Everything you need to know

1. 1

   Create an account

   Sign up with your email and a password. Choose your school from the dropdown. It’s required when you create an account, and it shows on your listings. The security check above the button keeps bots out.
2. 2

   Set your profile

   Your public name starts as “Student” plus a short code. Change it, and your school, on your profile page. You can clear your school at any time.
3. 3

   Browse without an account

   Anyone can look around. You need an account to message students, download PDFs, buy packs, or list something.

1. 1

   Find what you need

   Search by title or subject at the top of the browse page, or use the subject picker and the format and price chips. Subjects run from Algebra 1 through the highest high school level, plus engineering and design.
2. 2

   Open the listing

   Tap a listing’s title or “View details” to open its page. You’ll see the price, the seller and their school, the description, ratings, and any photos. Tap the seller’s name to see their seller page, or use Sellers in the footer to search for a student by name.
3. 3

   Preview a PDF before you buy

   For PDFs, the first page is shown as a preview, with a watermark. The rest of the pack stays locked until you buy or download it, so you can judge the quality first.
4. 4

   Buy, download, or message

   Paid packs use Buy pack and open a secure Stripe checkout. Free PDFs use Download. Physical items use Message seller to arrange a meetup.
5. 5

   Find everything you’ve bought

   Your purchased packs are listed under Your purchased packs, with download and rating buttons. Each download is your personal copy, with a footer naming your account and a unique code. Please don’t share it, since the code can be traced back to you.

1. 1

   Post a listing

   Choose physical item (book, calculator, lab gear) or digital study pack (PDF). Add a title, subject, condition, price, and description. Photos of physical items are optional but help a lot. You can post up to 10 new listings a day.
2. 2

   Upload your PDF

   PDFs must be your own work, or something you have the right to share. Tick the declaration before you post. The first page of your PDF is shown automatically as a preview, so a cover image is optional.
3. 3

   Wait for review

   We review every PDF before it goes live, usually within 2 days, and we scan each file for malware. You can track it in My listings. We may change a price to a fair level (paid packs start at $2) or reject a file with a reason.
4. 4

   Get paid

   For paid packs, TheStudySwap keeps 20% (with a 50¢ minimum) and you keep the rest. Your share is held for 7 days after each sale, or 14 days for your first three sales, so refunds can always be covered. Then it’s paid to your bank through Stripe. My listings shows what’s pending and when it’s released.
5. 5

   Manage your listings

   Edit or remove your listings from My listings. Add photos to physical items at any time. You can see your earnings, a sales chart, and a list of every sale.

• Chat with buyers and sellers inside TheStudySwap. Your email address stays private.
• For your safety, messages that try to share email addresses or phone numbers are blocked.
• You’ll see an unread badge on Messages when someone writes to you.
• Meet in a public place such as school, during the day, and tell a trusted adult where you’re going.

If a paid pack is broken or isn’t what it says, report it with Report a problem within 7 days of buying. You’ll see a countdown on your purchased packs until the window closes. If the pack is faulty, you get your money back. Our refunds page explains the details.

TheStudySwap Premium is $8 a month, billed by Stripe. Members get saved searches with alerts, faster PDF review, a sales export for their records, and a Premium badge and look. Premium doesn’t change what buyers pay, or how listings are ranked. Cancel at any time from the Premium page, and keep access until the end of the month you paid for.

• News: updates, shoutouts, and tips from the team, on the News page.
• Ideas: suggest a big change or vote for one you want on the Ideas board. You can have up to three open ideas at a time.
• Add to your home screen: on a phone, add TheStudySwap to your home screen for quick access. On iPhone, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen. On Android, tap Install when the banner appears.
• Downloads: every download is logged to your account, and each copy carries its own code.
• Announcements: important news, such as a free week, appears in a banner at the top of every page.
• Testing: while payments are being tested, no real money is charged.
• Your profile: set your display name and school on your profile page. You can change them at any time.