Kaplan Real Estate School Review (2024): Pricing, Features, Pros & Cons

Over the past 80 years, Kaplan has become an established education provider for dozens of industries, but how well does it serve real estate professionals? In this review, we’re going to take a hard look at the Kaplan Real Estate school and see if it lives up to its goal of providing high-quality content taught by subject matter experts, delivered in a way that meets the needs of its students. 

To help you decide if Kaplan is the right real estate school for you, I reviewed their value and pricing, quality of material, delivery of content, exam prep, and caliber of instructors to see how Kaplan Real Estate matches up to the competition.

Real Tactics Pro Score

Pros

• 80 years of experience
• Top-notch, experienced instructors
• Variety of course formats
• Live online option
• Flexible class schedules
• Study groups

Cons

• Mobile experience is not great
• Content could be more engaging
• Expensive
• Limited live in-person option
• Dated website interface

Real Tactics Pro Score

4.6

Value:

5.0

Customer support:

5.0

Student experience:

4.5

Features:

5.0

Reputation:

5.0

User interface:

4.3

out
of

5

My Verdict on Kaplan

After thoroughly reviewing Kaplan Real Estate School’s offerings and testing their platform for myself, I am happy to recommend it for real estate prelicensing coursework. I especially like that the courses are designed for various learning styles, which is not always the case with other education providers.

However, some Kaplan packages are on the more expensive side, most include their exam prep (which is nonetheless excellent). It’s not the most dynamic online experience, especially on mobile, but if you’re looking for a school that boasts some of the most qualified instructors in the industry and class formats that fit your schedule, Kaplan Real Estate could be the ideal real estate school for you

What Is Kaplan Real Estate?

For the past 80 years, Kaplan, the parent company of Kaplan Real Estate, has built an education empire that includes everything from SAT prep to home inspector courses. Kaplan Real Estate is an education provider that operates in 27 states, offering prelicensing, post-licensing, exam prep, continuing education, and broker education. Kaplan has been in the education business for decades and has a strong reputation within the real estate industry. While its course offerings are varied, we’ll focus this review on their prelicensing courses—those necessary for real estate agents to become licensed in their state.

Kaplan Course Length

In terms of how long it will take you to complete prelicensing classes with Kaplan, it depends on the number of hours your state requires and how quickly you can tackle the material. Florida, for example, requires 63 hours of coursework. Michigan requires 40 hours, and Texas students need a whopping 180 hours. Some people may be able to take courses full time and knock it out in a few weeks, while others might need a few months. Be aware that Kaplan has a course expiration policy of six months, which means you have a limited time to absorb its lessons.

Kaplan Real Estate Pass Rates

Kaplan does not publish its pass rates, and very few states make this information publicly available. However, Texas reports a 56% pass rate for Kaplan students and that same figure is 62% in North Carolina (note that Kaplan is listed as DF Institute). These may seem low, but they are pretty on par with other national schools operating in these states. For comparison, Colibri students also have a 56% pass rate in Texas.

Kaplan Customer Support

The Kaplan website has a chatbot ready to answer simple questions, and the technical team is on hand to answer questions via email 24/7 or by phone during business hours. Currently enrolled students may email questions about lessons to their instructors and expect an answer back the next business day. This is similar to the support offered by other big national education providers.

Kaplan Pricing for 2024

The cost of Kaplan Real Estate courses varies depending on your state and the education package you choose; it ranges from $160 to $1,100. This is on par with some providers, such as Colibri and The CE Shop, but on the higher side compared to budget options like RealEstateU. 

Since each state requires a different number of prelicensing class hours to get a real estate license, each Kaplan course will vary in terms of price, length, and content. While Kaplan is on the pricier end, we feel like the cost is well worth it. 

In terms of packages, Kaplan offers three class formats (in most states), plus some additional add-ons like its popular Career Launcher program. These formats include:

• Home Study
• OnDemand
• Live Online

We’ll describe each in detail, but first, here are the costs of each of the Kaplan programs in some of the most populated states in the U.S.:

Kaplan Real Estate Program Costs: California

Kaplan Real Estate Program Costs: Texas

Kaplan Real Estate Program Costs: New York

Walk-through Video

Curious about what’s like to be a Kaplan Real Estate Education student? In this video, I’ll share with you my all-access pass to Kaplan’s OnDemand class. Your experience will vary slightly depending on your state (I chose a course from the great state of Minnesota to try out). But I wanted to give you an idea of what to expect with Kaplan OnDemand when you sign up.

Key Standout Features

When selecting a prelicensing education program, it’s important to note that Kaplan has a few features that make it stand out from the pack. Here are my favorites: 

Variety of Course Formats

Kaplan Real Estate offers three course formats for your prelicensing real estate education: Home Study, OnDemand, and Live Online. Assuming all three are available in your state, you can choose the format that best suits your learning style. 

Most providers choose one course format and stick with it. For example, RealEstateU, which is an inexpensive education provider, often just provides PDFs, so there’s a lot of reading and not much (if any!) interaction with instructors. The CE Shop (which costs about the same as Kaplan) has a more varied approach to their content delivery, but it’s rare that they offer a live option. I like that Kaplan has a little something for every student and learning style and the options are priced accordingly. I’ll also mention that Kaplan takes care to hire experienced instructors, ones who have decades of actual real-world real estate experience.  

Home Study 

This is Kaplan’s textbook-based, self-paced option for learners who absorb information well by reading. With Home Study, you’ll guide yourself through multiple PDF textbooks, completing the reading, worksheets, and quizzes. You’ll also have access to Kaplan’s Real Estate Interactive Study Groups, which are weekly webinars where students ask their instructors questions and coordinate with other students to study together.

OnDemand

If you prefer a video-based course, Kaplan’s OnDemand learning format is a hybrid curriculum of video content taught by expert instructors combined with text, along with supplemental information, activities, and quizzes. Plus, you’ll have access to the Interactive Study Group webinars mentioned above. This package also includes an interactive exam prep workbook called OnDemand Review.

Live Online

If you need the structure of scheduled classes and want real-time access to expert instructors, Kaplan’s Live Online environment lets you join a real class with a live instructor and other students, interacting in real time—but from the comfort of your own home. The materials for this package are almost the same as those in the other two packages, but delivered in a virtual classroom. Even though this tends to be the most expensive Kaplan option when it comes to real estate prelicensing, this is my pick in terms of Kaplan formats.

Interactive Study Groups

Kaplan Real Estate is one of the only schools to offer interactive study groups. These live webinars, specifically designed with online and home study students in mind, are offered weekly and create direct access to other students and instructors. It’s a great opportunity to review course material, ask questions, and learn from each other. 

Career Launcher

Most prelicensing real estate schools teach to the test. They give you all of the information you need to pass your exam, but virtually nothing about how to actually start your real estate business. Kaplan’s Career Launcher package answers the “now what?” question. It includes an eight-hour course called Real Estate Accelerator, which teaches what you need to start your real estate business.

It also often includes Career Mentor Live Online Connect, which is a weekly webinar packed with tips and tools (and a chance to ask questions) to help you get the most out of courses and prepare you for your career. The Carnegie Career Launcher is one more option that includes a course based on Dale Carnegie’s 30 principles to winning friends and influencing people.

Where Is Kaplan Real Estate Prelicensing Available?

Kaplan Real Estate is currently available in about half the U.S., although some states have more limited package selections than others. Though we’d love to see Kaplan expand, they do offer options for the most populated areas in the country, making them a valid choice for many would-be Realtors (note that Kaplan has partnered with Bob Hogue School of Real Estate in Florida).

Use our interactive map to see what’s available in your state:

Kaplan Alternatives 

Obviously, Kaplan Real Estate School is not the only game in town. There are education providers to fit every budget and learning style. Consider these four national providers, or refer to our state-specific guides to see what school we recommend for your state.

The Bottom Line: Is Kaplan Worth the Money?

Yes. In most states, Kaplan is a more expensive option than some of the competition. It also gets relatively poor marks for content delivery, user interface, and its mobile option. Students complain that there is too much reading (although every prelicensing course I’ve reviewed has lots and lots of reading) and not enough innovative student engagement. 

However, Kaplan has been in business a long time and its systems have been tested and proven. The variety of course formats provides plenty of content delivery options and its instructors are some of the best and most experienced in real estate education.

It can also be a bonus to go with a larger company that does post-licensing and continuing education, so that all of your educational records are tracked in one place. Pair all of that with the company’s study groups and career launcher program that help students plan to actually start and operate a real estate business, and Kaplan is a solid choice for prelicensing education. 

Methodology

When I was a senior instructor for Kaplan Test Preparation, I taught in classrooms and online. It’s fair to say that with my real estate background, coaching expertise, and teaching experience, I’ve got a unique perspective on online real estate education. You can count on my Kaplan Real Estate review to be thoughtful and objective both from a real estate and a professional test prepper’s standpoint.

Specifically, when I evaluate a real estate school, I’m looking at:

• The education provider’s accreditation
• Pricing and value for money
• Specific packages offered
• The diversity of course offerings
• Customer support
• Access to instructors
• Scheduling flexibility
• Content delivery options
• Continuing education options
• Networking and career placement opportunities
• Expertise of instructors

We use these questions and more to put together our weighted scoring rubric. And that, along with my own decades of experience and expertise, make this a comprehensive review. 

Bringing It All Together

Kaplan Real Estate School isn’t perfect, but after years reviewing education providers, I know that none of them are. Kaplan does have a stellar reputation with 80 years of experience. It has thousands of graduates who have gone on to pass their exam and launch successful careers. If you’re looking for a school where the instructors live what they teach and one that offers a wide diversity of learning platforms, Kaplan is an excellent choice. 

Do you have experience with Kaplan? Any specific questions? Let us know in the comment section!