Preply Review 2026: Application, Profile Tips and Commission

If you’re an ESL teacher or an aspiring teacher you’ve probably heard of the online teaching platform, Preply.

Preply has innovated the way online English learning works, empowering both teachers and students to control their own schedules, pay and time dedicated to learning and earning.

But how does Preply work exactly?

In this Preply review, we’re deep-diving into everything you need to know about Preply and how to be successful on the modern teaching platform.

Preply Review 2026 at a Glance

	2026 details (Preply’s own pages, checked October 27, 2026)
Who can apply	18+; no specific certificate or teaching experience required
Native speaker?	Not required
Interview?	No – an 8-section online application reviewed by Preply
Review time	“Within 5 business days” (help center) – the Teach page says 3
Your rate	You set it – Preply says English tutors charge $15–$25/hour on average
Commission	100% of each new student’s trial lesson, then 33% falling to 18% as your total hours grow
Withdrawals	Bank transfer (Wise-powered), Wise, Payoneer, PayPal or Skrill – fees/minimums vary (see below)

About Preply

In the simplest terms, Preply is an ESL platform that connects language learners with teachers.

While most ESL companies take control over schedules and lessons, Preply hands everything over to students and teachers.

This means, as a teacher, Preply works as a platform to advertise yourself to students.

Preply uses an algorithm to connect students to teachers, which makes getting your teaching profile perfect essential – it’s explained in more detail in this article.

How To Start Teaching With Preply

Unlike most ESL teaching platforms, you do not need to be a native English speaker, nor do you need teaching qualifications or a degree.

That’s just one of the reasons Preply is featured as a top choice as one of the best ESL companies for new ESL teachers.

Preply also doesn’t require tutors to meet any hourly or weekly teaching quotas, meaning you can work when you want and from where you want. In 2026 Preply still promises “no minimum time commitment or fixed schedule.”

However, as Preply is a competitive-based teaching platform, teachers are competing against other teachers for students and visibility. Due to this it’s highly recommended teachers have a TEFL qualification, at the very least.

Getting a TEFL Certificate to Teach on Preply

While Preply doesn’t require a TEFL certificate, you may have a hard time attracting students without one. This is due to the high competition for students, who favor qualified and more professional, experienced teachers.

While there are hundreds of TEFL options out there, it’s important the certificate is accredited, especially as many ESL platforms won’t accept non-accredited TEFL certificates. I recommend Premier TEFL – a well-recognized option with a range of ESL courses you can complete entirely online.

Teaching IELTS on Preply

If you want to really stand out on Preply, getting IELTS certified is a great strategy.

IELTS is a cheap, affordable, and fast certificate to attain that allows you to teach IELTS preparation (exam prep) to students currently studying for their exams.

Adding an IELTS certification to your Preply profile can give you an upper hand when it comes to securing jobs and students. This is because students will specifically search keywords in Preply including IELTS and your profile will appear in these results giving you more exposure and potentially helping you secure new students.

Like TEFL courses, Premier TEFL is an affordable and trusted IELTS course provider.

How to Get Hired on Preply?

Preply is one of the easier online ESL platforms to get hired with. This is because there is no interview process. You simply sign up and fill out a profile, which is sent for review by the Preply team. Successful applicants will be able to further edit their profiles and start reaching students.

But while it’s easy to get hired, it’s not always easy to get students – this is where the real challenge of Preply lies. To become successful on Preply you’re going to need a standout profile that gets you visibility from English learners.

The Preply Application Process in 2026

Here’s how Preply’s help center describes the process (article updated June 17, 2026):

1. Register on a computer. Click “Become a tutor” on preply.com and sign up with email, Google or Facebook. Preply says you can currently only register as a tutor on the desktop version.
2. Fill out the 8-section application. It covers your profile photo, certifications, education, profile description, intro video, calendar (availability and time zone) and your hourly rate. You can change your availability and rate later.
3. Wait for review. Preply’s help center says its team reviews applications “within 5 business days” and emails you the result. Preply’s Teach page still says 3 business days, so plan for up to a week.

Why applications get rejected (per Preply):

• Your profile doesn’t meet Preply’s requirements (photo, video or description)
• You’re under 18
• The subject you applied for is in low demand right now
• You live in a country Preply can’t accept tutors from (it lists Iran, Sudan, Cuba, Syria, North Korea and Crimea due to US regulations, plus Russia and Belarus)

Preply’s tip for faster approval: follow the guidelines at each step, and don’t put contact details, lesson prices or misleading claims in your description or video – Preply will ask you to remove them, which slows things down.

How to Make a Preply Profile Stand Out

Profile Photo

Make sure your profile photo is clear, professional, and friendly. Your image is the first thing potential students will see and whether you like it or not, they will undoubtedly form an opinion about you on this photo alone.

A serious non-smiling photo might portray you completely differently to an image of you smiling. Just think, if you were a student, what kind of image would appeal to you most? A good exercise is to search through current teacher profiles and choose 4-5 teachers of similar age and gender to you that you would want to talk to based on their image alone.

Preply profile photo tips:

• Have a clear background
• Smile
• Make sure you’re the only person in the photo
• Be sitting upright
• Ensure there is good lighting
• Stay away from selfies

2026 update: Preply’s photo guidelines (checked October 2026) also ask for your face and eyes fully visible, head and shoulders centered, a high-resolution color photo with no filters, and no logos or contact details.

These Preply profile photos are some great examples:

Preply Introduction Video

Introduction videos are extremely important in Preply. Potential students will use these videos to determine which teachers to book. You’ve already interested a student enough to want to learn more – this is your time to shine and secure a student.

Tips to make a great Preply intro video:

• Be friendly and welcoming
• Keep it less than 2 minutes long
• Show your personality
• Explain your teaching experience, qualifications, and areas you specialize in
• End with a clear invite to book a trial lesson with you

Your intro video must be filmed horizontally and cannot contain your personal information.

2026 update: Preply’s video guidelines (updated October 27, 2026) say videos should be 30 seconds to 2 minutes, horizontal, with the camera at eye level, good lighting, a tidy background and no background noise. Preply suggests three parts: introduce yourself (15–20 seconds, first name only), your skills and teaching style (30–50 seconds), then a friendly call to book (15–25 seconds). No logos, links, contact details, surnames or other people.

Preply Profile Section

Your written profile section is all about selling yourself. You want to catch a student’s attention with keywords that highlight your specialties and personality.

Profiles are separated into three sections: headlines, description bodies, and subject descriptions.

How to make your Preply profile stand out:

• Headline: Write an eye-catching headline that states your specialties
• Description: Include your experience, qualifications and teaching methods
• Description: What makes you a good teacher?
• Use a friendly tone throughout your profile

2026 update: in search results, students only see your headline and the first few words of your description, so front-load the good stuff. Preply’s guidelines (updated February 2026) also say: write in the first person and in one language, aim for a headline of about 50–75 characters, end with a call to action (“Book a trial lesson with me…”), and don’t include your surname, contact details, links, reviews or invites to a “free” lesson (trial lessons aren’t free for students). You can list up to seven spoken languages.

There is also a subject section where you can explain each teaching subject you offer. You can write it once you’re approved. This is a good chance to win students with short, but strong, subject descriptions.

Here are some tips for your subject sections:

• Don’t leave subjects empty
• Explain each subject clearly and concisely
• Include details
• Make every description unique (don’t copy and paste the same descriptions)

It’s essential to make sure your grammar and spelling are immaculate – Preply’s own guidelines tell you to double-check both before you submit.

How Do Preply Lessons Work

All Preply lessons are one-on-one classes. These classes are decided by the teacher, who gives students an availability calendar from which they can book lessons.

Tutors can teach over 100 subjects on Preply – languages, school and university subjects, hobbies and art – which makes it a good choice for multi-lingual and multi-subject teachers.

Preply’s Booking System

Most bookings start when a student finds you through tutor search and books a trial lesson from your profile. Preply also nudges you to message potential students – learners who’ve favorited you or started a booking without finishing it – and replying quickly helps convert them.

The tutor search feature is the most important means to get students. Potential students will filter and scroll through teacher lists which show:

• Tutor name
• Country
• Native Speaker
• Availability
• Reviews
• Number of active students
• Rating
• Pay rate
• Profile snippet

Students decide on a teacher based on these results.

2026 update on search ranking: Preply says its ranking favors profiles that convert well at their set price – how attractive your profile is, and how likely students are to book at that rate. Availability also matters. Preply’s availability guide says aiming for 30+ open hours in the next five days (or at least two hours on three of those days) improves visibility. Tutor-initiated cancellations, reschedules and absences can push you down over time.

Preply’s Peak Teaching Hours

Peak teaching times will vary depending on your location and the location of your students.

If you are specifically targeting a geographic region, then use mornings and late afternoon hours (local time) as a base for their peak times.

Preply’s calendar also shows a demand heatmap for your subject and time zone (pink = higher demand), so you can open slots where students are most likely to book.

RELATED: SKIMATALK REVIEW: HOW TO MAKE MONEY TEACHING ENGLISH WITH SKIMATALK

How Much Can You Earn on Preply?

Preply teachers set their own pay rates on the platform.

However, this does not necessarily mean you’ll make great money right off the bat. Remember, you’re competing with a lot of qualified teachers at competitive pay rates.

Establishing your pay rate depends on a number of factors:

• Your qualifications
• Your experience
• The demand for your specialties
• The students you’re targeting

2026 update: Preply’s Teach page (checked October 27, 2026) says English tutors charge $15–$25 per hour on average, and that its “most popular tutors” earn up to $550 a week. That’s a ceiling for the top tutors, not an average. Preply’s own tip for new tutors is to start with a lower rate to get your first students faster – you can change it anytime.

Preply’s Commission Structure in 2026

Important note: Preply takes 100% commission of your first lesson with each new student (the trial lesson) and between 18% – 33% commission from then on based on how much you’ve taught. Similar to a loyalty system.

This is still the model on Preply’s help center as of October 27, 2026 (the commission article was last updated September 19, 2024, and Preply’s Teach page repeats the same rates).

How Preply commission works:

Total hours taught on Preply	Commission on regular lessons
0–20 hours	33%
21–50 hours	28%
51–200 hours	25%
201–400 hours	22%
400+ hours	18%

A few things to know:

• It’s your total hours, not hours per student, and trial lessons count toward the total.
• Trial lessons pay you nothing. Preply says the 100% commission lets it offer unhappy students a free replacement trial, which makes students more willing to book.
• Preply’s own example: on a $10/hour rate, a new tutor gets $6.70 per regular lesson, while a tutor with 400+ hours gets $8.20.
• Signing up is free, and Preply doesn’t charge to host your profile – commission only kicks in once you’re teaching.

Tip: factor the commission into your rate. At 33%, a $15/hour lesson pays you about $10.05 – make sure that works for you before you set your price.

How You Get Paid

Per Preply’s help center (updated September 10, 2026), lessons in the Preply Classroom are confirmed automatically about 15 minutes after they end (72 hours for lessons outside the Classroom, unless the student confirms sooner). Your earnings, minus commission, then land in your Preply balance.

Preply’s How to withdraw your earnings page (checked October 27, 2026) lists Bank transfer (powered by Wise) – the newer default where available – plus Wise, PayPal, Payoneer and Skrill. PayPal, Payoneer and Skrill pay out in USD; Bank transfer and Wise can pay in local currency. Fees and minimums from that page:

• Bank transfer / Wise: $10 minimum, $3,000 max per transaction. Bank transfer shows a fixed fee plus any conversion fee before you confirm (for example $1.13 for US USD; other countries differ). Wise averages about 0.6% on cross-currency withdrawals.
• PayPal: no minimum, $3,000 max, 2% fee capped at $20.
• Payoneer: $20 minimum to a Payoneer account (plus a $1 fee), $3,000 max; other fees are set by Payoneer.
• Skrill: 1% fee – Preply’s help page doesn’t list a Skrill minimum.

What To Do if Your Preply Application Is Rejected

It is still possible your job application will get rejected – a reader of this post once waited seven weeks and was turned down with no reason given.

However, this does not mean all is lost. If you’re adamant enough, you can find out why your application was rejected and see if you can correct any correctable things in your application to get accepted.

To increase your chances of being accepted, here are some steps you can take:

• Review the rejection email: Carefully read the email sent by Preply, which (hopefully) explains why your application was rejected. This can give you insight into areas you need to improve.
• Focus on improving your profile: Update your profile with any relevant information, such as teaching experience, qualifications, or certifications. Make sure that your profile is complete and accurate, and that it reflects your skills and abilities. Review this blog post to ensure your profile is at a high standard.
• Seek feedback: Reach out to Preply’s support team and request feedback on your application. They may be able to provide you with constructive feedback and tips on how to improve your profile.
• Reapply: Preply’s Teach page says profiles sometimes aren’t approved on the first attempt when the photo, video or description miss the requirements – improve those (and add any new certifications), then submit again. Preply’s help center does not publish a waiting period before you can reapply, so I won’t invent one. If you were rejected for low subject demand or a restricted location, a stronger profile won’t change that.

Note that if you were rejected because your subject is in low demand, a better profile may not fix it – Preply lists low subject demand as a rejection reason in its own help center.

5 Teaching Tips for Working at Preply

Preply is a platform that rewards active teachers. The more you teach, the lower your commission – and keeping solid availability and a strong converting profile helps you stay visible in search.

Here are my top tips for working at Preply:

• Create an excellent profile
• Reply promptly to student messages
• Highlight your specialties and target niche students
• Dedicate time to teaching on Preply
• Start with a lower pay rate and build-up students

The Pros & Cons of Teaching With Preply

Preply isn’t for everyone, but for those who market themselves well can become successful on the teaching platform.

Pros

• Access to a large student-base
• Unlimited teaching potential
• Set your pay rate
• No hourly quotas
• Teach multiple languages and subjects
• No native-speaker or degree requirement

Cons

• High commissions when starting
• Competitive platform
• Need to spend time marketing yourself
• Teach first lesson for free (Preply keeps 100% of every trial lesson)

Is Preply Right for You?

As a free marketplace for teachers, Preply could be your number one ESL job, or it could be a flop.

If you’re willing to create a strong profile and be proactive, Preply will likely work well for you.

The great thing about Preply is it’s easy to get onto the platform and try it for yourself.

If you’re comparing platforms, you may also like my Cambly teaching review – Cambly was my first online ESL job.

Preply FAQ

How much commission does Preply take in 2026?

Preply keeps 100% of each new student’s trial lesson. After that it takes 33% of your rate for your first 20 hours, dropping to 28%, 25%, 22% and finally 18% after 400 total hours.

How long does Preply take to approve tutors?

Preply’s help center says applications are reviewed within 5 business days, and you’ll get the result by email. Its Teach page says 3 business days.

Do you need to be a native speaker or have a degree to teach on Preply?

No. Preply says no specific certification or teaching experience is required, but you must be at least 18.

Are Preply trial lessons paid?

Not for tutors. Preply keeps the full value of the first trial lesson with each new student, but those hours still count toward lowering your commission.

How do Preply tutors get paid?

Confirmed lesson earnings go to your Preply balance, and you withdraw them through Bank transfer (powered by Wise), Wise, Payoneer, PayPal or Skrill. Fees and minimums depend on the method – for example PayPal is 2% (capped at $20) with no minimum, Bank transfer and Wise start at $10, and Skrill charges 1%.

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