Italki Review: Get Paid to Teach Any Language Online (Earn up to $20/hr!)

You know the best part?

You can do this from anywhere in the world.

This is a perfect work from home opportunity for those of us who like to work from the comfort of our own homes.

What is iTalki?

The company promotes itself as a community of teachers and language learners.

It offers teachers and tutors access to more than 3,000,000 eager students interested in learning over 100 different languages.

With a current staff of just over 5,000 teachers, the need exists, for people like you to carry some of the educational load.

The great news for you is that you can earn money by teaching English and many other languages to interested language learners from across the globe.

Because you would be working with people from other countries, and other time zones, you can choose the hours you want to work.

Even if you’re only available in the wee hours of the morning where you live, you may find some eager learners in other countries during that time slot.

Do I need special skills or certifications?

There are some requirements for roles as a professional teacher through iTalki as well as for the role of a community tutor.

• Teacher requirements: To make money as a professional teacher, you must be professionally certified to teach your languages as a foreign or second language and/or have experience doing so.
• Community tutor requirements: To make money as a Community Tutor all you need are two things – be 18 years of age or older and enjoy teaching informally.

Teachers must provide scanned documents establishing their credentials to teach their specific languages.

Here’s the best part…

You can set your own prices!

Keep in mind, though, when setting your prices that there are laws of supply and demand that will affect how many students are willing to pay that price.

Do I need special equipment?

You won’t need to buy special language equipment or expensive software to teach here.

You will need to have a few key pieces of equipment, though, including:

1. A computer, laptop, or tablet.
2. An Internet connection.
3. Webcam.
4. Headset.
5. Skype (or other free VOIP programs).

Once you have these things in place, you are ready to share your love of language with eager students around the world.

How to become a teacher on iTalki

The application process is simple to follow.

Before you apply to become a teacher, though, you will want to check and see if there are positions available for teachers or tutors in your native (or near-native) language(s).

Do this by visiting this page in the help section.

Once you’ve found an opening, visit https://www.italki.com/teacher/application and apply to become a teacher.

There is one potential downside…

The company requires you to sign up as a student before you can access the application to become a teacher.

The idea being that by learning a new language you are better prepared to teach others about your own language.

Plus, the more transactions take place, by students and teachers, the more money the site stands to earn.

Once you’ve signed up to be a student, you will receive an email with a confirmation link.

Once you’ve confirmed your email address you’ll be able to sign up as a teacher or tutor.

As far as I am concerned that is the one single drawback to the website.

How much money can you make on iTalki?

Whether you become a professional teacher or a community tutor, the amount of money you earn is up to you.

Prices vary greatly as you set your own hourly rates.

One Reddit user quotes hourly salary for tutors and teachers running between $9 and $20 with credentialed teachers commanding rates on the higher end of the scale.

How much you earn will depend on a variety of things, including:

1. The hourly price you set.
2. The number of hours you work each week.
3. The number of students you tutor.
4. The amount of competition available during the hours you work.

Don’t forget, though, that the site takes 15% off the top in form of payment.

Getting Paid

When you complete a lesson you earn credits for the session.

One credit equals one U.S. dollar.

These credits can be redeemed for lessons or you can withdraw your credits as cash through a variety of payment partners.

These include:

• PayPal
• Payoneer
• Skrill
• Alipay
• Bank Transfer

To get paid through all payment partners except Alipay, you need to submit a withdrawal request.

• Requests submitted by the 15^th of the month will be paid on the 26^th.
• Requests made by the 30^th/31^st will be paid by the 10^th of the following month.

To be paid through Alipay, submit your request by the last day of the month to receive your payment by the 10^th of the following month.

The minimum withdrawal amount is $30.

The site does not cover the costs of transaction fees by the processors.

Benefits of teaching on iTalki

Besides the obvious reason of making money, there are also many other benefits to not only teaching language through this site but any other site, like VIPKID.

The following are among the benefits many educators get excited about:

• Access to millions of students: There are three million students in the iTalki community looking for educators like you.
• Flexible scheduling: You choose your own schedule. Since the site reaches a global audience, teaching options are available at all hours of the day or night.
• Work from home: All you need is a computer, headset, cam, and Internet connection and you’re good to go.
• No worries about getting paid: The website handles international payment processing and payment security for you, so you don’t need to worry about exchange fees, getting paid, and similar concerns.

You also have the opportunity to build your brand, or reputation, as a teacher within the community.

The more students you teach, the more money you have the potential to earn.

Tips for making more money

There are many opportunities available for you to earn money through this platform.

Taking advantage of a few key insights, though, can help you boost your income so you earn even more.

These are a few things you want to do in order to maximize your earning potential.

1. Set your initial hourly rates low

The reason for this is simple.

You want to get those first few students, so you can build your reputation.

If the average hourly rates for a teacher are $20 USD, consider offering your expertise for $15 until you have a few students under your belt.

Once you have a few regular students and have received positive feedback as a teacher, you can increase your rates for future students and earn more.

• 2. Consider teaching at odd hours

Students are available around the world and in every time zone.

The odds are good that whenever you want to teach, there will be students available who are interested in learning.

Choose hours that are underserved to offer your services and maximize your earning potential because there is less competition during those times.

• 3. Attract repeat students

These students will become your bread and butter.

It is important to develop professional relationships with your students that will keep them coming back to you for lessons.

Do this by learning their interests and tailoring your lessons to those interests.

• 4. Fill out your profile completely

Your profile is how potential students find you and decide if they want you to be their teacher or tutor.

Make sure you fill it out completely and include relevant information about your language skills and experience.

Don’t overlook the importance of an introductory video and a welcoming smile while creating that video as you want students to feel as though you are an open and inviting person they will be able to relate to.

Final words

I think you have all the information you need to get started, find your first few students, and set out to earn some solid cash in your spare time through iTalki.

I hope this iTalki review has helped you learn more about your options to get paid to teach English or any language online.