about fiveable

why fiveable exists

Fiveable is an independent AP^® study platform for students and teachers. We help people learn course content, practice the work an AP exam asks them to do, and get useful feedback while there is still time to improve.

The platform covers all 38 AP subjects with study guides, exam-style practice questions, FRQ practice with AI scoring, cheatsheets, key terms, score calculators, full-length practice exams, and tools for teachers.

from outside AP to teaching it

In high school, Amanda DoAmaral took one AP class, AP Psychology. AP felt like a place for the "smart kids," and she did not see herself as belonging there. Years later, after studying social studies education at Boston University, she was handed AP World History in her first year teaching in Oakland and wondered whether she was really the right person to teach it.

During five years teaching in Oakland, Amanda taught AP World History and AP Human Geography and served as an AP World History Reader. She learned that AP was demanding, but it was not reserved for a certain kind of student. By the time she left the classroom, AP World enrollment at her school had grown from about 20 students to more than 100.

The bigger change was confidence. Once students saw themselves succeeding in AP, they were more willing to take on challenging classes and imagine new possibilities for themselves. That experience became the reason Fiveable exists.

the classroom that became fiveable

After leaving teaching, Amanda traveled around the world, worked on a congressional campaign in upstate New York, and tried to figure out what came next. Then former students, now taking AP US History, started asking her for help. She began creating resources and live-streaming reviews, the online version of staying after school to go over the material together.

That became Fiveable in 2018. Amanda took a bet on building a classroom that could support far more students than one school could reach. She did not come from technology, design, or marketing, so she learned what she needed to build it. The idea stayed the same: rigorous learning can be hard and still be for you.

That belief also meant protecting what students had access to. In 2018, when the College Board proposed removing history before 1450 from the AP World exam, Amanda joined students and teachers speaking out against the change. Watch her exchange with AP leader Trevor Packer.

what changed and what stayed

Fiveable's early years included live AP review sessions and content created with students and teachers. During COVID, Fiveable became an online learning hub at exactly the moment students needed one. The company later experimented with broader social learning and study rooms before returning its focus to AP. Fiveable ended live streaming in 2024 and now builds self-paced resources that are available whenever students and teachers need them.

Along the way, Fiveable raised funding from Union Square Ventures, Owl Ventures, BBG Ventures, Metrodora Ventures, Serena Ventures, and others. Today, a small, hands-on team works across the product, content, and student and educator support. The format has changed, but the goal has not: help more students see that they belong in rigorous classes and give them the tools to keep going.

how the content is maintained

Fiveable's study-guide library began with work from hundreds of student and teacher creators. Today, the team combines that foundation with AP subject expertise, AI-assisted workflows, evaluations, and quality checks to find errors and keep material organized around current public AP course topics, skills, and exam expectations.

AI is also used in features such as FRQ scoring and feedback. Our AI Transparency page explains where AI is used, how we review it, and what information is sent to model providers.

independent AP support

Fiveable is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or partnered with the College Board. AP^® and Advanced Placement^® are registered trademarks of the College Board. Fiveable organizes independent study resources around public AP course topics, skills, rubrics, and exam formats.

We publish the methodology and limitations behind our student outcome reporting. Read the AP Score Survey Results for the voluntary, self-reported data and the context needed to interpret it.