Who this page is for
This guide is for parents of Year 7 to 10 students in Australia whose child uses Photomath, or wants to, and who are wondering whether it is helping. Maybe homework comes back complete but topic test marks do not match. Maybe you are simply unsure whether a solver app is a study tool or a shortcut.
We make Tuterly, which also shows worked solutions, so we have a stake in this. We have tried to be fair about what Photomath does well and honest that the integrity questions apply to Tuterly too. Product features change, so check the official Photomath website for current details.
What Photomath does well
Photomath is a camera-based maths solver. Your child photographs a question, printed or handwritten, and the app shows a solution broken into steps.
Fast and reactive
Stuck at 9pm on question 14? A solver gives an immediate worked method, when no teacher or parent is available to help.
Shows the steps
Good step-by-step explanations can genuinely teach. Seeing where a method goes next is useful, especially after a student has tried and got stuck.
Checks working
Used after an attempt, a solver lets a student compare their own lines against a correct method and find exactly where they went wrong.
Covers a wide range
From arithmetic to algebra and beyond, it handles many question types, which is handy across the whole of Years 7 to 10.
Where a solver falls short for school tests
A solver answers the question in front of it. A school topic test asks something different: can your child do a similar question, from memory, with no phone, under time pressure, a few weeks later? Getting from one to the other takes practice, and that is the part a solver is not designed to organise.
- Reading a method is not the same as doing it. Following steps on a screen can feel like understanding. The real test is a fresh question with no help, which a solver does not set.
- The skill does not come back. A solver shows the answer, but it doesn’t bring the skill back later as new questions to practise.
- It is not organised by year and topic. A general solver does not know your child is in Year 8 studying linear equations this term, or which topics are on the next test.
- Homework stops telling the truth. If answers are copied, homework looks fine while the gaps stay hidden, and the first sign of trouble is a test mark.
Tuterly is built for the step after the solution: saving the question, generating new ones on the same skill, and bringing them back until your child can do them without help.
Copying vs learning: a gentle approach
Many students who copy from a solver are not trying to cheat. They are tired, stuck, and want homework finished. The fix is a clear family rule rather than a ban, and it applies to any app that shows solutions, Tuterly included.
- Attempt first, in writing. Every question gets a genuine go on paper before any app is opened.
- Check, then close. Use the solution to find the step that went wrong, then close the app and redo the question unaided.
- Mark it for later. Anything that needed help gets saved so it can be practised again in a few days. This is the step many students skip.
- Ask about school expectations. Teachers have different views on solver apps, and some homework is set specifically to see what your child can do alone.
This matters more in Years 7 and 8. Younger secondary students are still building the habit of sitting with a hard question for a few minutes, and that habit is worth protecting. Our guide to helping with maths homeworkhas a simple support ladder that keeps the pencil in your child’s hand.
Photomath and Tuterly, side by side
This compares the jobs each tool is built for. It is not a ranking, and features vary by plan and change over time.
| Job to be done | Photomath | Tuterly |
|---|---|---|
| Main job | Solve the question in front of you and show the steps | Turn questions your child got wrong into practice until the skill sticks |
| Starts from your child’s own wrong questions | It solves whatever is photographed, right or wrong, homework or not | Yes, the app is built around saving and revisiting mistakes |
| Step-by-step solutions | Yes, its core strength | Yes, a worked solution for each saved question |
| New questions on the same skill | Not its main focus | Yes, fresh questions generated on the same concept until mastered |
| Australian Years 7 to 10 topic map | General solver, not organised around Australian year levels | Every question filed under an Australian Curriculum topic for Years 7 to 10 |
| Practice tests from past mistakes | Not its main focus | Yes, a weekly review tests up to 8 of the week’s trickiest questions, and Fix my mistakes drills every one still to fix with fresh versions |
| Parent visibility | Not its main focus | A parent summary of practice and progress by topic |
| Homework integrity habits | Depends on how it is used; easy to copy without attempting | Same risk with any solution; designed to be used after an attempt, then practised again |
Which should you choose?
Photomath may suit if
- Your child is a confident, honest worker who wants to check a step quickly.
- You mainly need an answer checker for occasional homework questions.
- Questions cover a wide range beyond the current school topic.
Tuterly may suit if
- Homework looks fine but topic test marks do not match.
- Your child makes the same kinds of mistakes again and again.
- You want practice organised by Australian Years 7 to 10 topics, with fresh practice on the questions they got wrong.
Both Use both if
- A solver is used only to check a single step after a real attempt.
- Every question that needed help is snapped into Tuterly to practise again.
- Test preparation starts from those saved questions, drilled with fresh versions, not from re-reading.
If your child is far behind and cannot start most questions, neither app will close that gap alone; see maths app or tutor. Before the next assessment, try the plan in preparing for maths topic tests, and check what is taught each year on the Years 7 to 10 guides.
How Tuterly works
Tuterly is a Years 7 to 10 maths study app designed by Australian educators at Bayside Academics, a Melbourne tutoring company. It is built around one idea: the questions your child gets wrong are the most useful practice they have.
- Snap the question they got wrongFrom homework, a worksheet or a marked topic test. Whole tests can be uploaded too. Each question is filed under its Years 7 to 10 topic.
- Attempt, then check the worked solutionYour child sees a step-by-step method for that exact question, best used after they have had a genuine go themselves.
- Practise new questions on the same skillTuterly writes fresh questions on the same concept, so your child practises the method rather than memorising one answer. Questions come back until they are mastered.
- Test themselves before the real thingTopic check builds a short test on any topic in their year, and anything they get wrong goes into their bank. Fix my mistakes drills those questions with fresh versions, and a weekly review tests the week's trickiest. You can see progress by topic without re-teaching every night.
What Tuterly is not
- Not a live tutor. It cannot watch your child work or re-teach a topic from scratch the way a person can.
- Not a school platform. Teachers do not set or mark work in it, and it does not replace anything your school uses.
- Best when your child is near year level and will genuinely attempt a question before looking at the solution.
See each feature in detail, including snap a question, upload a test and Topic check.