a profitable and scalable reality.

Popular Online Tutoring Marketplaces in the UK

Before diving into the process of launching your own platform, it’s important to understand the competitive landscape. Some of the most successful online tutoring marketplaces in the UK include:

1. MyTutor: One of the most popular platforms connecting students with top UK university tutors. This leading tutoring platform is distinguished by its unique approach of connecting secondary school students with high-achieving university tutors from top UK institutions such as Oxford, Cambridge, and Imperial College.  It offers personalized one-to-one online sessions and works closely with schools and institutions through partnerships to deliver tutoring at scale.

• Lessons Delivered: Over 4 million lessons have been conducted, with students benefiting from personalized online tutoring sessions.
• School Partnerships: Collaborations with over 1,500 schools nationwide, integrating tutoring services into educational strategies.
• Student Progress: Pupils using MyTutor make 5.2 times the progress of their peers, with 89% reporting improved feelings towards their subjects.

2. Tutorful: Offers a wide variety of subjects and emphasizes convenience with online learning. With a user-friendly interface and seamless online scheduling tools, Tutorful emphasizes accessibility and flexibility for both tutors and learners. It supports both online and in-person tutoring, though the platform has leaned more heavily into online offerings since the pandemic. 

• Tutor Base: Hosts over 11,000 registered tutors covering more than 300 subjects, including academic, music, and vocational training.
• Revenue Growth: Achieved a 376% increase in revenue from online tuition during 2020, reflecting a significant surge in demand.
• Traffic Metrics: Received approximately 396,900 visits in January 2025.

3. Superprof UK: An international player with a strong UK presence, enabling students to find tutors for academic and extracurricular activities. Operating in over 40 countries, what sets Superprof apart is its extensive subject catalog, which includes not only academic tutoring but also personal development, language learning, music lessons, sports coaching, and more. 

• Website Traffic: Attracted 1.9 million visits in November 2024, with a significant portion from the UK, indicating a strong user base.
• Global Reach: Operates in over 40 countries, offering a wide range of subjects beyond traditional academics, including arts, sports, and personal development.

4. First Tutors UK: Focuses on private tuition with features for both in-person and online sessions. It caters to a wide demographic, from primary students to adult learners, and includes academic, music, and language tuition. One of its key features is the ability for students to search for tutors based on a range of criteria, including subject, level, price, and location.  

• Online Tuition Adoption: Post-pandemic, nearly half of all private tuition is now conducted online, a significant increase from 9% in January 2019.
• Subject Popularity: GCSE online English Literature, Maths, and Physics are among the most requested subjects, with A-level Chemistry, Maths, and Economics also in high demand.
• Cost Efficiency: The average cost of online tuition is £30 per hour, offering a 20% saving compared to in-person lessons. 

Understanding these platforms will give you insight into what features and services resonate with your target market.

Key Things To Consider While Launching an Online Tutoring Website in the UK

Launching an online tutoring website involves several stages, from conceptualization to execution. Here are the key aspects to consider.

1. Market Research and Competitor Analysis 

Conducting thorough market research is the first and most crucial step. Identify your target audience—are you focusing on primary school students, GCSEs, A-Levels, university students, or professional learners? Analyze current trends, competitors, and pricing models. This will help you tailor your services and define your unique selling proposition (USP).

2. Legalities of Launching an Online Tutoring Website in the UK

Starting an online tutoring business in the UK requires adherence to specific legal requirements. These include:

• Business Registration: Choose a business structure (sole trader, partnership, limited company) and register with HMRC.
• DBS Checks: While not mandatory for all, it’s advisable to ensure that your tutors undergo DBS checks to assure students and parents of safety.
• GDPR Compliance: Your website must comply with the General Data Protection Regulation to handle personal data securely.
• Insurance: Consider professional indemnity insurance and public liability insurance to protect your business.
• Terms and Conditions: Draft clear policies regarding refunds, cancellations, and usage terms.

3. Key Revenue Channels For Your Online Tutoring Website

A sustainable revenue model is key to a successful business. Here are some revenue streams you can consider: 

• Commission-Based: This is the primary revenue channel for an online tutoring business. The platform owners charge a percentage of the tutor’s earnings.
• Subscription Model: In this revenue model, offer monthly/annual plans for students or tutors. Students or tutors can pay a recurring fee for platform access or premium tools. This ensures a steady revenue stream while offering value through exclusive features or priority access.
• Pay-Per-Session: Charge users on a per-session basis. The users can pay a fixed amount for each session after successful completion of the session. This revenue model works well for on-demand tutoring and one-time learners. 
• Freemium Model: With a freemium model, you can offer some basic features for free to attract users, while charging for the advanced features. This revenue model is ideal for building the user base initially before converting them into paying customers. 
• Featured Listings and Promotions: Enable tutors to pay for better visibility through top search placement or featured profiles. 

4. Key Features to Launch a Tutoring Platform in the UK

When you launch a tutoring website in the UK, it should be both user-friendly and feature-rich. Essential features include:

• User Registration and Profiles: Both students and tutors should be able to register, create profiles, and manage their personal data. Registration and profile management should be simple and easy, allowing users to register seamlessly and update their personal information and manage settings.
• Search and Filter Options: This is a crucial feature for user experience. Users should easily search for tutors by subject, level, price, ratings, and availability. Moreover, filtering and sorting help learners find what they are looking for conveniently. 
• Scheduling and Calendar Integration: Let users schedule sessions based on real-time availability. This feature is essential to minimize booking conflicts and optimize the availability of the tutor. Integrating a calendar system that shows both tutors’ and students’ availability ensures smooth session booking and scheduling.
• Real-Time Video Conferencing: This feature is extremely essential for delivering interactive lessons and ensuring seamless communication between tutors and students. Moreover, tools such as screen sharing, recording, textpad, and more also provide an engaging learning experience. 
• Interactive Whiteboard Tools: An interactive whiteboard is key to facilitating visual learning in online sessions. It should allow both tutors and students to write, draw, highlight, and annotate important concepts, diagrams, or equations in real-time. A feature-packed virtual whiteboard can significantly enhance the tutoring experience. 
• Payment Gateway Integration: Support secure transactions with trusted payment processors. Integration with reliable and diverse payment gateways such as PayPal, Stripe, and more ensures secure and frictionless transactions.
• Reviews and Ratings: Build credibility and help users make informed decisions by enabling the students to rate and review tutors after each session based on criteria like lesson quality, communication, and subject knowledge.
• Admin Dashboard: Manage all aspects of the platform with a robust admin dashboard. This admin dashboard should provide insights into user activity (students and tutors), session history, payments, and feedback. It allows the admin to seamlessly manage the operations of the business all in one place. 
• Multi-Currency and Language Support: Important for expanding your reach beyond the UK. Multi-currency and language support is essential to cater to students and tutors from different regions, ensuring your platform is accessible to a global audience.
• Notifications and Reminders: Automated alerts for upcoming sessions and important updates keep users informed about important events, information, session confirmations, account activities, and upcoming sessions. 
• Analytics and Reports: Track performance, user behavior, sales, orders, and revenue. Moreover, gain information such as top-performing subjects, tutors, and more. Tracking user engagement, financial performance, and conversion rates can help you make an informed decision to grow the platform and improve user experience. 
• Content Management System (CMS): An efficient content management system is essential for implementing the content marketing strategy. You should be able to easily edit, add information to key pages like the homepage, FAQs, publish blogs, and other content assets. CMS should also allow for SEO optimization to help increase the visibility of your platform on search engines and to drive organic traffic.
• Mobile Optimization: A significant number of users will access your platform through mobile devices, so ensuring that your website is mobile-optimized is critical. The website should function seamlessly across various screen sizes, providing easy navigation. Additionally, a mobile app could further enhance the experience, allowing users to schedule sessions, communicate with tutors, and track progress while on the go.
• Data Security Protocols: It is extremely crucial to ensure that personal and financial user data is secure on an online tutoring business. Encrypt personal and financial data to comply with regulations. Encryption protocols like SSL/TLS should be implemented to protect sensitive data. Additionally, comply with regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to protect users’ privacy and avoid potential legal issues.

How to Build an Online Tutoring Website

Choosing the development approach is one of the crucial decisions that you make while building an online tutoring website. Selecting the right development approach is extremely important, as it may affect your financial budget and the time of development. There are primarily two approaches to build your tutoring platform: Custom development and readymade software. Let’s know about them. 

1. Custom Development

This involves hiring or outsourcing a team of developers to build your website from scratch. While the custom development method offers deep customization, it is expensive, time-consuming, and requires ongoing maintenance. Moreover, the time to market is significantly longer in this development method.  

2. Readymade Software (Recommended)

Opting for a readymade software solution is often a more practical choice, especially for startups and small businesses. Readymade software comes pre-built with all the essential capabilities required to launch and run an online tutoring website. It drastically reduces the time and cost of development while providing all essential features out-of-the-box. 

Readymade platforms are:

• Cost-Effective
• Time-Efficient
• Scalable
• Customizable
• Secure and Reliable

This makes them ideal for entrepreneurs looking to start an online tutoring business in the UK quickly and efficiently.

How Yo!Coach Can Help to Build an Online Tutoring Website

One of the top readymade solutions to launch an online tutoring website today is Yo!Coach. Designed specifically for the ed-tech market, Yo!Coach is a powerful, customizable, and user-friendly software that supports entrepreneurs in launching a tutoring website in the UK.

Key Highlights of Yo!Coach:

• Multi-Language and Multi-Currency Support: Ideal for reaching a broader audience.
• In-Built Video Conferencing: Integrated with Zoom and Lessonspace for seamless learning.
• Advanced Search and Filters: Help users find the perfect tutor easily.
• Comprehensive Admin Dashboard: Manage users, finances, and content effectively.
• Flexible Monetization Options: Supports multiple revenue models including commission, subscriptions, and more.
• Fully Customizable: Tailor the platform according to your brand’s identity and functional requirements.
• Secure Payment Gateways: Ensures safe transactions with support for PayPal, Stripe, and others.
• Lesson Scheduling and Calendar Tools: Helps tutors manage time effectively.
• User Reviews and Star Ratings: Build community trust.
• GDPR Compliant and Secure: Built to meet UK regulations.
• Responsive and Mobile-Friendly Interface: Ensures accessibility from any device.
• Technical Support and Documentation: Comes with extensive onboarding resources and a dedicated team.

Yo!Coach offers extensive documentation, free technical support for one year and a dedicated account manager, making the launch process smoother for entrepreneurs.

Whether you’re a solo educator or a business planning to scale, Yo!Coach equips you with everything needed to start an online tutoring business in the UK effectively and efficiently. Explore the portfolio to gain insights about Yo!Coach’s diverse global clientele. 

Conclusion

The demand for online education continues to rise, and the UK is one of the most promising markets to tap into. If you are looking to launch a tutoring website in the UK, careful planning, market understanding, legal compliance, and choosing the right technological foundation are crucial.

While custom development has its advantages, readymade solutions like Yo!Coach stands out as a more viable, efficient, and scalable option for most entrepreneurs. With the right strategy and tools in place, you can successfully start an online tutoring business in the UK and make a meaningful impact in the education sector.

Now is the perfect time to take the leap and bring your vision to life. Start today, and contribute to shaping the future of online education in the UK.

FAQs

Q. 1. Do I need to register my online tutoring business in the UK?

Ans. Yes, if you are launching a tutoring platform in the UK, you must comply with UK business regulations. This typically means registering as a sole trader, limited company, or partnership. It’s also important to ensure you comply with data protection laws like GDPR to protect your users’ privacy and personal data.

Q 2. What are the legal requirements for tutors on my platform in the UK?

Ans. While UK tutors are not required to hold formal teaching qualifications for private tutoring, you will need to ensure that tutors have the necessary skills and background checks. Consider implementing DBS checks (Disclosure and Barring Service) for tutors who will be working with children or vulnerable adults. Additionally, tutors should be clear about their qualifications and be honest about their teaching experience in their profiles, which builds trust and credibility with students and parents.

Q 3. What taxes do I need to consider when launching my tutoring platform in the UK?

Ans. In the UK, income earned from tutoring is subject to income tax and National Insurance contributions for both tutors and platform owners. If you run a limited company, you’ll also need to account for corporation tax. As the platform owner, you should also consider VAT (Value Added Tax), depending on your earnings. If your business earns more than the VAT threshold, you’ll need to register for VAT. It’s highly advisable to consult with an accountant to ensure compliance with UK tax laws and to optimize your tax structure.

Q 4. How can I compete with established tutoring platforms like MyTutor and Tutorful in the UK?

Ans. To compete with established platforms, you can consider the following measures:

• it’s crucial to identify a unique value proposition (UVP) that sets your website apart. This could be offering specialized tutoring in niche subjects or underrepresented academic areas, creating more affordable pricing options, or providing personalized, high-touch customer service. 
• Additionally, strong SEO optimization, targeted advertising, and building a community around your platform (e.g., through reviews, testimonials, or partnerships with local schools) will help you stand out in a competitive market.

Q 5. Are there any other regulations for online tutoring platforms in the UK?

Ans. Yes, UK-based online tutoring platforms must comply with several regulations. These include GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) for data protection, especially when handling student and tutor personal details. You also need to ensure that all transactions comply with consumer protection laws and provide clear terms and conditions regarding refunds, cancellation policies, and pricing.

Q 6. How can I market my online tutoring website after the launch? 

Ans. To market your online tutoring website in the UK, you can follow the following strategies: 

• Leveraging social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn) for engaging content and paid ads targeting parents and students.
• Focus on SEO to drive organic traffic by using keywords and optimizing blog content. 
• Implement a referral program to incentivize word-of-mouth and 
• Use Google Ads for paid visibility. Partner with schools and universities to expand your reach and offer affiliate programs. 
• Utilize Google My Business for local visibility, and engage users with email marketing and discounts to drive conversions. 
• Reviews and ratings will help build credibility and trust.