Preply - Remote Working Teaching on the Online English Learning Platform - My User Guide and review
- Karen
- Apr 10, 2023
- 5 min read
I have been teaching English as a second language online for about 6 months now and have looked at different platforms to reach students in different ways. I signed up to Preply towards the beginning of my journey, but found that Cambly was more consistent work and it was January 2023 before I got any bookings via Preply, and then I got four in one day. I have no idea why it worked all of a sudden, but it made me realise that it was worth putting in some more effort to make this a viable place to work.
What is Preply?
Preply is an online platform that connects students with private tutors worldwide. Founded in 2012, Preply has since grown into a popular choice for language learners and tutors alike.
One of the main features of Preply is its wide range of available tutors. With over 50,000 tutors from around the world, it's great for students who can easily find a tutor who specialises in the language or subject they want to learn. It does mean as a teacher you have a lot of competition. You need to make yourself stand out from the crowd, either with your fees, availability or your qualifications.
Preply does offer a variety of lesson formats, including one-on-one sessions, group lessons, and even language immersion experiences. This allows students to choose a lesson format that fits their learning style and schedule. I have stayed with one-on-one lessons as I enjoy getting to know my student and adapting the lesson to their needs or experience. This is harder with a group.
Is it easy to use?
When signing up to Preply you have the usual questions to complete about what languages you speak and what lessons you will provide. They ask for a photo, a short "about you", what ages and proficiency level you are willing to teach, certification and fees you want to charge (more on this later).
From my experience, Preply has a great user-friendly interface. The platform is easy to navigate, and students can easily search for tutors by language, location, availability, and price. Additionally, Preply offers a virtual classroom that allows tutors and students to communicate and share materials in real-time within the platform, rather than having to meet in other places such as Google or Zoom. This feature makes online tutoring feel like an in-person experience and enhances the learning experience for both students and tutors.
Within the calendar area, you can select which hours you are available for lessons, it even suggests when students want lessons. On Preply the lessons are 60 minutes long, unless they are an initial trial lesson with you, which are 50 minutes long. Students can book these with you to see if your teaching style suits them. With regard to bookings, you can see in the picture below, the darker the green the more people are requesting lessons at the time. Your schedule then rolls over to each week automatically or you can book out times that you are busy etc. I love that you can link other calendars, so times are automatically blocked out at times when I am busy. This is great and makes my life easier since I teach on a few different sites.
Preply has a great library of subjects at a variety of levels and it also has a placement test for the students, so you know their level or things they struggle with before you meet them. I have found the teaching materials provided for the lessons are rather short compared to the 60-minute lesson time, but as a teacher, it gives an outline for the lesson which you can then add to. I do this by either sharing other pages from outside the site or by uploading documents I have made myself to the whiteboard within Preply itself, meaning you can use your own lesson plans and share them quickly and easily.
What are the Commission Rates?
Preply charges a commission on each lesson booked through the platform. The commission rates vary depending on the tutor's experience level and the number of hours taught. For new tutors, Preply charges a commission rate of 33%, meaning the tutor initially receives 67% of the hourly rate. Preply's commission rate decreases as the tutor gains more teaching experience. For tutors with over 400 teaching hours, the commission rate drops to 18%, meaning the tutor receives 82% of the hourly rate....much better :). This might seem high to begin with but you soon start to build up the number of lessons you have taught and I have already dropped to a lower commission level, meaning my hourly rate has effectively gone up and I got that after only 20 hours of teaching. It means I now earn more per hour via Preply than I do on other teaching platforms, so naturally it makes it more attractive for me to teach more lessons on Preply. My next rise in earnings will happen at 50 hours, which won't take me long to get to. It is a cumulative number of lessons, not per student, and it does seem to me that they invest in the site rather than just pocketing it.
Since you can charge whatever you want for your lesson you can build in the commission rates before advertising your rate. They do give a suggested hourly rate for new teachers, but it is completely your choice whether or not you listen to them. Personally, I chose a rate a bit above Preply's suggested hourly rate, so that my lessons paid me on a similar level to the other teaching platforms I was already using. They offer discount plans for students booking multiple lessons, but again this is your choice if you sign up for this and how much discount is applied.
What is the downside?
A person's first lesson with you is charged at 100% commission, so if you don't see them again then you don't make any money, but the site does. I have lots of returning students, so this hasn't been too much of a problem for me, but it is something to consider if you are thinking of teaching on this platform. You can put in a lot of effort with a student and they might only be planning to have one lesson, therefore you won't earn from them.
My overall thoughts are that Preply is an excellent platform for language learners and tutors alike. It is ideal for me as I can take my laptop with me on my travel adventures and teach from wherever I am in the world, as long as I have a suitable internet connection. With a wide range of tutors available and a user-friendly interface, students can easily find a tutor and begin their language-learning journey. I have started to gain a few regular students and while the commission rates may be high for new tutors this does soon decrease. Preply's support and features make it a valuable resource for anyone looking to learn or teach a language online.
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