Blog Summary:

This guide explains how to build an EdTech app like Photomath, covering core features, development steps, and cost breakdown. It highlights how you can integrate AI, OCR, and UX-driven design to create learning experiences that make mathematical concepts easier to understand. If you’re planning to develop a similar app, use this as your go-to roadmap for success.

For millions of students, solving mathematical equations feels like climbing Everest. However, by using AI and a smartphone camera, Photomath has emerged as one of the most revolutionary apps created for iOS, Android, and Windows mobile devices.

The best thing is that developing an EdTech app like Photomath will not only be helpful to learners but also lucrative for the edtech entrepreneurs planning to build a similar app.

So, if you’re a startup or an existing owner of an educational facility, you should hire an education app development company and get an application developed.

This blog will help you understand which features to consider based on Photomath’s key functionality and the cost of developing it with complete steps.

First, here’s a quick look at the growth of the EdTech market.

Brief Overview of EdTech Market Growth

A report by Grand View Research indicates that the global EdTech market could reach USD 348.41 billion by 2030. North America dominates this market segment due to its robust digital infrastructure and the government’s support for advanced e-learning technologies.

EdTech Market Growth

Some of the market leaders in developing edtech apps include BYJU’s, Chegg Inc., Coursera, and Class Technologies. The K-12 sector led the market with a 45.2% share in 2024.

Here’s a brief overview of all the EdTech market segments by user type, with growth insights:

EdTech Software Used Market Growth Insights
AI-powered learning apps,
Online courses
AI-driven apps to dominate K12 EdTech by 2030.
Learning Management Systems (LMS) The LMS market is expected to reach USD 65 billion by 2032.
ERP software, smart classroom The smart classroom tech market is expected to grow at a 19% CAGR from 2023 to 2033.
Corporate e-learning and LMS Corporate e-learning is projected to reach USD 52 billion by 2028.

What is Photomath and How Does it Work?

Photomath is one of the most successful AI-powered EdTech apps. It is designed to help students understand and solve mathematical equations by breaking down even the most complex problems into step-by-step explanations they can actually understand.

Among the numerous apps already available in mobile app stores, Photomath stands out from the crowd. It can function like a personal digital tutor, which offers several advantages to students.

Students can use the Photomath app to scan, solve, and learn math step by step by simply pointing their phone camera at a printed or handwritten equation.

Photomath’s real power lies in its ability to enhance understanding, not just deliver answers. For many students, especially those without access to personal tutors, it provides an affordable, 24/7 learning companion that explains the “why” and “how” behind every step.

It’s the perfect platform for students struggling to understand the logic behind a mathematical problem’s solution. It also helps its creators promote their services and attract numerous customers.

Finally, the journey, from the initiation point to the end, teaches you to create a wonderful user experience, even if the app uses a complex ML-based algorithm.

Some Key Features Offered by Photomath

When designing the user experience, designers should consider the critical features they want to develop: personalized user journeys, multiple difficulty levels, gamification elements, and multiple language support.

Here are some key features offered by the EdTech app, Photomath, explained step by step:

Ability to Recognize Handwriting

Students can scan printed or handwritten math problems using their device’s camera. Photomath utilizes Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology to detect and interpret the text.

Calculation Using the Device Camera

Once the app recognizes the problem from the smartphone’s camera, it utilizes a combination of AI and a custom-built math engine to solve the equation.

Step-by-Step Explanations

The app breaks down the given solution into detailed steps, providing an in-depth explanation for each stage to help users grasp the underlying concepts.

Several Methods of Explaining

Photomath offers multiple methods and approaches to solve certain problems. It allows students to learn different methods and choose the one that suits them best.

Animations and Interactive Graphs

Photomath includes various interactive graphs and animations to illustrate the problem-solving process for visual learners.

Instant Calculation

Apart from scanning, Photomath also offers the feature of manually entering problems using the in-built calculator. It supports a wide range of mathematical functions.

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Benefits of Developing Apps Similar to Photomath for Modern Businesses

Photomath combines the powers of computer vision, machine learning, and symbolic math solving. These technologies provide numerous opportunities for businesses that plan to develop similar apps.

Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of EdTech app development:

Personalized Learning

Building an EdTech app like Photomath allows your business to create different learning styles and paces with AI-driven personalized learning. The app adapts to a user’s learning style, enhancing engagement.

Increased Efficiency

Solving complex problems with AI-powered logic instead of using only static formulas makes the app more efficient, providing your business with a unique market position. Combined with a sleek and easy-to-use interface, it also increases app usability with reduced dependency on manual input.

Instant Feedback

Each math problem solved by the user, including the number of steps viewed and revisited to the solution, can be used to gain insights into user behavior and learning gaps. These analytics can be used to improve content and features.

Enhanced Customer Engagement

The step-by-step approach to the learning process encourages customer engagement by letting them walk through each step of the solution, which boosts concept retention and ultimately results in higher user satisfaction.

Competitive Advantage

With OCR and multilingual support, your business can reach global users with local customization capabilities. Curriculum mapping can also make your app easily adaptable to attract different partnerships in global markets.

Features to Consider When Developing Educational Apps Like Mathway

Now, you’re probably wondering how your app will solve mathematical problems as quickly and accurately as Photomath. However, building such algorithms and features is a task suitable for masters in this field.

Understandably, you need to partner with a top education app development agency to look into your project and incorporate the most suitable technologies. Let’s explore some of the key features you should consider when developing your own edtech app like Photomath:

Camera-based Math Problem Recognition

Building this feature will allow your users to scan handwritten or printed equations using their smartphone camera.

Here’s why you should consider it:

  • You can reduce friction for users because no manual input is required
  • You can widen the accessibility for younger students and non-tech-savvy users

Recommended Tech Stack: Integrate high-accuracy optical character recognition (OCR) frameworks like Google Vision API or Tesseract.

Smart Tech

You can use smart tech features like handwriting recognition and step-by-step explanations to guide users through each stage of the solution with clear logic and visuals.

Here’s why you should consider it:

  • You can enhance understanding by supporting a real classroom scenario
  • You can provide support for self-paced, independent learning among K-12 learners

Great UX Tip: Appeal to educators and parents seeking deeper comprehension tools using clean, instructional UI elements and avoid clutter.

AI/ML-based Problem-solving Engine

The most important functionality in building an edtech app like Photomath is the ability to solve problems in real time. Your users can analyze scanned input, understand problem structure, and generate logical step-by-step solutions.

Here’s why you should consider it:

  • You can enable real-time and context-aware responses
  • You can create multiple solving methods, like geometric, algebraic, etc.

Our Expert Recommendation: Build the foundation of an adaptive learning path engine that can become your unique licensed intellectual asset/property.

Multi-language Support

With multiple language support, you can allow users to interact with the app in multiple languages and expand your app’s reach to global and regional markets.

Here’s why you should consider it:

  • You can support school systems and institutions with local language requirements
  • You can increase user comfort and learning retention

Mission-critical Requirements: Inform your service provider that the onboarding process must be engaging enough to make it easier for the user.

Offline Access

With offline access, you can enable users to solve problems and access key features without internet connectivity, which is crucial for accessibility in low-connectivity regions.

Here’s why you should consider it:

  • You can increase app reliability during travel or poor signal conditions
  • It is valuable for global expansion in rural areas and developing countries

Functional Tip: Make the application free without advertisements, similar to Photomath. Increase brand awareness by demonstrating how technology can be handy in any situation.

How To Develop Edtech Apps Like Photomath?

Building a math-solving edtech app like Photomath requires more than just code — it takes strategic planning, the right technology stack, and an understanding of both learners and educational systems.

Here’s a step-by-step breakdown to guide your development journey:

Define Your Target Audience and Goals

Start by identifying your target users. Are you focusing on K-12 students, college learners, test-prep users, or educators? Then clarify your app’s objective: is it to improve math comprehension, offer tutoring alternatives, or support school curricula?

Research the Market

Study other major leaders while developing a custom educational app, such as Mathway and Symbolab, in addition to Photomath. Based on the insights, you can analyze user reviews, pricing models, and feature gaps. This will help you figure out what’s missing and how you can develop your app to fill that need uniquely.

Plan Features and Functionality

Based on your research, outline must-have features that align with learning outcomes and user expectations.

For example, you have launched the MVP in phase 1 with some non-negotiable features such as offline mode and camera-based OCR scanning. In the second phase, you can build features like multiple solving methods and gamification elements to keep users engaged.

Choose the Right Development Approach

Planning the functions in the right order and on the right platform ensures that the app delivers core value, which in turn allows you to expand it based on user feedback. Based on the research, if your user base is iPhone-heavy, like in the US and EU markets, you can choose the native development approach.

On the other hand, if you plan to develop the same features on both iOS and Android, you can choose cross-development for easy UI scaling.

Design a User-centric UI/UX

Edtech apps like Photomath need to be frictionless and engaging enough for the user base you aim to target. For example, K-12 students might need minimal steps, gamified visuals, and a distraction-free layout.

For a user-centric UI/UX design, you can build instant onboarding by letting the users try the camera scan feature for 10 minutes and a visual confirmation after the problem is solved.

Development and Integration

This step involves connecting all the technologies, from AI to OCR components. For backend development, ensure that the AI problem-solvers deliver real-time performance. Some scalable options include Firebase, AWS, Google Cloud, and Python-based APIs for complex equations. Other tools and SDKs include the Flutter plugin for camera and MathML.

Test, Launch, and Market

The most essential step before testing and launching the app is to ensure that your app store is compliant and that data privacy is maintained. Afterwards, test the OCR accuracy, UI responsiveness, and offline access for smooth transitions, user trust, and market success.

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How Much Does it Cost to Make an Edtech App Like Photomath?

The average cost range to develop an Edtech app like Photomath is between USD 5,000 and USD 1,00,000. The complexity of features, current industry prices of technologies, level of AI integration in educational apps, and the chosen platform will further influence the prices.

Here’s a brief overview of the costs:

Features Estimated Cost Ranges (USD)
Camera-based OCR scanning with handwriting recognition 14,000 – 27,000
AI/ML engine for problem-solving with stepwise explanations 17,000 – 35,000
Multiple solving methods 3,000 – 6,000
Multilingual support 2,000 – 5,000
Interactive and gamified elements 2,000 – 7,000
Offline access 2,000 – 5,000
UI/UX 4,000 – 8,000
Admin Panel 3,000 – 6,000
Backend setup for APIs, servers, and the Database 5,000 – 10,000
Testing and QA 2,000 – 5,000

How Can Moon Technolabs Help You Build an EdTech App like Photomath?

In the education business, scaling personalized learning while staying profitable is a tough nut to crack. Making math learning accessible, engaging, and cost-effective requires an intuitive design and more than just an idea.

Apps like Photomath have already solved this problem brilliantly by blending AI, ML, and OCR integrations. If you’re looking to develop a similar app that solves the unique needs of students and educators alike, you need the right educational app development partner.

That’s where we come in with our deep expertise in developing an intelligent EdTech app like Photomath. At Moon Technolabs, we help you go from concept to launch with precision, from MVP planning and feature prioritization to UI/UX, backend architecture, and scalable deployment.

Let’s solve the learning gap together and turn your EdTech vision into a performing product. Book a FREE consultation TODAY.

To Conclude

Developing an EdTech app like Photomath requires an intuitive approach to enhancing student outcomes and blending AI and ML to open new revenue streams. Hence, businesses need to understand their users before building core features.

This blog covered how to build a successful app by balancing powerful problem-solving features and an explanation of the subject. By partnering with the right development team, you can create an app that genuinely enhances mathematical learning by making concepts easier to understand.

Let’s build an app that could lead to that future.

FAQs

01

How does an app like Photomath read and solve handwritten math equations?

It uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology combined with machine learning algorithms to analyze and convert handwritten or printed equations into a digital format for processing.

02

What are some monetization options for apps like Photomath?

You can offer premium subscriptions, in-app purchases for advanced features, partnerships with educational institutions, or a freemium model with ads.

03

How can AI enhance the learning experience in mathematics-focused education apps?

AI can personalize learning by analyzing user performance, providing step-by-step explanations, and suggesting alternative problem-solving methods based on a student’s understanding level.

04

How long will it take to make an app like Photomath?

Creating an app like Photomath can take 4 to 8 months, depending on the complexity of its features and platform. However, if you’re building a cross-platform app, the timelines can be reduced up to 30% due to the single codebase for iOS and Android.

05

What challenges are involved in developing an app like Photomath?

The most common challenges involved in building an app like Photomath include improper image recognition due to varied fonts and handwriting styles, image quality issues, and background noise in recognizing equations in images.
About Author

Jayanti Katariya is the CEO of Moon Technolabs, a fast-growing IT solutions provider, with 18+ years of experience in the industry. Passionate about developing creative apps from a young age, he pursued an engineering degree to further this interest. Under his leadership, Moon Technolabs has helped numerous brands establish their online presence and he has also launched an invoicing software that assists businesses to streamline their financial operations.