A full school day.
Within reach.
One tuition covers the whole school day. State funding and need-based aid can help bring your out-of-pocket cost down, sometimes to $0.
Enrollment is flexible - start any month.
What you're paying for.
Recess delivers the whole school day online. Every kid gets a custom academic plan, live teachers in small pods, and a community they see every day. Kids who dreaded school start asking for it, and parents watch the progress week by week.
Core academics, taught live in small group pods.
Kids advance when they've mastered it, with progress reports home.
Where kids find their people, every school day.
Three a week, picked by your kid. Add more anytime for $160 a month each.
Help between classes, whenever they need it.
Aid is simple.
Every family can enroll at full tuition, and you never need to share your state funding award to do it. Financial aid is optional, for families who need help affording Recess. If you apply, we ask for your household income and your ESA or other state funding award, and we use them only to lower your tuition. Sharing your award never raises your price, even when your funding is more than full tuition.
Households earning under $150,000 may qualify. We count state funding available for tuition first, then consider need-based aid for what remains. Aid has a limit: without state funding, tuition with aid starts at $8,000 a year. Families applying for aid must disclose their state funding award, unless state law prohibits it. Aid depends on dollar amounts alone: a student's diagnosis, disability, IEP, or funding category plays no part. How funding works in your state.
Apply for financial aidThese estimates are for families without ESA or other state funding. Aid depends on financial need and is confirmed during enrollment.
| Household income | Estimated aid | Estimated tuition |
|---|---|---|
| Under $75,000 | up to −$10,000 | $8,000 $2,000/quarter |
| $75,000–$100,000 | up to −$10,000 | $8,000–$11,000 $2,000–$2,750/quarter |
| $100,000–$125,000 | up to −$7,000 | $11,000–$14,500 $2,750–$3,625/quarter |
| $125,000–$150,000 | up to −$3,500 | $14,500–$17,000 $3,625–$4,250/quarter |
| $150,000+ | — | $18,000 $4,500/quarter |
Have ESA or other state funding? We count the funding available for tuition first, then consider need-based aid for what remains, up to the amounts in this table. When funding covers full tuition, no additional aid is usually needed, at any income level. How funding works in your state.
Illustrative estimates, not guaranteed prices or aid awards, for the 10-month school year. Quarterly figures are the 4 payments Recess bills directly, and paying the year upfront costs less; your schedule depends on how you enroll and on your state's funding program. Your exact tuition is set during enrollment, once we confirm your household income and any education funding.
One price, all in.
Tuition covers the 10-month school year, and everything above is included. Every family sees the same published price. ESA or other state funding can cover some or all of it, and need-based aid may help with what remains. If the funding available for tuition changes, we may recalculate aid to match. Families billed by Recess pay quarterly, or pay the year upfront and save 5%; the same 5% comes off your tuition after aid and any state funding. Schedules differ where a partner school in our network sets its own, and state funding programs release funds on their own timelines.
ApplyThe fine print, in plain terms.
How does financial aid work?
Financial aid is optional, for families who need help affording Recess. Every family can enroll at full tuition without applying. Aid helps with the tuition that remains after ESA or other state education funding available for tuition is counted. Households earning under $150,000 may qualify based on income, available education funding, and remaining financial need. For families without state funding, estimated tuition with aid starts at $8,000 a year. To apply, fill out the short financial aid application at recess.gg/school/financial-aid with your household income and your state funding award, unless state law prohibits sharing it. We confirm both during enrollment. If your child enrolls through a partner school in our network, we recommend your award to that school and the school confirms your final tuition.
How do ESA and state funds apply?
ESA and other eligible state education funds can pay tuition, under the rules of your state's program. For families requesting aid, the funding available for tuition is counted before Recess aid. If it covers full tuition, no additional aid is usually needed, at any income level. If it covers part of tuition, qualifying families may receive need-based aid toward the rest. We confirm your funding during enrollment. Payment timing follows your state program's own schedule, and where a partner school is involved, that school sets the schedule.
Do I have to tell you my ESA award?
Not to enroll. Every family can enroll at full tuition without sharing their award. We only ask for it if you apply for financial aid: then families must disclose their ESA award and any other education funding available for tuition, unless state law prohibits it, so we can work out the need that remains the same way for every family. Sharing your award never raises your tuition, even when your funding is more than full tuition; aid only ever lowers it. We ask for the dollar amount only, and never the reason a student qualifies for it. Incomplete or inaccurate funding information may lead us to adjust an aid award.
Does a larger ESA award mean less aid?
It can. Aid covers the need that remains after education funding available for tuition is counted, so two families with similar finances may receive different aid when one has more outside funding. We count the dollar amount available for tuition. A student's disability, diagnosis, IEP status, or funding eligibility category is never an input to the aid calculation.
Is the table what we'll actually pay?
The table illustrates estimated tuition with need-based aid for families without ESA or other state funding. It is a guide only; prices and awards are set during enrollment. The largest discount in the table is the most Recess aid available to any family. When a family has state funding, we count it first and consider aid for what remains, so full tuition may apply at any income level when funding covers it. Families enrolling through a partner school in our network have their final tuition confirmed by that school.
What if my ESA award changes?
Let us know if the funding available for tuition changes after your aid is set. We may recalculate your aid so it keeps matching the tuition that remains. Any change follows the dollar amount of funding, never the student's funding category.
How does annual pricing work?
Tuition covers the 10-month school year and is billed in 4 quarterly payments of $4,500 at full price. Families who join midyear pay for the months remaining, billed across the quarters that are left.
Who collects tuition, and on what schedule?
It depends on how your child enrolls. Families who enroll with Recess directly pay Recess, and tuition is billed quarterly: 4 payments across the school year, or the full year upfront for 5% less. Families enrolling through a partner school in our network pay tuition to that school, and the school sets the payment schedule. If you are using state funding, timing can also follow when your state's program releases funds. We confirm which applies to your family before you enroll.
Can we pay for the year upfront?
Yes, and it costs less. Families billed by Recess can pay the school year in full instead of quarterly and save 5%: $17,100 instead of $18,000 at full price, a saving of $900. The same 5% comes off whatever your tuition is after financial aid and any state funding.
What does tuition cover?
Everything Recess delivers: the classes, the platform, progress reports, and tutoring support between classes. We add no registration, materials, or fundraising fees. If your child enrolls through a partner school in our network, that school's enrollment agreement carries its own terms, and you see them before you commit.
Can my child switch classes?
Yes, anytime as their interests move. Electives are picked with your child, and the schedule adjusts as they go.
Can my child take more electives?
Yes. Tuition includes three live electives a week, and you can add more whenever you like for $160 a month per elective. Each one is a weekly live group class of 5 to 10 kids.
Is Recess a school?
Recess can run your kid's whole school day or just part of it: live academics in small pods, electives, tutoring, and a daily community. Recess itself operates as an independent education program today, and our own school is coming soon. For enrollment purposes, most full-time students are enrolled through an accredited partner school in the Recess school network, and Recess delivers the instruction. Day to day, your family works with the Recess team. Some families enroll with Recess directly instead, usually when they do not need an accredited transcript or are not taking our full academic program.
Who handles transcripts, records, and compliance?
When your child enrolls through an accredited partner school in our network, that school issues transcripts and maintains official records, and you sign an enrollment agreement with them as part of joining. What else the school handles depends on your state: in some states it is also your child's school of record and files state reporting, and in others those filings stay with your family. Recess coordinates enrollment and runs point on most questions, and for some administrative matters, like transcript and records requests, your family works with the partner school directly. Families who enroll with Recess directly have no partner school, so transcripts and any state filings stay with the family. We tell you which applies before you enroll.
Is Recess accredited?
Recess is a member of Cognia and is independently pursuing Cognia accreditation. For the current school year, students who need an accredited transcript enroll through a partner school in our network that already holds accreditation, so transcripts and credits come from an accredited institution.
When can we start?
Any month. Enrollment is rolling, and the first week is built around orientation and finding the right cohort.