Stuvia Review: Set Your Own Price To Sell Your College Notes

It’s not a secret that college is expensive. As a student, it can be a challenge to make room in your schedule for a part-time job that collides with a heavy course load. One opportunity is to turn your diligent notetaking skills into an income stream. 

That’s right! Some companies will pay you for your class notes. Stuvia is one platform that will pay you for your class notes. 

If you are looking for a way to turn a profit from your coursework, Stuvia may be able to help. In this review, we will take a closer look at how Stuvia works. 

What Is Stuvia?

Stuvia is an online platform that helps students track down the educational materials they are looking for. Through the platform, students can post study materials, which other students can purchase.

As of writing, Stuvia is available in 127 countries. In 2022, the company paid out $3 million to sellers and received over 750,000 documents for sale.

What Does It Offer?

The core of Stuvia’s offering is a marketplace that connects students buying and selling study materials. As a student looking for help on a subject, Stuvia can be a treasure trove of resources. Stuvia helps students seeking education resources find the tools they need for success. 

But all of those resources have to come from somewhere, and Stuvia gets them directly from students like yourself. In exchange for posting study materials, students receive a share of the profits they bring in. 

In this review, we explore the features offered to student sellers on Stuvia.

Free To Post Study Material

As a student, it’s completely free to set up a seller account. When your Stuvia account is set up, you can post any number of study materials for free. According to the company, all written study documents can be posted. 

• Summaries
• College notes
• Assignments
• Textbook summaries
• Papers
• Essays
• Manuals
• Course notes
• Class notes
• Judgments

Keep in mind that Stuvia has some rules about what you cannot sell. 

• Old exams
• PowerPoints
• Published scientific articles
• Scanned books

As a side note, you keep the rights to your original notes. With that, you can choose to list the notes on multiple platforms. The exception to this rights rule is flashcards—Stuvia claims ownership rights to flashcards you make and post on the site.

Set Your Own Price

When selling study materials, you can set your own price. Not only can you set prices for single documents, but you can also make package deals with discounts to draw in potential customers. The minimum price you can set is $2.50. 

With $3 million paid out to sellers in 2022, it’s clear that there is potential to earn an income from your study materials. 

As buyers purchase your study materials, the funds are transferred into your Stuvia account immediately. Stuvia is a global company, and after you earn over 10 Euros, you can cash out. (As of this writing, 10 Euros is around $11.)

The company uses Tipalti to cash out your funds. When you make a cash out request, these are processed every Monday. With that, it can take around a week for you to receive your funds in your bank account. 

Passive Income Potential 

When you post your study materials to Stuvia, you are setting up a passive income stream. If your study materials are popular, you’ll earn money each and every time the item is sold. On average, sellers see their first sale within three days

If you are already creating notes, posting them to Stuvia could be a natural way to monetize.

Are There Any Fees?

As the seller, you’ll get to keep most of the sale price. However, Stuvia will take a 30% commission on any money you earn. Since you can set your own sale price, you’ll get to decide how much you earn from each sale. 

How Do I Contact Stuvia?

How Does Stuvia Compare?

Stuvia is one platform that can help you monetize your notes. But it’s not the only option. 

OneClass is a platform that will pay you for your class notes. Unlike Stuvia, you can get paid a one-time fee for comprehensive class notes. But OneClass also allows you to post your notes. If someone purchases your notes, you’ll get a percentage of the subscription sale. 

How Do I Open An Account?

If you are ready to work with Stuvia, the process starts by indicating what kind of materials you want to upload. 

You can choose from exams, a college course, or a high school subject. Regardless of what you choose, Stuvia will ask for more information. For example, if you select a certification, you’ll need to share what kind of exam, like a CPA or TOEFL. 

Next, you can upload your study materials. Keep in mind that the file size should be less than 60MB. With the documents uploaded, you’ll need to provide a description of the materials. More details tend to entice potential buyers. After you complete the information, you can publish your first listing. 

Finally, Stuvia will ask for basic information like your email address and prompt you to create a password. When you earn money, you’ll be prompted to link your payment information through Tipalti. 

Is It Safe And Secure?

Stuvia is a legitimate website that has built a reputation for connecting buyers and sellers to helpful study materials. 

In terms of money details, Stuvia itself doesn’t ask for any financial information. Instead, you’ll provide your payment details to a Tipalti, which is a third-party that handles payment processing.

Is It Worth It?

Stuvia offers an interesting opportunity to turn your study materials into a passive income stream. While you might not earn thousands from the site, a little bit of money can go a long way to fund your college lifestyle. 

If you are a high-performing student that already takes amazing notes, then it won’t take too much time to upload your materials to Stuvia. You might be able to turn those notes into cash. If you aren’t committed to note taking, adding a financial incentive could push you to take your study materials more seriously. 

Stuvia Features