Is Twinkl Worth It? Twinkl Prices and 13 Alternatives (2026)
Twinkl costs from £6.99 a month for Core, and only Ultimate, from £10.99, includes secondary resources, phonics and the AI tools. Here is what each tier gets you, and 13 free or cheaper alternatives if it is more than you need.
Twinkl prices in 2026
Twinkl has three individual memberships. Each one adds to the tier below it.
| Feature | Core | Extra | Ultimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | From £6.99 a month | From £8.49 a month | From £10.99 a month |
| Classic collection, birth to 16 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Twinkl Create and Originals | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| SEND and inclusion resources | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| EYFS planning (Foundation) | No | Yes | Yes |
| PlanIt lesson plans, KS1 and KS2 | No | Yes | Yes |
| Twinkl Phonics and Rhino Readers | No | No | Yes |
| Interventions (Boost) and Move PE | No | No | Yes |
| All secondary resources | No | No | Yes |
| Twinkl AI tools | No | No | Yes |
Twinkl's "from" prices are the lowest it shows; monthly plans start at £7.99. Source: Twinkl's membership page.
A free account opens a selection of free resources, and Twinkl says you can cancel at any time with no fees. Schools buy their own subscriptions.
Our top 10 Twinkl alternatives
- 1Oak National Academy
Free
Free full-curriculum lessons, slides and quizzes.
Free - 2Chalkie
Make your own with AI
Make the exact resource you need, in a minute.
Free planOurs - 3Classroom Secrets
Subscription libraries
15,000+ primary resources, £62.99 a year.
Free plan
- 4
White Rose MathsSubject specialistsFree maths schemes used across the country.
- 5Teach StarterSubscription libraries
Polished primary resources from £41 a year.
- 6
TesSubscription libraries900,000+ resources, strong for secondary.
- 7PlanBeeSubscription libraries
Complete primary topic packs.
- 8
Hamilton TrustSubscription librariesPlans for single-age and mixed-age classes.
- 9
Third Space LearningFreeHundreds of free maths resources.
- 10
BBC BitesizeFreeFree clips and quizzes for every key stage.
- Oak National Academy
Everything · Always free · EYFS to KS4
- BBC Bitesize
Everything · Always free · KS1 to GCSE
- Third Space Learning
Hundreds of resources · School plans · KS2 to GCSE
- Classroom Secrets
Free resources section · £62.99/yr · EYFS to Year 6
- Teach Starter
Free resource collection · £41/yr · EYFS to KS3
- Tes
Many free resources · Per resource · EYFS to KS5
- PlanBee
FreeBees samples · £84.99/yr · KS1 and KS2
- Hamilton Trust
Free taster account · £60/yr · Reception to Year 6
- White Rose Maths
Schemes of learning · Premium resources · EYFS to Year 11
GrammarsaurusSome free resources · Solo plan · Years 1 to 6
- Literacy Shed Plus
Original Literacy Shed · £31.50 single user · Ages 3 to 14
Prices are the cheapest individual plan in GBP.
Free alternatives to Twinkl
No subscription at all. Start here before you pay for anything.
Free full-curriculum lessons with slides, worksheets and quizzes
EverythingAlways freeOak is the biggest free alternative to Twinkl: complete, sequenced lessons for every national curriculum subject, each with editable slides, a worksheet and quizzes, plus exam-board pathways at KS4. It is government-funded and says it is now used in 72% of schools. Its free AI assistant, Aila, makes new lessons in the same style.
Pros
- Whole curriculum, completely free
- Editable slides and worksheets
Cons
- Fewer displays and games
- Lessons follow Oak's sequence
Bitesize is made for pupils, with short videos, guides and quizzes for every key stage, and GCSE content organised by exam board. It is a reliable free source of clips and homework, though not of editable teaching resources.
Pros
- Trusted, free and ad-free
- GCSE content by exam board
Cons
- Made for pupils, not teachers
- Few editable resources
Third Space Learning gives away hundreds of maths resources, from SATs practice papers to GCSE revision, aligned to White Rose and other mastery schemes. The 4,000-resource Maths Hub is a whole-school subscription.
Pros
- Hundreds of free maths resources
- SATs and GCSE practice
Cons
- Maths only
- Premium is whole-school only
Oak National Academy: free, full-curriculum lessons now used in 72% of schools.
Cheaper subscriptions like Twinkl
Whole-curriculum libraries for primary, most of them cheaper than Twinkl Core.
Classroom Secrets has more than 15,000 primary resources across maths, reading, GPS, science and more, and adds about 100 new ones a month. The teacher plan is £62.99 a year, and Classroom Secrets Kids gives pupils their own logins for practice.
Pros
- Maths, reading and GPS covered
- Pupil logins with Kids
Cons
- Primary only
- One user per teacher plan
Teach Starter, now part of Tes, makes bright, consistent resources and full units. Essential costs £41 a year for PDFs, and Plus at £62 a year adds editable files and unit plans.
Pros
- From £41 a year
- Polished, consistent design
Cons
- Editable files need Plus
- Smaller library than Twinkl
Tes is the UK's big teacher marketplace, with more than 900,000 resources across every phase. Many are free; paid ones on the primary hub mostly cost £1.50 to £10. It is the best option here for secondary, where Twinkl needs Ultimate.
Pros
- Huge, strong for secondary
- Lots of free resources
Cons
- Quality varies by seller
- Pay per resource adds up
PlanBee is known for complete topic packs: a full unit with lesson plans, slides and activities, ready for a foundation-subject topic. Subject-only memberships let you pay for one subject.
Pros
- Complete topic units
- Subject-only memberships
Cons
- Primary only
- Monthly plan is a 12-month commitment
Hamilton Trust, now showing the Hamilton Brookes name, writes English, maths, science and topic plans for single-age and mixed-age classes, mapped to the curricula in England, Wales and Scotland. Early career teachers get two years for £42.
Pros
- Mixed-age class plans
- England, Wales and Scotland
Cons
- Primary only
- Plans more than printables
Tes: over 900,000 teacher-made resources, many of them free.
Subject specialists
Cheaper and deeper than Twinkl in one subject.
White Rose's maths schemes of learning are free and used across the country. Its worksheets, slides and assessments are paid, sold by year group to individuals or as a school subscription.
Pros
- Free, widely used schemes
- Mastery approach throughout
Cons
- Maths only
- Individual plans cover one year group
Grammarsaurus is written by practising teachers and writing moderators, and its English and grammar units are built for primary classrooms. The Solo licence covers only the pupils you teach.
Pros
- Written by writing moderators
- Detailed grammar units
Cons
- English only
- Solo licence is per class
Literacy units built around short films and images
Original Literacy Shed£31.50 single userThe original Literacy Shed has always been free, with short films and images grouped into themes for writing. Plus turns them into full teaching units for £31.50 for a single user.
Pros
- Free original site
- Films that get pupils writing
Cons
- English only
- Billing period not stated
Make your own resources with AI
When the library has nothing on your exact topic, AI makes it in a minute.
Chalkie makes the kind of resource you would download from Twinkl, but on your exact topic and year group: a full lesson slide deck with images, or a printable worksheet in one of about 30 formats. Pro aligns it to the national curriculum, and everything exports to PowerPoint, Google Slides, Word or PDF.
Pros
- Exactly your topic and year group
- Slides and worksheets, ready to teach
Cons
- Free plan: 5 resources a week
- Curriculum alignment needs Pro
TeachMate has about 160 AI tools organised by key stage, from lesson plans and slides to end-of-year reports. Pro is £6.99 a month, or £4.99 a month billed yearly in the first year.
Pros
- Built around UK key stages
- Report-writing tools
Cons
- Free plan is a small starter set
- Price rises after year one
Four slides from a Year 4 Anglo-Saxons lesson made in Chalkie.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Twinkl cost?
Twinkl's page shows Core from £6.99 a month, Extra from £8.49 and Ultimate from £10.99, with monthly plans from £7.99. Secondary resources, phonics and the AI tools are in Ultimate only.
Is Twinkl free?
Partly. A free Twinkl account opens a selection of free resources, and there is a free trial. Most of the library needs a paid membership.
Is Twinkl worth it?
For a primary teacher who uses it every week, often yes. If you mainly need maths, English or secondary resources, the free and specialist sites here can cover it for less.
Can I cancel Twinkl at any time?
Yes. Twinkl says there are no contracts or cancellation fees, and you can start or stop your membership at any time.
What is the best free alternative to Twinkl?
Oak National Academy, for complete free lessons in every national curriculum subject. Add BBC Bitesize for clips and Third Space Learning for maths.