Finding a Tutor
Search and filter the Tuitionable tutor directory by subject, price, rating, availability and more to find a bookable tutor that fits your goals.
On this page
Overview
The tutor directory is where you discover and shortlist tutors on Tuitionable. It is a public page — you can browse it as a guest or while signed in — and it combines a plain-language search box, a set of side filters, and a sort control so you can move from "I need a maths tutor" to a list of real, bookable people in a few clicks.
This page explains how to reach the directory, how each search and filter control behaves, how results are ordered, what the counts next to each filter mean, and why some tutors appear while others do not. It is written for students; if you want the directory to pick tutors for you instead, see the brief note on AI matching at the end.
Searching by text
At the top of the directory is a single search bar with the placeholder "Search subject, exam, or tutor name…". Type whatever you are looking for and submit the form — the search button shows a live count of how many tutors are currently in the directory (for example, "Search 248 tutors").
Your text is matched against four things on each tutor:
- the tutor's name
- their profile bio
- their short tagline
- the subjects they teach
The search is split into words, and a tutor is a match if they hit any of those words. So "math english" returns tutors who cover maths or English, giving you a broad starting list that you then narrow with the filters on the side. Common filler words — such as tutor, teacher, help, learn, online and best — are ignored, so a natural phrase like "looking for a good chemistry tutor" effectively searches for chemistry.
You can search by exam or topic, not just subject name — the directory matches your words against subject names directly, so an exam or board keyword that appears in a subject will surface relevant tutors.
Filters
The left-hand Filters panel narrows the list without changing your search words. Every filter is reflected in the page URL, so a filtered view can be bookmarked or shared. Use Clear all at the top of the panel to reset back to the full directory.
Subject
The Subject section lists subjects as toggles; selecting one limits results to tutors who teach that subject. Tuitionable uses a grouped match here, so picking a broad subject also pulls in closely related ones — for instance, selecting Mathematics also surfaces tutors tagged with sibling subjects such as Math or Discrete Math. This is deliberate: the count you see on a subject is the count you get after clicking it. If you need the full taxonomy, the + more link takes you to the full subjects directory.
Rate per hour
Price is chosen as a band rather than a slider. The available bands are:
| Band | Hourly rate |
|---|---|
| ≤ 25 | Under the lowest tier |
| ≤ 50 | 25 – 50 |
| ≤ 100 | 50 – 100 |
| 100+ | 100 and above |
Rating
The Rating filter lets you require a minimum average star rating. The selectable thresholds are 4.9 & up, 4.7 & up, and 4.5 & up. Only one threshold applies at a time, and it filters on each tutor's average rating across their reviews.
Availability
The Availability section offers an Available now toggle. When switched on, the directory shows only tutors who satisfy both conditions:
- their schedule has an open, non-blocked window covering the current day and time, and
- they are currently online — that is, active within the last five minutes.
This pairing is intentional: it means an "Available now" result is genuinely reachable for an instant booking, not just a tutor whose calendar happens to look free.
The search bar also includes a When selector (Any time, This week, Weekends, Evenings) as a quick way to express timing intent. For the strongest "free right now" guarantee, rely on the Available now filter described above.
Teaching mode
Choose how you want your lessons delivered: Online, In person, or both. Selecting a mode shows only tutors who offer it. Tutors who offer both appear under either choice.
Travels to my area
Turn on Travels to my area to see only tutors who are willing to come to your location for in-person lessons. This is useful if you want home tuition and don't want to travel yourself. Tutors who teach only online are hidden while this is on.Years of experience
Filter by how long a tutor has been teaching. Select a minimum, such as 1+ years, 3+ years, or 5+ years, and only tutors with at least that much experience appear. Experience is the figure tutors enter on their own profile.Tutor gender
If you have a preference, choose Male or Female to show only tutors of that gender. Leave it unselected to see everyone. Tutors set this on their own profile.Student level
Select the level you need help with, such as Primary, Secondary, Junior College, Polytechnic, University, or Adult learner. The directory shows tutors who have said they teach that level. You can combine this with a Subject filter. For example, choosing Secondary and Mathematics shows tutors who teach secondary maths.Sorting results
A Sort by dropdown sits above the results grid. Changing it re-orders the current result set while keeping all of your filters in place. The options are:
| Option | Underlying sort | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Best match | relevance | Featured tutors first, then highest average rating, then most reviews. This is the default. |
| Highest rated | rating | Tutors ordered by average star rating, highest first. |
| Most sessions | lessons | Tutors who have taught the most lessons first. |
| Lowest price | price_low | Cheapest hourly rate first. |
Leaving sort on Best match is usually the right call for a first pass — it surfaces well-reviewed and featured tutors while still respecting your filters. Switch to Lowest price or Highest rated once you have narrowed the subject and budget.
Facet counts
Many filter options show a number beside them — these are facet counts. A facet count tells you how many bookable tutors fall into that option, so you can judge whether a filter is worth applying before you click it.
Two details are worth knowing:
- Counts match what you see. Each subject count is calculated with the same grouped logic the subject filter uses, so a subject that says "12" returns 12 tutors when you click it — not a different number.
- Counts reflect the bookable pool, not your current filters. Facets are built from the full set of bookable tutors and are intentionally independent of the filters you currently have applied, so they always show what is still selectable across the marketplace.
For performance, these counts are cached briefly (about five minutes) and refreshed in the background, so a brand-new tutor or a just-changed rate may take a few minutes to be reflected in the numbers.
Why some tutors appear & others do not
The directory deliberately does not list every registered tutor. It shows only bookable tutors — people you can actually hire right now. A tutor is bookable when the following are true:
- their profile has been Approved by the platform, and
- their status are shown Active on the platform.
The same bookable rule is used for the listing, the search, and the facet counts, which is why the count on a filter always lines up with the results behind it.
If a tutor you previously found is no longer in the directory, it usually means their approval or active status changed — not that they deleted their account. Tutors who are pending approval, or who have pending account status, are hidden from search until that is resolved.
A quick word on AI matching
If you would rather be matched than browse, Tuitionable offers two AI-assisted touches on top of the directory:
- AI query understanding. When you are signed in and the AI matching feature is enabled, typing a longer, plain-language search (roughly eight characters or more) lets you expand your phrase into related academic keywords behind the scenes — so "help passing my calculus final" can also surface maths tutors. When this runs, an AI Tutor Matching badge appears above the results showing the related topics it also searched.
- The matching questionnaire. A short, guided set of questions ranks tutors by fit based on your subject, level, goal, budget and timing, and returns a focused shortlist instead of a full list.
The matching questionnaire ranks tutors by fit. For a full walkthrough of how it scores tutors and writes its "why you match" reasons, see AI Tutor Matching.
Troubleshooting & tips
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| No results at all | Clear your filters with Clear all, then re-add them one at a time. A price band plus a high rating threshold can combine to empty the list. |
| A subject count looks different from the results | It should not — counts and results use the same grouped logic. If a count seems stale, wait a few minutes; facet counts are cached and refresh on a short cycle. |
| Too many loosely related tutors | Text search matches any of your words on purpose. Narrow with the Subject filter and a price band rather than adding more words. |
| "Available now" shows nobody | This filter requires a tutor to be both scheduled for the current time and online in the last five minutes. Try without it, or check back at a busier hour. |
| No AI Tutor Matching badge | It only appears for signed-in users when the feature is enabled and your search is long enough to expand. Sign in and search in a full phrase. |
Related pages
- AI Tutor Matching — let the matching questionnaire build a shortlist for you.
- Tutor Profiles & Favorites — read a full profile and save tutors to your wishlist.
- Booking a Session — turn a tutor you found into a scheduled lesson.
- Student Dashboard — see your personalized tutor recommendations and recent activity.