Find The Best Online English Teaching Company For You & Start Earning $$$ Today
Teaching English online has exploded over the last few years with more and more people turning towards this flexible lifestyle as a career or to earn extra cash as a side hustle.
With 100s of companies out there, it’s hard to know which online teaching site is right for you. So, I’ve put together a list of the best online English teaching companies with all the salaries, scheduling and qualifications you’ll need to know.
If you have any questions about applying for these companies, feel free to leave me a comment at the end of this article. : )
To make it as clear as possible, all salaries are in US dollars per hour and time zones are in Beijing time (GMT+8) unless otherwise stated.
Let’s dive in!
Amazing Talker is a teaching platform where you set your hours, rates and create your own materials. This is a great site for experienced teachers who regularly create materials for students of all ages. Amazing Talker currently uses Zoom to conduct lessons.
To become a teacher on Amazing Talker create a profile and an introduction video and then choose your interview time. You don’t need to have a degree in teaching, though teaching experience is necessary and certification is preferable.
Students choose teachers depending on their preference, so it does take a while for the students and money to start rolling in. When you’re new to the platform, it’s a good idea to have lower introductory rates to attract new students.
If you’re reading this as a non-native English speaker, Amazing Talker also hires tutors of other languages, like French and Vietnamese. So it’s well worth checking out their site.
Payment: Set Your Own Rates. Average rate $27 (25 + 50 Min Lessons)
Nationalities Accepted: All with fluent English
Pupil Types: Adults & Children
Minimum Hours Required: No
Benefits: Control Over Working Hours, Flexibility, High Pay
2. Likeshuo
Likeshuo specialises in teaching adults in China through their own online teaching platform. They provide all materials so there’s no preparation involved. You will need a TEFL or equivalent certificate to teach with Likeshuo and be available for 10 hours a week, though this is flexible.
Lessons are 45 minutes long and are either 1 on 1 or up to 4 students per class. There are occasional lecture-style ‘Metro’ classes with up to 15 students where you teach the lesson without student interaction. You’re paid a regular rate for this, though fortunately, these classes are rare.
The great thing about Likeshuo is that you can open slots 24/7 so you’ll be able to teach whatever timezone you’re in.
Payment: $14-16 (45 Min Lessons)
Nationalities Accepted: UK / US / CAN / SA / AUS / NZ
Pupil Types: Adults
Minimum Hours Required: 10 Hours Per Week
Benefits: Wechat Support, Teaching Incentives, Flexible
3. iTutorGroup
iTutorGroup is one of the most popular teaching companies out there at the moment and there’s a reason. They’re known for their full teaching schedules and high pay, providing you meet their requirements.
To teach with iTutorGroup you need to have a bachelor’s degree, a TEFL certificate and 1-year teaching experience. They expect high standards and professionalism from their teachers so go to the interview prepared for this.
In terms of flexibility, you set your own schedule provided it covers the 10 peak hours which are Monday – Friday 19:30-20:30 and at the weekends 8:30-10:30 am, 13:30- 14:30,19:30-20:30 Beijing time. Four of your peak hours should be over the weekend.
Payment: $14-22 (25 + 45 Min Lessons)
Nationalities Accepted: All Native Speakers
Pupil Types: Adults & Children
Minimum Hours Required: 10 Hours Per Week
Benefits: 24/7 Teaching Schedule, Flexible, High Pay
I’ve worked for Bibo since November 2016 and enjoy the freedom that working for them gives me. The majority of my pupils are Japanese, Taiwanese and Korean, who are lovely, courteous and polite students to teach. When you work at Bibo you have complete control over your schedule, so you can work as much or as little as you like.
Bibo is a managed teaching experience where they provide all the materials and have excellent teacher support. So its a gentle, hand-holding teaching experience with no preparation on the teacher side. They provide extensive training, materials and a robust support system. It’s hassle-free online English teaching which you can pick up whenever it suits you.
Payment: $10 Per Hour (via Bank Transfer)
Nationalities Accepted: All with fluent English
Pupil Types: Adults & Children (Mainly Adults)
Minimum Hours Required: No
Benefits: Paid Training, Reliable Platform, Great Support
Looking for more Bibo information? Well lucky you, I’ve written up the Bibo Ultimate Guide explaining everything as well as my personal experiences with Bibo. Check it out – Ultimate BIBO Teaching Guide.
If you found this guide useful & wanted to say thank you when you apply for Bibo if you could enter U0800 under ‘referred by’ I would forever grateful!
5. Verbling
Verbling is different from sites like Likeshuo and Bibo because it is an online teaching platform which allows you to set your rates and schedule. The application process is stricter as they require a teaching degree and a TEFL or equivalent qualification. If you have these qualifications it’s worth applying as you can earn some serious money by setting your own lesson rates.
If you have a TEFL or similar qualification and have experience teaching English as a second language, then you should apply! You’ll enjoy teaching with Verbling if you’re confident at creating teaching materials and like having complete control over your teaching style and schedule.
Plus, Verbling isn’t just for English teachers. If you speak another language fluently, you can teach it on Verbling as well.
Payment: Set your own rates. 1 hour Lessons
Nationalities Accepted: All Native speakers
Pupil Types: Adults & Children
Minimum Hours Required: No
Benefits: Paid Training, Reliable Platform, Reliable Support System
6. Eigox
Eigox is a Japanese English teaching company who have adult students exclusively from Japan. This is a positive as I’ve found Japanese students to be very polite, kind and hard-working.
Eigox is a great platform if you don’t have any teaching qualifications as anyone who is a native speaker, with teaching experience can apply. They do also employ non-native speakers but expect much lower pay in this role.
Something that I love about Eigox is that they have an option where you can choose how far in advance you can accept lessons. It is normally set to 12 hours but you can lower the time down to 10 minutes if you are at home and ready to teach.
Payment: $11-$22 Natives / $3 Non-Natives (per hour)
Nationalities Accepted: All Native Speakers
Pupil Types: Adults
Minimum Hours Required: 10 Hours Per Week
Benefits: 24/7 Teaching, Flexible, Polite Students
7. SmileABC
If you love teaching kids, have a bachelors degree and want the same schedule each week, then SmileABC is the English teaching company for you.
You’ll be teaching Chinese kids aged between 5-15, though in my experience, the children are mainly age 12 and under. I taught with SmileABC in 2018 and enjoyed having regular students who book your classes each week. This way, you can predict your salary easily each month.
One drawback is that it’s not ideal if you’re looking for flexibility as you can’t change your chosen time slots for 6 months.
Payment: $16-24 Per Hour
Nationalities Accepted: UK / CAN / US / NZ / AUS
Pupil Types: Children
Minimum Hours Required: 6 Hours in Peak Time (6-9pm Beijing time)
Benefits: Good Teacher Support, Regular Salary
8. ALO7
ALO7 is a Shanghai-based English teaching company who focuses solely on teaching English to Chinese children with pre-prepared materials.
The teaching is revising materials that the kids have already learnt at school earlier that day. But don’t worry you won’t be teaching a whole class of kids, your classes will be 1 on 1 or up to 3 children who have the lessons from their home.
If you’re able to commit to a fixed schedule then ALO7 will suit you well. Similarly to Bibo, the materials are also provided, so it’s a hassle-free teaching job.
Payment: $15 (Per Hour)
Nationalities Accepted: UK / CAN / US / NZ / AUS
Pupil Types: Children
Minimum Hours Required: 6 hours a week in their peak hours (recommended)
Benefits: Paid Training, Materials Provided, Great for Teaching Children
9. VIPKid
Good news- VIPKID is currently hiring! As the name suggests this a company who focuses on teaching children. If 8 hours of teaching wailing kids is your nightmare- skip this one! If you don’t mind teaching small people this is a great choice as they are known for their full teaching schedules and high pay.
If you have a bachelors degree, at least 1 year of teaching experience, are legally allowed to work in the US or Canada and love teaching children- then VIPKid is the company for you! They provide all the materials so it’s an easy way for North American teachers to work wherever you like!
Payment: $14-22 (Per Hour)
Nationalities Accepted: USA & Canada
Pupil Type: Children (4-12 years)
Minimum Hours Required: No
Benefits: Flexible Schedule, Good pay rate, Materials provided
10. Whales English
Whales English is a popular choice among experienced English teachers who are happy teaching children. Whales English are known for their high-quality materials like inbuilt songs & interactive games within their platform.
Whales English ask teachers to have a TEFL certificate and it’s desirable but not necessary to have a Bachelor’s degree too.
This is a fixed schedule company where you’ll need to be available for 8 hours a week and have 4 of those hours on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Peak times are 6pm – 9pm on weekdays and 8am- 10pm on weekends (Beijing time).
They have 2 different types of teachers: regular and trial teachers. Regular teachers teach the same students each week and for up to 25 weeks which is the normal course length. Trial teachers teach the same 4 lessons to new students and receive a $5 bonus for each student who signs up. You don’t teach these students regularly.
Payment: $18-$30 (Per Hour)
Nationalities Accepted: All Native Speakers
Pupil Type: Children
Minimum Hours Required: 8 Hours per week
Benefits: High Pay, Pay Rise 6 Months+, Weekend Bonuses $12+
11. ITalki
Unlike the name suggests its not a snazzy new brand of walkie talkies, but an English teaching company which works in a similar to Verbling. What makes Italki unique, is because they have 2 types of teachers: professional teachers and community tutors.
Professional teachers have a teaching degree, a CELTA, TEFL or TESOL certificate and Community tutors are native speakers who don’t have teaching qualifications. Lessons as a community tutor are about general conversation without needing to prepare materials.
iTalki is great if you’re fully qualified or a native speaker who wants to earn some extra money. Bear in mind that community tutors will earn less than qualified teachers.
Payment: Set own hourly rates
Nationalities Accepted: All native speakers
Pupil Types: Adults & children (mainly adults)
Minimum Hours Required: No
Benefits: Fully flexible schedule, Set Your Own Rate, Good Support System
12. Landi
Landi is a Chinese teaching company where you teach children with pre-prepared materials. To work with Landi you’ll need to have a bachelor’s degree and a TEFL or equivalent certificate.
This company is best suited to teacher’s who want a set schedule with regular students every day. Landi requires teacher’s to teach 11am-3pm (Beijing Time) and be available to teach 12 hours a week. Their contracts are 1 year long, so are great for teacher’s who want stability.
You’ll be teaching children between ages of 5-15 years old using Landi’s CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) system which focuses on student-centred teaching.
Payment: $18-$25 (Per Hour)
Nationalities Accepted: US / CAN / UK
Pupil Types: Children
Minimum Hours Required: 10 Hour Per Week / 4 Days A Week
Benefits: Steady Salary, Regular Students
13. Baron’s English
Baron’s English is a London based online English teaching company who have tailor-made courses available for their students. There are a variety of courses from Business English to beginner English for children so there is a mix of adult and child learners.
Baron’s English is a great choice for UK teachers with TEFL or equivalent qualifications living in the UK who don’t want to prepare any materials. If you’re looking for a stress-free way to earn some extra income – this one’s for you!
Payment: $9-$11 (Per Hour)
Nationalities Accepted: UK Only
Pupil Types: Adults & Children (Mainly Adults)
Minimum Hours Required: No (Teaching Hours 6 am- 4 pm GMT)
Benefits: Flexible Schedule, Materials provided, No Minimum Hours
14. Blazaar
*Blazaar is currently closed*
Blazaar is a language teaching company based in Barcelona which has its own teaching platform. Teachers on this site can teach other languages other than English such as French, Spanish and Portuguese. Student’s buy in ‘blazys’, Blazaar’s own currency, and you withdraw ‘blazys’ to pay yourself.
If you have some teaching experience and qualifications and want a flexible schedule then Blazaar is for you! As you need to create your own materials and manage your schedule, this is perfect for a confident English teacher.
Payment: Set your own rate
Nationalities Accepted: All
Pupil Types: Adults & Children (mainly adults)
Minimum Hours Required: No
Benefits: Set your own rate, Flexible Schedule, Reliable Support
I’d love to hear about your experiences as an online English Teacher in the comments below!
Have you applied for any of these online English teaching companies?
Let me know your experiences and post any questions you have in the comments below.
Good Luck! : )