Hi

I don't think online certificates are worthless, but there are a few factors you should consider when making your decision:

Firstly, where do you want to teach? Requirements of employers vary from country to country and from school to school. I would advise looking at some job adverts on this site and others to get a typical idea of the requirements of employers in the countries where you'd like to work. If employers typically ask for a "CELTA", "Trinity Cert TESOL" or equivalent, then they are unlikely to offer you a job with an online qualification. (The CELTA and Trinity courses are 120 hour, classroom-based courses).

Generally speaking, the shorter and less classroom-based your course, the more limited your employment options will be.

Secondly, the financial investment of a classroom based course is usually more than for an online one. So, if you are only thinking about teaching for a year, for example, this could be a consideration.

Thirdly, classroom based courses normally include some actual teaching practice, which for most trainees means that they feel more prepared and equipped when they start their first job. So this is another thing to think about.

Hope this helps - good luck!

Keith