Education Technology · Profile from Education Technology Research Companion
Wyzant, Inc.
The largest open tutoring marketplace in the US, founded in Chicago in 2005, where independent tutors set their own rates and students choose them from profiles and reviews. Wyzant grew mostly on its own cash, took one venture round (Accel, 2013), bought rival Tutorspree, moved online, switched tutors to a flat 25% platform fee in 2019, and was acquired by IXL Learning in 2021.
At a glance
- Founded
- 2005, Chicago area, Illinois
- Founders
- Andrew Geant (long-time CEO) and Mike Weishuhn
- Headquarters
- Chicago, Illinois
- Ownership / structure
- Private; wholly owned subsidiary of IXL Learning (San Mateo, California) since 2021
- Leadership (2026)
- Operates as a brand inside IXL Learning; Andrew Geant led Wyzant through the acquisition; current leadership not publicly prominent (verify)
- Segment and buyer
- Consumer tutoring marketplace, K-12, college, test prep, adult and professional subjects; students and parents pay per lesson
- Scale
- Tens of thousands of active tutors in 250–300+ subjects (company marketing; verify); ~500,000 registered tutor accounts reported by 2013; revenue not disclosed
- Capital raised / valuation / market cap
- Bootstrapped until a $21.5m Accel round (2013); IXL acquisition price not disclosed (2021)
- Signature moves
- Open marketplace with tutor-set rates (2005); Accel Series A (2013); Tutorspree acquisition (2014); online learning tool (mid-2010s); flat 25% tutor fee (2019); pandemic online surge (2020); sale to IXL (2021). Points of friction: tutor fee levels, student service fee, anti-circumvention rules
7 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
2005
Founding Open Tutor Marketplace
Launch
2013
Accel Series A
Funding round
2014
Acquires Tutorspree
Acquisition
2016
Online Learning Tool
Launch / product pivot (in-person directory to online lesson platform)
2019
Flat 25 Percent Platform Fee
Pricing change
2020
Pandemic Online Surge
Pivot / scale-up (in-person to almost entirely online)
2021
Acquired by IXL Learning
Acquisition (exit; Wyzant as target)