Looking for a flexible company where you can teach online with no experience and without a degree? Preply tutoring might be a good fit for you!
I recently learned about Preply from a friend who wanted to teach but didn’t have formal credentials. She made a Preply tutor account and has been teaching online ever since! After hearing her positive Preply review, I decided to do a bit of research and put together this post in case you’d like to give them a try too!
If you want to teach online for a company with no nationality requirements, no degree requirements, and no experience needed, Preply might be a good fit for you.
About Preply
Preply is an online teaching marketplace. With over 100,000 students per year around the globe, Preply prides itself on connecting people in a supportive learning environment. While most people use Preply for learning languages, you can actually choose to teach or study a number of subjects.
Preply tutors can offer lessons in any language in which they are native or fluent. Tutors can also offer lessons in subjects like chemistry, math, art, and music.
Teachers make a profile on the Preply website and students on the platform can browse through potential tutors. Students can find you based on your price, previous student reviews, bio information, and availability.
If a student likes your profile, they can book a lesson or package of lessons with you. You’ll be able to work out all the details on the Preply platform and then have a video call with your new student.
What Do Preply Tutoring Lessons Look Like
The default lesson time for your first lesson with a new student is one hour. Students pay for packages in 5, 10, 15, or 20 hours, so it makes sense to offer classes in hour increments.
Preply lessons are taught through Skype. You’ll be able to communicate with your student on the Preply platform before the lesson start time to find out what they are interested in learning about. This allows you to prepare materials in advance or send them pre-work materials.
Teachers on Preply are responsible for creating their own lesson materials to suit the needs and levels of their students.
See available English tutoring jobs now!
What are the Preply Hours
Preply students and teachers come from all over the world, so the platform is available for teaching 24/7. You can choose when you want to teach and students can book your available time slots.
Preply Requirements For Teachers
Now that we’ve covered how Preply works, you might be wondering about the Preply requirements. This section will cover what qualifications a teacher needs to be hired and the recommended technology.
Preply Tutor Requirements
In order to become a Preply Tutor, you must be a fluent or native speaker in the language you wish to teach. Multiple teaching languages are available and it is also possible to teach a subject that isn’t a language at all, like math, economics, or literature.
Experience teaching or tutoring is not one of the Preply tutor requirements. That being said, having relevant experiences will help make your profile stand out to potential students. Remember that students will be browsing through hundreds of tutors on the platform, so you want to do everything you can to make your profile shine.
Technical Requirements to teach with Preply
Preply lessons are taught through Skype. You’ll need to have a reliable internet connection and a professional, quiet work environment where you can conduct lessons. Because these are video lessons, teachers must have a webcam. A headset with a microphone is preferred for better sound quality.
How much does Preply Pay?
Preply tutors set their own pay rates. On average, tutors charge around $20 per hour, but it is up to you to set a rate that you see fit. I was browsing through tutor profiles while writing this post and I saw English teachers charging anywhere from $10 – $40 USD per hour.
The Preply platform is free to use, but it comes with a slight catch. Preply takes 100% of the lesson fee for each lesson you teach with a new student.
After that initial lesson, Preply will keep between 33%-18% of the lesson fee as commission. This number goes down the more you teach on the platform. Because Preply will be keeping a cut, make sure to build this into your pricing.
Tutors can receive their money when they choose by clicking the “Withdrawal Money” button in their account. Payments are made via Payoneer, Paypal, or Skrill.
How to Become a Preply Tutor
Signing up to be a Preply Tutor is easy! Follow the steps below and make sure to provide all the information requested as you make your Preply account. Otherwise, your account might be denied without explanation.
- First, make a Preply tutor account by signing up here
- Add a video introduction and information about your teaching experience and background
- Add a profile photo and update your availability to teach
- Make sure to fill in all the requested information completely!
- Submit and wait for approval
Preply Review: Pros and Cons
Best Parts about Preply
I really like how Preply presents an opportunity for teachers on opposite sides of the teaching spectrum. First, this can be a great introductory teaching website where you can get your foot in the door. They don’t have strict signup requirements, which means you can get some experience under your belt in Preply. If other companies haven’t given you a chance to show your skills, Preply could be the answer.
But Preply is also a solid option for teachers who have lots of experience and feel like they are undervalued on platforms that set their hourly rate. Here, your experience could mean a much higher pay rate and more flexibility.
Additionally, I absolutely love that you can teach multiple subjects on Preply! Whether you want to teach English, another language, or another topic entirely, you have that freedom with this platform.
Downsides of Preply
One of the biggest downsides of Preply is that they take 100% of your lesson fee for your first session with a new student. That’s a bummer because it could mean that you teach a lot of lessons for free. While I understand why they take some commission because you get to use the platform for free, 100% seems like a lot.
Second, Preply is really designed for teachers who are prepared to market themselves. You have to spend time making an appealing teacher video and thoughtfully writing your bio so you stand out to students. You’ll also need to respond to student inquiries in a timely manner and prepare thoughtful lesson materials.
Basically, you won’t be matched with students by the platform – acquiring paying clients falls on the teacher.
Who is Preply Best for?
Preply is an interesting platform because of how flexible it is. With very few application and hiring restrictions, you have a good chance of getting approved to teach. But on the flip side, you also have to compete with a lot of experienced educators.
All things considered, Preply is the best bet for those who want a “hands-off” online teaching company. If you want to handle your own lesson planning, set your own price, work your own schedule, and market yourself to students independently, this is a great place to do that.
You won’t receive many teacher resources or trainings, but you will have access to a well-organized platform that will take care of payments, help with scheduling, and give you access to an eager pool of students.
Preply is great for new teachers who are just starting out and need a platform with fewer barriers to entry. It’s also an awesome option for established teachers who want to set higher rates than they can make on a traditional online ESL platform like VIPKID.
Finally, Preply is a great choice if you teach something other than English. With a wide array of languages and other topics like math, design, and art, there’s no end to where you could go as a teacher.
Looking for more websites to teach online?
Check out these company reviews to learn more about the world of online English teaching!
- 12 Companies where you can teach online without a degree: No degree? No problem! Check out these awesome companies and marketplaces
- 8 Companies where you can teach online as a non-native speaker
- iTalki Teacher Review: Teach adults online, open to multiple languages
- Cambly Teacher Review: An awesome conversation platform with adult students around the world
- Outschool Teacher Review: Teach other subjects to English-speaking children! Create your own lessons about whatever topic you’re passionate about!
