Online English Tutoring Statistics (2026)
Market size, learner demand, tutor economics, and the research evidence behind 1-on-1 teaching. Every figure on this page links to its source, and each was re-checked on September 25, 2026, so you can cite with confidence.
Key findings
- $23.73B
The online tutoring services market is forecast to reach $23.73 billion by 2030, growing at a 14.9% CAGR from 2023 to 2030.
Source: Grand View Research (2023)
- 54.85%
English accounts for 54.85% of online language-learning revenue, the largest language segment (2025).
Source: Mordor Intelligence (2025)
- +0.37 SD
Across a meta-analysis of 96 randomized studies, tutoring raised learning outcomes by 0.37 standard deviations.
Source: Nickow, Oreopoulos & Quan, NBER (2020)
- Over half
Speaking is the weakest English skill in over half of the 123 countries and regions in the EF English Proficiency Index 2025.
Source: EF EPI (2025)
- 4M+
More than 4 million IELTS tests were taken worldwide in 2023.
Source: IELTS (2023)
- $15-25
English tutors on Preply charge $15 to $25 an hour on average, according to Preply's tutor recruiting page.
Source: Preply (2025)
The market: online tutoring and language learning
Multiple independent research firms track this space with slightly different definitions, so figures below name their source and scope. The consistent picture: double-digit annual growth across every definition of the market.
$23.73B by 2030
The online tutoring services market is forecast to reach $23.73 billion by 2030, at a 14.9% CAGR from 2023 to 2030.
Source: Grand View Research (2023)
$21.06B → $50.82B
Online language learning is estimated at $21.06 billion in 2025 and projected to reach $50.82 billion by 2031, a 15.83% CAGR.
Source: Mordor Intelligence (2025)
45.75%
Asia-Pacific's share of the online language-learning market in 2025, the largest regional segment.
Source: Mordor Intelligence (2025)
$22.86B → $53.18B
A second estimate puts online language learning at $22.86 billion in 2025, reaching $53.18 billion by 2030 at an 18.0% CAGR.
Source: The Business Research Company (2025)
$13.94B → $31.62B
Digital English language learning specifically: $13.94 billion in 2025 to $31.62 billion by 2031 (14.62% CAGR), with Asia-Pacific holding a 39.10% share.
Source: Mordor Intelligence (2025)
+$39.46B
Projected growth increment (not total market size) for digital English language learning between 2025 and 2029, a 24.5% CAGR.
Source: Technavio (2025)
$131.04B → $208.94B
Global private tutoring across all formats, online and in person: $131.04 billion in 2025, projected to reach $208.94 billion by 2030 (9.9% CAGR).
Source: The Business Research Company (2025)
$83.65B → $188.70B
The total language-learning market (all channels): $83.65 billion in 2025, projected at $188.70 billion by 2030, a 17.67% CAGR.
Source: Mordor Intelligence (2025)
Who is learning English: global demand
English remains the dominant language in paid online language learning, and demand concentrates in Asia and Latin America.
2.2M test takers
The EF English Proficiency Index 2025 draws on 2.2 million test takers across 123 countries and regions, and finds speaking is the weakest English skill in over half of the countries measured.
Source: EF EPI (2025)
Asia 39%
Regional split of EF EPI test takers: Asia 39%, Latin America 31%, Europe 16%, Africa 11%, Middle East 3%. Demand for English skews heavily toward Asia and Latin America.
Source: EF EPI 2025 report, p. 7 (2025)
4M+ IELTS tests
More than 4 million IELTS tests were taken around the world in 2023, and IELTS results are trusted by over 13,500 institutions.
Source: IELTS (2023)
40M+ TOEFL takers
TOEFL has been taken by more than 40 million people and is recognized by 13,500+ institutions in over 160 countries.
Source: ETS (2025)
What tutors earn: rates and platform commissions
Rate and commission figures below come directly from the platforms' own published pages, presented without commentary, alongside data on the wider independent workforce.
$15-25/hour
What English tutors on Preply charge per hour on average, per Preply's own tutor recruiting page.
Source: Preply (2025)
Up to $550/week
What Preply says its most popular tutors earn in a week on the platform.
Source: Preply (2025)
33% → 18%
Preply's commission on regular lessons: 33% for new tutors, 28% after 20 hours of teaching, down to 18% for tutors with 400+ hours. The trial lesson with each new student carries a 100% commission.
Source: Preply Help Center (2025)
$0.17/min
Cambly's published pay rate, equivalent to $10.20 per hour; Cambly Kids pays $0.20 per minute, or $12 per hour.
Source: Cambly (2025)
64M freelancers
64 million Americans freelanced in 2023, 38% of the US workforce, contributing $1.27 trillion in earnings. Independent tutoring sits inside this wider shift.
Source: Upwork (2023)
72M+ independents
More than 72 million Americans work independently as of 2025, and 42% find work primarily through online platforms.
Source: MBO Partners (2025)
5.6M at $100k+
5.6 million US independent professionals earn more than $100,000 a year, up 19% year over year.
Source: MBO Partners (2025)
Does 1-on-1 tutoring work? The evidence
Tutoring is one of the best-evidenced interventions in education research, from Bloom's 1984 classic to modern randomized controlled trials.
~2 SD
Bloom's classic 2-sigma finding (1984): students taught 1-on-1 with mastery methods performed about two standard deviations above a conventional classroom, better than 98% of the control class.
Source: Bloom, Educational Researcher (1984)
+0.37 SD
A modern meta-analysis of 96 randomized studies of tutoring programs finds a pooled effect of +0.37 standard deviations on learning outcomes.
Source: Nickow, Oreopoulos & Quan, NBER WP 27476 (2020)
0.10 SD median
For context: the median effect size across education RCTs is just 0.10 SD, and effects of 0.20 SD or more are considered large. Tutoring's +0.37 SD is roughly four times the field median.
Source: Kraft, Educational Researcher (2020)
50th → 59th
An effect of 0.23 SD moves a median student from the 50th to roughly the 59th percentile, a useful yardstick for reading tutoring effect sizes.
Source: Kraft, Educational Researcher (2020)
+0.18 to 0.40 SD
High-dosage tutoring RCTs in math produced gains of 0.18 to 0.40 standard deviations, with effects persisting into later years.
Source: Guryan, Ludwig et al., American Economic Review (2023)
3.13%
Share of MOOC participants in the study who completed their course in 2017-18, down from nearly 6% in 2014-15. First-time learners who took another MOOC the next year fell from 38% (2012-13) to 7% (2016-17). The study is paywalled; these figures are quoted from Inside Higher Ed's coverage of it.
Source: Reich & Ruipérez-Valiente, Science 363 (2019); also Inside Higher Ed (2019)
74.7%
Share of US postsecondary students taking at least one distance education course in fall 2020 (46.7% exclusively), up from 37.2% and 17.6% in fall 2019. Pandemic-period figures: treat as a peak, not a steady state.
Source: NCES Digest, table 311.15 (2022); also NCES Digest, table 311.15 (2020)
Industry trends: EdTech funding and AI
Venture funding has reset sharply from the 2021 peak even as consumer language learning and AI adoption in teaching keep growing.
-49% in 2022
EdTech venture funding fell to $10.6 billion in 2022, down 49% year over year from the peak.
Source: HolonIQ (2022)
~$2.4B in 2024
By 2024, EdTech VC reached roughly $2.4 billion, the lowest level in a decade and down about 89% from the 2021 peak.
Source: HolonIQ (2025)
$410M in Q1 2025
Q1 2025 global EdTech VC totaled $410 million, down 35% year over year, with fewer deals but a larger average check of $7.8 million.
Source: HolonIQ (2025)
$5.6B → $6.3B
Brighteye Ventures counts global EdTech funding rising from $5.6 billion (2023) to $6.3 billion (2024), with deals up from 915 to 1,153, while European EdTech VC fell from $1.2 billion to $0.8 billion. Definitions differ from HolonIQ's; do not mix the two series.
Source: Brighteye Ventures (2025)
56.5M DAUs
Duolingo reported 56.5 million daily active users in Q1 2026 (up 21% YoY), 137.8 million monthly active users, and $292.0 million revenue (up 27%).
Source: Duolingo, SEC filing (2026)
+23% DAUs
In Q2 2026, Duolingo's daily active user growth was 23% year over year, consumer language learning still compounding.
Source: Duolingo, Q2 2026 results (2026)
60% of teachers
60% of US K-12 teachers used AI tools in the 2024-25 school year; 30% use them weekly, and weekly users save about 5.9 hours per week.
Source: Gallup (2025)
How these statistics were verified
Every figure on this page was checked at its primary source, unless its card says otherwise: the research firm’s own report page, the official press release, the peer-reviewed journal, or the company’s own published pages. We do not republish numbers from aggregator sites, login-gated snippets, or unattributed round-ups. The one exception is the MOOC completion study, which is paywalled: its card quotes reputable news coverage of it and says so.
Where an official page no longer loads reliably, its link goes to a copy saved by the Internet Archive, so the figure can still be checked.
Where research firms measure overlapping markets with different definitions (for example, online language learning versus digital English learning), we present each estimate with its source and scope rather than blending them. Platform rate and commission figures are quoted directly from the platforms’ own pages and presented without commentary.
This page was last updated on September 25, 2026. Figures are re-verified when the page is updated; each stat shows the year of its source.
You are welcome to cite any statistic on this page in articles, reports, and presentations. Please credit the original source named next to the figure, and link to this page (tuton.io/statistics/online-english-tutoring) so your readers can find the full, dated collection. Suggested citation: “Online English Tutoring Statistics (2026), Tuton, updated September 25, 2026.”
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