The short answer
Hourly tutoring is usually quoted per hour and varies widely by market and provider; classroom courses and center programs price by package, and rates vary by location. The number that matters more is cost per point actually gained — a cheap option that moves the score one point is expensive — and what a point is worth on the other side: merit scholarships commonly step up with score thresholds, which is why a real gain routinely outearns everything spent on it.
Prices vary too much by market to make a useful table — an hourly tutor in one city quotes double another’s rate, centers price by franchised location, and course providers price each product separately. So here’s the arithmetic that actually decides whether any of them is worth it.
Measure cost per point, not cost per hour
A low hourly rate that produces a one-point gain after four months is expensive. A larger flat fee that produces a six-point gain in eight weeks is cheap. The only denominator that matters is points actually gained — which is why we’d tell you to ask any provider, including us, what outcome the money is expected to buy and in what timeframe. A provider who won’t name a target is selling hours.
What a point is worth on the other side
Merit aid at most schools keys off score thresholds, often in bands, so crossing one threshold can be worth tens of thousands of dollars across four years. Liv went from a 26 to a 30 and her award at Franklin & Marshall was $140,000. Brown’s award rose from $44,000 to $60,000 as her score climbed. Real families, real offers — the full list is on our results page.
Against numbers like that, the difference between prep options costs less than the difference between outcomes.
What we charge
Boosted Brains charges a flat program fee tied to your student’s current score, target score, timeline, and how much coaching support they need — quoted exactly in a consultation, with a realistic point target attached, before you decide anything. The flat fee is the point: billing by the hour creates misaligned incentives, and a flat fee means we’re paid for the outcome instead of the hours.
