Non Chinese ESL Companies Hiring List - UPDATED FOR 2023!

Looking for a list of Non Chinese ESL companies that are hiring teachers to teach English online?

Whilst your options may seem fairly limited at first, there are actually so many other online ESL companies out there that are not based in China! Here you’ll find the most up-to-date list!

Whilst some of these companies may be a lot less well known and smaller than the big Chinese ESL companies, it is a smart direction to move in.

Many of the big Chinese ESL companies are closing/have closed so you should avoid looking at Chinese ESL companies at all.

Why should you be looking to teach with non Chinese ESL companies?

At the end of July 2021, the Chinese Government imposed new ESL Regulations across China. The changes seemed to come literally overnight.

New legislations passed, meant that the booming and lucrative industry of private online ESL teaching was now banned.

This was in a bid to ease pressure on Chinese school children, but also to ease financial pressure on Chinese families, who can often spend up to 25% of the family income on after-school tutoring for their children in subjects such as English.

This huge financial burden is related to a decrease in birth rates in China, which the Chinese Government wants to change – Chinese families are now permitted to have up to three children but many still have only one child as they just can’t afford to have more children.

Instead of families paying foreigners based outside of China to teach them core subjects, Beijing cracked down and said online tutoring with tutors based outside of China was barred.

The new regulations now prohibit online teaching companies from making a profit.

The online Chinese ESL companies were some of the best paying and most well known Online English Schools, but many of them such as Whales English have been forced to cease their contracts with teachers based outside of China.

Other companies such as Palfish, have reduced teacher’s salaries tremendously.

Non Chinese ESL companies are now the safest way to go. Any Chinese online teaching companies that are still operating are all phasing out hiring foreign teachers based outside of China, and could cease lessons in the near future.

Eventually, Teaching ESL online in China will not be possible at all.

Whilst this may seem as a blow, don’t despair. Chinese people are not the only people in the world wanting to learn English! There are literally hundreds of other online ESL companies around the globe that you can work with!

How To Get Hired With Non Chinese ESL Companies:

First let’s look at how to get hired with a non Chinese ESL company.

Update Your CV

You’ll want to have an updated CV/resume before you apply to any online ESL company. Most ESL companies will ask for you to upload a copy of your resume in your application.

When updating your CV/resume, it’s important to focus on your teaching experience.

Like myself, you may have worked in a few different fields before you got into teaching English online, but you don’t need to mention your whole work history in detail.

If you haven’t got any previous experience in teaching online and this is your first time applying to work as an online ESL teacher, look at ways in which you can draw in experience from your other jobs.

For example, did you ever teach in a classroom, or have to give presentations to colleague or train new members of staff?

Did you ever work as an au-pair for example, and look after children and help them with their homework after school perhaps. Put the attention on any kind of teaching experience that you can, however formal the setting was.

On your CV remember to sell yourself! Especially nowadays the competition can be tough, so you need to do all you can to make sure you stand out as an online ESL teacher! What is it that you have that sets you apart from others?

Of course on your CV you also must include any TEFL/TESOL qualifications you have (check out this TEFL course if you still need to get the qualification!),

You’ll also want to make your CV look as professional as possible. Using the website Canva you can create really unique and professional resumes that really stand out!

Add Teaching Certifications & Think About Doing Extra ESL Specific Courses To Upskill & Stand Out

Your CV must include any Teaching Certificates you have gained, plus any specific extra training you have in Teaching, such as Business English.

Most ESL Teaching Online companies require that you have at least a basic TEFL certificate. So before you apply to teach English with any ESL companies, make sure you have your TEFL/TESOL certificate.

You can find accredited TESOL courses online for as low as $19 with International Open Academy – and they can be completed over a weekend!

Of course these are the most basic TEFL Certificates you can get, and whilst they are cheap and quick to get, if you plan to do ESL teaching full time you should really invest in a good course.

The more comprehensive TEFL/TESOL courses are more expensive and time consuming, but they cover a greater amount of information and are regarded much higher by ESL companies.

It can be quite overwhelming to decide which course to pick, but I can recommend I-to-i TEFL, and Bridge Partner TELF for their 120 TEFL courses.

These are both reputable companies who offer the courses at reasonable prices, and their TEFL/TESOL qualifications are well recognised.

Bridge Partner TEFL also offers specialised courses such as Teaching to Young Learners, Teaching Business English, and Teaching English Grammar, which you may want to consider doing in addition.

Adding these specialist qualifications under your belt will also help you to stand out more!

Make An Introductory Video

Most non Chinese online ESL companies will ask you to make a short Introductory Video.

Not only will the hiring team analyse this and see if they want to offer you the job, but this is usually the video that potential students will get to see, and decide if they want you as their teacher.

Be sure to let your personality shine through – be energetic and passionate, and tell them a little about yourself and your teaching experience.

You don’t need expensive equipment or extensive expertise in film making to make an intro video. You can shoot it with your phone and edit it on a simple and free app such as iMovie.

If you wish to add graphics and overlays to your video (which makes it look more dynamic!) you can easily add these on Canva.

It can seem daunting at first but it is actually surprisingly easy and you can do as many retakes as you want if you aren’t happy!

Make sure in your video to not be too revealing in your outfit – dress fairly smart (no suit needed, but a smart t-shirt for example) and look professional and well groomed.

Teaching ESL online, and especially to children, can be a lot different to teaching in a physical classroom. There are several things you should demonstrate in your Introductory video.

For example, TPR (Total Physical Response) is huge in the online ESL world when teaching children.

Total Physical Response is basically using actions and gestures to describe what you are talking about – for example making the gestures ‘short’ or ‘long’ with your hands. TPR is done to help the student understand learn new words and sentences.

Other examples of Total Physical Response include pointing to your mouth when you want the students to listen to what you are saying, and cupping your hand to your ear when you want the student to talk or repeat what you have just said.

Of course if you’ll be teaching adults, you can tone down the TPR and props.

What To Bear In Mind When You Apply To Non Chinese ESL Companies

When applying to non-Chinese ESL companies, you have to bear in mind the pay is most often lower than what Chinese ESL companies would offer.

This is just the way it is. Online ESL learning with Chinese companies was an incredibly lucrative business, and unfortunately these rates can seldom be met by other ESL companies in other countries.

However, what you may lose in pay, you can make up for in flexibility as the non Chinese ESL Companies are often much more relaxed and flexible.

Do note that companies sometimes freeze hiring if the student to teacher ratio has been met, so if your preferred company is currently not hiring, check back in a couple of months.

LIST OF NON CHINESE ESL COMPANIES WHERE YOU CAN TEACH ENGLISH ONLINE FROM HOME:

As mentioned earlier, there are so many online ESL schools outside of China for you to choose from.

And it shouldn’t matter where they are based as you can teach from anywhere in the world when you work as an online ESL teacher!

LIST OF NON CHINESE ESL COMPANIES:

Cambly
Outschool
Open English
FluentBe
Buddies
Edukita
Engoo
English Everywhere
English Hut
Cena English
Cafe Talk
Maininchi Eikaiwa
S-Lessons
Nil English
StarKid
Protostar

This is absolutely not an exhaustive list, but a selection of the best non Chinese ESL companies currently on the market.

Online ESL Companies based in Europe & The Americas:

Cambly

Cambly is based in America and is one of the most well known ESL companies.

Students at Cambly are mostly adults but there is also Cambly Kids which you can sign up to which is dedicated to teaching children.

Classes focus more on conversational English but you can teach from their curriculum if the student prefers.

Cambly students are based all over the world: many students are from the Middle East, South America and Europe so there is a real mix.

You can teach at any time of the day with Cambly – the platform is open 24/7 and there are always students online waiting to learn! So whatever time zone you live in, you can teach at a time that is convenient to you. This is a huge advantage compared to Chinese ESL companies for example, who only offer lessons at selected hours of the day (which could mean a 2am or 5am start if you live in the West Coast of America!). You can literally log on and earn money whenever you feel like it.

No minimum hours required to teach per week, and you don’t have to book a timetable (of course you can if you want to build up regular students and teach the same students every week).

As you are paid by the minute ($0.17 per minute) you can always end a lesson early if necessary, and you won’t get penalised (unlike many Chinese ESL companies who will deduct money from your pay check if you leave the class early!).

Paid via Paypal every week.

One of the best companies to start earning money straight away, as there aren’t lots of steps in the hiring process, nor trainings or demos to be done before you can start teaching (which is often the case with many ESL companies).

The pay with Cambly is not the highest ($10.20 per hour) but the company is so flexible and there are no minimum hours required.

Cambly is great to have as a backup as an extra way to make money when you have free time in your schedule during the day. Pay with Cambly Kids is slightly higher than on regular Cambly ($12 per hour).

You don’t need to be a teacher on both Cambly and Cambly Kids – you can teach one one or the other (or both!).

Cambly Requirements:

Native English speaker

NO DEGREE NECESSARY!

NO TEFL/TESOL CERTIFICATE REQUIRED!

NO PRIOR TEACHING EXPERIENCE NECESSARY!

The hiring process and teaching requirements with Cambly are so simple compared to many other online English teaching companies.

The ONLY requirement is that you need to be a native speaker of English – a Degree or a TEFL/TESOL Certificate isn’t mandatory (only recommended)! There is no interview and no trial class to do (only if you want to sign up to Cambly Kids).

You just need to fill out the application form and send them a 2 minute video about yourself that will appear on your profile for your students to see.

With many other ESL companies you will have to put in several hours (unpaid) to learn the syllabus, do marking and grading students. With Cambly there is none of this which makes teaching here so simple!

Outschool

Outschool is also based in the USA.

Works as a marketplace, meaning teachers set their own rates (Outschool takes 30% commission) and teach their own classes.

Can teach 24/7

A great opportunity for teachers looking to build their online teaching business

You can teach a variety of subjects, not just English.

Outschool Teaching Requirements:

Must be from UK, USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand

No Degree required

No teaching experience required

Have an area of expertise that you can teach

Open English

Open English is an online ESL school based in South America. It is the leading school for online teaching in Latin America.

Can teach adults or children (Open English Junior)

Classes are 24/7, but peak times are in the evening (EST time zone)

Pay is between $10-$13 per hour. Again like Cambly, it is not the highest pay but it could be a great option if these hours work better for you as opposed to peak times in Asia.

Paid via Paypal

Open English Teaching Requirements:

Must be a Native North American English speaker

Have a TESOL/TEFL Certificate

Must be available for a minimum of 10 hours teaching per week

Have some previous teaching experience

A level of conversational Spanish is preferred, although it is definitely not required

FluentBe

FluentBe is an online ESL school based in Poland.

Lesson plans provided
Flexible working hours
Teach adults mostly but sometimes children and young adults too
Flexible schedule with no minimum weekly hours required
Pay $10-$12 per hour

FluentBe Teaching Requirements:

University Degree
TESOL Certificate
1 year teaching experience
Native English speaker or Polish native speaker with a neutral English accent
Business English background is an advantage

ESL COMPANIES IN ASIA

Buddies

Buddies is an ESL school based in Israel.

Teaching Israeli children and adults.
Lessons are 25 minutes long
Earn from $16-$22 per hours
Can receive payments 2 day after each lesson
Flexible schedule with no minimum weekly hours commitment
Lesson materials are provided

Buddies Teaching Requirements:

Native from UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa OR non native with neutral accent.
No Degree required
TESOL/TEFL Certificate not required, but is preferred
No prior teaching experience required but it is preferable
Teach a minimum of 5 hours per week

Edukita

Edukita is an online ESL school based in Indonesia.

Teaching in large group online classes: between 6-40 children at once.
No minimum hours required per week
Various types of lessons can be taught, such as reading, writing, grammar and vocabulary for example.
Classes taught online on Zoom and Google Slides
Curriculum provided
Pay $18-$20 per hour
Teachers re paid monthly via Venmo.

Edukita Teaching Requirements:

Native English speaker
No Degree required
No TEFL/TESOL required
Must have 3 years of online ESL experience

Online ESL Companies in Japan: Teach Japanese Students English

There are several good online ESL Teaching English companies in Japan.

Whilst these companies are not as well known as some Chinese ESL companies, it is a good direction to pivot – seeing as many of the big Chinese ESL companies are closing/have closed due to the new Chinese regulations banning ESL teachers who live outside of China from teaching Chinese students online.

Best Japanese Teaching English Online ESL Companies List:

Engoo
English Everywhere
English Hut
Cena English
Cafe Talk
Maininchi Eikaiwa
S-Lessons

Engoo

Teach school children
You can teach 24/7 – very flexible company like Cambly
You get paid even if your student doesn’t show up, plus you get bonuses if you teach a certain amount of hours each month.
Native speakers get $10 for 50 minutes teaching.
Very good booking rates.
Teachers will need to attend a 3 hour Zoom session where they are given information and are required to do a demo lesson.

Engoo Teacher Requirements:

Native English speaker or near native accent (pay is much lower for non-natives however)
A Degree is not mandatory but is preferred

English Everywhere

Teach school-aged children
Teachers plan their own lessons
Lessons are taught over Skype and last 30 minutes.
Teachers are paid via Paypal with a salary of 800 Yen (around $7.50-$8) per 30 minute lesson. Once you have taught 10 classes you are then paid 900 Yen per 30 minute class – so you can earn around $17 for an hour’s teaching.
Non native speakers with a very neutral accent can apply to English Everywhere – one of the few companies that accepts non native English speakers.

English Everywhere Teaching requirements:

TEFL/TESOL Certificate
experience teaching children
no Degree required
native English speaker OR non native speaker with a very neutral accent.

English Hunt

Teach adults and children.
Pay is $14.50 per hour directly into your bank so you avoid paying any transfer fees.

English Hunt Teaching Requirements:

Teachers must be native American teachers
Can only be paid into US bank accounts
A Degree is not required
Must have a TEFL/TESOL Certificate or a Teaching Degree
Teachers must commit to a minimum of 10 teaching hours per week.

Cena English

Cena English teachers teach English online to professional Japanese adults.
Lessons are 25 minutes long over Skype and are more conversation based.
Pay is $9 per 25 minute class, or $18 for 50 minutes teaching.
Teachers will need to commit to 20 hours teaching per week.

Cena English Teaching Requirements:

must be native American
Bachelor’s Degree is preferred (but not essential)
TESOL/TEFL Certificate and experience teaching English is necessary.

Cafe Talk

The majority of their students are Japanese adults.
Most students will be wanting to improve their business English speaking skills.
Cafe Talk works like a marketplace, so teachers can charge what rates they want, as well as set their own schedule.

Cafe Talk Teaching Requirements:

Native English speaker
Teaching experience is preferable
No Degree is required

Maininchi Eikaiwa

Pay is between $10-18 per hour, paid monthly via Paypal.
Teachers need to be available for 3 consecutive hours for 5 days a week.
Lessons last 50 minutes ($14 for 50 minutes pay) and are taught over Skype.
Lessons need to be planned by the teacher.

Maininchi Eikaiwa Teaching Requirements:

Native English speakers from the USA, UK, Canada, Australia and South Africa.
A Degree is required
At least 6 months teaching experience required
TEFL/TESOL/CELTA is preferred but not essential

S-Lessons

S-Lessons is another Japanese online ESL company where you can teach Japanese children.

Lessons are taught over Skype and last 25 minutes
You can either do the ‘Regular Course’ which is structured lessons where the teaching material is provided, or the ‘Leave it to Teacher’ lessons where teachers are responsible for creating the teaching material.
Teachers set their own rates of pay.

S-Lessons Teaching Requirements:

At least one years’ teaching experience.

You’ll find more information about online Japanese ESL English companies here.