# TakeLessons

> TakeLessons was a San Diego education marketplace that connected learners with independent teachers for music, languages, tutoring and other skills, online and in person. It paired discovery and booking with instructor scheduling and payment tools, added subscription group classes, and was acquired by Microsoft in September 2021. The service closed on November 15, 2024.

- **Founded:** 2006
- **Headquarters:** San Diego, United States
- **Founders:** Steven Cox (Co-founder and CEO), Chuck Smith (Co-founder and VP of Technology), Chris Waldron (Co-founder and VP of Sales & Marketplace Operations)
- **Products:** Private lesson marketplace, Instructor business tools, Academic tutoring vertical, TakeLessons Live, TakeLessons TV
- **Notable:** Company reported more than one million lessons and over USD 20 million earned by teachers by March 2014., Expanded from music into academic tutoring, languages and other learning categories., Acquired Betterfly in 2014 and Chromatik in 2017.

## Products & services

- **Private lesson marketplace** — Instructor discovery, booking and payment for individual online and in-person lessons in music, languages, academic tutoring and other subjects. Closed in 2024.
- **Instructor business tools** — Scheduling, billing, payment processing and communication across desktop and mobile.
- **Academic tutoring vertical** — Expansion of the marketplace into school subjects alongside music and performing arts.
- **TakeLessons Live** — Subscription group classes using two-way video, with recorded learning material; acting was added in February 2021. Historical memberships were advertised at $19.95 monthly.
- **TakeLessons TV** — Free learning classes referenced in the company’s February 2021 announcement.

## Achievements

- Company reported more than one million lessons and over USD 20 million earned by teachers by March 2014.
- Expanded from music into academic tutoring, languages and other learning categories.
- Acquired Betterfly in 2014 and Chromatik in 2017.
- Acquired by Microsoft in September 2021; transaction price was not disclosed.

## Latest updates

- **2024-08** — New lesson bookings ended on August 15 as the service prepared to close.
- **2024-11** — The platform closed November 15. Microsoft’s closure FAQ says account information became unavailable to view or download directly.
- **2024-11** — Microsoft’s updated closure FAQ provides an accounting contact for payment, refund and prior tax-document questions.

## Links

- Website: https://www.takelessons.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/takelessons.com
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/TakeLessons
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/takelessons
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takelessons/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TakeLessons

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/takelessons
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-30