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What happened to the Socratic app?

Google has folded Socratic into Google Lens. You can still point your camera at a problem for help, but the app itself is gone. Here are the alternatives.

Updated · 4 min read

Socratic by Google is discontinued. The homework app, which explained problems you photographed, has been folded into Google Lens, which has used Socratic’s technology for homework help since 2020. Point Lens at a problem and you’ll get similar help. The standalone app is gone.

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Listening
Work it out by hand and ask “is this right?”. Buddy circles the slip, and you fix it.

Alternatives

  • Google Lens, Socratic’s successor, for a quick explanation of a photographed problem. Free, on phones.
  • Gemini Guided Learning, Google’s step-by-step tutor in the Gemini app, which asks questions instead of answering outright. See the study modes compared.
  • ChatGPT Study Mode, on every ChatGPT plan, which you can photograph problems into. See how to turn it on.
  • Khanmigo, Khan Academy’s tutor, for Khan Academy courses (learner plans in the US).
  • Pen Buddy, our app, for studying on Mac and iPad.

The Socratic method, not just the name

The Socratic app was mostly a fast way to see how a problem is solved. The Socratic method is the opposite: questions that lead you to the answer yourself. That’s how Pen Buddy works. Write your working with Apple Pencil on iPad and ask “is this right?”: Buddy reads your handwriting, maths included, and circles the slip. Stuck? It asks a question or gives the smallest hint, and a full solution only when you ask. You can talk to it out loud, and every session lands in your notes.

It’s honest to say what it isn’t: Pen Buddy runs on Mac and iPad, not on phones, and it’s coming soon. See Pen Buddy for iPad.

We make Pen Buddy, so weigh our view accordingly. Facts about other products come from their own pages, checked on October 14, 2026; prices and features change, so check the links.

FAQ

Questions, answered.

Yes. Google has folded Socratic into Google Lens, which provides homework help when you point your camera at a problem.

Google Lens, which has used Socratic’s technology for homework help since 2020. Gemini’s Guided Learning is Google’s step-by-step tutor.

Google Lens, Gemini Guided Learning, ChatGPT Study Mode and Khanmigo. For a tutor that reads your handwritten working on iPad and gives hints instead of answers, there’s Pen Buddy.