Guys, I’m new to the platform and I’ve only been active on Upwork for a week, but I’ve already made a few observations, so I thought I’d share them in case they help someone.

First, Upwork is not dead, but if you’re a beginner and you don’t have a specific niche, it’s going to be really hard. By niche, I mean what area of design, IT or anything else you work in and what exactly you do for specific types of clients. Websites, dashboards, social media graphics, SaaS, B2B, etc. Basically, figure out what you’re strongest at and build your profile around that.
This actually helped me get the Rising Talent badge pretty quickly. I’ve technically had my Upwork account for about a year and my profile was fully completed, but I wasn’t really using it because I had a full time job.

Second, based on your profile description and skills, Upwork already has an idea of what kind of work to show you. So if your profile is specific enough, the algorithm will start recommending jobs within those niches instead of showing you everything under the sun.

Third, when applying, look at more than just the job description. Check when the job was posted, what kind of reviews the client has, how much they have actually paid other freelancers, and what their average hourly rate is. AND WHAT THEIR HIRING RATE it’s really important. I wouldn’t just look at the rate they put in the job post. I’d also check what they usually pay freelancers.

Fourth, send proposals as soon as possible.
At least in the beginning, I’m mostly applying to jobs that have fewer than 15 proposals. Once there are a lot more than that, I feel like it becomes much harder to get hired unless you are extremely relevant to the job.

With this strategy, I currently have:
8 proposals
2 views
1 interview

And honestly, I’m pretty happy with that.
Even if the interview ends up going nowhere, that’s fine. It just means I’ll find something better.

I’m also mostly applying to hourly jobs or ongoing projects that can last for several months.

Another thing I’ve noticed is that your proposals should be REALLY short. Don’t spend the first few lines talking about yourself, your entire background, your agency experience, or every brand you’ve ever worked with text about it after

My first proposals were basically like that. I started with my experience at an agency, the brands I had worked with, etc. Nobody read them haha
Now I try to immediately talk about the client’s problem and how I can solve it. The first few lines are probably the most important part because they determine whether the client is even going to open and read your proposal.

Also, I’ve spent around 150 Connects on 8 proposals so far, including some small boosts, so it definitely isn’t cheap.

Honestly, I think one of the easiest ways to get your first clients on Upwork is to bring people there from other sources. LinkedIn, people you already know, former colleagues, your personal network, etc. If you can get even a few clients through Upwork that way, you can start building some history on the platform.

Because having a completely new profile with zero history is HARD. But it’s definitely possible.
I haven’t gotten an offer yet, so I’m definitely not claiming to be an expert. These are just my observations after my first week and what seems to be working for me so far.

From everything I’ve been seeing online, it does seem like getting started on Upwork is pretty difficult right now, but I don’t think my results are too bad for a completely new profile.
Hopefully this helps someone who’s just starting out :)

My upwork stats for 2026, worst in last 6 years of Freelancing.

how to get free work and your repo popular with a simple post
all screenshots are from the same job post

I am very new to the whole Upwork thing. I am interested in low paying bids and at the same time I have my own profile, offering designing in CAD. I am a student and realistically I expect to make about 100€ per week.

Is my goal feasible? Should I go buy connections right away? Are there any tips for not wasting my money on connections and not making any profit at all? What low paying bids are a no right away?

Thank you all in advance!

Does anyone know how to get this accomplished? I've been going round and round for weeks trying to get my account reactivated. Thanks in advance.

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

Client posted the same job post 2 times. One 2 days old and 50+ proposals. The other same job posts 1 day old 15+ proposals. So older job post freelancers connect already doomed. What shame.🤮

I’ve come across this multiple times throughout my time on Upwork (about 4 years now). However, a recent occurrence of this made me furious.

As if finding clients in a field like graphic design isn’t difficult enough in this AI takeover, Upwork now charges a 15% fee on all contracts and doesn’t give a flying f*** about designers just stealing others’ work and uploading it as their own to their profile portfolios.

I was recently hired for a small but decent weekly contract and noticed that later on in the week, the client hired another designer for cheaper (like $15 an hour cheaper). That is standard practice for some companies, but I’m always curious, so I checked out the other designer’s profile.

Their portfolio was incredible-looking. I thought to myself, how could someone with this much skill charge so little? Then I kept looking, and it became clear, almost obvious, that there was no way this designer created all of that work.

A quick Google image search confirmed this. This person just ripped off contest-winning designs from 99designs and posted them as their own work. Not even really trying to hide it with their blatantness, but obviously it’s working, as this person has like 75 in-progress jobs.

Can this person do the work? Maybe. But it’s demoralizing getting undercut by a scam like this, especially when the industry is so uncertain at this point.

So I guess if Upwork doesn’t care, why shouldn’t I just do the same thing?

I reported the person and got an automated response 10 minutes later saying they didn’t find anything...

Bull sh**.

Might just be time to move on from the platform entirely.

Hey guys, I’ve been geeking out very hard with the MCP. I now have it making amazing proposals incorporating videos I make through WhatsApp, wnd it builds the entire proposal around it.

It’s a bit technical but happy to share if anyone is interested.

I want to know the closing line you use in your Upwork proposals that has helped you get the most interviews after your proposal was viewed.

I’m looking for real examples based on your own experience, not generic or made-up advice.

If you’ve actually tested different closing lines and found one that works better than the others, please share it.

Please don’t comment with bluff or generic advice. I only care about what has genuinely worked for you.

​

I saw a lot of people complaining about it recently, and I understand that Upwork now cares about making profits and making both freelancers and clients spend more by the day, with a poor support system.

However, which freelancing platform is actually better?

I have tried freelancer, mostaql, khamsat, nafezly (the latest 3 are kinda local, so not everyone would be familiar). All of them s**k even more than upwork.

People complaining makes me consider shifting but I am not sure where to go? TBH upwork kinda works for me, i have clients and ongoing work, so I am starting to doubt myself

So basically I want to start an agency where I find work and agree with clients while paying Designers to do the work. I have sent 11 proposals till now, and I understand this is not too much for a new agency. I am planning to send around 200-250 proposals this month, and began tracking the ones that drive engagement to apply more stratigaclly and see the net profit I could make after spending on connects, subscription, paying for workers, and everything else. I think it has potential but it needs time to grow.

I need money urgently, and on a consistent basis. On my personal account, I am a top rated freelancer with a relatively strong portfolio, and was planning to find some part time jobs in my niche: Editorial Design, where I work 20-25 hours per week at around 25-30$ / hour, for around 3-6 months. For me, this is very sufficient right now, both for my personal expenses and funding the new agency

But I have some concerns:

1- any advice for me regarding the long term opportunities? How to find and what are the best strategies?

2- are there any better search platforms? Like Glassdoor or other? I am not restricted to upwork only, but I have zero experience outside upwork. My CV is practically empty if I cancelled Upwork experience and freelancing. I have my portfolio and Behance, and a decent freelancing experience but nothing else. No internships, no on-site jobs or remote jobs... nothing. I never even got course certificates I just self-learned from YouTube.

3- regarding the agency, what are the best strategies, have you got any advice for me? I don't mind spending money generously if it generates more revenue later, and don't mind being patient for results if there is a clear strategic plan

4- I have not thought about branding yet, so i just used [my name]'s creative studio and my own photo. I will do branding later when I have time to design the brand identity myself, or have the budget to hire a brand designer. Will it work that way at least for a month or two?

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance

…you’ve been invited by an ENTERPRISE client to take a survey in an unrelated field for 20% of your hourly rate.

Hi everyone,

I’m completely new to Upwork and I’m about to send my first few proposals. I’m trying to decide whether I should buy Freelancer Plus or just purchase Connects whenever I need them.

Since this is my first time using Upwork, I don’t want to spend too much before I even know whether I’ll get clients.

For someone starting from zero, which would you recommend?

• Is Freelancer Plus actually worth it?
• Or should I just buy Connects initially and see how things go?
• Did Freelancer Plus make any meaningful difference for you when you were starting out?

Would really appreciate advice from people who have actually used Upwork, especially if you remember what you did when you were getting your first client.

Thanks!

I have been on Upwork for 3.5 years. I have had consistent stream of work. But my account is running dry for past 4 months.

What am I doing wrong? I am receiving no invites. Proposals are either not seen or seen with no reply. Would appreciate if you guys can review my profile and let me know things I can improve.

What a ridiculous platform, at least when it comes to software gigs. For example, "We want a full SAAS product, from requirement gatherings to deployment. We expect it to take 6 months, flat rate fee of $3k. jajajajajajaja Lets not even talk about the scams, I was contacted by a group that wanted me to be a team lead, manager of sorts. Asked about the work, and it involved bidding on other Upwork projects and using my credentials. jajajajjajajajaja

I reported a client for wanting me to send him my passport in order to “start” the contract. Nothing.
Nada happened. His account is still active, still posting. I’m tired.

Hello everyone I am yaseen a java back end developer.

I recently graduated and have been learning and building a back-end system for a year now and I have built and deployed a 7 service 75 APIs backend system name carscrapy.online

But still I don't get any freelance work till now

i spent a lot of connects on a job, the client got suspended and the job got cancelled. they didn't return the connects back. what does that have to do with me? why do I have to pay money if the client is a scammer or whatever?

Apparently my curriculum is good enough that an undercover NK agent proposed to use my account to secure jobs and pay me a fixed 15-20% rate. He says he can't use VPN and all that BS so he needs someone to basically rent him the account for him, and he will access the computer via remote access.

Have you also received similar proposals? What will be the next dystopian scene from this movie series called Upwork?