Which Is Better – Course Hero or Chegg?
If you’re a college student in the 21st century, you likely rely on online platforms and services to build on your learning. Two of the most popular online learning services are Course Hero and Chegg, but is one better than the other?
Chegg is a better platform than Course Hero as it offers more features. Course Hero includes course content, tutoring, and practice problems, and Chegg provides the same. However, Chegg also has tools that improve your writing and citations, making it a better all-around tool for college work.
While Chegg offers more features, you need to consider which platform better suits your individual needs. This article will cover the similarities and differences between the two to help you make a more informed decision.
The Key Differences Between Course Hero and Chegg
To determine whether Course Hero or Chegg is better for you, we’ll examine the features each platform can offer. In addition, it would help to consider how much using each platform costs and the number of resources each platform affords you.
The following are some of the noteworthy differences between Course Hero and Chegg:
- Course Hero has a free and a paid subscription model that allows you to access resources in various ways.
- Chegg has a limited amount of resources available for free, after which you have to pay for a subscription.
- Course Hero has documents about particular subjects, study guides, and exam resources.
- Chegg has a few more features, study guides, and exam resources, and it can also provide access to textbooks and writing checkers.
- Both platforms have an extensive database of resources. However, due to its additional features, Chegg has a few more resources than Course Hero.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the main features of each to help gain a more rounded picture of the two.
The Main Features of Course Hero
Once you sign up for an account with Course Hero, you’ll get the opportunity to add the courses you’re currently studying or interested in.
You can then use Course Hero to build on your knowledge of the subjects you’re studying and get extra tutoring in topics of your choice.
Read more about Course Hero’s stand-out features below.
Specified Course Content
Course content may include student notes, study guides, teacher subject guides, and step-by-step videos.
You may even find course content from the same class you’re enrolled in as previous students would have updated their notes:
- Get tutored: Depending on the subscription model you have, you may be able to access Course Hero’s 24/7 tutoring service. Course Hero’s tutors will be able to answer questions you may have or walk you through concepts you don’t understand.
- Practice Problems: Some of Course Hero’s study materials will come with a ‘Practice’ option. This option will provide you with an interactive test that will test your knowledge on the subject and suggest improvements.
- Scholarships: From time to time, Course Hero has scholarships available for its users. These scholarships typically award students $5000 a year during their academic careers. Find out more about Course Hero scholarships here.
The Main Features of Chegg
Chegg offers 24/7 support for students in various courses and subjects, including Biology, Math, Business, Engineering, and the different streams of Science.
Chegg’s main features include:
- Tools for exam preparation
- Homework help
- Subject breakdowns
- Tools to improve your writing.
You can also buy or sell textbooks, which can save you hundreds (if not thousands) on books over the course of your studies.
Finally, Chegg has a section centered around careers.
Resources To Prepare for an Exam
Chegg has several different exam preparation resources that you can select depending on your learning style. These include online practice exams and flashcards that experts design.
You’ll also find:
- GRE study guides
- AP test prep
- ACT test prep quizzes
Homework Help
If you are struggling with a particular problem or concept, you can take a photo of it and share it with a Chegg expert.
Within 30 minutes, they will walk you through an explanation of the concept you’re struggling with and help you frame the answers you need.
Topic Breakdowns
You can search for a range of different topics and subtopics on Chegg and find a breakdown of them to help you understand them better.
The topic breakdowns are presented in various forms, including essays, videos, and flashcards.
Proofreading and Writing Suggestions
If you’re in college, you’ll likely have to submit several papers. Chegg has a plagiarism and proofreading tool that will help you improve your writing quality.
Proofreading is done by experts and will include comments about your essay or thesis and the quality of the arguments you’ve presented.
Chegg also has a built-in citation tool that will allow you to format your references in APA, MLA, or a range of other bibliography styles.
Access to Textbooks
Textbooks can be a costly part of college life, easily costing you a couple of hundred dollars every semester. Chegg offers several options to help you cut down on textbook costs and improve their accessibility.
Here are some of the ways that Chegg makes textbooks more accessible:
- You can rent textbooks: Through Chegg, you can rent textbooks for one semester or even one month. Renting textbooks drastically cuts costs, and Chegg always ensures the books are in good condition before sending them out.
- Ebook platform: You can sign up for Chegg’s ebook platform, which will allow you access to over 400,000 textbooks online.
- You can buy textbooks: Some of the textbooks on Chegg are cheaper than if you buy them from a traditional bookstore. Of course, buying used textbooks will always be more affordable, but just be sure it’s the right volume, or you may be missing out on certain chapters.
Sync your textbook history to your Chegg Study account, and it will automatically begin to suggest course content that you may be interested in. Some course content may even have answers to questions in the textbooks you’re using (source).
Career Guidance and Opportunities
Chegg has a career platform that can help you navigate internships and think about your next steps once you graduate.
Here’s what you can gain out of the career section of Chegg:
- Look for internships: Chegg has an internship search platform where many businesses list their available internships. You can look for internships in fields like marketing, business, technology, and education.
- Bootcamps: Chegg has its own learning platform, where you can enroll in courses that will build on your base knowledge. It will give you certificates that you can use to boost your resume.
- Career advice: Chegg gathers together a list of resources and stories to help you improve your cover letters, interview, and network skills.
- Become an Online Tutor: If you have deep knowledge in specific subjects, you can apply to be a Chegg tutor. You have to provide your ID and your academic credentials, and Chegg will review your application. If you match the subject areas they need, you can become a Chegg tutor and earn with a flexible schedule (source).
Course Hero and Chegg Subscriptions
To choose whether Course Hero or Chegg will be better for you, you need to consider how the subscriptions to each platform work and judge their value for money.
Course Hero has a free membership plan that allows you to access resources if you share your own. Meanwhile, Chegg has paid memberships with additional costs for adds-on.
Here’s a more detailed look at the costs of each platform:
Course Hero Costs
Course Hero has a free, basic version and a premier subscription model. With the free version, you can ask five tutor questions monthly and access a limited amount of documents.
However, Course Hero offers several ways you can access more content and features, even if you are on the free model:
- Refer a friend: Each time a friend joins Course Hero using your Refer a Friend code, they’ll get 20% off, and you’ll get eight free to ask a tutor questions.
- Review content: Each time you review a document or rate five or more, you will receive a free unlock. This unlock will allow you to access a paper about a particular subject.
- Upload your documents: You can earn money by uploading notes, papers, or other documents from a class you’ve studied. At present, you can get five free unlocks each time you submit ten documents.
- Top-rated documents: If other Course Hero users unlock your documents or give them a positive rating, you may earn for yourself.
If you choose the premier subscription model, you can choose between an annual, quarterly, or monthly subscription. These can give you unlimited access to study resources, access to 30 documents, and up to 40 tutor questions a month.
Chegg Costs
Chegg is free to sign up for, but you need a subscription to access most of the content and features.
You can choose the Chegg Study plan, which allows admittance to the textbook solutions and the tutors’ questions and answers. With this subscription, you can also ask any new questions and get them answered by tutors.
Or, you can choose the Chegg Study Pack. As well as access to homework help, this subscription lets you use the quiz and exam resources. It will also allow you into the writing help section, including a citation generator and plagiarism checker.
Unlike Course Hero, the Chegg subscription plan does not have an annual subscription option.
So, if you use Chegg throughout the whole year, it will be more expensive than Course Hero. However, if you use it only for a month, then Chegg will be cheaper than Course Hero.
You can cut down on your costs by only subscribing to the features you need. You should also review your subscriptions often to ensure you’re not getting charged for a feature you’re not using.
If you are looking to access the textbook or career resources, you may have to pay more.
Course Hero and Chegg Resources
When considering which online platform offers better value for money, you should think about the number of resources each provides.
Here is the amount of resources that Course Hero offers:
- 60 million study resources
- Access to tutors 24/7
Meanwhile, here’s the count of some of the resources that Chegg offers:
- Over 500 million flashcards
- Over 55 million explanations and textbook solutions
- Access to tutors and experts 24/7
It’s pretty clear to see that while Course Hero and Chegg both offer access to documents and resources that will help you build on your learning, Chegg has a database that is slightly larger, thanks to its collection of flashcards.
In addition, Chegg has a few more features that make it valuable to students.
Do Colleges Allow You To Use Course Hero or Chegg?
If you plan to use Course Hero and Chegg to support your learning, it is essential to consider your college’s policy about these platforms.
Most colleges will allow you to use Chegg and Course Hero to study, but if you have plagiarized an answer from a platform, you will likely be subject to disciplinary action.
In addition, both Chegg and Course Hero have strict policies against plagiarism and cheating.
If you plan to use Course Hero or Chegg, make sure you use them honestly and fairly – to support your learning.
See My Professor Thinks I Cheated: Confronting the Accusation
Key Takeaways
Course Hero has an extensive collection of subject-specific documents, study guides, and practice problems for you to solve or answer. It also allows you to access a tutor.
Meanwhile, Chegg will provide you with answers to textbook problems and access tutors and subject guides.
Overall, it’s clear that Chegg is better than Course Hero with all factors considered as it has more resources and features to support students.
However, Chegg is the most expensive, so Course Hero will be a cheaper option if used wisely.
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