Best Free Alternatives to Chegg for Students on a Budget

College is already expensive, so why spend even more on homework help? Chegg might be a popular study tool, but there are plenty of free alternatives that offer textbook solutions, study guides, and tutoring without the hefty price tag. If you’re looking to save money while still acing your classes, check out these top free resources.

If you’re struggling to afford expensive textbooks, Library Genesis (LibGen) is one of the best places to find free digital copies. It offers thousands of textbooks, academic papers, and reference materials for students across all subjects. While its legality is a gray area in some regions, many students turn to LibGen when they can’t afford pricey textbooks.

For literature and classic works, Project Gutenberg is a goldmine. This platform provides free access to over 60,000 public domain books, making it a fantastic resource for English, history, and philosophy majors.

Backed by Rice University, OpenStax offers free, peer-reviewed textbooks across a range of subjects, including math, science, and humanities. These books are legally accessible and can be downloaded in PDF format or read online.

Google Books & Internet Archive

Google Books allows you to preview significant portions of textbooks, while the Internet Archive has a massive collection of scanned books, including many that students need for their coursework.

1. Quizlet Solutions (Formerly Slader) – Free Textbook Answers

If you need step-by-step solutions to textbook problems, Quizlet Solutions (previously Slader) is a great option. It offers free answers for math, science, history, and more, making it a solid replacement for Chegg. You can search by textbook or enter specific problems to get detailed explanations. While some solutions are user-generated, many are well-explained and easy to follow.

💡 Pro Tip: If your textbook isn’t listed, try searching by problem instead of the book title.

2. EduBirdie Docs – A Treasure Trove of Study Materials

Another fantastic resource for students looking for free academic support is study materials at Edubirdie. This platform offers a massive library of lecture notes, answer keys, study guides, and academic documents covering a wide range of subjects. Whether you’re working on a math assignment, writing a research paper, or looking for inspiration for an essay, EduBirdie Docs provides well-structured, high-quality notes to guide your work. While it doesn’t replace step-by-step math solutions like Paul’s Online Math Notes, it can be a valuable supplement for students juggling multiple subjects.

💡 Pro Tip: Just like how Course Hero provides study guides and lecture notes with limited free access, EduBirdie Docs allows you to explore a vast collection of academic materials at no cost. With the right resources, tackling challenging business and accounting concepts becomes much more manageable

3. Course Hero (Limited Free Access) – Study Guides & Lecture Notes

Course Hero has a massive collection of study resources, including textbook solutions, lecture notes, and practice problems. While a subscription is required for full access, you can unlock free content by uploading your own study materials or rating documents. This trade-off makes it a great budget-friendly option for students who don’t want to pay for Chegg.

💡 Pro Tip: The more documents you contribute, the more free unlocks you get!

If you need step-by-step explanations, Khan Academy is one of the best free alternatives to Chegg. It offers video tutorials, interactive exercises, and practice problems for subjects like math, science, and economics. The content is developed by experts and covers everything from basic algebra to advanced calculus.

Before merging with Quizlet, Slader was a go-to resource for textbook solutions, particularly for math and science subjects. Now, as Quizlet Expert Solutions, it continues to provide detailed answers and explanations for thousands of textbooks at a fraction of Chegg’s price. While Course Hero does have a paid plan, you can access limited free solutions by uploading your own study materials or using free previews. It provides solutions, textbook answers, and user-generated study resources.

If you’re struggling with math problems, Symbolab and Wolfram Alpha offer free step-by-step solutions for algebra, calculus, and other math subjects. These tools act like advanced calculators, solving equations and explaining the steps.

4. OpenStax – Free College Textbooks

Textbooks can be ridiculously expensive, but OpenStax offers free, high-quality digital textbooks for a variety of subjects, including math, physics, biology, business, and humanities. Created by Rice University, these books are peer-reviewed and widely used by professors, making them just as reliable as paid textbooks. If you need a reference for your coursework, OpenStax is a must-have resource.

💡 Pro Tip: Combine OpenStax textbooks with Khan Academy videos for a full learning experience!

5. Paul’s Online Math Notes – A Math Student’s Best Friend

If you’re struggling with algebra, calculus, or differential equations, Paul’s Online Math Notes is a goldmine. This site provides detailed explanations, practice problems, and step-by-step solutions that are perfect for students who need extra math help. The notes are easy to follow and break down complex concepts into simpler terms, making math much less intimidating.

💡 Pro Tip: This site is especially useful during finals week when you need clear explanations fast!

Paul’s Online Math Notes has gained popularity among students, self-learners, and even teachers for several reasons:

Unlike many educational platforms that hide their best content behind paywalls, Paul’s Online Math Notes is completely free. There are no subscriptions, sign-ups, or ads cluttering the experience—just straightforward, high-quality math content.

Many math resources focus on formulas without explaining the reasoning behind them. Paul’s notes break each concept down into easy-to-follow steps, ensuring you understand the logic rather than just memorizing formulas. The notes are structured like a textbook, making it easy to find specific topics. Each subject is divided into sections with multiple lessons, example problems, and practice exercises.

Need to study offline? Paul provides PDF versions of his notes, allowing students to download and print them for easy reference. This is especially useful for those who prefer physical study materials.

From basic algebra to advanced calculus, the website covers a vast range of math topics—making it suitable for high school, college, and even graduate students. Many educational websites distract users with flashy animations, excessive ads, or unnecessary features. Paul’s Online Math Notes focuses solely on teaching math in a clear, no-nonsense way.

Other Free Study Resources Worth Checking Out

• Socratic by Google – Take a picture of your question, and this AI-powered app will analyze it and provide step-by-step explanations.
• Wolfram Alpha – A great tool for solving complex math problems with detailed step-by-step solutions, perfect for calculus and statistics.
• Brainly – A community-driven homework help site where students and experts provide answers to questions in real-time.

Final Thoughts

You don’t have to pay for Chegg to succeed in school. With so many free resources available, you can find textbook solutions, video lessons, and study guides without spending a single dollar. Whether you need step-by-step math solutions from Quizlet, video explanations from Khan Academy, or free textbooks from OpenStax, these alternatives will help you study smarter while keeping your budget intact.