The short answer
Khanmigo is Khan Academy's AI assistant. It is excellent inside Khan's own content: a student working through a Khan unit gets guided help without being handed the answer.
Aluma is an AI tutor built around the classes you are enrolled in. It syncs with your school platforms, pulls in the real assignment and due date, and coaches you through that specific problem set rather than a generic equivalent.
If you want to learn a subject from scratch, a structured course library is a great place to start. If you want your grade in fourth period chemistry to move, the tutor that can see fourth period chemistry wins.
Side by side
| Dimension | Khanmigo | Aluma |
|---|---|---|
| Content source | Khan Academy's own course library | Your teacher's real assignments and syllabus |
| School platform sync | Not part of the product | Browser based sync with Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology, PowerSchool and more |
| Teaching model | Guided help inside a lesson | Coaching only, never turn in ready work |
| Progress tracking | Progress through Khan course units | Mastery ledger of every concept you have and have not locked in |
| Test prep | Strongest on Khan's own SAT materials | SAT, ACT, PSAT, ISEE, SSAT, HSPT, SHSAT and all 40 AP courses |
| Best for | Learning a topic from scratch in a structured course | Keeping up with the classes you are actually enrolled in |
Coaching versus helping
Most AI tools for students sit somewhere on a line between helping and coaching. Helping means the tool moves the assignment forward for you. Coaching means the tool moves you forward, and you move the assignment.
Aluma is built at the coaching end on purpose. It will not write a paragraph you can paste into a document or hand back a finished proof. It asks what you already tried, gives the next hint, and ends with a transfer question to confirm the concept actually stuck.
Browser based school sync
This is the piece a general purpose educational AI cannot replicate. Aluma connects to Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology, Blackboard, PowerSchool, Moodle and more, so every assignment, due date, and rubric lands in one place.
That context changes the tutoring. Instead of asking you to describe the problem, Aluma already has it, already knows what unit the class is in, and already knows what is due Thursday.
See every connectorThe mastery ledger
Course platforms track how far through a unit you are. Aluma tracks something different: which concepts you have actually locked in and which ones keep slipping.
Every session updates that ledger, so study time goes to the two or three skills that are genuinely weak instead of re reading the whole chapter. On test prep, that is the difference between hours spent and points gained.
Where Khanmigo is the better pick
Khan Academy remains one of the best free libraries on the internet, and Khanmigo is a good companion to it. If you are learning a topic well ahead of your class, filling a gap from a previous year, or studying with no assignments attached, a structured course path is the right shape.
Aluma is the better pick the moment your goal is a specific grade in a specific class with a specific deadline.
Frequently asked questions
What is Khanmigo?
Khanmigo is Khan Academy's AI assistant. It sits inside Khan Academy's own course library and helps students work through Khan lessons, practice sets, and videos.
What is Aluma?
Aluma is a personal AI tutor built around your real classes. It connects to the school platforms you already use, reads the assignment your teacher actually posted, and coaches you through it step by step.
What is the biggest difference between Aluma and Khanmigo?
Khanmigo teaches Khan Academy's curriculum. Aluma teaches your curriculum. Because Aluma syncs with your school platforms, the practice you get is tied to the assignment and the test in front of you.
Does Aluma write my homework for me?
No. Aluma coaches, it never produces turn in ready work. Every session moves through hints and check questions so the answer is yours.
Which one is better for test prep?
If you are studying SAT, ACT, PSAT, ISEE, SSAT, HSPT, SHSAT, or AP courses against a real score goal, Aluma's mastery ledger drills the specific skills you keep missing rather than walking a fixed course order.
Can I use both?
Yes. Khan Academy is a strong free library. Many students watch a Khan lesson for background, then use Aluma to apply it to the assignment their own teacher assigned.
Try an AI tutor that knows your classes
Aluma syncs your assignments, coaches you through them, and tracks what you have mastered. Free while the web beta is open.