Art of Problem Solving
Shares rank 10 of 11 online learning platforms by recommenders
Parents and students recommend its math textbooks and courses as a stronger way to learn math than school classes, and the materials are self-guided.
Parents and students recommend its math textbooks and courses as a stronger way to learn math than school classes, and the materials are self-guided.
5 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Kids learn more math than school
“My kid learned more math when she was doing AoPS for 2 yrs than when she was in class”
Comment from 22 Apr 2026 in “California has more money than projected after admin miscalculated state budget” “AOPS wipes the floor with any math education you’d get at a public school.”
Comment from 21 Nov 2025 in “Homeschooling hits record numbers” Strong textbooks for math learners
“use the AoPS books, which present exercises before explanations”
Comment from 26 Sep 2026 in “Reflections on 1,000 Days of Math” “the holy grail is truly The Art Of Problem Solving textbooks”
Comment from 29 Nov 2025 in “Confessions of a Software Developer: No More Self-Censorship”
Other online learning platforms people recommend
The four most recommended other online learning platforms, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Khan Academy | 67 | 17 | 80% | 12 | 7 yrs5 owners | Approved |
| Coursera | 26 | 37 | 41% | 6 | — | — |
| Udemy | 16 | 44 | 27% | 5 | 10 yrs4 owners | — |
| MIT OpenCourseWare | 14 | 2 | 88% | 7 | — | Approved |
| Art of Problem SolvingThis page | 5 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
What people said
All 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“use the AoPS books, which present exercises before explanations”
“ArtOfProblemsolving.com / BeastAcademy”
“Those platforms are self-guided.”
“My kid learned more math when she was doing AoPS for 2 yrs than when she was in class”
“the holy grail is truly The Art Of Problem Solving textbooks”
“AOPS wipes the floor with any math education you’d get at a public school.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.