LanguaTalk: A Preply alternative with better tutors, ethics and support
"LanguaTalk is hands down the best platform I've come across. Nice work!" - Erik, teacher
LanguaTalk was launched in February 2021 and provides an alternative to Preply, with higher standards for teaching and customer support. Click the links below to see how LanguaTalk differs from Preply:
Value for money & ethics: 1/5
The tutors
On LanguaTalk, the founding team assesses every application. On average, only 10% are accepted. This is why 99.8% of student reviews are 5 stars (students can rate every lesson). We look for tutors who are strong communicators and show a passion for helping people learn their native language.
In contrast, on Preply, whilst they claim that every tutor is 'professional' and 'certified', you'll quickly see that the platform accepts basically anyone who fancies trying their hand at teaching. This may go some way to explaining why the site has almost one thousand 1-star reviews on TrustPilot.
Value for money & ethics
One reason why LanguaTalk gets applications from the best tutors is that Preply charges unreasonable fees. When you take your first lesson with a tutor, 100% of your payment goes to Preply. Yes, you read that right, the tutor gets nothing for teaching a full lesson. Preply then takes 33% commission on future lessons, with the rate only decreasing to 18% once 400 lessons are taken. This hurts tutors' incomes and forces them to charge you more.
In contrast, on LanguaTalk most tutors offer a 30-minute trial session for free. This allows you to get to know each other without you committing to lessons. If you decide to take lessons, commission (16%) is as low as we can make it whilst still having a sustainable business. Tutors find this a much fairer deal.
Flexibility
On LanguaTalk, you can buy one lesson at a time if you wish. If you want to commit yourself to 5, 10 or 20 lessons to get a discount, you can, but we won't push you to do this. This differs from Preply, which in 2022 switched to monthly subscriptions. Since this change, we've received numerous messages from students and tutors who are looking for a Preply alternative. The company said subscriptions were introduced to keep learners motivated, but the reality is it removes flexibility and means you have less time to use your lessons. There are dozens of complaints on TrustPilot seemingly related to these subscriptions and people being angry that lessons they've paid for are removed each month.
Customer support
Because we're careful to recruit reliable, dedicated teachers, and we've put a lot of time into designing a system that works smoothly, we don't have to help students often. But when they do need help, our founding team provides prompt, personal support as fast as possible.
Preply has a bigger challenge due to its size and many of its tutors not being professional. There are lots of 1-star reviews on Preply's TrustPilot profile, often stating that the support was poor or non-existent.
Technology
The platforms offer the same core features. You can view availability easily for each tutor, according to your own time zone. Then book in a few clicks. One difference is that on LanguaTalk, tutors typically allow you to choose your preferred calling tool (Zoom, Skype, Google Meet or Whereby - the latter two don't require any downloads). Whereas on Preply, you're forced to use their own calling tool, which has mixed reviews. We prefer to give students and tutors the choice of a number of reliable, easy-to-use tools.
Above, we've demonstrated why LanguaTalk is one of the best Preply alternatives. But don't just take our word for it - book a trial and meet a tutor. Unlike on Preply, you can book a 30-minute free trial session with no card required. This allows you to get to know a tutor and see if they're a good fit for you before deciding whether to take lessons with them. Click here to browse teachers' videos, reviews and availability.
Got questions? Check out our extensive help site. We've tried to cover every question imaginable but if you can't find what you're looking for, get in touch with our team and we'll help you.
P.S. if you're a tutor, you can apply here. One thing we didn't mention above is that unlike Preply, we have a 24h cancellation policy to protect you from losing income. Students and tutors agree that this is fair, and whilst many tutors sometimes make exceptions, you're under no obligation to do so.