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Magoosh Vs e-GMAT – Which Should You Pick in 2024? 

 November 8, 2022

By  Chuky Ofoegbu

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Before you can set your sights on the perfect business school, you have to get a good enough score on your GMAT to be a competitive applicant. To help you prepare for such an important exam, you may find yourself stressing about which GMAT prep course is best for you, but don’t worry - you’re not alone.

When it comes to selecting the perfect GMAT prep course, many business school hopefuls find the plethora of options overwhelming. Luckily, we’ve done a lot of the legwork for you in order to make your decision-making process a little bit easier. 

In this article, we’re breaking down the similarities and differences between Magoosh and e-GMAT. We’ll provide you with a thorough overview of each company and what their GMAT prep course has to offer. Then, we’ll give you the pros and cons of each and some recommendations to help you make the best decision for your situation.

Overview of Magoosh GMAT Prep Course

When Magoosh came on the scene in 2009, it changed the game for GMAT prep courses. It took the high-quality prep materials that people were paying top-dollar for and made them accessible to a broader audience by going 100% online. Magoosh is known for being an incredible value, and they’re consistently rated as one of the best prep programs out there by users. 

Magoosh provides users with a comprehensive prep program starting at under $220, but they’re so much more than just a budget-friendly option. They offer self-study courses for Math + IR only or a “Premium” self-study plan that provides access to math, verbal, IR, and AWA content. 

For many future test-takers, the prep courses that cost $1,000 or more simply aren’t an option. Plus, when you look at all Magoosh offers, it’s undeniable that they provide incredible value to their users. Of course, to get access to all their content and materials, you’ll have to spring for the Premium option, which is priced at $249.

For anyone who needs a little more personalized attention, Magoosh offers a Guided Study option. This course package includes everything in the Premium package along with six hours of tutoring, one-on-one video chat sessions, and flexible scheduling. The Guided Study course is priced at $799. 

Regardless of which Self-Study plan you go with, you’ll have access to Magoosh’s content and resources for a full year, which is much longer than some of their competitors that only offer a few months of access. 

Pros of Magoosh GMAT Prep Course: 

  • Price: You won’t find another course that offers all the quality content at this price point. 
  • Length of Access: Magoosh lets users access their content for a full year. Compared to some of their competitors that only provide a few months, this can be a huge draw for some students. 
  • Fully Online: There aren’t any books or printed materials to purchase or worry about with Magoosh. 
  • Video Explanations: Magoosh has a video explanation for every question, so you’ll never be left wondering how they got to the right answer. 
  • Score Increase Guarantee: Magoosh offers a 50-point score improvement guarantee - one of the best guarantees we found. They really stand behind their product.
  • Dedicated Mobile App: Because, is it really “on-the-go” exam prep without an app? 

Cons of Magoosh GMAT Prep Course: 

  • Completely Self-Paced: There is no accountability with the self-study courses, so Magoosh GMAT requires you to pace yourself appropriately and determine where you’ll focus your time. This isn’t ideal for every test taker.
  • No Writing Practice: Magoosh doesn’t offer practice testing or grading to prepare for the writing or IR sections, so if that’s something you need, you’ll have to explore other options. 
  • Fewer Practice Tests/Questions: Some of the other prep companies out there offer more practice tests or questions, but in our experience, the 1,300 questions that Magoosh has available are plenty for any test taker. 

Overview of e-GMAT Prep Course

While not as well known as Magoosh, e-GMAT was founded in 2011, and they sought to redefine the way that people prepare for the GMAT. Their claim, that they’ve delivered more 700+ GMAT scores than any of the other GMAT prep companies out there, is one of the reasons they’re highly rated among users. 

In fact, on their website, e-GMAT posted that users have reported up to 10 times more 700+ scores compared to their competitors. With a claim like that, we had to take a closer look! 

e-GMAT offers three different plan options, starting at just $199. So, they’re a good comparison to Magoosh when it comes to budget and value. 

Their GMAT Online Focused plan ($199) gives users two months of access to their online content and materials and 24-hour customer support. e-GMAT recommends this plan for students who have scored at least a 620 and are looking for a score improvement of up to an additional 120 points. 

The next plan option is the GMAT Online Intensive package ($299), which provides four months of access. This plan is recommended for students who have scored at least a 500 on the GMAT previously and are looking to score 700+ next time. 

The third option is the GMAT Online 360 plan ($399), which gives the user six months of access and is designed for students with a starting score of 400+ and are looking to score at least a 700 next time. This program is best for those who need to go back to the basics and learn everything. e-GMAT claims that this plan will give you all the tools you need to earn a 740+ on your exam. 

Once you sign up with e-GMAT, you’ll get a personalized study plan, access to weekly onboarding sessions to ensure that you use their program effectively, 35 hours of foundational concepts, and over 150 hours of core concept learning. 

They’ll give you access to over 4,500 practice questions, over 90 quizzes, and five practice tests. 

Pros of e-GMAT Prep Course: 

  • Price: e-GMAT plans are priced at under $500, which is a bargain compared to many of their competitors. 
  • 24-Hour Customer Support: As a response to user feedback, e-GMAT implemented 24-hour access to their support team. Their team can assist users with issues related to their study plan, subject matter questions, help with improving a score, and future study planning. 
  • Amount of Practice: With over 4,500 practice questions and 5 practice tests, e-GMAT provides users with ample opportunities to try out their learned skills. 
  • Customized Study Plan: With their study planner tool, e-GMAT allows you to have a personalized sequence to study and how much time you should spend on each section. 
  • Non-Native English Speakers: Reviews from various users indicate that e-GMAT is a lifesaver for test-takers who are non-native English speakers and helps to clarify the verbal concepts necessary for the GMAT. 

Cons of e-GMAT Prep Course: 

  • Length of Access: With options for two, four, or six months, e-GMAT might not be the best option for test-takers looking to get an early start on their exam prep, especially when you compare it to the full-year of access Magoosh offers. 
  • No Individualized Instruction: There’s no option for private tutoring or further individualized instruction, so if you want (or need) a boost of accountability, you’ll need to find a tutoring option elsewhere. 
  • No Score-Improvement Guarantee: Though e-GMAT boasts about their 700+ scorers and big score improvements, they don’t offer any guarantees that you’ll have that level of success. However, they do offer a seven day trial period where you can get a refund if you’re not happy with the product. 

Magoosh GMAT vs. e-GMAT Comparison

Both Magoosh and e-GMAT offer excellent value for their products. They provide on-demand, fully-online, comprehensive study options for anyone who is looking to improve their skills to prepare for the GMAT. Both companies provide video-based learning and study plan recommendations. 

However, despite their similarities, these two prep companies are still quite different in terms of user experience, content, and materials, just to name a few. 

User Experience 

Magoosh and e-GMAT are both 100% online, but their content delivery and user experience are quite different. As fully-online courses, both platforms rely heavily on video lessons and breakdowns to explain concepts. Magoosh uses a slideshow style video format with whiteboard effects to further clarify and give examples. Live narration helps to explain the material with a classroom-like approach. 

e-GMAT uses videos and text-based explanations to teach and review concepts. The delivery is a little drier than what you see with Magoosh and overall seems to have a slightly lower production value. Still, the material and content is good quality. 

In addition to the video lessons, Magoosh offers a detailed video explanation for every question. So, if you didn’t get the correct answer, you can get information and a review to understand why you missed it. These video explanations are one of the most valuable components for Magoosh users. They’re simple, quick, and they add more tools to your toolbox that you can easily pull out on test day. 

When you log on to Magoosh, you can easily check your progress and navigate from your dashboard. At a glance, you can see what your scores look like based on your practice question performance, and you can quickly link to lessons that Magoosh recommends. The suggestions are somewhat adaptive and are based on how you’ve been doing, so you don’t continue to spend time where you’re performing well at the expense of topics that may need more attention.

Winner: Magoosh

When it comes to the user’s experience, Magoosh is the clear winner. Their videos and content have better production value and add to the overall user experience. e-GMAT is more simple and straightforward, but it doesn’t provide the same level of detail and attention as Magoosh. Not to mention, Magoosh has a dedicated mobile app which enhances the user’s experience even more while on-the-go. 

Price and Value 

Both Magoosh and e-GMAT offer low-cost alternatives to some of the more expensive big names in exam prep. To get a better idea of how they stack up, let’s take a closer look at what exactly each company provides in each price point. 

To make the comparison more even, we’re going to look at Magoosh’s Self-Study Premium, which is priced at $249, and the 6-month 360 plan offered by e-GMAT, which is priced at $399. 

Magoosh GMAT Self-Study Premium ($249) Includes:

  • One year of access
  • Access to Math, Verbal, IR, and AWA
  • Two practice tests
  • Over 340 video lessons
  • Over 1,300 practice questions
  • Study schedules
  • 50-point score improvement guarantee
  • Online whiteboard
  • Ability to pause your plan
  • Ask an expert

e-GMAT Online 360 ($399) Includes:

  • Six months of access
  • Comprehensive GMAT content (Quant and Verbal) 
  • Over 185 hours of video lessons
  • Five practice tests
  • Over 4,500 practice questions 
  • Over 90 quizzes
  • Five practice test
  • Personalized study plan 
  • Three months access to GMAT Club practice tests 
  • Customized quiz engine

So, for a price difference of about $150, you can see that e-GMAT actually provides quite a bit more content. However, it’s with only six months of access to the materials, as opposed to Magoosh’s year of access. 

Still, for many people the ability to practice by doing mock tests, quizzes, and drills is essential to their success on the GMAT. e-GMAT offers significantly more opportunities to practice the skills that they learned. Additionally, the custom quiz engine allows you to create quizzes that focus on the areas that you need to work on the most, so you can focus your valuable time on your weak areas. 

However, Magoosh still offers something that e-GMAT does not, and it's an extremely valuable feature for many test-takers: a score improvement guarantee. With the investment in Magoosh, you also purchase a 50-point score improvement guarantee. Magoosh is so confident that you’ll improve your GMAT score with their prep course that they’ll give you your money back if you don’t score at least 50 points higher than your existing official score. 

Winner: It’s a tie!

When it comes to price and value, Magoosh and e-GMAT both offer a winning prep course for their users. In this case, it comes down to whether you assign greater value to more practice questions and tests or a score-improvement guarantee and slightly superior user experience. We think that both of these companies offer an excellent product at an unbeatable price. 

Magoosh Vs e-GMAT - Our Recommendations 

You could purchase either one of these prep courses and get access to top-notch, quality GMAT prep materials at a bargain price. Both companies offer fully-online, comprehensive, adaptive materials. However, there are some situations where one may be better for you than the other. 

We recommend Magoosh if…

  • You want the option to add tutoring. 
  • You prefer more thorough video explanations and breakdowns for each question. 
  • You want access to a mobile app. 
  • You’re starting your GMAT prep more than 6 months prior to your exam date. 
  • A score improvement guarantee is important to you. 

We recommend e-GMAT if…

  • Your goal is to score 700+. 
  • You don’t care about a score improvement guarantee. 
  • You want as many practice questions and practice tests as possible. 
  • You’re not a native English speaker. 
  • You really need to improve your verbal score. 
  • Your exam date is within the next 2-6 months. 

The Bottom Line

Choosing the right GMAT prep course doesn’t have to be as stressful as applying to business school. Taking the time to look at what each company and plan has to offer can help you to decide which one is best suited for your situation.

Ultimately, the best way to decide is to try them out. Most of these companies offer free or no-risk trials, including both Magoosh and e-GMAT. So, sign up, watch some video lessons, do some practice questions, and see what you think. If you decide that it’s not for you, cancel the services and try a different one. You’re bound to find a prep course that’s a good fit for your needs and learning style. 

Chuky Ofoegbu


Chuky Ofoegbu is a thought leader and founder of Sojourning Scholar, a platform that empowers international students with the tools and knowledge for success in U.S. higher education.


With extensive experience and a profound understanding of the academic landscape, his insights shape the future of student advising. He has been quoted in major publications including Forbes, CNN, Yahoo, and MSN.


He holds degrees in Engineering from The Ohio State University and The University of Texas at Austin. For a deeper dive into his influential work and strategies, visit the About Page.

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