Does EF (Education First) pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, EF (Education First) employees rate their compensation and benefits as 2.9 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at EF (Education First). This rating has improved by 2% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at EF (Education First)?

61% of EF (Education First) employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated EF (Education First) 3.2 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.7 for culture and values and 3.2 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at EF (Education First)?

English Teacher (293) , Teacher (246) , Tour Consultant (238) , ESL Teacher (199) , Online English Teacher (199) , Sales Coordinator (136) , Sales (74) , Activity Leader (73) , Online ESL Teacher (66) , Sales Consultant (63) , Manager (61) , Educational Tour Consultant (46) , Marketing (42) , EF Activity Leader (40) , Sales Associate (40)

What are the pros of working at EF (Education First) according to real employee reviews?

"Met some great people and walked away from each class with a smile on my face." ((in 412 reviews)); "Overall really great culture and very easy to feel welcome!" ((in 331 reviews)); "Colleagues are great and share similar values for the most part." ((in 202 reviews)); "Great benefits and travel opportunities." ((in 164 reviews)); "The team has been great and so open to teaching you everything you need to know and more." ((in 123 reviews))

What are the cons of working at EF (Education First) according to real employee reviews?

"You'll be doing a lot of work for low pay and have no life outside of EF." ((in 615 reviews)); "Employees are generally over worked and have an incredible amount of work for such a low salary." ((in 507 reviews)); "Poor management and lack of decisiveness from managers that have been stagnating in their roles for too many years." ((in 308 reviews)); "There can be long hours and you get told no on the phone quite often." ((in 155 reviews)); "Bad manager leading the country" ((in 122 reviews))

What are employees saying about EF (Education First) layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about EF (Education First) layoffs and their outlook for job security at EF (Education First) in 2026.

EF (Education First) reviews

3.4

61% would recommend to a friend

(4,607 total reviews)

Edward Hult, Ph.D

61% approve of CEO

47% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.8

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Culture & values

3.2

Work/Life balance

3.2

Career opportunities

3.1

Senior management

2.9

Compensation and benefits

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

EF (Education First) has an employee rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars, based on 4,607 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The EF (Education First) employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Educación industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

5K reviews

1.0

Feb 16, 2026

High Effort, Low Pay

Online english teacher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

There is nothing positive to say.

Cons

South African teachers are undervalued with the starting rate for a full-time teacher being $3 per hour. Monthly incentives are deducted if you fall ill and take sick leave. Management is clueless and the working environment is toxic. Warnings are dished out for everything without prior consultation. The cherry on top is they expect you to maintain a 4.9/5 rating, which is virtually impossible and unwarranted ratings will not be reviewed for removal. You put in a lot of work for no reward.

EF (Education First) Response

3mo

Thank you for sharing your perspective. We regularly review our compensation packages to ensure they are benchmarked with industry standards. While we set high expectations for our teachers, there is no official policy or requirement to maintain a certain rating. If teachers feel there is an unwarranted rating, they can reach out to their support team as there are some specific scenarios in which we review and consider for removal. We do not tolerate toxic culture within our workplace, and encourage you to reach out to online.support@ef.com so we can learn more about your experience and address your concerns properly.

1.0

Feb 12, 2026

No flexibility and pure chaos

Marketing

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

- Nice office and location - Nice people in the teams

Cons

- No working from home / flexibility - Below industry average salaries - Only men are promoted to team heads / directors - Management is chaotic, decisions/strategy changes constantly - Risk of burnout

EF (Education First) Response

4mo

Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective from our Zurich office. We’re glad you’ve enjoyed the team and environment, but are sorry to hear that other parts of your time here have been so difficult recently. What you describe around promotion opportunities and internal communication is not reflective of the environment we recognize in the office. We have shared this with leadership, but also encourage you to speak directly with your manager or your local People and Culture team so they can better understand your experience and support you in addressing everything you have brought up.

1.0

Feb 12, 2026

Good location and limited flexibility

Marketing

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The office is in a great location with easy access to transportation.

Cons

The move to five days in the office significantly reduced flexibility. There is a strong top-down management style, and micromanagement from senior leadership often creates an environment where employees feel they aren’t fully trusted.

EF (Education First) Response

4mo

We are sorry to hear that you feel this way working on your marketing team. Your comments around leadership style and micromanagement don't reflect the environment we encourage at EF. We have shared this with leadership, but it's also best to speak directly with your manager or your People and Culture team and share more about your experience so it can be addressed properly. Thank you again for taking the time to write about your time at EF.

Viewing 58 - 60 of 4,607 Reviews

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Jobs at EF (Education First)

Sales Development Summer Intern

Sales Support Coordinator

Summer Activity Leader

Activity Leader-Summer