Coaching Actuaries Alternatives — Free Practice Problems for Actuarial Exams
Coaching Actuaries is the dominant actuarial exam prep provider, and their ADAPT platform has helped thousands of candidates pass exams. But at \$300-\$500 per exam, the cost adds up quickly — especially for students and early-career candidates paying out of pocket.
This guide honestly compares the major actuarial study platforms, highlights where free alternatives match or exceed paid options, and helps you decide where to spend your limited study budget.
The Actuarial Exam Prep Landscape
There are five main categories of actuarial exam prep:
- Full platforms (video + manual + practice): Coaching Actuaries, The Infinite Actuary
- Study manuals with practice problems: ACTEX/ASM
- Video-only courses: some YouTube-based instructors
- Free practice platforms: FreeFellow
- Official SOA resources: sample questions, study notes
Most candidates use a combination. The question is which combination gives you the best preparation for your budget.
Coaching Actuaries: Strengths and Limitations
Strengths
- ADAPT's Earned Level system provides a concrete, well-calibrated measure of exam readiness
- Video lessons by experienced instructors cover topics thoroughly
- Large question bank for each exam
- Strong community and brand reputation
Limitations
- Pricing: \$300-\$500 per exam for a typical bundle. Across six preliminary exams, that is \$1,800-\$3,000.
- Time-limited access: most subscriptions expire after a set period. If you do not pass, you pay again.
- Bundled pricing: you often pay for video content even if you only need practice problems.
- No free tier: there is no way to try the platform meaningfully before purchasing.
FreeFellow: The Free Alternative
FreeFellow provides a question bank and practice platform that covers all six SOA preliminary exams with zero cost. Here is how the features compare:
| Feature | Coaching Actuaries | FreeFellow |
|---------|-------------------|------------|
| Price | \$300-\$500/exam | Free |
| SOA Exams Covered | P, FM, FAM, SRM, ALTAM, ASTAM | P, FM, FAM, SRM, ALTAM, ASTAM |
| Total SOA Questions | ~1,500-2,500/exam | 1,000-1,140/exam |
| Readiness Scoring | ADAPT Earned Level | Readiness Score (0-10) |
| Adaptive Practice | EL-based selection | Weakness-targeted selection |
| Practice Exams | Full simulations | Full simulations (30 MCQs, 3 hrs) |
| Analytics | Performance dashboard | Topic accuracy, difficulty, trends |
| Study Plans | Manual scheduling | Auto-generated from exam date |
| Video Lessons | Comprehensive | Not included |
| Flashcards | Not included | Spaced repetition built in |
| Non-SOA Exams | Limited | CFA, CFP, CPA (18 exams total) |
Where FreeFellow Matches Coaching Actuaries
Practice questions and solutions — FreeFellow's 6,300+ SOA questions cover every syllabus topic at three difficulty levels, with detailed step-by-step solutions. For the core study activity — working problems and learning from mistakes — the experience is equivalent.
Readiness tracking — Coaching Actuaries uses Earned Level; FreeFellow uses a readiness score that incorporates accuracy, difficulty mix, topic coverage, and recency. Both give you an objective measure of how prepared you are.
Adaptive practice — both platforms select questions based on your performance, focusing effort on weak areas.
Where Coaching Actuaries Has the Edge
Video instruction — if you need a teacher to walk you through concepts, Coaching Actuaries provides structured video lessons. FreeFellow is a practice platform, not a course.
Larger question banks per exam — Coaching Actuaries has more questions per exam (though the difference matters less than you might think — completing 1,000 unique problems is already more than most passing candidates do).
Established Earned Level benchmarks — years of data correlate specific Earned Levels with pass probabilities. FreeFellow's readiness score is newer.
Where FreeFellow Has the Edge
Price — this is not a minor advantage. \$0 vs \$1,800-\$3,000 across all exams is a meaningful financial difference, especially for students.
Breadth — FreeFellow covers 18 exams across SOA, CFA, CFP, and CPA. If you are pursuing multiple credentials, one platform covers all your practice needs.
Flashcards with spaced repetition — built-in flashcard review is particularly useful for conceptual topics that benefit from repeated exposure over time.
Other Alternatives Worth Considering
The Infinite Actuary (TIA)
- Pricing: \$250-\$400 per exam
- Strengths: Well-produced video content, experienced instructors, good explanations
- Limitations: Smaller question bank than Coaching Actuaries, less adaptive practice technology
ACTEX / ASM Study Manuals
- Pricing: \$100-\$200 per exam
- Strengths: Comprehensive written material, hundreds of practice problems per manual, good reference for formula sheets
- Limitations: Static (no adaptive difficulty), no analytics or readiness tracking, no timed practice exam simulation
SOA Sample Questions
- Pricing: Free
- Strengths: Written by the exam committee, most representative of actual exam style
- Limitations: Limited quantity (300-400 per exam), no adaptive features, no performance tracking
The Optimal Strategy for Budget-Conscious Candidates
Based on how study resources actually map to exam readiness, here is a cost-effective approach:
- Use FreeFellow as your primary practice platform for all six exams — 6,300+ questions with adaptive practice, analytics, and readiness scoring at no cost.
- Add the SOA sample questions as supplementary practice — these are free and highly representative.
- If you want video instruction, consider buying a video-only package from one provider for your weakest exam, rather than purchasing full bundles for every exam.
- Use free textbooks (Marcel Finan for P/FM, ISLR for SRM) to fill knowledge gaps.
This approach gives you comprehensive exam prep for \$0-\$250 total across all six exams, compared to \$1,800-\$3,000 for a full Coaching Actuaries subscription.
The Most Important Thing
Regardless of which platform you choose, the research is clear: the number of practice problems you complete is the strongest predictor of exam success. A candidate who works 1,500 problems on a free platform will outperform a candidate who buys a premium subscription and only completes 500 problems.
Start building your problem count today with FreeFellow's free actuarial practice questions.