10 Best Online Tutoring Websites

Over the years, the world has seen tremendous technological advancements which cut across banking, finance, shopping, religion, and many more. Fortunately, online tutoring isn’t left out in this advancement. And that makes it one of the numerous activities that people can do online these days. I will be outlining the 10 best online tutoring websites to fill your educational needs.

Online tutoring sites have very high tendencies to attract the best tutors. This is completely due to the fact that the schedules are more flexible and don’t require much time commitment.

In addition, many of these websites provide the facilities that make the tutoring experience for both tutors and students so real. They feel like they’re in the same classroom. The facilities could be digital whiteboards, collaborative text editing tools, Webcam, or Skype, etc.

Minimum Requirements for Online Tutoring

So, let’s assume you’re interested in becoming an online tutor. But you’re wondering about the things you need to get started on your tutoring journey. Well, there are many requirements but, in this section, I’ll show you just the must-haves.

One of the most common questions about online tutoring is about:

• How it works; and
• What programs and apps does one need to get started?

Below are the necessary requirements

1. A desktop computer

First off, you need to have a desktop computer. Now, obviously, you may not have a desktop computer because nowadays it’s not common. So, if you don’t have a desktop computer, then a laptop will do just fine.

2. Video calling software

This is another important tool. You need to make video calls to be able to tutor online. Now, there are different video calling apps available including the reputable and well-known Skype.

I recommend Zoom instead of Skype. It’s advisable to use Zoom to conduct the tutoring session. This is because it has the best video quality, most reliable connection. So, you don’t have to worry about those annoying blurry videos or even losing connection with your students.

3. A webcam

Now, I put this on the list just to remind you how essential it is. This is because many laptops these days come fitted with webcams. So, you need a webcam to enable your students to see you as they would in an actual tutoring session.

It’s either you use the webcam that comes fitted with your laptop or desktop or you can buy a separate detachable webcam. I recommend the Logitech c920 if you need to get a detachable webcam.

4. Whiteboard software

There are different online whiteboard apps that you can choose from but I recommend Bitpaper.

5. Headphones

I recommend having a pair of headphones. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. It’s important to have your headphones in when you’re doing the tutoring session. This will shut off the little echoes you hear when you’re using a speaker to interact with your students.

6. A wireless mouse

You might have a notebook out or you might be using a tablet. It’s vital to have a wireless accessory because it will make things a lot easier for you.

Lesson Plans and Organization

Now, just like a conventional classroom tutor, an online tutor is expected to have a lesson plan as well. You want to do everything you can to keep everything organized, right? Although many apps abound that’d help you keep track of your lesson plans, I recommend Trello.

This is because it is easy to use and it’ll help you keep track of your week-to-week lesson plans with your students.

So, you can go on Trello, open up a separate page that has the names of your students. Now this page shows you the day you have a session with your student so that you can take note of it.

Again, with Trello, you get to see your student’s homework and whatever it is your students need to get done.

Another amazing tool you need is Google drive. It’s amazing because it’s free and keeps everything on the cloud for you to access easily. You can access your Google drive from anywhere that you have internet access.

The great thing about it is that you can be in a tutoring session and access it. Having everything housed is very convenient. You can keep all your student files on Google drive.

It could be the contract you have with the student, any sort of documentation you exchanged with them, or any important or confidential documentation.

How to Find Students to Tutor Online

So, you’ve decided to start an online tutoring business but there’s only one problem! You have no idea how to find students to tutor online! Don’t worry because in this session we shall see how to get around that problem.

• Just because you’re looking for students to tutor online doesn’t mean they have to be far away. Yes, you might want to tutor online but your students don’t have to be on the other side of the world. In fact, they can be your next-door neighbor. So, ensure you don’t get carried away by the “online” tag. After all, the people you’ll eventually teach online have neighbors, don’t they? So, look around you.

• Let your family and friends know that you’re starting a tutoring business. And if you’re on social media platforms you can put the word out there as well.

• Create a Facebook business page and collect testimonials. This is because you need to have a place where people can find you online. That way, your Facebook page will pop up when they make a search. Most importantly, you need to have good reviews on your Facebook page so that people will know that you’re good at what you do.

• You can reach out to former students and clients. This is mostly for people who have tutored before but did it face-to-face. There is no reason that you can’t tutor your past students online. In fact, you can sensitize them on how beneficial online tutoring would be for them. That way, you get to transition your past clients and students.

• Connect with other tutors around you or on social media platforms. When we’re new to something, it’s always advisable to reach out to those who have more experience. That way, one is sure to get proper guidance. And it even gets better when that tutor recommends a student to you. This is because tutors may have their hands full and will want to refer clients to you. If you don’t reach out, how would they know you need clients, right?

So, those are the ways in which you can source for clients and students. Now, in the next section, I’ll show you 15 websites that I recommend for your online tutoring journey and they are:

1. eTutorWorld

This online tutoring site uses a work plan that can be personalized to suit the students. It also keeps a record of its tutoring sessions in case there’s a need for a review in the future.

One thing that makes this online tutoring site stand out is that it lets parents hold check-ins. In addition, this site sees its instructors as more mentors than tutors.

There is a package that lets students have one session per month and it costs $20 USD. The other package lets students hold fifty sessions within a period of six months.

2. Chegg

Chegg is an affordable online tutoring site that lets students pay $7 USD per lesson for a chat with a tutor. There is also an option for students to pay monthly and it costs $30 USD. This is a virtual session that comes with the use of a live whiteboard and it lasts an hour.

The academic subjects are in different varieties. And the tutors also do the work of aiding students to get around the college admission process.

3. Khan Academy

This is an online tutoring site that also handles children’s education. This is done to make use of curriculum materials. It could be to teach something entirely new or to bolster classroom lessons.

In addition, the company makes these materials free to use. Rather than having live or one-on-one tutoring sessions, Khan Academy lets its students watch tutoring videos at a convenient time for them.

4. Learn to Be

This is a nonprofit site. It offers its services to students either free of charge or at a low cost. So, if you think other online tutoring sites are too expensive to afford, Learn-to-Be will rescue you.

It will interest you to note that this site doesn’t offer on-demand tutoring. Before you can use its services, there is an application form that parents, tutors, and students fill out. Everybody has their section on the form.

5. Club Z

This online tutoring site pays attention to what its students want. They let students decide whether they want to continue with the lesson or not. This usually happens after having a chat with the tutors and booking appointments with them.

So, if after a lesson, a student decides not to continue, the student will be refunded the first hour. This is a way for Club Z to show that they’re committed to matching students and tutors in a suitable way. There is also a provision for music lessons as well as tutoring for pre-k. The basic package costs $240 USD ($60 an hour) for a period of four hours.

6. Smarthinking

This online tutoring site mostly accepts tutors who have advanced degrees in their subject areas. In fact, it boasts of 90 percent of its tutors having that. So, it’s clear that they know their tutors.

Each subject has its dedicated tutor but this site emphasizes more on writing. It could be resume reviews or interview preps. An essay or resume review costs from $23 USD to $124 USD per month for a four-hour tutoring.

7. Preply

This online tutoring site focuses more on students who are interested in learning another language and practicing as well. The students usually need a native speaker of the language they wish to learn to teach them.

Therefore, this site accepts tutors from the world over. But these tutors are required to be fluent in the languages they teach. It could be Russian language, Arabic, Japanese, Spanish, Urdu, Hebrew, and more.

The tutors on this site are more like contractors who work on a contract basis. So, they set their personal rates and that can vary among different tutors.

8. The Princeton Review

This site became more popular when it acquired one of the best homework, test, and tutoring sites. That site is none other than Tutor.com. This made Princeton Review a hub for getting homework solutions, test preparations, and more.

Princeton Review boasts of having over 5000 students using it every night. Most of the subscription packages on the site come with a guarantee.

The starting package costs $39 USD for an hour per month. There is also a plan that costs close to $1500 USD for a period of six months with 50 on-demand hours.

9. Revolution Prep

This site boasts of having the most committed set of staff. According to the site, there are no side-hustlers among its staff. The staff of Revolution Prep engages in training and development for over a period of 148 hours.

It costs $1100 USD for 12 hours of private tutoring ($92 an hour) and $399 USD for 12 hours ($33.25 an hour) of test prep in small groups.

10. Skooli

The pricing package on Skooli is on a pay-as-you-go basis and it costs 0.90 cents per minute. Now, this is good for students who need a tutor once in a while, putting them through on tricky homework questions.

It’s also suitable for students who need last-minute help as well. There is no compulsory monthly plan for students and you can connect to students round the clock. There are tutors for every grade level available on this site.

Conclusion

Although it’s still preferable to meet in person when possible, online tutoring has come to stay. The best online tutoring websites have many tutors that are readily available on request.

These tutors are always a call away from the students. This implies that the tutors are always available to put the students through if need be. It could be teachers who have advanced degrees in their specific subject fields or just any tutor who’s capable of handling the required subject with a professional touch.

I hope this has helped, please leave a comment, like, and share. Thank you.

LILY