iTalki vs Preply vs LanguaTalk: Where’s The Best Place To Find An Online Tutor?

This article compares three popular language tutoring platforms: LanguaTalk, italki and Preply.

These are three of the most well-known platforms for connecting language learners and expert freelance tutors. 

In this review, I’ll take you onto all three platforms to explore their best, worst and most interesting features; then, I’ll share my honest conclusions. 

Which platform do I think you should choose? Read on.

Overview: italki vs Preply vs LanguaTalk

LanguaTalk

• Currently offers quality tutors (they only accept 10% of applicants) in 16 languages, with more languages promised over time.
• One-on-one lessons are personalised to your needs
• Tutors speak enthusiastically about their LanguaTalk experience

italki

• Offers two grades—professional teachers or community tutors—in 150+ languages
• Includes one-on-one lessons plus specialised group classes in English, Spanish and Japanese
• Tutors post exercises, articles and podcasts in various languages on the community board. 

Preply

• Offers 32,000 tutors in 50 languages + 70 other subjects
• Includes one-on-one lessons plus some online group classes
• Works on a subscription model 

iTalki vs Preply vs LanguaTalk: The Verdict

There are many aspects to like—and some downsides—on all three platforms. 

LanguaTalk

LanguaTalk stands out for the quality of its tutors. You can find a mix of highly experienced tutors for structured lessons, or if you have a lower budget you can try a tutor who is newer to teaching.

LanguaTalk offers tutors in 16 languages. If you're looking to learn a less widely spoken language like Turkish, Polish or Afrikaans, you’ll need to search elsewhere.

iTalki

Many italki tutors have some formal language teaching qualifications, but they’re not essential to work on the platform. Lessons take place in the easy-to-use italki classroom. 

The platform lists 150 languages, but not all have tutors available. However, if you want to try a less commonly learned language, italki is probably your best bet. 

Preply

Preply is a multi-subject platform, so you can learn more than languages there. Tutors conduct their lessons in a dedicated classroom with messaging and document-sharing facilities.

Their subscription model incentivises you to keep up with your lessons or risk losing money.  

What Is LanguaTalk?

LanguaTalk only accepts 10% of applications, meaning its freelance language teachers are top-rated. The platform was founded on quality and fairness for tutors and students.

LanguaTalk limits the number of tutors in each language to give everyone a fair chance at receiving bookings and to ensure the highest teaching standards.   

LanguaTalk was established in 2021 and currently offers lessons in 16 languages: Arabic, Dutch, English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish and Thai.  

What Is italki?

italki is the oldest of these three platforms and has been around since 2007. On italki, you’ll find freelance tutors offering language lessons in 150+ different languages.

The platform provides all the popular languages and everything else from Afrikaans to Zulu. 

italki offers two types of teachers—professional teachers and tutors.

Professional teachers have teaching qualifications and/or substantial experience in language teaching. They use many teaching materials and skills to help students achieve their language learning goals. 

Community tutors tend to offer conversation practice. They don't need formal qualifications—though they must be native or near-native speakers of that language—and tend to cost less than teachers. 

What Is Preply?

Established in 2012, Preply is a huge learning platform where more than 32,000 freelance tutors can connect with their students. 

Preply freelancers teach 50 different languages. As well as all the popular foreign languages (English, French, Spanish, German, Chinese etc.), you’ll also find people offering Romanian, Polish, Arabic, Korean, Hebrew, Punjabi and many more.

The platform also offers lessons in 70 other subjects, e.g., Chemistry, Arts, Economics, and Video post-production, to name a few.  

Preply has a subscription-only payment method, meaning you can’t buy individual sessions with a tutor (apart from your initial trial lesson.)   

A Look Inside LanguaTalk

LanguaTalk Website: First Impressions

Navigating LanguaTalk’s website is very straightforward. Non-members can browse through the tutor’s profiles, view the FAQs and read reviews.

Things are equally uncomplicated once you sign in. Your page includes your lesson and tutor details (past and scheduled) and helps you search for other tutors if desired. 

What Does LanguaTalk Offer?

• Personalised lessons from any freelance tutors who’ve been accepted onto the platform.
• 55-minute lessons (charged singly or as a discounted package.) Some tutors also offer 30-minute classes that are especially helpful for regular conversation practice. Although not compulsory, many tutors offer 30-minute free or discounted trial lessons.
• LanguaTalk doesn’t have a dedicated teaching space. Instead, you can receive your lesson via Skype, Zoom, Google Meet or Whereby (tutors offer at least two options.)
• A straightforward booking system with notifications shown in your time zone.
• Blog posts, language learning guides, and French, Spanish and Italian podcasts.
• A comprehensive, easy-to-use help section. If your question isn’t covered, send a message to get a personal response.

Choosing A Tutor On LanguaTalk

LanguaTalk can choose the best tutors because it caps the teacher numbers in each language. 

Some language categories already have enough tutors, but others are open for tutor applications. For example, when I last checked, 50 people offered English tuition, whereas only eight taught Arabic. 

Each tutor offers a detailed profile and video. There, they share qualifications, teaching styles, backgrounds, the languages they speak and their areas of expertise.

Profile sidebars show ratings from pupils, how many lessons they’ve given on LanguaTalk and the price for one class.

Tutors set their own rates, so you can filter your search to suit your budget. Rates are shown in your currency but are always paid in US dollars.  

LanguaTalk Pros…

I love LanguaTalk’s fuss-free platform. If you’re new, it’s easy to find a tutor, book and pay for a trial. And once you’ve found someone you like, booking more lessons or a discounted package is equally straightforward. 

Tutors create lesson plans to suit your needs, meaning everything is pitched to help you succeed and grow. However, if you don’t gel with the first tutor you choose, LanguaTalk makes it easy to try someone else. 

If you sync your calendar, your lessons automatically appear, and you’ll get several email reminders to keep you on track. But, LanguaTalk also doesn’t bombard you with daily emails and tips. Instead, you’ll get reminders when you need them and nothing when you don’t.

LanguaTalk is all about being fair to everyone who uses their platform. One of their tutor reviews sums it up nicely: 

“I really like the ease and clarity of LanguaTalk. Everything is straightforward, nothing hidden, and as a teacher I feel heard and protected. I also really like how easy it is to get in touch with their team when I have questions. They are so supportive.” 

LanguaTalk tutor

And Cons

LanguaTalk is a relatively new platform, so it hasn’t yet developed all the bells and whistles of some older language learning sites.

That means it doesn’t have community features or a mobile app. However, the site is mobile friendly so it functions similarly to an app.

For more on LanguaTalk, check out my dedicated LanguaTalk review.

A Look Inside italki

italki Website: First Impressions

There’s a lot to like about italki’s cheerful-looking website, too. Before you log on, the homepage gives links to browse tutors in your chosen language, shows student reviews and mentions some of the platform’s features. 

Once you log on, you can choose a tutor, view your upcoming lessons, book a group or individual lesson, and check out the community pages. 

What Does italki Offer?

• 1-1 lessons with tutors in one of 150 different languages. 
• Each teacher provides 60min single lessons. In addition, teachers may provide 30 min, 45 min or 90 min packages. 
• Lessons take place in a dedicated Classroom. Teachers and tutors may also offer to work on other platforms such as Skype, Facetime, Zoom, or WeChat.
• Group classes in English
• Community page teachers, tutors and students offer quizzes, exercises, articles, podcasts and comments in many languages.
• FAQ and Help Centre, includes articles, a BOT, and submit a request form.
• A mobile app is available on the App Store and Google Play.
• Buy tests—you can purchase four attempts at the italki Language Test in seven popular languages or the Oxford Online Placement Test (English grammar only.) 

italki Pros…

Having two tiers—professional teachers and community tutors—opens italki up to many more people. A tutor might be within budget if you can’t afford to learn with a qualified teacher.

Similarly, the policy gives work opportunities to people who are good at teaching languages but don’t have formal qualifications. 

Scrolling through italki profiles, you initially see a small amount of information on the screen, including their photo, star rating, how many lessons they’ve taken on italki, and two lines of text.

That works well because seeing screeds of writing on so many profiles could be confusing. 

You can still learn more by choosing a profile. It opens in a new window, where information shows in three sections: ‘About me’, ‘Me as a teacher’ and ‘My lessons and teaching style’. 

You can easily book and pay for a discounted trial lesson from any profile page.  

Many people like and use italki daily and give positive reviews like this: 

“It’s a great way to break through that barrier to speaking after spending time learning on paper. italki creates a great environment that is safe, non-judgmental to make those inevitable mistakes. The tutors have been wonderful, both professional teachers and community tutors. Try them both on for size!”   

italki student

And italki Cons

italki sends many emails, especially if you don’t choose a tutor immediately. Of course, you can unsubscribe, but those daily emails will keep cluttering your inbox if you do nothing. 

The italki chatbot doesn’t answer questions. Instead, it directs you to various articles that may or may not contain your desired answers. 

Confusing credits. On italki, you can pay for single lessons and lesson packages from your language teacher or purchase credit packs (US $20-$200).

italki provides several ways to pay (credit card, bank transfer, PayPal, Skrill), but each includes a 3rd-party processing fee. They don’t give refunds on credits, so don’t buy a pack until you’re sure you want to learn with italki. 

 iTalki also allows pretty much anyone to teach, so if you wish to only view the more talented or experienced tutors, you may want to try LanguaTalk first. It's also more transparent and unlike iTalki, does allow refunds for 30 days.

A Look Inside Preply

Preply Website: First Impressions

A lot is happening on Preply’s home page, but perhaps that’s because there’s so much on offer. The site is easy to navigate and has clear links to help you find tutors, FAQs and log in.

But there’s no denying that reading and digesting all the information on offer takes a while. 

What Does Preply Offer?

• Verified freelance tutors and teachers for private online lessons.
• Online guided group classes where students can learn and practise English together.
• Preply Business offers corporate training for company employees. 
• Virtual classroom 
• Discounted trial lessons to help you and the tutor get to know each other. 
• Subscription model only. Students can book between one and five hours of classes per week over 28 days. Subs are automatically renewed unless you cancel them. 
• Language learning blog articles.
• Help desk: Preply has an extensive support section for students and tutors and a bot chat/message service.

Preply Pros…

Preply makes it super simple for newcomers to use the virtual Classroom by taking you through a series of manageable steps (e.g., testing your video and audio before you start.) 

The Classroom includes floating video, document sharing and chat functions. It stores all your files and lessons in one place, making them easy to find whenever you want them.

Even so, you’re not forced to use the Classroom. Preply says students and tutors may agree to use another communication tool.

Preply has 32,000 freelance tutors on its books, meaning you’re bound to find someone that suits you within your budget. 

If your first trial lesson doesn’t work out, Preply allows you two more trial lessons for free.

As one reviewer says, 

“I have been using Preply for about 6 months and love it. The interface and process for finding your ideal tutor is simple, as is the lessons scheduling and payment system. Customer service is also very responsive and helpful. I strongly recommend this service.”

Preply student

And Preply Cons

Trial lessons are charged at a cheaper rate. Still, it’s worth noting that Preply takes 100% commission, meaning that tutors give trial lessons for free, while you pay in full. There are no free trials on Preply, unlike LanguaTalk, where tutors can optionally offer a 30-minute trial.

Their commission for new tutors on the platform also seems excessive. They take 33%, gradually reducing to a minimum of 18% after you’ve taught more than 400 hours. 

Preply has a subscription model, meaning you can’t pay for single lessons (apart from trial lessons). Instead, you must purchase a monthly subscription, paying for between one and five lessons per week upfront.

Preply says its subscription model encourages people to commit. However, that could prove expensive if you miss a class or difficult if you can’t pay so much in advance.  

People are also complaining that they've lost money due to the subscriptions, which don't carry over unused lessons each month – if you don't use them, you lose them.

Other complaints concern refunds being refused and tutors cancelling lots of classes.

italki vs Preply vs LanguaTalk: What’s The Cost?

Tutors on all three platforms are freelancers. That means they act as independent contractors who use each platform to find clients, deliver lessons and get paid for their work.

Each site charges tutors a commission, but the rates differ between platforms. LanguaTalk and iTalki charge a considerably lower commission rate than Preply, meaning you'll likely get better value on those platforms.

LanguaTalk: Single lessons typically range between US $10-60 for 55 minutes, so everyone can find a tutor to fit their budget. Tutors offer discounts when you buy packs of 5, 10 or 20 lessons. 

italki:  Minimum rate for Professional Teachers is US $10 and for Community Tutors US $5. However, you’ll also find people who ask for considerably more. Lesson prices vary depending on the language, how many teachers/tutors there are and whether they offer discounts for multiple lessons.

Preply: Tutors typically charge US $1-40 for single lessons. However, Preply’s subscription model means you must pay between one and five hours per week over 28 days, based on the price your tutor charges. If your tutor charges US $17 per lesson, you could pay a minimum of $68 for one lesson per week up to a maximum of $340 for 20 hours over 28 days. Subscriptions are automatically renewed unless you cancel them. 

Final Verdict: italki vs Preply vs LanguaTalk

On each platform, you’re likely to find someone to help you learn a language for a price within your budget. 

Tutor profiles have an attractive layout and provide all the information you need to choose.

For trying out a tutor, LanguaTalk is the lowest risk option as most tutors choose to offer a 30-minute free trial session. On iTalki and Preply, you'll always have to pay for a first session.

Each platform also includes comprehensive help sections, articles, blogs and podcasts. Italki also has a community feature.

However, I believe LanguaTalk stands out for the high quality of all its tutors and its stated objectives of fairness, transparency and fuss-free learning.