What Tutor Circle Limited does

Tutor Circle Limited (尋補) is a Hong Kong-based tutoring intermediary platform founded in 2014 that operates a two-sided marketplace connecting students and parents with private tutors. The company is described as Hong Kong's first private tutoring intermediary platform and claims the position of largest tutoring platform in the territory, with a cumulative network of 100,000+ registered tutors and 80,000+ enrolled students. It serves primary, secondary, and international-school students across curricula including DSE, IB, IGCSE, GCE A-Level, and SAT, plus interest-based learners in music, languages, and hobbies, as well as a dedicated SEN (Special Educational Needs) tutoring segment. The platform processes approximately 100 new tutoring cases per day with a reported 98% match success rate and 95% course positive rating.

The underlying platform supports multiple tutoring modalities — door-to-door (in-person) tutoring, one-on-one online video tutoring launched during COVID-19, and self-organized group tutoring — and provides a public tutor directory searchable by subject, Hong Kong district, and grade level. Technology components include integration with consumer payment systems (AlipayHK, WeChat Pay, Payme, Apple Pay, UnionPay, X Pay, PayPal), single sign-on via Facebook and Google, an educational content blog (blog.tutorcircle.hk), a WhatsApp/Telegram-based customer service layer, and a referral rewards program (HK$100 per successful match). The company is registered in Hong Kong as a private limited company, holds a trademark on the 尋補 brand, and is compliant with Hong Kong's Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. It operates from a headquarters in San Po Kong, Kowloon, and a Singapore office at 68 Circular Road.

Tutor Circle monetizes exclusively through administrative fees charged to tutors upon successful case confirmation, not to students. As of March 2021, fees were capped at HKD 700 per two-week tutoring period for general local-school cases (one-on-one) and HKD 1,000 for professional, full-time, music/language, and international-exam tutors, with cancellation and no-show penalties in place. Go-to-market is sales-led with a heavy content-marketing and SEO layer rather than paid acquisition at scale. The company is founder-led (Andy Ng, Founder; Kit, COO; Billie, Head of Marketing), operates with an 11–50 employee base, has not disclosed external institutional funding, and is described in source material as privately held without a parent company or acquisition activity.

Name

Tutor Circle Limited

Legal name

Tutor Circle Limited

Website

https://tutorcircle.hk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Tutor Circle Limited operates a Hong Kong-based tutoring marketplace that matches students and parents with over 100,000 registered tutors for academic and non-academic instruction, monetizing through administrative fees charged to tutors upon successful case confirmation across DSE, IB, and international curricula.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hong Kong

HQ country

Hong Kong SAR China

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Tutor Administrative Fee: Tutors pay an administrative fee upon successful case confirmation. Fee is calculated as two weeks of tutoring fees (capped at specific amounts based on tutor type and tutoring format). The fee is collected from tutors, not students.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Tutor Circle operates an online tutoring intermediary platform that matches students with verified tutors across Hong Kong. It facilitates door-to-door, online video, and self-organized group tutoring across academic subjects (DSE, IB, IGCSE, GCE A-Level, SAT, IELTS), languages, music, and special educational needs. The company earns an administrative fee from tutors upon successful student-tutor matching, rather than charging students directly for matching services.

Product overview

Tutor Circle Limited operates a multi-service tutoring intermediary platform with its core product being an online matching platform that connects students with tutors. The platform offers multiple tutoring modalities including door-to-door tutoring, online video tutoring, and self-organized group tutoring. Additional specialized services include DSE exam preparation, international curriculum tutoring (IB/AL/IGCSE), native English tutoring, full-time tutor matching, SEN tutoring, and interview preparation. The company also maintains an educational blog (尋補・Blog) as a content platform and operates a referral rewards program. The platform was founded in 2014 as Hong Kong's first private tutoring intermediary platform and expanded to include online services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tutor Circle Tutoring Matching Platform An online marketplace that matches students/parents with private tutors for door-to-door, online, and self-organized group tutoring sessions across subjects and grade levels.
• Online Tutoring Service (網上補習) One-on-one video tutoring service enabling students to receive real-time online instruction from qualified tutors, pioneered during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Door-to-Door Tutoring (上門補習)

Quantifiable outcome

• 98% successful match rate between tutors and students
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature2 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Snapask: Asia-focused online tutoring marketplace connecting K-12 students with tutors via a mobile app. Directly comparable to Tutor Circle in model (marketplace/intermediary) and category (Asian private tutoring), but operates at larger scale across multiple Asian markets with significant venture funding.
• Superprof: Global tutoring and lessons marketplace with presence in Hong Kong, connecting students with tutors across academic subjects, music, languages, and sports. Highly comparable to Tutor Circle's broad subject coverage and marketplace/intermediary model.
• Preply: Global online tutoring marketplace focused primarily on language learning but expanding into academic subjects. Comparable to Tutor Circle's online video tutoring and native English tutor services, though Preply operates globally with venture backing.
• Wyzant: US-based online tutoring marketplace that connects students with local and online tutors across academic subjects. Highly comparable marketplace business model to Tutor Circle, though US-focused and more mature in digital operations.

Broad incumbents

• Tutor.com: Established US online tutoring service (part of The Princeton Review) offering on-demand tutoring across academic subjects. Comparable on the online tutoring dimension but operates as a B2C/B2B institutional provider rather than a marketplace intermediary model.

Emerging players

• GoStudent: European online tutoring marketplace and platform with expansion into Asia, focused on K-12 academic tutoring. Comparable to Tutor Circle in target market (K-12 exam prep) and online tutoring model, but backed by significant venture funding for cross-border expansion.
• Yup (formerly Yup.com): On-demand math tutoring marketplace connecting students with tutors for homework help. Comparable on-demand homework/tutoring marketplace model to Tutor Circle's matching service, though more focused on math subject area.
• Tutoring For All (TFA): Asian-focused online tutoring platform operating in Hong Kong and Singapore, offering K-12 and DSE-equivalent exam preparation. Comparable to Tutor Circle in Hong Kong/Singapore geographic focus and exam-prep subject matter.

Regional players

• HelloToby: Hong Kong-based services marketplace connecting customers with local service providers across categories including tutoring. Comparable marketplace model in the same Hong Kong geography, though broader in scope beyond tutoring.
• Native Tutor (本地通): Hong Kong-based online tutoring marketplace primarily serving local DSE and school curriculum tutoring. Directly comparable regional peer in Hong Kong targeting the same DSE-focused student segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC1cgxyEz59UjmjLWmTIsY7Q
• Facebookfacebook.com/tutorcirclehk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tutorcircle
• Instagraminstagram.com/tutorcircle

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tutor Circle Limited