PalFish Salary and Benefits: Earn $11-17+/hr Teaching On Your Phone

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*NOTE* PALFISH IS ON A “HIRING FREEZE” AND POSSIBLY ONLY HIRING FILIPINO TEACHERS. Here are some other opportunities to teach English online you may find helpful:

» Best Companies to Teach English Online
» Platforms to Teach English Online to Korean Students
» Platforms to Teach English Online to Japanese Students

As of the end of July 2021, changes have come to affect PalFish and all online tutoring companies based in China because of recent laws affecting China’s after-school tutoring industry. The primary changes include decreased demand/open teaching hours, pay cuts and the loss of jobs for foreign-based teachers (teachers that live outside of China).

Essentially, China has outlawed the employment of foreign tutors/teachers who do not reside in China. I believe this means a complete end to online English teaching jobs from companies based in China. But some are trying to pivot to an international market to work with students outside of China.

You can check out the official PalFish Facebook page for up to date information or download the app and try to apply there. At this moment, their last post dates from December 2021, stating they are *supposedly* hiring again. However, from what I can tell, no movement has actually been made to begin hiring teachers again.

As things are still uncertain, and Palfish claims to be going international, I’ve left this guide up for now in case they bounce back. Thanks!

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Curious how much you can make teaching English online with PalFish? I break down the PalFish pay rate so you can decide if this is the right job for you!

When I finally started teaching English online with PalFish after passing the Palfish interview, trying to figure out the salary structure and benefits was SO confusing! There are what feels like a million rules and stipulations, and as a newbie, it can be overwhelming to get a straight answer of – what can I actually earn with PalFish?

There have also been so many changes in recent months at PalFish when it comes to their pay structure that I felt this post was necessary. 

Many blogs sharing PalFish salary and benefits are outdated and missing these key important changes that have a significant impact on your earning ability teaching online with PalFish.

If you’re unsure which company to teach English with, I go into more detail of what it’s like teaching with PF in my honest Palfish review and share everything you need to know to get hired from job requirements, how it works, pros and cons, and more!

But today, let’s talk about money!

↠ Read More: 13 Companies to Teach English Online Without a Degree

This post may contain affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, if you click my links and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Learn more on my disclosure page. Thank you for your support!

Photo Courtesy of PalFish – PF1 trial lesson slide

PalFish Payment Method + Rules 

Employee Status

When you teach with PalFish, you’re an independent contractor, which means that any payment you receive and earn is not taxed. So you’ll need to set aside a percentage for taxes later in the year.

In America, independent contractors pay a federal tax rate of 15.3% and are also responsible for paying state and local taxes too, which is typically another 5% or so on top of the 15.3% depending on where you live*** 

Be sure to set aside that chunk of money after each payday to ensure you’re not caught off guard with a big tax bill!

***Hey guys, I’m a travel blogger, NOT a tax professional! Please consult a professional where you live and read over the local laws for accurate tax information and to find out what you owe.

When is PalFish Payday?

PalFish pays teachers via direct transfer or Payoneer, a payment processing website much like PayPal, so before you apply, you’ll want to sign up for a free account. Payoneer is a great way to receive money from an international bank without hefty fees that normal banks often charge. I only pay about a $3 fee for each payment and transfer.

On the first of each month, your earnings are withdrawn from your ‘wallet’, and your funds arrive in your account by the 7th. 

You must have earned at least 200 RMB ($28) to receive payment; otherwise, the amount will roll over to the next month’s payout.

If you sign up for Payoneer via this link, you’ll get a free $25 reward after your first $1,000 in earnings!

Palfish Pay for FreeTalk

If you’re not super familiar with how PalFish works, it’s good to note that there are two ways to teach with PalFish – via FreeTalk, or their Official Kids Course. 

Teaching with FreeTalk doesn’t require any strict application process or interview, it’s instead an unstructured language exchange where teachers are paid per minute by students for conversations in English.

PalFish Rate + Salary with FreeTalk

With FreeTalk, you have the freedom to set your own rate per minute, giving you ultimate control over how much you make. However, you are competing with other tutors, so if you’re too expensive, you may not book many students at first, or at all.

A common rate for tutors is usually around 1-5 RMB per minute, or $0.14 – $0.70, with 5 RMB being quite high. The more experience and qualifications you have, the more students are willing to pay to have a language exchange with you.

PalFish takes a 20% commission from all lesson earnings, in payment for using their platform and connecting you with prospective students.

That’s all there is to it for FreeTalk! The Official Kids Course salary is a bit more complicated.

As far as equipment, PalFish requires just a phone, a tripod, and internet to teach!

Official Kid Course: PalFish Salary and Benefits

The Official Kids Course or OKC is a structured lesson system where students buy course packages at their level of English, and an OKC teacher presents the provided lesson materials and slides. OKC teachers must pass a video lesson demo and have a Bachelor’s degree + a TEFL certificate or license to teach.

PalFish pays OKC teachers all the same base rate salary with opportunities for higher earnings. 

So, How Much Can You Make With PalFish?

The short answer is, PalFish official teachers used to earn about $15 – $22 per hour, but now the rate has changed to about $11 – $17+/hour depending on the exchange rate. 

This major pay cut, roughy 40%, has significantly affected full time teachers who were earning $2,000+ each month on PalFish. While this is absolutely atrocious the way teachers have slowly had benefits and pay taken away, I think PalFish can still be an ok option for those in need or seeking a chance to earn extra money online – not necessarily as a full time gig.

Figuring out your earning potential as an online teacher is a bit more complicated – it’s not a one-size-fits-all rate for everyone. 

Your PalFish official teacher salary is determined by a few things:

• Base Pay + On-Time Bonus
• Your Base Pay Level
• Compensation for Cancellations / No-Shows
• Bonuses for Selling and Recruiting
• Fines for Breaking Rules

PalFish Pay Rate Breakdown

Base Pay + On-Time Bonus

First things first, all pay is based around a per lesson rate, and lessons run for 25 minutes each at PalFish. There are five different pay levels teachers are eligible to earn, ranging from 30 RMB – 50 RMB ($4.65 – $7.50) per lesson and these levels can change each month. 

They aren’t based on teacher experience or qualification, but rather determined by a point system and the points that you’ve earned in the previous month. I’ll explain in a sec.

On top of your base pay, you also earn a 5 RMB ($0.70) bonus for arriving to each lesson on time. This bonus is pretty much guaranteed as I have faith you’re not going to be late to the majority of your classes 😉 

Here’s a breakdown of the base pay levels and PalFish rates for Official Kids Course:

Pay Level 1: ￥30 base +￥5 bonus =￥35 per lesson (￥70 / $10.85 per hour)*
Pay Level 2: ￥35 base +￥5 bonus =￥40 per lesson (￥80 / $12.36 per hour)*
Pay Level 3: ￥40 base +￥5 bonus =￥45 per lesson (￥90 / $13.90 per hour)*
Pay Level 4: ￥45 base +￥5 bonus =￥50 per lesson (￥100 / $15.45 per hour)*
Pay Level 5: ￥50 base +￥5 bonus =￥55 per lesson (￥110 / $217 per hour)*

*Actual USD per hour rate dependent on the current exchange rate

How PalFish Pay Level Is Determined

Each month, your base pay level is determined by the number of points you’ve earned from your teaching behavior during the month before. PalFish’s point system details many different ways to earn points or lose points, but a few essential notes are as follows:

• Earn +4 points for each lesson taught
• Earn additional +4 points (so +8 total), for lessons taught during specified peak hours
• Earn +40 points for selling a package to a trial student
• Earn +10 points for successfully referring a teacher
• Lose -50 points if a student files a complaint 
• Lose -3 points for being late
• Lose -3 points for leaving before 25 minutes
• And so on 

Here’s a graphic directly from PalFish that shows you how many points you need to progress to each subsequent level.

Essentially it boils down to the more you teach, and the more you sell, the more you make per hour!

Trial Lesson Pay: 30 RMB + 5 RMB per lesson ($4.65 + $0.70)*

A recent change as of summer 2020, all teachers are now paid the same rate for trial lessons, which is 35 RMB. Teachers used to receive pay that matched their current monthly pay level for trials, but sadly that’s been cut. 

Trials are lessons taught to students who haven’t officially purchased any courses from PalFish yet, as a way for students to test the platform and decide if it’s right for them. It’s a free class PalFish offers as a courtesy to prospective students. 

They are a big part of teaching with PalFish, which is one of the ways PalFish is different from other platforms. Especially when you’re starting out, your scheduled classes will be majority trials as you try to recruit and attract students to become your regulars.

This is a move by PalFish to entice teachers to book the same students each and every week. Not only does it increase student-teacher rapport, but it will also mean more earnings for you now that regular classes pay better than trials when you’re at any level higher than 1. 

↠ Read More: Where to Get a Free TEFL course or TEFL Scholarship

PalFish Compensation for Cancellations / No-Shows

Trial Lesson No-Show Pay: 25 RMB + 5 RMB ($3.50 + $0.70)*

If you have a scheduled trial lesson, but your student doesn’t show up, PalFish compensates teachers’ for their wasted time. You’ll receive 30 RMB per no-show (￥25 [½ of ￥50 base] + ￥5 RMB on-time bonus).

To receive this no-show payment, you must sit in the classroom for 15 minutes before you can leave. This is to give the student a chance to have their trial even if they’re running late.

You’ll get a pop-up message after 15 minutes that says you can now leave the classroom, so there’s no confusion and any loss of pay on your end.

*Change for 2020 – Teachers’ used to get half of the base pay of that month’s level, however now the rate for trials is the same for everyone regardless of level. 

Trial Lesson Canceled Within 3 Hrs: 25 RMB ($3.50)*

When a student cancels a trial three hours before the lesson, PalFish pays teachers 25 RMB (½ of base pay, no on-time bonus). 

However, the PalFish system will give you priority for any urgent trial bookings to help you recoup your lost earnings. They will try to find you a new booking as late as ten minutes before your scheduled time slot, but if they’re unable to find a replacement, you’ll be compensated for the cancellation. 

OKC No-Show Pay: Full Lesson Rate Paid

Teachers receive full payment at their current month’s lesson rate when there’s a no-show OKC student, aka a paying student. But, you must sit through the entire 25-minute lesson in case the student does eventually show up.

I always keep a book on hand for these rare, but inevitable situations!

OKC Lesson Canceled Within 3 Hrs: 25 RMB ($3.50)*

When an OKC lesson is canceled three hours before class, you’ll receive 25 RMB in payment for your missed booking. This rate is also set and not determined by your monthly level.

My PalFish Profile when I first started teaching!

Official Kid Course: Palfish Pay Bonuses

Phew that’s a lot – are you still with me?! Now that we’ve covered the basics of the PalFish salary scheme, it’s time to talk about the fun stuff – bonuses!

New Teacher Bonus: 100 RMB ($14)*

PalFish is one of the few online teaching companies that pay their teachers a bonus at the start of employment! You’ll receive 100 RMB as compensation for the start-up costs associated with teaching online. 

This money is meant to help ease the financial burden of buying teaching props, setting up a teaching background, and any lesson materials you’d like to incorporate into your lessons.

New Student Referral Bonus: 200 RMB ($28)*

As a reward for recruiting new students who make a purchase with PalFish, teachers are credited 200 RMB in thanks. 

I’ve honestly never once recruited a student, I think it’s often done through relationships that start out in FreeTalk or for people in China who can market directly to students there. 

New Teacher Referral Bonus: 300 RMB ($42)*

Similar to above, when you refer a new teacher who successfully passes the OKC application process, you earn a 300 RMB bonus! 

You can refer friends via a special PalFish referral link (peep mine here *wink*) or by sharing your unique teacher referral code: 44681391 – I’d love to be your PalFish mentor!

Trial Student Purchase: +40 points 

One of the old perks of PalFish was when you taught a trial lesson, and a student purchased a package after, you’d earn a $15 bonus for each package sold. 

Sadly they’ve recently changed it to no monetary reward, but instead a bonus of 40 points to help you reach a higher level of base pay.

If a student has many trials before deciding to make a purchase, the teacher who last taught the student is rewarded the bonus.

Perfect Attendance Bonus: 200 RMB ($28)* 

Teachers who teach over 100 lessons and have perfect attendance (no absences, no lateness, no complaints, no leaving before full 25 min, and no cancellations) in a month will receive a 200 RMB bonus in the first two weeks of the next month.

This change happened just recently. Previously teachers who taught only 40 lessons in a month were also eligible for the perfect attendance bonus, but now only those who teach 100 or more. 

Top 10 Teacher Bonus: 1000 RMB ($140)*

Based on your official score ranking / points at the end of the month, if you are in the top ten teachers with the most points, you’re awarded a 1000 RMB or $140 bonus! 

This is for the super sales-y people who sell A LOT of packages and refer A LOT of teachers and students. If you’re up for the challenge, go for it. But this isn’t attainable for part-timers or teachers who could care less about the selling aspect of the job.  

Top 11th – 20th Teacher Bonus: 500 RMB ($70)*

Not top ten? If you manage to get up in the top 20 rankings, you’ll also get a sweet bonus of 500 RMB!

↠ Read More: The Best Cheap Online TEFL Courses

Image curtesy of PalFish – Another trial lesson slide

Palfish Fines

Now for the fines. PalFish does deduct a few different fees for teachers who violate their employment rules. 

Late Fine: -10 RMB ($1.50)*

As a PalFish official teacher, you’re expected to be in the app’s classroom at least 30 seconds before the start of class, and every time you enter a lesson late, PalFish deducts a 10 RMB fine from your wallet. 

You’ll also lose out on that 5 RMB on-time bonus, so you really miss out on 15 RMB ($2) of pay per lesson when you’re not on time.

Late Assessment: -25 RMB ($3.50)*

After each and every class, teachers are also required to fill out an assessment of the student’s ability and performance in the lesson. It usually only takes about 30 seconds to fill out, and PalFish has done a great job of making it convenient for teachers – not a lot of typing involved, usually just prepopulated options to click. 

You have 12 hours to fill out these assessments from the end of class, and if you forget to submit, you’ll be charged a 25 RMB fine from your wallet – nearly half of your per lesson rate. Don’t forget! 

Cancel Class 24 Hours or Less: -50 RMB ($7)*

If you cancel a class less than 24 hours beforehand, you’re fined a hefty 50 RMB and 5 points, so you’ll want to be sure to plan in advance. If you must cancel because of an emergency, you’ll need to submit a report with the PalFish admin team to be excused.

However, you’re free to cancel a class without any monetary loss as long as it’s more than 24 hours in advance of class – you’ll just lose a single point for the trouble.

*Actual USD per hour rate dependent on the current exchange rate

Recent Changes to PalFish Salary in 2020 Onward

So to recap, if you’ve been scouring the interwebs for all the information you can find about how to earn an income with PalFish, here are the key things to watch out for as major changes to what this online teaching platform pays teachers.

• Trial Sale Bonus – No longer a monetary reward, now only receive points (used to get about $15/sale)
• Trial Class Compensation – Set rate at 50 RMB + 5 RMB on-time bonus for everyone, regardless of level (was previously dependent on your level for that month)
• Trial No-Show Compensation – Set rate at 25 RMB + 5 RMB on-time bonus, no longer ½ of current pay level. 
• Perfect Attendance Bonus – Now must teach 100 lessons in a month vs. the 40 it was previously (impacting part-time PalFish teachers)

These changes are a bit disheartening, especially because it really impacts teachers who only teach part-time with PalFish.

And ALL teachers work hard to provide quality lessons and learning environments. So to see the most recent changes taking away payment instead of valuing and rewarding, it’s meh. And this happens to be one of the major cons of teaching English online.

But I still whole-heartedly recommend PalFish as an easy and effective way to earn an income online – whether full or part-time – as well as a means to grow your travel savings fund if you’re like me and always trying to find a way to fund the next adventure 😉 

The PalFish teaching requirements as of 2021

Are you in need of a TEFL certificate? 

You need one to teach online with PalFish OKC!

And I have the pleasure of offering my readers 20% off any affordable and reputable TEFL course from iTTT! Check out my iTTT review to learn more.

Or maybe you’re looking for something a little more premium? The International TEFL Academy is consistently ranked #1 and is another well known TEFL provider people love.

Get your free brochure to learn more about ITA here. 

This post may contain affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, if you click my links and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Learn more on my disclosure page. Thank you for your support!

That should be everything you need to know about how much Palfish pays and what you can earn as an online teacher! 

Have any questions about the PalFish teacher application? Share below and I’ll do my best to help out!