Socratic by Google
Snap a homework photo and get explainers, videos and step-by-step results across subjects.
TL;DR
Socratic was Google's photo-based homework helper — point your phone at a problem, get explainers and YouTube videos. The app still ships on iOS with a 4.9-star rating, but Google has shifted active development into Google Lens and the broader Gemini surface, so consider it a maintenance-mode product. Useful as a free fallback, not a long-term study system.
Recommend it if
You want a free, no-sign-up mobile homework helper for ad-hoc photo questions and you don't need progress tracking or teacher dashboards.
Skip it if
You need an actively-developed AI tutor, integration with school accounts, or anything beyond one-off question lookups — modern alternatives like Khanmigo or Mindgrasp are better long-term bets.
Quick facts
- Platforms
- iOSAndroid
- Languages
- English
- School fit
- 6-8 9-12
- Subjects
- MathScienceSocial StudiesEnglish
- Time to first output
- < 1 min
- Learning curve
- Easy
- Setup
- Install the app; no account required
- Works offline
- —
Real-world use cases
How a teacher, student or parent actually puts this tool to work.
| Who | Scenario | Time | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students | 8 PM — student snaps a photo of a printed geometry problem; Socratic returns the formula, the worked steps and a 3-minute Khan Academy video. | 30 sec | Explainer card + linked video |
| Students | Reading "Of Mice and Men" — point at a paragraph, get character analysis and a SparkNotes-style summary. | 30 sec | Literary analysis card |
| Students | Chemistry homework on stoichiometry — type the prompt instead of photo, get worked example and definitions. | 1 min | Worked example with vocabulary |
- Students
8 PM — student snaps a photo of a printed geometry problem; Socratic returns the formula, the worked steps and a 3-minute Khan Academy video.
- Time
- 30 sec
- Output
- Explainer card + linked video
- Students
Reading "Of Mice and Men" — point at a paragraph, get character analysis and a SparkNotes-style summary.
- Time
- 30 sec
- Output
- Literary analysis card
- Students
Chemistry homework on stoichiometry — type the prompt instead of photo, get worked example and definitions.
- Time
- 1 min
- Output
- Worked example with vocabulary
Socratic was Google’s bet on photo-based homework help. Point your phone at a problem, the app OCRs it, then surfaces explainer cards, YouTube videos and Q&A pulled from across the web. For a few years it was the best free option of its kind.
In 2026 the picture is more complicated: Google has paused active development, the product still ships on iOS with high ratings, and the photo-search functionality has been merged into Google Lens. Treat Socratic as a useful free fallback, not a primary study system.
When it’s still worth installing
- Quick one-off photo lookups for high-school homework
- Students without a budget for paid tutors
- Quick definitions, formulas and “what does this paragraph mean” questions
What it doesn’t do
No teacher dashboard, no class roster, no progress tracking, no LMS integration. For any school-side use case, look at actively-developed AI tutors instead.
What we like
- + Free, ad-free homework helper backed by Google
- + Photo-of-problem input — point camera at the question, get explainers
- + Pulls from Google Search, YouTube videos, definitions and Q&A across subjects
- + Strong on math, biology, chemistry, physics and history
Heads up
- − Active development has largely paused; functionality is being absorbed into Google Lens
- − Interface unchanged since 2020; some problem types (word problems) still struggle
- − No teacher dashboard, no LMS integration, no learning analytics
Pricing breakdown
Pricing
Verified directly on the vendor site. We re-check every quarter.
Free
- · Unlimited photo and text questions
- · All subject coverage
- · No ads, no in-app purchases
- · No account required
Privacy & compliance
Privacy & compliance
What we found in the vendor's terms, DPA, and trust center. Verify with your district before deploying.
- FERPA
- Partial
- SOC 2
- Compliant
- COPPA
- Compliant
- GDPR
- Compliant
- Trains on your data
- Unclear
- Data retention
- Governed by Google's general privacy policy; the app stores question history per device.
- Hosting regions
- US · EU
Owned and operated by Google. Inherits Google's enterprise-grade compliance posture but is positioned as a consumer student app, not a school-licensed product. Consider Google Workspace for Education if you need school-account control.
Works with
- Google Search
- YouTube
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Is the Socratic app still maintained?
It's still on the iOS App Store with strong ratings, but Google has paused active feature development. The product's photo-search functionality has been folded into Google Lens, and Google's broader homework-help energy has moved to Gemini.
Does it require a Google account?
No — the app works without sign-in. Sign-in just syncs your question history across devices.
How does it compare to Photomath?
Photomath is math-only with deeper step-by-step solvers. Socratic is broader (covers humanities and science) but shallower per problem. For pure math, Photomath or Wolfram|Alpha are stronger; for general homework lookup Socratic is fine.
Can teachers see what students are looking up?
No teacher dashboard, no class management. It's a consumer student tool, not an LMS-integrated product.
Will it eventually be shut down?
Google hasn't announced a sunset, but with active development paused and Lens absorbing the photo-search feature, plan as if Socratic is a free bonus rather than a long-term study system.
Tags
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When to pick it
Khanmigo
★Tutors & Study Companions
Khan Academy's AI tutor — Socratic, never gives away the answer, free for teachers.
You want an actively-developed conversational AI tutor with progress tracking.
Wolfram|Alpha
Tutors & Study Companions
Computational knowledge engine that shows every step — 10+ trillion curated data points across 1,000+ domains, not LLM guesswork.
You only need math step-by-step solutions and want deterministic accuracy.