6 Online Language Coaching Business Success Stories [2023]
The world has become more globalized. Businesses have become cross-border, and executives have to travel to meet new customers. One thing that is obvious is that there is a need for language translation services.
If you have proficiency in one or more foreign languages then you can consider working as a language coach.
Teaching a language online is intensive as you have to meet and communicate with the audience often, and check their progress. If you are looking for an opportunity to earn working online, consider starting online language lessons.
Here are some real life success stories of starting a online language coaching business:
1. Marlena Jorn Tutors ($2.88K/year)
Marlena Jorn (from Windermere, FL, USA) started Marlena Jorn Tutors over 2 years ago.
My name is Marlena Jorn and I am the founder of Marlena Jorn Tutors. I offer private, one-on-one German lessons to both children and adults. I currently have a website and a Facebook page. I teach my lessons through Zoom and PowerPoint, and after every lesson, I provide the student with the PowerPoint with my voice attached to it so they can practice the vocabulary/grammar between lessons.
I currently have three students, and I am currently working on building rapport and a solid clientele. Throughout my own education, I have seen a decline in the availability of the German language. I aim to reverse that and make German available to anyone interested.
2. Andalus Institute ($360K/year)
Muhammad al andalusi (from Barcelona, Spain) started Andalus Institute over 4 years ago.
I’m Muhammad Al Andalusi, I am a 27 years young man born in Barcelona, Spain.
Learn more about starting an online language coaching business:
Where to start?
-> How much does it cost to start an online language coaching business?
-> Pros and cons of an online language coaching business
Need inspiration?
-> Examples of established online language coaching business
-> Marketing ideas for an online language coaching business
Other resources
-> Online language coaching business tips
-> Blog post ideas for an online language coaching business
-> Online language coaching business calculator
4. Duolingo ($162M/year)
In 2000, Luis von Ahn was starting his PhD in computer science when he attended a talk and happened to learn about one of Yahoo's biggest problems: automated bots were signing up for millions of free Yahoo email accounts, and generating tons of spam. Luis' idea to solve this problem became CAPTCHA, the squiggly letters we type into a website to prove we're human. He gave away that idea for free, but years later, that same idea had evolved into a new way to monetize language learning on the web, and became Duolingo. Today, the popular app is valued at $1.5 billion, and is seeing a big spike in growth while people are confined to their homes.
Luis Von Ahn (from Irvine, California, USA) started Duolingo ago.
In 2000, Luis von Ahn was starting his PhD in computer science when he attended a talk and happened to learn about one of Yahoo's biggest problems: automated bots were signing up for millions of free Yahoo email accounts, and generating tons of spam. Luis' idea to solve this problem became CAPTCHA, the squiggly letters we type into a website to prove we're human. He gave away that idea for free, but years later, that same idea had evolved into a new way to monetize language learning on the web, and became Duolingo. Today, the popular app is valued at $1.5 billion, and is seeing a big spike in growth while people are confined to their homes.
5. Fluent In 3 Months ($1.09M/year)
Today, I'm thrilled to have Benny Lewis on the show. I've actually known Benny for over 10 years because we were in the same Google group for blogging many years ago.
Benny is known as the Irish polyglot and he runs FluentIn3months.com, which is a resource site for language learners that gets ove…
Benny Lewis (from New York, NY, USA) started Fluent In 3 Months about 14 years ago.
- Benny Lewis is a famous Irish polyglot and the creator of the language learning website Fluent in 3 Months.
- He has appeared in numerous national media outlets, such as The New York Times, Business Insider, Forbes, LifeHacker, National Geographic, and the BBC.
- This language learning website receives over 2 million visits monthly.
- Benny is fluent in seven different languages. He shares the experiences of real people who struggle and succeed in learning foreign languages, including his own.

Listen to the full podcast on podcasts.apple.com ➜
Hey! 👋 I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.
Get our 5-minute email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.

- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings