13 Chat Agent Jobs You Can Do From Home

Are you looking for remote chat agent jobs where you don’t have to talk on the phone? Keep reading; this post has you covered.

Back when I was in college, I worked for a telemarketing company. While the gig itself was flexible and paid well, it exhausted me. More often than not, people did not want to converse on the phone (which I get), so I would have to deal with their anger, irritation, and lots of curse words and hang-ups.

Over time, I dreaded going in to work. After college, I worked for Medicaid doing prior authorization for nursing visits and home medical equipment. Again, I was on the phone for long periods dealing with disgruntled providers — no fun!

While many work-at-home jobs are phone-based, the Internet has opened up a new breed of customer service that does not require being on the phone. In fact, live customer service chat is becoming more and more popular every day. Some of these chat agent jobs require background knowledge of a specific area, and many of them require you to type a certain number of words per minute, so make sure you read all of the fine print before applying.

What Are the Requirements For Being a Chat Agent?

To become an online chat agent, most companies require applicants to have a high school diploma or GED, excellent written communication skills, and a fast and accurate typing speed. Many companies also require at least one year of customer service experience; however, there are some companies that will hire beginners without any experience. You’ll also need a computer or laptop, a hard-wired, reliable internet connection, and a quiet workspace free from distractions.

13 Chat Agent Jobs You Can Do From Home

Remote chat agent jobs are in high demand. There are usually more applicants than there are open positions. If you’re set on being a chat agent, you’ll need to check with these companies frequently to see if any new openings arise. If they offer email job alerts, I highly suggest signing up for them so that you don’t miss any new openings.

1. Chat Shop – Live Chat Agent

You must be a fast and accurate typist (65 WPM to 80 WPM) with excellent communication skills.
The Chat Shop only hires in the UK, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas.
According to Glassdoor.com, the average salary is $21 per hour; these are W2 positions.

2. Concentrix – Home Agent

Online chat associates are responsible for providing basic to complex customer and technical support.
Hires in most states in the US, as well as global locations.
Pay is at least $10 per hour; these are W2 roles.

3. Guitar Center – CHAT Agent

Applicants need to be music lovers and have a passion for helping people.
You’ll need a high school diploma or GED and at least two years of experience.
You must be able to type 30 words per minute (WPM).
Use the keyword remote when you’re searching on their website.

4. LiveChat – Support Hero

You’ll need fast and accurate typing skills, at least 40 WPM.
Must have a perfect command of the English language.

Hires part-time social media agents to perform tasks like social media moderation, customer support, engagement, and monitoring.
Must have 2-3 years of experience in online moderation and strong typing skills.
The average pay is $20 per hour.

6. ModSquad – Mods

Mod contributors specialize in digital engagement, such as moderating content, chatting with customers, managing communities, checking for bugs, and updating social media.
In this role, you’ll work as an independent contractor.
The average pay is $21 per hour.

7. The Trevor Project – Chat and Text Counselors

Chat and text online with LGBTQ youth who need emotional support.
Must have excellent, fast, and assertive communication skills.
They hire in the US and Mexico and are open 24/7, 365 days a year.
These are W2 positions that come with benefits.

8. OutPLEX – Customer Service Rep

Must be able to type 30-50 WPM with zero errors.
You’ll need a high school diploma and a Windows Operating System.
Must have excellent spelling, grammar, and communication skills.
Hires remote workers in the US, Columbia, and the Dominican Republic.
The average pay is $18 per hour.

9. Site123 – Sales Chat Specialist

Must be tech-savvy and understand the website builder field.
You need to have proven experience in sales and customer service.
Must be knowledgeable of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

10. SiteStaff – Chat Host

You must be based in the USA and have a college education.
Must be able to type 65-75+ WPM.
You must have excellent punctuation, grammar, and spelling.

11. Sitel Group – Customer Service Representative

Hires full-time and part-time W2 employees to provide customer service to brands from around the globe.
Some jobs include may include phone work, but I think you can specify that you’d prefer chat, email, and social correspondence during the application process.
Must have a Windows operating desktop computer or laptop, high-speed internet connection, and a USB headset.
The average pay rate is $17 per hour.
Sitel does not accept applicants from California, Washington, or New York.

12. Hopper – Travel Experience Agent

Hiring full-time agents with at least two years of experience using a global distribution system (Sabre, Apollo, or Amadeus).
In this role, you’ll assist customers using email and chat.
Hopper offers a competitive salary and extensive benefits, including health insurance.

13. Upwork – Chat Support Specialist Jobs

Upwork is a freelance marketplace where freelancers can connect with companies that need their skills. With Upwork, you can create a profile that showcases your skills and expertise, and you can also browse freelance assignments on the site and submit bids for gigs that you’d like to work on.

One chat agent job that I found was for a chat agent to answer questions about insurance via text, email, and through their app, and the pay rate was $12.50-$22.00 per hour.

Upwork does charge a fee for using their platform, and rates can be seen below:

$0-$500 in earnings – 20% service fee
$500.01-$10,000 in earnings – 10% service fee
$10,000.01 or more in earnings – 5% service fee

Other Ways to Find Online Chat Jobs

If you’re browsing the web and notice that a website has a live chat agent box function, look on their career page and see if they hire remote chat agents. Some companies use third-party employers to fill their chat agent positions, but others hire in-house. And some chat agent functions are automated through artificial intelligence (AI), but it’s worth exploring to see if the company might be hiring. You can usually find a link to the company’s career page in their website’s footer.

Another avenue to explore is staffing websites like Robert Half, Conduent, Kelly Services, and Adecco. Not only do they have remote job openings, but you can other find those one-off job opportunities for chat support agents.

Can You Tolerate a Little Phone Work?

If you’re looking for more chat agent jobs, check out FlexJobs – they have many to choose from. Just make sure that you thoroughly read the job description. Many live chat agent jobs require some phone support, so if you’re against being on the phone, you’ll want to make sure that the position is 100% online chat, email, and social media.

If you are OK answering some inbound phone calls, companies like 5CA, Apple, Global Response, NexRep, Omni Interactions, OneSupport, Smith.ai, and Wrrk offer home chat jobs that combine phone, email, chat, and social media work.

Get Paid For Sexting?

One word of caution: phone actresses’ chat agent jobs are sex chat operator jobs. I want you to know what you’re applying for if you run across these job postings. I do not cover this opportunity or phone sex jobs on the site. If you’re interested in working from home as a chat sex operator, WAH Adventures has a list of hiring companies.

Conclusion

As more and more companies go online with their businesses, more and more work-from-home chat agent jobs will be available. I will continue to update this list as new jobs pop up.

Do you have a remote chat support job? Which company did you work for? Drop us a note; we’d love to hear from you!

Originally published January 21, 2015. Content updated February 2023.