Beast Academy vs Art of Problem Solving
The main differences
Both come from the same publisher and share an approach: hard problems first, then the explanation. Beast Academy is the elementary series, Levels 1 to 5, with comic-style guide books, practice books and an online version. Art of Problem Solving's textbooks pick up at about 5th grade with Prealgebra and run through calculus, with full solutions manuals, free online practice and optional live classes. Most families meet the question when a child finishes Beast Academy Level 5; the publisher's free pretests help decide.
| Beast Academy | Art of Problem Solving | |
|---|---|---|
| Subjects | Math | Math |
| Grades | Levels 1 to 5 for ages 6 to 13, covering 1st to 5th grade topics | Grades 5 to 12: Introduction series about grades 5 to 9, Intermediate series about grades 8 to 12 |
| Method | Mastery | Traditional |
| Format | Books and screen | Books and workbooks |
| Faith label | Secular | Secular |
| Cost a year | $160. Level 3 bundle (Guide and Practice books for units 3A to 3D plus one year of BA Online): $160. The Level 3 books alone are $120; BA Online alone is $100 a year or $16 a month. | $59. Prealgebra text and solutions manual: $59, shown as a $9 saving; with the online book, $78. The live online Prealgebra class is two 16-week courses at $465 each, so $930 for both before books. |
| Placement | Online placement test ↗ | Free diagnostic pretests on each book page ↗ |
| Parent time | Not stated by the publisher | Not stated by the publisher |
| It fits | A child who enjoys puzzles and hard problems, with a parent who is happy to let them wrestle with a question before stepping in. | A strong, motivated math student in grades 5 to 12, perhaps aiming at math contests, with a parent or an online class to talk through hard problems. |
| It doesn't fit | A family that wants a short, predictable daily lesson, or a child who gets upset when a problem cannot be solved quickly. | A child who finds math hard or wants short, step-by-step lessons, or a family looking for one program for all of elementary math. |
Beast Academy
Beast Academy is a math program for ages 6 to 13 in five levels, each split into four units. Children learn each topic from comic-style Guide books, then work through Practice books of harder problems and puzzles, or do the same lessons with videos and interactive problems in BA Online. You can buy the books, the online subscription or both; the price below is the bundle of both.
Does well: Topics are taught in more depth than a typical elementary course, with many puzzles and word problems that build reasoning.
Watch for: Because the problems are hard, the publisher suggests most children start about a level behind their school grade.
Art of Problem Solving
Art of Problem Solving publishes challenging math textbooks for students in grades 5 to 12, from Prealgebra and the Introduction series through Intermediate Algebra, Precalculus and Calculus. Each section opens with problems for the student to try before the text works through solutions, and each book has a full solutions manual, with free Alcumus practice and videos online. The same books are used in AoPS live and self-paced online classes; this card prices the Prealgebra book and the live Prealgebra class.
Does well: Each book can serve as a full course; Prealgebra has well over 1,000 problems, and the solutions manual gives full worked solutions, not just answers.
Watch for: The publisher writes the books for strong math students, and they go broader, deeper and harder than a typical course.
Lists with both
How we label
Every fact on a card was read on the publisher's own website on the date shown, and the page it came from is linked. A fact we could not confirm there is left out. Costs are for one child and one year of the main package, as the publisher's page showed them that day; prices and sales change. Method and format are the publisher's own description where it gives one. The only thing we say about religion is one label, secular or faith-based, given by the rule above; where the publisher's pages don't settle it, the card has no label.
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