Tutopiya vs Medly AI: Two AI Study Platforms, Very Different Scale

If you are choosing an AI-powered revision platform for GCSE, IGCSE, A-Level or IB, Tutopiya vs Medly AI is a genuine head-to-head. Both give you exam-style questions, AI marking and instant feedback, both work without booking a tutor, and both cost far less than private tuition.

The difference is scale and breadth. This comparison uses published figures from both platforms rather than adjectives, so you can check it.

This is written by Tutopiya. We have used Medly’s own published numbers throughout, and we say where they are ahead.

The headline numbers

	Tutopiya Learning Portal	Medly AI
Practice questions	215,000+	6,000+
Exam boards / curricula	16	GCSE, IGCSE, A-Level, IB, AP, National 5
Subject offerings	129 across those curricula	~23 GCSE, ~21 A-Level
Quizzes	3,400+	Not published
Revision notes and resources	3,200+ files	Lessons built into practice
Price (annual plan)	From SGD 8/month (about £4.60)	£16/month
Price (monthly plan)	—	£24.99/month
Human tutoring available	Yes, same platform	No

Medly publishes “6,000+ exam-style questions” on its site. Tutopiya’s portal currently serves 215,257 practice questions across 8,332 subtopics — roughly 36 times the volume. Restricted only to the UK and international boards where the two actually overlap, Tutopiya still has 176,689 questions.

Where Medly is genuinely strong

It would be easy to stop at the question count, but that is not the whole picture.

Medly is UK-first and tightly focused. It covers AQA, Edexcel, OCR and WJEC for GCSE, and adds AP and National 5 — AQA and OCR in particular are boards where Tutopiya’s coverage is thinner. If your child sits WJEC or OCR GCSE, check both platforms on your specific subject before deciding, because breadth of curricula is not the same as depth in yours.

Medly also has a knowledge graph that maps how topics connect across a curriculum, and university-level features — extracting key points from lectures, building practice from your own materials — that Tutopiya does not offer at all. If you are past A-Level, that is a real difference.

And the product is clean and single-purpose. A platform that does one thing is easier to start using than one that also does tutoring, bookings and progress reporting.

Where Tutopiya is ahead

Volume of practice. 215,000+ questions against 6,000+. For a subject you are drilling for months, running out of unseen questions is a real problem, and it is the most common complaint about smaller banks.

Curriculum breadth. 16 curricula including Cambridge IGCSE, Cambridge International AS & A Level, Edexcel IGCSE, Edexcel International A Level, IB DP, IB MYP and Cambridge Lower Secondary. Medly’s strength is UK domestic boards; if you are at an international school sitting Cambridge or Edexcel International, that is squarely Tutopiya’s centre of gravity rather than an edge case.

Breadth of AI tooling. Both platforms mark work and explain concepts. Tutopiya’s portal also includes AI Smart Marking, AI Hints and worked solutions, AI Customised Feedback, AI Practice Tests, an AI Personalised Study Plan, AI Strengths Analysis and predicted-grade reporting — a wider set of study tools rather than a single assistant.

Price. On the annual plan Tutopiya’s portal is SGD 8 a month — roughly £4.60 at current rates, against Medly’s £16 a month annually or £24.99 monthly. That is around 70% less, for more questions and more curricula.

A human tutor when you need one. This is the structural difference. AI marking is excellent for volume practice and instant feedback, and poor at noticing that a student has quietly stopped trying, or that the real problem in Paper 2 is exam technique rather than content. On Tutopiya you can add a 1-to-1 tutor on the same platform, from 4 hours a month, without moving provider or re-explaining where your child is. Medly is AI-only by design.

On the “AI is cheaper than a tutor” argument

Medly makes a cost case against private tutoring — roughly £96 a month for one weekly hour in one subject, against £16 a month for their platform. The arithmetic is fine, and it is a fair reason to consider a self-study platform.

Two things worth saying about it.

First, the tutoring figure is drawn from Sutton Trust data published in 2019. UK tuition rates have moved since; treat it as a floor rather than today’s number.

Second, and more importantly, that is not actually the choice most students face. Comparing AI practice against a human tutor assumes you must pick one. The students who improve fastest generally do both: a tutor to diagnose what is going wrong and teach it, and a large question bank to drill it until it is automatic. A platform is a poor substitute for teaching, and a tutor is an expensive way to mark 200 practice questions.

The useful question is not “AI or tutor”. It is whether your platform can give you a tutor when the AI is not enough.

Which should you choose?

Medly AI may suit you better if:

• You sit OCR or WJEC GCSE, or National 5 / AP, where its coverage is stronger.
• You want a single-purpose revision tool with no tutoring attached.
• You are at university level and want lecture summarisation and practice built from your own materials.

Tutopiya’s Learning Portal is likely better if:

• You want the largest possible question bank — 215,000+ against 6,000+.
• You sit Cambridge or Edexcel international qualifications, or IB.
• You want AI study tools beyond marking — hints, study plans, strengths analysis, predicted grades.
• You want the option of a human tutor later without changing platform.
• Price matters: roughly £4.60 a month annually versus £16.

The honest summary

If you are a UK student on OCR or WJEC, check Medly on your exact subject first — focused coverage can beat broad coverage for the paper you are actually sitting.

For most other students, particularly on Cambridge, Edexcel International or IB, Tutopiya’s portal gives you far more practice, more curricula, more AI tooling and a lower price — and leaves the door open to a human tutor when a question bank stops being the answer.

Frequently asked questions

How many practice questions does each platform have?

Medly publishes “6,000+ exam-style questions”. Tutopiya’s Learning Portal currently serves 215,257 across 8,332 subtopics — about 36 times more. Limited to the boards where both compete, Tutopiya has 176,689. Figures move as content is added, so check both if the exact number matters to you.

Which is cheaper, Tutopiya or Medly AI?

Tutopiya’s portal is from SGD 8 a month on the annual plan — roughly £4.60. Medly is £16 a month billed annually, or £24.99 monthly. Tutopiya is around 70% cheaper on the annual plan, and includes more curricula.

Does Medly AI cover Cambridge IGCSE and IB?

Medly lists CIE and Edexcel for IGCSE and IB among its qualifications, with its strongest coverage on UK domestic boards (AQA, Edexcel, OCR, WJEC). Tutopiya covers 16 curricula and is built primarily around Cambridge and Edexcel international qualifications and IB, so check your specific subject on both.

Can I get a human tutor on either platform?

Only on Tutopiya. Medly is AI-only by design. Tutopiya lets you add 1-to-1 tutoring from 4 hours a month on the same platform, so your practice history and progress carry across rather than starting again elsewhere.

Is an AI platform enough on its own, without a tutor?

For volume practice, instant marking and working through a specification, often yes — and it is far cheaper than weekly tuition. Where AI is weaker is diagnosis: noticing that a student is avoiding a topic, or that the marks are being lost to exam technique rather than knowledge. Many students use a platform throughout and add a tutor for a term before exams, which is why having both in one place is useful.

What AI features does Tutopiya’s portal have?

AI Smart Marking, AI Hints and worked solutions, AI Customised Feedback, AI Practice Tests, an AI Personalised Study Plan, AI Strengths Analysis and predicted-grade reporting, alongside the question bank, quizzes and revision notes. Medly’s set centres on adaptive questioning, essay marking, a conversational tutor, full mocks and a knowledge graph.

Can I try either platform before paying?

Tutopiya’s portal has free access to a limited number of subtopics before any payment, and tutoring includes a free trial lesson. Check Medly’s current site for their trial terms, as these change.

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