When looking for the best online tutoring jobs as a way to make some extra money from home, it can be hard to know where to start.
With dozens of companies and tutoring websites out there offering this, it’s easy to feel like there’s no way of knowing which ones are legit and which ones will actually pay you serious money.
Fortunately, we’ve done the hard work by tracking down which ones offer the best opportunities for you to become an online tutor, including helping you see which online tutoring company pays the most as well as their different areas of expertise.
As you’ll see, you don’t even need formal qualifications in each case, although it can help with certain companies.
But with online tutoring being one of the most flexible ways to earn money from home, allowing you to set your own schedule and even, with some companies, your own rates, one of these options should definitely have what you need to start making extra cash in this way, even if you have no experience.
(And if you’re not sure what your hourly rates should be, take a look at our article on how much to charge for tutoring.)
What are the best online tutoring jobs?
1. Chegg Tutors
Check Tutors lets you work in online tutoring jobs with middle school, high school and college students. In fact, they’re particularly interested in you if you have a certain area of expertise or are keen in working with college students.
You can tutor in any subject you prefer more or less, although you do have to currently be enrolled in a four-year university program to qualify. To prove this, they will ask you to provide some sort of verification, such as your transcript.
This means that you don’t actually already need any qualifications, including teaching credentials, in order to get an online tutoring job with Chegg Tutors. That said, having qualifications already can assist when you’re looking to get matched with potential students, as it can help to show off your expertise in a certain subject.
One of the best parts of Chegg Tutors is that you can apply from anywhere in the world. Your pay will also start at $20 per hour, paid weekly via PayPal, with Chegg saying that some of their online tutors are earning more than $1,000 per month.
2. MagicEars
When looking for the best online tutoring jobs for teaching English to overseas students, MagicEars is one of the best.
It involves you teaching English to kids aged between five and 12 years old in China. To qualify, you’ll need to be a native English speaker and be located in either the US or Canada.
Your pay will be anywhere between $18 to $26 per hour, with your income coming through on the 10th working day of each month either via PayPal or bank transfer.
(And if you like the idea of helping foreign students improve their English, you can also see this list of opportunities to teach English online to Japanese students.)
3. VIPKid
VIPKid is another one of the best online tutoring jobs for teaching English to international students. In fact, they’ve consistently been ranked in recent years in the top five of Forbes’ list of the top 100 work from home companies.
Your students will be aged anywhere from four years old to 12 years old, with VIPKid having over 500,000 students on their books. And one of the best parts of VIPKid is that they prepare all the teaching materials for you, which will save you a ton of time in lesson prep.
You have to have a bachelor’s degree to qualify for being a VIPKid tutor, along with a headset with a microphone and a camera – although the built-in one on your laptop is fine.
(This headset is amazingly cheap and has over 9,000 5-star reviews.)
The application process does involve a 30 minute interview as well as a mock class to see how you teach. You’ll also be subject to a background check.
But assuming all that goes well, you’ll be asked to commit to at least a six month contract. VIPKid pays you anywhere from $14-$22 an hour, which is paid by direct deposit to your bank account somewhere between the 10th and the 15th of every month.
4. Tutors.com
Working an online tutoring job with Tutors.com involves helping school students of any age with their homework. This means that you can choose to teach in whichever subject you prefer from a list of topics that include math, science, English, social studies, business, and foreign languages.
You do have to live in the US or Canada to qualify for Tutors.com and you have to be a college sophomore or higher. This means that you don’t necessarily need a college degree already, although it will be required in some cases, making it perfect if you’re looking specifically for online tutoring jobs for college students.
It’s worth mentioning that Tutors.com reviews on Reddit are mixed. They note that everything is done by text or drawing, not by voice, meaning that a few commenters said that they would actually do their own homework or other tasks while getting paid to wait for their student to finish a problem.
At the same time, some concerns were raised about the rating system, as your own score is based on what your students give you, not how you actually perform. In some cases, this meant that if you didn’t just tell a student the answer upfront, they’d give you the lowest score and you’d be stuck.
Your hourly rate will depend on the subjects you tutor and will be set by the tutoring website after you’ve been through the application process. This process involves you taking an exam in your chosen tutoring subject and doing a mock lesson, with the whole thing generally taking up to about three weeks.
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5. QKids
QKids is another great option for anyone looking for online tutoring jobs with international students. Like some of the other options, this involves you teaching English to Chinese students who are between four and 12 years old.
One point that sets QKids apart is that you’ll be teaching groups of between one and four students and will often be able to take the same students each time. While it won’t always be possible, this is a great aspect as it allows you to really build a good rapport with these kids.
Your pay will start at $20 per hour although you can also earn cash bonuses on top of this. You’ll also be asked to commit to teaching at least six hours per week, with each lesson being half an hour long. This makes it perfect for anyone looking for part time work.
To qualify, you have to currently reside and be eligible to work in the US or Canada as well as either being actively enrolled in university or already having a bachelor’s degree. You’ll also have to have some sort of prior experience teaching children, although this can include anything from coaching a sports team to even babysitting.
6. Brainfuse
Brainfuse lets you work in an online tutoring job teaching essentially any standard subject to students from K to 12 as well as in college.
This is actually one of the few options where you don’t have to teach with a webcam and microphone on. Instead, you can tutor using Brainfuse’s “virtual whiteboard“, meaning this could be perfect if you’d rather not appear on screen.
You do have to have a four year degree to qualify for Brainfuse, as well as some prior teaching or tutoring experience. The first step in applying is to send in a copy of your resume and, if Brainfuse believes you meet the criteria, you’ll be sent a registration code which you can enter to continue your application.
7. TutorMe
TutorMe is primarily focused on preparing students for tests. That said, you can also choose to teach more traditional subjects, like history, humanities, math, science, foreign languages or computer science.
But TutorMe is particularly interested in those looking for online tutoring jobs where you work with high school students to help them prepare for standardized tests. This includes, for example, the SAT and ACT.
You can also sign up to tutor college students in preparation for tests such as the MCAT, GRE and LSAT.
Unsurprisingly, given the subject matter, you will need to have some sort of tutoring or teaching experience to qualify here. You’ll also have to be enrolled in or have graduated from a four year degree.
Your earnings will start at $18 per hour, which are paid weekly by PayPal. You can, however, also earn cash bonuses on top of this.
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8. PrepNow Tutoring
PrepNow is one of the best online tutoring jobs for those looking for a more traditional set up. That is, once you qualify, you’ll be assigned to work with the same students one-on-one on an ongoing basis.
This is different from most of the other sites offering online tutoring jobs, where you’re generally paired up with the students who have the same availability as you in a particular week.
Students can range in age from K to 12 and you can tutor in subjects like math, science and more. However, their main focus is on test prep for exams like the SAT, ACT and PSAT.
To start working for PrepNow, you’ll need to have a bachelor’s degree and at least two years of experience in teaching or tutoring. You’ll also need to meet various scoring requirements for standardized tests you’ll be preparing students for.
Once you qualify, you’re asked to commit to a minimum of six hours per week of tutoring and your pay will vary depending on your qualifications.
9. Yup
Yup is a bit different from the other online tutoring jobs in that you’re basically paid to help with individual problems students have, rather than doing set lessons.
How it works is that a student will take a picture of a problem they have and send it to a tutor like you who’s online and available, which can even be on weekends. Your job will then be to look at the problem and help the student work through it to get to the answer.
You’ll be working with kids in anywhere from K to 12 in subjects like math, chemistry or physics. You do have to live in the US to qualify, as well as having at least two years of tutor experience for most subjects.
The application process involves taking an exam in the subject you want to tutor as well as doing a mock lesson to check your teaching skills. This is all done super quickly though, with reports online saying that the entire application process takes less than 24 hours.
Pay rates vary, with your exact rate to depend on your experience, knowledge of the relevant subjects and teaching abilities. Given how the online tutoring jobs with Yup work, you’ll be given a teaching schedule to tell you when you have to be online and ready to help students.
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10. Skooli
Skooli is another site offering online tutoring jobs at any level from elementary school to college students. Subjects you can teach include math, science, business, humanities or foreign languages.
You’ll be required to have at least a bachelor’s degree and some sort of teaching certification or specialist certification relevant to the subjects you want to teach. For example, if you plan to teach a foreign language, Skooli will require you to have a TESOL certificate.
One of the great aspects of Skooli is that you can teach in a range of languages other than English, like Chinese, Spanish or French. This means that you can cater pretty exclusively to students looking for this kind of learning.
The pay rate offered by Skooli easily makes this one of the best online tutoring jobs for making extra money, with your hourly rate being $25 per hour.
11. TutaPoint
TutaPoint is similar to some of the other online tutoring jobs on this list, letting you teach students from elementary to college age in subjects like math, science, social studies in foreign languages.
To qualify, you have to live in the US and have at least two years of tutoring experience in most subjects. You also have to currently be enrolled in or be a graduate from a college in the US or Canada.
Your application process will involve a video interview and background check, including from your references. One thing to also keep in mind is that the pay is a little bit less than some of the other options, starting at around $14 an hour plus various bonuses and other incentives.
There’s also no guarantee in terms of a minimum number of hours, so TutaPoint may work well if you also sign up for other online tutoring jobs on other sites, just to make sure you’re getting the income you’re looking for.
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12. Student Tutor
Student Tutor lets you tutor in almost any standard subject you can think of to students anywhere from K to 12.
You do have to prove that you’re a current student with a GPA of at least 3.0, as well as the fact you have some previous tutoring experience.
Student Tutor is another option for those looking to prepare students for standardized tests, although working in these online tutoring jobs does have some slightly more stringent requirements. In particular, if, say, you are looking to become an SAT tutor, you’ll have to have a score of 700 or higher in each section.
While it’s difficult to find exact numbers online, Student Tutor’s pay is meant to be very competitive and is based on the extent of your experience. It also offers pretty good flexibility in terms of the hours you have to work.
13. StudyGate
StudyGate is going to be one of the best online tutoring jobs for you if you don’t want to work in the traditional way of sitting with students for blocks of lessons.
Instead, how it works is that you’ll be helping students to finish their homework. They’re able to post a question and then tutors basically bid by offering to help students and telling them how much it will cost for that support.
This means that it’s extremely flexible, as you can work as much or as little as you want based on the price you’re comfortable to charge. And you can make serious money doing this, with StudyGate saying that there are some tutors earning more than $13,000 per month.
Even those at the more average end of the earning scale are doing very well, with tutors apparently making between $50 and $200 per question, letting you easily make $200 a day online.
You’ll be working with college age students in almost any subject you can think of. To qualify, you don’t need to have a college degree yet although you will be asked to upload your most recent transcript if you’re still studying. You’ll also need to submit a photo ID and, from there, expect to do an interview over the phone before being accepted.
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14. Wyzant
Wyzant involves you doing online tutoring jobs with students of any age, from elementary school to college level. This means you can also tutor in essentially any subject, including the main ones like math, English, science and foreign languages, as well as test prep.
How it works is that parents (except for college-aged students, who do this themselves) choose their child’s tutor based on the various profiles displayed on Wyzant’s platform. Given that this means you’re basically advertising yourself, it can help to make your profile as detailed and impressive as possible. This includes showing off any qualifications or expertise you have on a certain subject.
Your application process will involve a multiple-choice test of up to 20 questions, which you only get one chance to pass. Once you do pass, you’ll immediately have access to Wisen‘s platform to set up your profile.
You’re able to set your own rate, so the amount you earn is largely up to you. However, it’s worth remembering that Wyzant keeps 25% of what you earn, so make sure you set your hourly rate accordingly.
15. Cambly
While Cambly is, strictly speaking, an online tutoring job, it’s more about getting hired to do English conversation sessions.
That is, you’ll be working with kids of all ages, including college students, to help them practice their speaking skills in English.
This means that the only qualification you need is to be a native English speaker and you don’t even need experience in teaching.
The fact that it’s relatively easy to qualify does make sense when you see the hourly rate, which is a bit lower than some of the others have $10.20 per hour. At the same time, it’s extremely flexible with no minimum working hours so can be a great way to make some extra cash.
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16. Studypool
Studypool is perfect for college students looking for the best online tutoring jobs, as this could very well fit the bill.
How it works is that instead of directly tutoring someone for a set lesson, students post questions that they need help with. It’s then on you to bid a price and a time that you’re available. If the student accepts both, the tutoring session begins then.
There’s also an extra way to make more money through Studypool’s Notebank. This is a platform offered by Studypool where you can sell old documents you’ve prepared, like study guides or course notes. The fact you can simply post these on the platform makes it a great potential source of passive income.
Because of the pricing structure, you can set your own rates, although they just keep in mind that the site does keep a cut of what you earn. You also have to be a college student to qualify but, given the flexibility in terms of when you sign up to tutor as well as how frequently you can choose to do this, this may be perfect for a student who needs to work around their own study schedule.
17. Varsity Tutors
Varsity Tutors involves helping students from elementary to high school, as well as college students. Tutoring can be done in all of the usual subjects, including math, English, science and foreign languages, as well as in SAT prep.
One thing that sets Varsity Tutors apart from the other options is that while you need to be 18 to work as an online tutor, you don’t have to be in college yet. This means that for teens looking for an online job, this could be perfect as long as you meet the other requirements, which include the fact that you have to live in the US.
To see if you qualify, you’ll have to submit a copy of your high school transcript along with some other information in an online application. From there, there’ll be an online interview and possibly a call, followed by a test in the subject you’ll be teaching to make sure you know what you’re talking about.
Tutoring sessions here are a bit longer, at around one and a half hours long. This can, however, be a good way to make sure that you’re tutoring for long enough to earn good money.
It’s completely up to you whether you accept or reject a tutoring session offered to you, but with the hourly rate going up to $30, it may be worth saying yes more times than not given that this is definitely a work at home job that pays well.
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18. Revolution Prep
Revolution Prep is one of the best online tutoring jobs in terms of your possible earnings, given you’ll be earning between $25 and $30 per hour in your first year – as well as extra bonuses you can get. You’ll also be able to get full benefits, just as the icing on the cake.
You’ll be tutoring students from anywhere between sixth and 12th grade in the usual subjects, as well as in preparing for standardized tests like the SAT and ACT.
You do have to have a bachelor’s degree and some teaching experience to apply, which is why the potential earnings are a bit higher. You also have to be from the US in order to qualify.
19. Aim 4 A Tutoring
Aim 4 A Tutoring lets you sign up to tutor students in anything from elementary school to college, with tutors able to work in basically any of the usual subjects.
They do require you to make sure you’ve got the necessary technology in place, including a microphone, as well as confirming that your computer works with Skype.
You also need to have at least a bachelor’s degree that’s broadly related to the subject you want to teach as well as some teaching experience, which is a slightly stricter combination than some of the other options. That said, if you meet these criteria, you know the students who sign up for this service are serious about learning.
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What is the best online tutoring company to work for?
The best online tutoring company to work for is going to depend on what you’re looking for. If it’s simply a question of earnings, Varsity Tutors and Revolution Prep are among the highest. However, if you’re looking more for flexibility, one of the companies that don’t have minimum tutoring requirements and let you pick your own hours may be better.
You can really maximize your flexibility by choosing to tutor with a company where you bid on questions rather than signing up for set lesson periods. For example, StudyGate lets you bid with both the price for your assistance as well as the time you’re available to help. This means you can set your own schedule and your own rates to let students know upfront when you’re available and for how much.
Another way to pick the best online tutoring company to work for is to look for those that specialize in subjects or age groups that you’re interested in tutoring. For example, if you want to limit yourself to tutoring college students, not every company has this. Similarly, if you feel you got a knack for teaching test prep, keep an eye out for those.
How do I become an online tutor?
The process of becoming an online tutor will vary depending on the company, but mostly involves filling in an online application, doing a video interview and, in some cases, passing a test in your chosen subject.
The application process may also involve you confirming and proving that you meet certain requirements, like that you’re currently a college student or that you already have a bachelor’s degree. In those cases, the application will make these criteria clear upfront.
This means you’ll essentially know straight away whether or not you qualify for a specific company, helping you to save time by avoiding those companies where you may not tick all the boxes.
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How do I get paid to tutor online?
You get paid to tutor online in two ways: either you teach at set times that the company provides, based on an hourly rate, or you bid your services in response to students asking for help, setting the price yourself.
The exact one that applies to a specific tutoring company will be made clear upfront and may be useful in helping you to pick a company to work for, based on the payment model you prefer.
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Which online tutoring company pays the most?
While the pay you’ll get will vary depending on your qualifications and what you’re teaching, the online tutoring companies that pay the most on average are Varsity Tutors and Revolution Prep at up to $30 per hour.
That said, it’s important to weigh up the amount you’re earning against the amount of work there is. In some cases, accepting a slightly lower rate may actually be better for you in the long run if a certain company has more work available for you.
For example, MagicEars may “only” pay up to $26 per hour but have thousands of students on their books, making it much more likely that you’ll have students wanting to learn from you at any time you’re available. This could end up meaning you earn far more with them compared to other tutoring websites over time.
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Are online tutoring jobs legit?
Online tutoring jobs are definitely legit. There are students of all ages looking for help in all sorts of subjects and these websites help to connect these students with tutors – at a fee.
It’s essentially the same as an in-person tutoring job, except for the fact that you and the student can be located almost anywhere in the world. Besides this though, online tutoring jobs are just as legit as if you were to do this face-to-face.
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What about international online tutoring jobs?
International online tutoring jobs are just as legit and, actually, are a great way for foreign students to practice their English with native speakers like you.
It also could be a great experience for you, in addition to the fact that you’re earning money. Getting paid to chat with someone from another country and another culture can mean you also learn a lot about a place that you may not be familiar with.
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How do online tutors work?
Online teachers work either by teaching students in their chosen subject at a set time for a few hours per week or by responding directly to students who are looking for help on a certain topic.
The exact way that applies to you will depend on which company you choose to work for. However, these companies’ systems are usually very easy to use, so there really shouldn’t be any difficulties in starting to work as an online tutor.
In some cases, the tutoring websites have a built-in application similar to Skype that lets you chat with students through there. Others may have you working on more of a virtual whiteboard, meaning you only have to write, not talk. And others again have you using Skype or some other more common application.
How much do online tutors charge?
Online tutors generally charge anywhere between $15 and $30 per hour. Your exact earnings will depend upon your expertise, qualifications and the age of your student, given this affects the difficulty of what you’re teaching.
In most cases, your hourly rate will be set by the company based on their review of your qualifications and skills. In some cases, however, you can set your own rate, with them being on students to select whether or not they agree to paying you that.
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Can you be a tutor without a degree?
You can be a tutor without a degree, with some tutoring companies not setting this as a requirement. For example, some of them require you to be a current college student, in which case you won’t have a degree yet.
There are a few tutoring websites where you don’t need a degree at all, especially those where you’re being hired more to help someone practice their English conversation skills.
Best online tutoring jobs where no degree is needed
Some examples of online tutoring jobs with no degree is needed include:
- Magic Ears
- Chegg Tutors
- Tutors.com
- QKids
- Yup
- TutaPoint
Do I need qualifications to be a private tutor?
To be a private tutor and teach people one-on-one with these companies, you will generally need certain qualifications. These vary depending on the requirements of the specific company but can include a bachelor’s degree and some sort of teaching experience, although this can be as simple as training a kids’ sports team.
It’s also going to depend on the age of the students you’re teaching. Perhaps understandably, a college student would want a tutor with some clear qualifications. When tutoring an elementary or middle school student, however, it may not be as necessary to have set qualifications compared to a broader understanding of the subject matter as a whole.
How do I become a tutor with no experience?
To become a tutor with no experience, it’s important to focus on those companies that don’t have this as a requirement. This will probably involve you proving that you already have the skills to be a tutor during your initial interview.
This may mean something as simple as describing how you mentored someone in a previous job, to prove that you have some skills related to tutoring. On the other hand, it may end up being the case that you’re offered a job by one of these tutoring websites at a lower rate because you don’t have the experience yet.
This isn’t the end of the world. In fact, being accepted into something like this can be a great way to build up your experience, with the aim of using this to increase your earnings in the near future.
Final thoughts on the best online tutoring jobs
When looking at this list of the best online teaching jobs out there, it can be hard to narrow them down into the top tutoring websites that you think you’d suit.
This is why it’s good to have some idea of where you want to focus your tutoring. Do you prefer to teach younger kids, for example? If so, keep an eye out for those companies that offer online elementary tutoring jobs.
Or perhaps you’d love to help some foreign students improve their English. In that case, there are plenty of great companies offering exactly this with the flexibility you’re probably looking for.
With a massive range of companies requiring different levels of experience, qualifications and subject matter expertise, there’s going to be something for anyone considering an online tutoring job as their next side hustle.
