TOEFL Writing Practice Platform
Micro-SaaS
AI-powered writing assistant for test preparation
Published on
May 18, 2026
$30,000
Asking Price
Main Metrics
$1,960
ARR
20
Customers
2026
Launched
$30,000
Asking Price
Already Sold
Main Metrics
$1,960
ARR
20
Customers
2026
Launched
Overview
<p><b>Startup description</b></p>
<p>My platform helps TOEFL students improve their writing scores using AI-powered essay evaluation.</p>
<p>Students submit essays for TOEFL Writing tasks (Integrated + Academic Discussion) and receive instant scoring + feedback aligned with the official ETS rubric:</p>
<ul>
<li>Task response</li>
<li>Organization/coherence</li>
<li>Grammar/language use</li>
<li>Vocabulary/style</li>
</ul>
<p>Think of it as a 24/7 TOEFL writing grader that replaces expensive human feedback.</p>
<p>Built solo in 2025. Live for ~4 months. Currently runs almost fully on autopilot.</p>
<p><b>Current Metrics</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Gross revenue: $500–700/month</li>
<li>April gross revenue: $690</li>
<li>~15-20 active paying users consistently</li>
<li>Organic traffic + signups growing month-over-month</li>
<li>Zero paid ads ever run</li>
<li>No outbound marketing done</li>
</ul>
<p><b>Economics</b></p>
<ul>
<li>AI costs: roughly $1–2/day total</li>
<li>Estimated monthly infra + AI cost: ~$30–60/month</li>
<li>Strong margins</li>
<li>Maintenance time: <2 hours/week</li>
</ul>
<p><b>Stack</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Next.js</li>
<li>Supabase</li>
<li>Stripe</li>
<li>Vercel</li>
</ul>
<p>I<b>mportant Note About MRR</b></p>
<p>Stripe MRR appears lower than gross revenue because TOEFL prep is highly seasonal and transactional.</p>
<p>Most users subscribe before their exam date, intensively use the platform, then cancel afterward. Some return during later prep cycles. This is normal behavior for test-prep products — the same pattern exists across IELTS, GRE, GMAT, and SAT prep platforms.</p>
<p><b>*TOEFL Seasonality</b></p>
<p>TOEFL demand follows university application deadlines worldwide:</p>
<p>• Peak Season 1 (biggest): August–November — Fall intake applications for US, UK, Canada, Australia</p>
<p>• Peak Season 2: January–March — Spring intake applications</p>
<p>• Quiet Period: April–July — fewer exams scheduled, fewer new subscribers</p>
<p>The platform is currently in the quiet period. Traffic remains stable at ~2,000–2,300 pageviews/week, but conversion is lower because students' exams are months away. They browse and bookmark now, then subscribe closer to their test date.</p>
<p>Monthly Revenue Trend</p>
<p>• February: $197</p>
<p>• March: $445</p>
<p>• April: $690</p>
<p>• May: ~$500-$600</p>
<p>The April-to-May dip reflects seasonality, not product decline.</p>
<p>Traffic Sources (PostHog, last 30 days)</p>
<p>Live dashboard: https://us.posthog.com/shared/zZcI_Pss_faUtAF2wVN09-1Kp9Jl1A</p>
<p>• Direct: 52%</p>
<p>• Google: 21%</p>
<p>• Bing: 6%</p>
<p>• Reddit: 4%</p>
<p>• Facebook: 4%</p>
<p>• AI referrals (ChatGPT + Claude): 3%</p>
<p>• Others: 10%</p>
<p>Note: Tools like Ahrefs only track organic Google SEO keywords. They miss direct traffic (52%), social, Reddit, and AI referrals. This is a tool-based product — users come to use the AI essay checker, not through blog SEO.</p>
<p><b>Why I'm Selling</b></p>
<p>I'm looking to transition ownership and focus on other projects.</p>
<p>The product itself is healthy and still growing organically.</p>
<p><b>Growth Opportunities</b></p>
<p>Everything so far has come purely from organic traffic.</p>
<p>No serious distribution strategy has been executed yet.</p>
<p><b>Untapped Channels</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Google Ads for high-intent TOEFL keywords</li>
<li>TikTok/Reels/YouTube Shorts content</li>
<li>SEO landing pages + blog posts</li>
<li>Affiliate partnerships with TOEFL YouTubers</li>
<li>Outreach to tutoring centers / prep schools</li>
<li>Email funnels + score improvement campaigns</li>
</ul>
<p>A focused operator could realistically push this toward $1k–2k MRR within a few months.</p>
<p>The product works. Distribution is the missing piece.</p>
<p><b>Startup Assets</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Full codebase</li>
<li>.com domain</li>
<li>Stripe integration setup</li>
<li>Active customer subscriptions</li>
<li>Customer email list</li>
<li>1 month of transition support (Telegram/Slack)</li>
<li>Documentation + deployment guidance</li>
</ul>
<p>✅ $1,960 TTM revenue</p>
<p>✅ 20 customers</p>
<p>✅ Business model: SaaS</p>
<p>✅ Built with TypeScript, Stripe, TailwindCSS</p>
$1,960
Annual Revenue
20
Number of Customers
Expenses
~$60/month total. Breakdown: AI inference is the largest variable cost at roughly $30-45/month — currently less than $2/day for all 20 active users combined, often under $1/day. Vercel hosting ~$20/month. Supabase free tier (sufficient at current scale). Domain ~$1/month amortized. Stripe fees are netted out of gross revenue. No paid marketing, no employees, no contractors. Margins are approximately 85-90% gross.
Business Model
Subscription SaaS. Two plans: a monthly plan around $19/mo and a longer-term plan that drops the effective monthly price. Users pay via Stripe. TOEFL students typically subscribe for 1-2 months around their exam date, cancel, then reactivate for their next attempt. Gross revenue $500-600/month. Costs are tiny — about $30-60/month total in AI inference (~$1-2/day for all active users combined) plus standard Stripe/Vercel/Supabase fees. Clean margins, ~85%+ gross margin.
Target Audience
TOEFL test-takers preparing for the writing section — primarily international students applying to US/Canada/UK universities or graduate programs. Heavy concentration in India, China, Vietnam, Turkey, Brazil, and the Middle East. Most are aiming for a 26+ writing score and can't afford the $60+/essay that human graders charge. Secondary market: TOEFL prep tutors who want to scale feedback for their students.
Asking Price Reasoning
Asking ,000 against ~$2,200 trailing revenue (4 months live). The price reflects three things: (1) the product is past PMF with organic monthly gross of $500-600 and growing, (2) margins are roughly 85-90% — costs run about $60/month total, mostly under $1-2/day in AI inference for all active users, and (3) growth levers are completely untapped.
Reason for Selling
I'm transitioning to other projects and looking for the right operator to take this further. The product is healthy, organic signups are growing month over month, and costs are minimal (~$60/month total). I'm confident it's in a strong position for a new owner to grow.
Growth Opportunity
(1) Google Ads on TOEFL writing keywords — clear buyer intent, low CPC in this niche. (2) One cornerstone SEO post ranking for "TOEFL writing 28+ score" could 5x organic traffic. (3) Affiliate partnerships with TOEFL YouTubers (100k-500k sub channels exist and none are monetized). (4) Founder-led short-form video — TOEFL rubric breakdowns and sample-essay scoring are perfect TikTok/YouTube Shorts content.
30 days free support from seller
Competitors
Direct: WriteToScore, TestReady AI, GradeMyEssay, EssayGrader, TOEFL Resources premium tools. Indirect: ChatGPT/Claude (free but no TOEFL-specific rubric scoring), human TOEFL tutors on Preply/iTalki at $20-60/hour, and the official ETS TOEFL Practice Online ($45-90/test). Our edge: ETS-rubric-trained scoring + instant feedback + sub-$20 monthly price + zero setup. Most direct competitors are either too expensive, slower, or don't break down feedback by the four official scoring criteria.
Tech Stack
TypeScript, Stripe, TailwindCSS, Next.js, Supabase, Vercel.
Traffic Metrics
Revenue Metrics
How it works
$30,000
Asking Price
Already Sold
Main Metrics
$1,960
ARR
20
Customers
2026
Launched
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