Question 1

How do I sign up?

Accepted Answer

Create an account with your email — magic link or password. No card required on the Free plan. After signup, pick your subjects and upload your first answer.

Question 2

How do I mark my first question?

Accepted Answer

Go to Mark, choose your subject and paper (or upload a photo of the question), snap or upload your handwritten working, and submit. Most single questions return feedback in under a minute.

Question 3

Which subjects are covered?

Accepted Answer

Fifteen Cambridge A-Levels: Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Economics, Business, Accounting, Computer Science, Psychology, Sociology, History, Law, Islamic Studies, and Media Studies.

Question 4

Do I need a teacher account?

Accepted Answer

No — MarkScheme is built for students revising on their own. Teacher features exist for classroom use, but individual students can sign up and mark immediately.

Question 5

Can I use it on my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Upload from your camera or photo library. The marking flow works on mobile — a larger screen is nicer for reading detailed feedback, but phone uploads work fine.

Question 6

Is this allowed for revision?

Accepted Answer

Marking your own past papers is normal revision. MarkScheme marks work you have already done — like checking against a mark scheme yourself, but faster and more thorough.

Question 7

Does it really mark like Cambridge?

Accepted Answer

It uses the official Cambridge mark scheme for each paper. Point-based questions follow B1/M1/A1 exactly. Essays are judged against the real band descriptors.

Question 8

How does the marking engine work?

Accepted Answer

We pull the real mark scheme for your paper and question, read your uploaded working (handwriting or typed), and apply the appropriate style — MCQ keys, step marks, or essay bands. The AI is guided by the scheme, not a generic rubric.

Question 9

What if it gets something wrong?

Accepted Answer

AI marking isn't perfect — examiners aren't either. The feedback is detailed enough that you can disagree and still learn. Treat it as a study partner, not your final grade.

Question 10

My handwriting is messy — will it work?

Accepted Answer

It reads handwritten answers from photos. Clearer helps, but messy is usually fine — upload a decent snap and give it a go.

Question 11

Can it mark essays?

Accepted Answer

Yes — History, Sociology, Law, Media Studies, and others. The engine detects whether a question is MCQ, point-based, or an essay, and marks it the right way using Cambridge band descriptors.

Question 12

What is Examiner's Ink?

Accepted Answer

Visual feedback anchored to your actual handwriting — stamps and notes on the lines where marks were earned or lost, not just a paragraph at the bottom. Available on the Free plan.

Question 13

Can I upload a whole paper?

Accepted Answer

Whole-paper marking is available on any paid plan. Upload multiple pages, assign them to questions, and get per-question marks plus a projected grade if you only attempted some questions.

Question 14

Who can see my uploaded work?

Accepted Answer

Only you (and teachers if you join a classroom). Your scripts are tied to your account and not shared publicly.

Question 15

Is my data used to train AI models?

Accepted Answer

We use your uploads to provide marking for you. We do not sell your data. Third-party AI providers process content to deliver marking — see our Privacy Policy for details.

Question 16

Can I delete my account and data?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Go to Account → Privacy & data to export or delete your account, or email hello@markscheme.app for help.

Question 17

Where is my data stored?

Accepted Answer

Account data and uploads are stored securely via Supabase (hosted infrastructure). See the Privacy Policy for third-party processors.

Question 18

Do you share data with Cambridge?

Accepted Answer

No. MarkScheme is not affiliated with or endorsed by Cambridge International. We do not send your work to Cambridge.

Question 19

Is there a free plan?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Free includes 5 questions and 10 study chat messages per month across all fifteen subjects, plus Examiner's Ink on single-question marking. No card required.

Question 20

I signed up during early access — what happens to my pricing?

Accepted Answer

You're a founding member. You get 50% off any paid plan, locked in forever. That discount applies even as we add features or raise prices for new users — your founding rate is permanent.

Question 21

What counts as one question?

Accepted Answer

Whether you submit a single question or a whole paper, it counts as one question against your monthly allowance. Whole papers don't cost more even if they contain 15 sub-questions.

Question 22

What happens when I run out mid-month?

Accepted Answer

Buy a credit top-up or upgrade to a higher plan. Credits work for questions or study chat messages and never expire.

Question 23

Do teachers pay separately?

Accepted Answer

Teacher and classroom features may have different pricing. Student plans apply to individual student accounts.

Question 24

What file types can I upload?

Accepted Answer

Photos (JPEG, PNG, HEIC from most phones), camera capture, and PDFs for multi-page scripts. Images are compressed before upload to keep things fast.

Question 25

What if I have a long paper?

Accepted Answer

Use whole-paper mode on a paid plan: upload all pages, reorder if needed, and assign pages to question numbers. Marking runs per question and may take a few minutes for a full script.

Question 26

Does it work offline?

Accepted Answer

No — marking requires an internet connection because processing runs on our servers.

Question 27

Which browsers are supported?

Accepted Answer

Modern Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge on desktop and mobile. If something breaks, try updating your browser or contact us.

Question 28

Why is marking slow sometimes?

Accepted Answer

Whole papers and essay questions take longer than a single maths question. Complex handwriting or large PDFs add processing time. We show progress while marking runs.

Questions you'll actually ask

Getting started

About the marking

About my data

Pricing

Technical