Khan Academy vs IXL: which one should you use?

Pick Khan Academy when you need to understand a topic first: it is free, teaches with videos and practice, and runs from early grades to college and SAT prep. Pick IXL when your child needs a lot of scored drill on school skills and you are happy to pay, from $9.95 a month. Neither uses your own class notes. For that, StudyPDF is a third option.

Checked October 2026

Pick by what you need

Khan AcademyLearning a topic first, for free, from early grades to college
IXLSkill-by-skill drill that follows school standards, Pre-K to 12

StudyPDFThat's us

Older students studying their own slides, notes and readings

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Who should pick which

Khan Academy

Pick Khan Academy if you need to understand a topic from the start, want free lessons and SAT prep, or want a school tool that costs nothing.

Khan Academy is a nonprofit that teaches with videos, articles and practice exercises. You work through courses at your own pace, and teachers can assign work and follow progress. Its Khanmigo AI tutor is an optional paid add-on for learners.

Strengths

Free for students, teachers and families, funded by donors and partners
Courses from early math to college level, plus free official SAT prep
Teaches first and then practices, so you can start a topic from zero
50+ languages, and videos you can download in the app to watch offline

Limits

It follows its own course order, so it will not match your textbook or teacher page by page
The Khanmigo AI tutor is not included for learners and costs $4 a month

Official site

IXL

Pick IXL if your child needs steady scored practice on school skills, reports for a parent and a plan that follows standards, and you do not mind paying.

IXL is a paid practice program with more than 20,000 skills in math, English, science, social studies and Spanish. A diagnostic points to what to practice next, and a SmartScore from 0 to 100 shows how well a skill is learned. Schools and families both use it.

Strengths

Skills matched to standards in all 50 US states, the Common Core and widely used textbooks
A diagnostic and skill plans show what to practice next
Analytics show a parent how much practice happened and which questions were missed
Pre-K to 12 across five subjects, with games for the youngest children

Limits

Paid: more subjects or children cost more, and Spanish is an add-on
The SmartScore drops after a mistake and, IXL says, drops get larger near the top, which can feel harsh

Official site

Side by side

	Khan Academy	IXL
Free tier	Courses and practice are free for students, teachers and families	10 free questions per subject per day, no membership
Price (October 2026)	Free; Khanmigo AI tutor $4 a month ($44 a year)	From $9.95 a month or $79 a year for one subject
Platforms	Web, iPhone, Android	Web, iPad, iPhone, Android, Fire

Prices as of October 2026. Check the vendor's site for the current price.

StudyPDF

That's us

Older students studying their own slides, notes and readings

Pick StudyPDF only if you are an older student with your own slides and notes to study. It does not teach a curriculum or drill skills.

Khan Academy and IXL both teach and drill their own curriculum. StudyPDF does neither. You upload your own slides, notes and readings, it splits them into topics and concepts, and it builds flashcards, quizzes and practice exams from them. Bo, the tutor, answers from your files and cites the page. It fits older students and university courses, not grade-school math practice. The free plan needs an account, no credit card.

Strengths

Works from your actual course, so it matches what your exam covers
Bo, the tutor, answers from your files and cites the page
Tracks which concepts you still miss and targets them next

Limits

No lessons, videos or grade-level skill paths: it cannot teach a topic you have no material for
Not made for young children or school math practice
Weekly caps on every plan, and a free account is needed

Free tier: About 4 materials a week, 2 courses, no credit card
Price: Pro and Ultra plans, see the pricing page
Platforms: Web, iPhone, iPad, Android

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More on this

Khan Academy is a nonprofit, and as of October 16, 2026 it is free for students, teachers and families. It teaches with video lessons, articles and practice, and covers math, science, history, economics, computer programming and free official SAT prep. IXL is a paid program from IXL Learning. It has more than 20,000 skills in math, English, science, social studies and Spanish for Pre-K to 12th grade, and it is mostly practice, though it also has more than 1,300 video tutorials.

The real difference is the job each one does. Khan Academy explains first, then lets you practice. IXL is built around practice: a diagnostic shows what your child is ready for, a SmartScore from 0 to 100 tracks each skill, and skill plans line the work up with school standards. Many families use Khan Academy to learn an idea and IXL to drill it, or just one of the two when the school chooses.

Prices as of October 16, 2026: IXL family plans cost $9.95 a month for one subject, $15.95 for math plus language arts and $19.95 for four subjects, or $79, $129 and $159 a year. Each extra child is $4 a month or $40 a year. Without a membership you get 10 free questions per subject per day. Khanmigo, Khan Academy's AI tutor, is a separate add-on at $4 a month ($44 a year) for learners and parents, and free for teachers.

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Study from your own material

Turn your slides and PDFs into flashcards, quizzes and practice exams.

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Questions and answers

Is Khan Academy better than IXL?

It depends on the job. Khan Academy is better for learning a topic, and it is free. IXL is better for steady, scored drill on school skills, and it costs from $9.95 a month. Many families use Khan Academy to learn and IXL to practice. If your school already assigns IXL, you cannot swap it out.

How much does IXL cost compared to Khan Academy?

As of October 16, 2026, Khan Academy is free for students, teachers and families. IXL family plans run $79 to $159 a year for the first child, or $9.95 to $19.95 a month, depending on how many subjects. Each extra child costs $4 a month or $40 a year. Without a membership IXL gives 10 free questions per subject per day.

Why do some students not like IXL?

A common complaint is the SmartScore. It starts at 0, drops after a wrong answer, and IXL says the drops get larger as you near the top. That can feel harsh, and drill can feel repetitive. IXL says this keeps practice at the right level. Try the 10 free daily questions before you pay.

Who owns Khan Academy?

Nobody owns it. Khan Academy is a nonprofit founded by Sal Khan and funded by donors and partners. Its supporters page lists the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Fundação Lemann and Fundación Carlos Slim as founding partners. The content stays free for students, teachers and families.

What is better than IXL?

For free lessons, Khan Academy. For studying your own class material in high school or at university, StudyPDF, which builds flashcards, quizzes and practice exams from your slides and notes. For school-style drill with reports, IXL is hard to replace, so the better choice depends on what you need.