Online English tutor pay for Nigerians
Working 10 to 25 hours a week at published platform rates, an online English tutor in Nigeria earns roughly $5,000 to $20,000 a year. Where you land depends almost entirely on hours filled and the rate you can charge. Cambly pays a fixed $10.20 an hour; on Preply you set your own rate and the platform takes 33% to 18% commission.
There's no salary in the usual sense. Everything below is worked out from published hourly rates and stated weekly hours, so you can redo the maths for your own schedule.
Updated October 2026 by the WorkRemote careers team
Remote online english tutor pay by level
Yearly pay in US dollars for remote online english tutor roles open to people outside the US and UK, then the same figures in naira a month.
| Level | Dollars a year | Naira a month |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | $5,100 to $12,750 | ₦579,000 to ₦1,447,000 |
| Mid | $12,300 to $20,500 | ₦1,396,000 to ₦2,327,000 |
Naira at ₦1,362 to $1, 23 October 2026 (CBN NFEM weighted average), before tax and transfer fees, rounded to the nearest ₦1,000. The rate moves, so treat naira figures as a guide.
Where these figures come from
- Entry
- Cambly's published rate of $10.20 an hour, at 10 to 25 teaching hours a week for 50 weeks. Fixed-rate platforms are where many new tutors start, if they're accepted.
- Mid
- Preply's stated average for English tutors ($15-25 an hour) less its 18% commission for experienced tutors, at 20 hours a week for 50 weeks. This is a platform-wide average; tutors from Nigeria often charge less until they have reviews and a niche.
How that compares
Reference points from other markets. Remote pay for people in Nigeria is usually below US and UK local pay.
- US median hourly pay, tutors (BLS, May 2025) (bls.gov)$20.84 an hour
- Cambly tutor rate (adult students) (cambly.com)$10.2 an hour
- VIPKid base pay, low end (US/Canada-eligible teachers only) (vipkid.com)$14 an hour
What affects your pay
- Hours you can fill. Most tutors don't get 25 paid hours a week in their first months. Trial lessons, gaps and cancellations eat into time.
- Commission. On Preply the full fee for each trial lesson goes to the platform, then 33% of later lessons, falling to 18% as your hours grow.
- Niche. IELTS and TOEFL coaching and business English usually command higher rates than general conversation.
- Reviews and response time. On marketplaces, ranking drives bookings, and bookings drive what you can charge.
- Time zones. Peak demand is students' evenings: late night in Lagos for Brazil, late morning to early afternoon for Japan and Korea.
- Currency costs. Payoneer, PayPal and Wise charge fees on withdrawal; check what reaches your account, not just the headline rate.
Negotiating your offer
On marketplaces you don't negotiate, you set a price. Start at a rate that wins trial lessons, then raise it in steps (for example after every 25 reviews) and keep long-term students on their old rate for a while. Most will stay.
If an online school or company offers a fixed rate, ask whether pay is per lesson or per hour, whether no-shows are paid, how many hours a week they can guarantee and how payment reaches Nigeria. A higher rate with no guaranteed hours can pay less than a lower rate with a full timetable.
Questions people ask
How much does Cambly pay per hour?
Cambly says it pays $0.17 a minute ($10.20 an hour) for adult students and $0.20 a minute ($12 an hour) on Cambly Kids. It also says it is temporarily limiting new tutors.
How much do Preply English tutors earn?
Preply says English tutors average $15-25 an hour. Tutors set their own rate, and Preply keeps the full trial-lesson fee, then 33% of later lessons, falling to 18% as total hours grow.
Can a Nigerian English tutor earn $1,000 a month?
It's possible with a full timetable. At Cambly's $10.20 an hour you'd need roughly 25 paid hours a week; on Preply at $15 an hour after 18% commission, about 20 hours. Most new tutors take months to fill that many hours.
How do US tutor earnings compare?
The BLS reports a median of $20.84 an hour for US tutors (May 2025). Nigeria-based marketplace tutors usually earn less per hour, especially at the start.
Sources
- Cambly: Become an English tutor (accessed October 2026)
- Preply: Teach English online (accessed October 2026)
- VIPKid: Teach (accessed October 2026)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Tutors (accessed October 2026)
Updated October 2026 by the WorkRemote careers team
Salaries for related roles
- Online Math Tutor
An online maths tutor teaches students one-to-one over video, usually for a school exam such as GCSE, IGCSE, A-level, SAT or IB. You can do it from Nigeria on open marketplaces like Preply and with diaspora families who find you by referral, but many US and UK tutoring companies only accept tutors who live or can work in those countries.
- Instructional Designer
An instructional designer plans and builds training (e-learning modules, video lessons, workshops, job aids) so that people can actually do something new at work. It is a well-established remote role, and Nigerians get hired from home with a strong portfolio built in tools like Articulate Storyline and Rise, though offshore pay is far below US salaries.