Best AI Math Solvers (2026): Free Step-by-Step Answers, What They Cost, and Which Ones You Can Trust

Short answer: for free step-by-step math from a photo, start with Photomath: its Basic plan is $0 and includes step-by-step explanations, and Plus ($69.99 a year) adds visual aids and extra "how" and "why" tips. To check an answer, use Wolfram|Alpha, a computation engine rather than a chatbot; its step-by-step solutions need Pro at $5 a month billed $60 a year. Symbolab and Mathway show basic steps for free and charge for the full working. If you want a tutor that gives hints instead of answers, Mathos AI is free without a card and $46.80 a year on Basic. Gauth covers math plus other subjects, UpStudy has the cheapest yearly plan we found at $3.33 a month, and Solvely cross-checks answers across several AI models. Updated November 9, 2026.

How we checked: prices, free tiers and every accuracy claim come from each vendor's own pricing page, product page or US App Store listing (where the vendor sets the in-app prices), read November 9, 2026. Where a vendor does not state something, we say "Not stated". We did not test these solvers hands-on, so this guide compares published prices, limits and claims, not how often each one gets the answer right. Prices change often, and app prices can differ from web prices; check before you pay.

Math solvers fall into two groups, and the difference matters more than any feature list:

• Computation engines. Wolfram|Alpha, Symbolab and Mathway grew out of symbolic math software. They compute the answer, so for an equation they can parse correctly the result is checkable and repeatable. They are weaker at long word problems written in plain English.
• AI tutors. Gauth, Mathos AI, UpStudy and Solvely lead with AI models that read a photo, explain in sentences and answer follow-up questions. They handle word problems and other subjects, but a language model can write confident steps toward a wrong answer.

Photomath sits between the two: a camera-first app built for learning, with explanations written for students from elementary school through college. If your child needs help across all subjects rather than only math, our AI homework helper comparison covers that wider group.

Photomath scans a printed or handwritten problem, including word problems, or takes input from its smart calculator, and shows each step, sometimes with more than one method. Its website says it is "designed for learning" and covers elementary math through algebra, geometry, trigonometry, statistics and calculus. The pricing on that page is the clearest in this group: Basic is $0 and includes step-by-step explanations; Plus is $69.99 billed annually or $9.99 billed monthly and adds custom visual aids and extra "how" and "why" tips. Paid plans start with a trial; the length is not stated on the page. The app is listed by Google LLC on the App Store.

Not for: anyone who wants to work in a browser. Photomath is an app; the website sends you to the App Store or Google Play.

Wolfram|Alpha computes answers rather than predicting text, which makes it the tool to check any other solver against. Free use gives answers, and a free Basic account adds custom settings but, per its pricing page, "does not include step-by-step solutions". Pro is $5 a month billed $60 a year, or $9.99 monthly, and adds step-by-step solutions, practice problems with hints, longer computation time, file uploads up to 2 MB and photo input in the iOS and Android apps. Pro Premium is $8.25 a month billed $99 a year, or $12 monthly, with 3x computation time and 5 MB uploads.

Not for: a younger student who needs explanations in plain words. Wolfram|Alpha expects precise input and answers in mathematical notation.

Symbolab, a Learneo business, has dedicated calculators for integrals, derivatives, matrices, limits and graphing on its website, plus an AI chat and a "Verify Solution" tool. Its App Store listing says you can type or snap a problem and get "free solutions with basic steps", and that a subscription unlocks "more advanced steps and explanations". The web pricing page returned a 404 when we checked, so prices come from the App Store list: from $2.49 a week, $7.99 or $9.99 a month, $24.99 or $32.99 for six months, and $34.99 or $39.99 a year. Which variant you see is not stated.

Not for: long word problems; it works best when you can type the expression yourself.

Mathway, backed by Chegg, solves typed or photographed problems in 11 subjects from basic math to linear algebra, chemistry and physics. Its website says it is free to use, gives step-by-step solutions without sign-up, and that "an optional subscription unlocks the full work shown for every step". It also says it is "not a general AI chatbot repurposed for math". The site shows no prices; the App Store list shows Steps at $9.99 a month or $39.99 a year, with $19.99 monthly and $79.99 annual variants also listed.

Not for: learning a method from scratch on the free plan; the full work for every step is behind the subscription.

Mathos AI is an AI tutor first. Its site says you can "ask for a single nudge or the full worked solution", and it offers a whiteboard tutor that "catches the mistake at the exact step you make it", plus quizzes, flashcards and animated videos made from a solution. On its pricing page, the Free plan needs no card and includes limited image input and 6 video minutes a day. Basic is $46.80 a year (15 video minutes a day, unlimited image input), and Prime is $98.80 a year (30 video minutes, more PDF and voice use). The page opens on weekly prices, $5.98 a week for Basic and $9.98 for Prime; pick yearly if you will use it for a term. Paid plans start with a 3-day free trial. It runs in the browser.

Mathos labels its top model "Best Accuracy" but publishes no accuracy figure on the pages we read. Our Mathos AI listing has more detail. Not for: parents who want one bill with no weekly default; switch the toggle before you subscribe.

Gauth answers questions across all subjects and adds AI courses and an AI live tutor with voice and whiteboard. Its web plans page lists a Free plan with "Limited Access to Answers" and "Limited Access to Gauth AI Queries", and a 3-day Plus trial, but no price and no exact limit. The App Store listing prices Plus at $11.99 a month, $31.99 a quarter or $99.99 a year, and describes Plus as including "enhanced AI accuracy", which means the free tier runs on something less.

Not for: a student who only needs math and wants the lowest yearly price; Gauth Plus costs more than twice UpStudy's yearly plan.

UpStudy (formerly CameraMath) is a photo solver with a long list of topic calculators, PDF chat and test prep. Its Premium page lists a free Basic plan, "totally free but limited", and Premium at $3.33 a month billed every 12 months (about $40 a year) or $11.99 billed monthly. Premium adds step-by-step explanations, unlimited questions, no interruptions and "24/7 expert live tutors". The free plan's limit is not stated.

Not for: anyone who wants to try the full steps before paying; the free plan shows a "limited solution".

Solvely solves from a photo, PDF or text and adds study tools beyond math. Its homepage says it "uses multiple AI models to cross-check every problem and flags conflicting results", and claims "97% Overall Accuracy" without saying how that was measured. To its credit, the same page recommends "verifying with your textbook or teacher for formal assignments". Its web pricing page did not render for us. The App Store list shows $6.99 a week, $12.99 a month, $38.99 for six months and $46.99 a year. The free plan's limit is not stated.

Not for: weekly billing; $6.99 a week is about $363 a year against $46.99 on the yearly plan.

Left out: Microsoft Math Solver. It did not appear in a US App Store search on November 9, 2026, and we found no current Microsoft product or pricing page for it, so we cannot tell you what it costs or whether it is supported.

No vendor in this list publishes a method you can check. Solvely's 97% has no stated test. Gauth sells "enhanced AI accuracy" as a paid feature without a number. Mathos names a model "Best Accuracy". Mathway and Symbolab say nothing numeric. What you can rely on is the difference between the two groups above: an engine like Wolfram|Alpha computes the result of the expression you give it, while an AI tutor writes an explanation that can be wrong in a convincing way.

• Check the answer, not the steps. Plug the result back into the original problem. If x = 3, does the equation balance?
• Cross-check the hard ones. Type the same problem into a computation engine. If two tools disagree, the problem needs a teacher, not a third app.
• Watch the photo. Most wrong answers start with a misread exponent, minus sign or fraction bar. Compare the problem the app shows with the one on the page before reading the solution.

A solver can teach or it can do the homework for you, and the same app does both. Tests and in-class work usually happen without a phone, so a student who copied every step at home finds the gap there.

• Try first, then look. Attempt the problem, then open the solver to find the step where you went wrong. Mathos's hint mode and Wolfram|Alpha Pro's practice problems with hints are built for this.
• Hide the final answer. Read one step, close the app, and try the next step yourself.
• Do one more on your own. After reading a solution, solve a similar problem with no help. If you cannot, you have not learned it yet.
• Follow your school's rules. If a teacher says no AI tools on an assignment, a solver's working copied into your homework is the kind of thing they look for.

For parents: a free plan with steps (Photomath, Symbolab, Mathway) is enough to find out whether your child uses a solver to learn or to copy, before you pay for anything.

• You want free step-by-step from a photo: Photomath.
• You want to check an answer or do college math: Wolfram|Alpha, Pro for the steps.
• You type algebra or calculus and want steps: Symbolab or Mathway.
• You want a tutor that gives hints, not answers: Mathos AI, on the yearly plan.
• Your homework is not only math: Gauth, or see our AI homework helper comparison.
• You want the lowest yearly price and live tutors: UpStudy at $3.33 a month billed yearly.
• You want answers checked across several AI models: Solvely, and still verify the result yourself.

Whatever you pick, avoid weekly billing, cancel a trial in the same place you started it (your Apple or Google account for in-app purchases), and treat every answer as something to check.

What is the best free AI math solver?

Photomath's Basic plan is $0 and includes step-by-step explanations from a photo. Symbolab and Mathway also show basic steps for free and charge for the full working. Wolfram|Alpha gives free answers, but its step-by-step solutions need Pro.

Which math solver is most accurate?

No vendor we checked publishes a testable accuracy method. Computation engines such as Wolfram|Alpha calculate the result of the expression you enter, so they are the best way to check an answer. AI tutors such as Gauth, Mathos AI and Solvely explain in words and can be wrong with confident steps; Solvely itself recommends verifying with your textbook or teacher.

Is Photomath still free?

Yes. On November 9, 2026 Photomath's website listed Basic at $0 with step-by-step explanations. Photomath Plus, at $69.99 a year or $9.99 a month, adds custom visual aids and extra how and why tips.

Does Wolfram|Alpha show steps for free?

No. Its pricing page says the free Basic account does not include step-by-step solutions. Pro adds them for $5 a month billed $60 a year, or $9.99 monthly.

Is Microsoft Math Solver still available?

We could not confirm it. It did not appear in a US App Store search on November 9, 2026, and we found no current Microsoft product or pricing page, so it is not in this list.

Is using an AI math solver cheating?

It depends on how you use it and on your school's rules. Using a solver to find the step where you went wrong, then solving a similar problem alone, is studying. Copying the working into homework that is meant to be your own is not, and tests without phones will show the gap.