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Pricing

Pay once. It never renews.

Your first essay is free, no signup. A free account gets 3 grades every 30 days. Need more? Buy a pass: one payment, an end date you can see before you pay, and nothing to cancel.

  • One payment, never renews
  • 14-day refund promise
  • A parent can pay by link
  • Feedback only, never rewrites

Passes and the free tier

  • Season Pass

    For a whole application or AP® season

    Covers the whole season

    $29once

    Never auto-renews

    Bought today: access until Sat 6 Mar 2027

    At least 120 days, and always through the end of the season.

    • Every open rubric, all season
    • Up to 25 grades in any 24 hours (40 on deadline days)
    • Up to 200 grades in any 30 days

    One-time payment of $29. Access until Sat 6 Mar 2027. It never renews. Full refund within 14 days if you've used 10 or fewer grades; otherwise a pro-rated refund within 30 days.

    Checkout opens soon

    Get an email when it opens

  • 30-Day Pass

    For one deadline

    $9.99once

    Never auto-renews

    Bought today: access until Sun 6 Dec 2026

    30 days from purchase.

    • Every open rubric
    • Up to 25 grades in any 24 hours (40 on deadline days)
    • Up to 200 grades in any 30 days

    One-time payment of $9.99. Access until Sun 6 Dec 2026. It never renews. Full refund within 14 days if you've used 10 or fewer grades; otherwise a pro-rated refund within 30 days.

    Checkout opens soon

    Get an email when it opens

  • Free

    Try it, then keep using it

    $0

    • 1 full graded essay with no account
    • A free account adds 3 grades every 30 days
    • The same grader as the passes, on every open rubric
    • 30-day history with a free account
    Grade an essay free

Get one email when checkout opens

We're finishing the payment provider's review, so passes can't be bought yet. Free grading works today: one essay with no account, then 3 every 30 days with a free account.

We use your email for this one message, then delete the request.

Prices in US dollars, plus tax where applicable. Dodo Payments is our merchant of record: they take the payment and send the receipt. We never see your card number.

Coming later

Teachers: coming 22 Jan 2027

Waitlist

Teacher Free for verified teachers: 40 batch essays a month, plus 150 in your first 30 days. Teacher Pro pricing is published before launch.

Join the teachers waitlist
The free tier

Free to start. Free to keep using.

Free and paid grades use the same grader: the same model, method and rubric. A free score is the real score.

  • No account

    1 full graded essay

    $0

    No signup, no card. Results stay in this browser; we don't save grades made without an account.

  • Free account

    3 full grades every 30 days

    $0

    The 30-day window starts at your first grade. Moving your no-account grade into the account is free. 30-day history.

  • 30-Day Pass or Season Pass

    Up to 25 in any 24 hours, 200 in any 30 days

    $9.99 or $29, once

    40 a day on the busiest deadline days. Fair-use limits keep the grader fast for everyone.

Refunds

If it isn't for you, ask for your money back.

Full refund within 14 days if you've used 10 or fewer grades; otherwise a pro-rated refund within 30 days.

How refunds work

  • Passes are one-time payments. They never renew, so there is nothing to cancel and no later charge.
  • Full refund if you ask within 14 days of purchase and 10 or fewer grades were used on the pass.
  • Otherwise, a pro-rated refund for the days you haven't used, if you ask within 30 days of purchase.
  • One refund per student account for each kind of product.
  • A refund ends the matching access straight away.
Read the full refund policy

You can't pay twice for the same days

  • One live pass per student. If the student already has access, checkout and the pay page say so and don't charge.
  • You can buy the next pass early: it starts the moment the current one ends, and the card shows the start date.
  • When a pass is bought, every other open pay link for that student stops working.
  • If two payments still cross, we refund the later one automatically and email both the payer and the student.
For parents

Ask a parent to pay.

A student sends a pay link; a parent pays without making an account. The pass lands on the student's account, and the parent never sees the essays.

How it works

  1. Step 1: The student creates a pay linkFrom this page or the plan picker. Add a parent's email and a short note if you like; both are optional. The link works for 7 days.
  2. Step 2: The parent opens it, no account neededIt explains what GradeLamp is, shows the passes with exact end dates and a masked version of the student's email, and links to our integrity, privacy and refund pages.
  3. Step 3: The parent paysAfter a birth month and year check (payers must be 18 or over) and the purchase terms. The receipt goes to the parent; the pass goes to the student's account.

What the parent is promised

  • Feedback only: it never writes or rewrites essays.
  • Essays are deleted after 30 days and never used to train AI.
  • Full refund within 14 days if 10 or fewer grades are used.
  • Parents never see the student's essays. We email a link once, plus one reminder after 48 hours if it's unpaid, and nothing else.
Students

Create a pay link

Under 18? This is the easiest way to buy a pass. The link works for 7 days.

Pay links open together with checkout. Get an email when they do.

Buying for your student?

Ask your student to send you a pay link from this page. You pay from the link, with no account, and the receipt comes to you. A pass can't be bought on a parent's own account by mistake: we ask who it's for first.

Want to know what GradeLamp does with an essay first? Read our integrity policy and privacy policy.

Compare

What other essay graders charge.

Admissions essay graders mostly bill by the month until you cancel. Our passes are paid once and simply end.

Cheapest paid option on each vendor's own pricing page, checked on the date shown. Prices change and features differ, so check the source before you decide.
ServiceCheapest paid optionHow it billsSource
GradeLamp30-Day Pass $9.99 or Season Pass $29One payment. Never renewsThis page
Kolly$29 a month, or $99 per 6 monthsRenews monthly, or every 6 months, until cancelledkolly.ai/pricing, checked
GradGPT$36 a month (Plus, 50 reviews)Billed monthly until cancelledgradgpt.com/pricing, checked
Esslo$40 a month (Student, up to 20 drafts)Monthly planesslo.org/pricing, checked
LumiSource$49 a monthMonthly, cancel anytimelumisource.io/pricing, checked

  • GradeLamp

    30-Day Pass $9.99 or Season Pass $29

    One payment. Never renews.

  • Kolly

    $29 a month, or $99 per 6 months

    Renews monthly, or every 6 months, until cancelled.

    kolly.ai/pricing, checked

  • GradGPT

    $36 a month (Plus, 50 reviews)

    Billed monthly until cancelled.

    gradgpt.com/pricing, checked

  • Esslo

    $40 a month (Student, up to 20 drafts)

    Monthly plan.

    esslo.org/pricing, checked

  • LumiSource

    $49 a month

    Monthly, cancel anytime.

    lumisource.io/pricing, checked

Cheapest paid option on each vendor's own pricing page, checked on the date shown. Prices change and features differ, so check the source before you decide.

Before you pay

Common questions.

What happens when my pass ends?

Access ends on the date shown when you buy, and nothing is charged. We email you 7 days before. Your account stays free, with 3 grades every 30 days, and you can buy another pass whenever you need one.

Can I buy a new pass while one is still active?

Yes, but it won't overlap: it starts the moment your current pass ends, and checkout shows that start date. You can't be charged twice for the same days.

Is a pass really unlimited?

No, and we don't call it that. A pass covers up to 25 grades in any 24 hours (40 on the busiest deadline days) and 200 in any 30 days. Re-grading an unchanged draft is free and doesn't count.

How do refunds work?

Full refund within 14 days if you've used 10 or fewer grades; otherwise a pro-rated refund within 30 days. Ask from your account's Billing page or by email, and we process it within 2 business days. A refund ends the pass straight away.

Why is there no monthly plan?

Most students need help for a season, not forever, and nobody wants to find a renewal charge months later. So every paid option at launch is a one-time pass with an end date you can see before you pay.

Something else? Email support@gradelamp.com or read who runs GradeLamp.