Freelancers accounted for 36% of the U.S. workforce in 2020. Not surprisingly, this percentage continues to grow: Freelancers enjoy the freedom to choose their workloads, projects, and clients.
If you are looking for a freelance job, you may know how great the job can be, even if you already have an online portfolio. But don’t worry - in this article, we are going to list the best free websites.
What is freelancing?
A person is considered to be a freelancer if he or she works independently or in a company. Because freelancers are self-employed, they often contact clients directly to negotiate recruitment conditions and determine their own rate of service.
Companies often hire independent workers as independent contractors for a short period of time or for a specific project. As the self-employed only hold a temporary post, they do not receive any benefits that a full-time employee would receive.
How to become a freelancer?
Choose the type of service to offer. Narrow down the options based on your skillset and passions. Next, define your target market and business goals. Doing so will help set your rates and decide on the business model to employ.
Once that’s taken care of, build your personal brand by creating accounts on multiple social networking platforms, making an online portfolio to increase your online presence, and setting up a business email account.
Look for potential clients on freelance websites or social media platforms. As the business grows, continue honing your skills and update your portfolio regularly. Be sure to maintain positive relationships with past clients to open more opportunities.
10 Best Freelance Websites to Find Work
Here are our top 15 freelance websites to choose from:
1. Upwork
Upwork is a freelance website that connects clients and freelancers all over the world.
The platform offers many categories, from web design and software development to customer service and accounting.
Clients and freelancers have many ways to connect - clients can choose to publish a job and hire talent or purchase a predefined service from the project catalog. In the same way, freelancers can access the desktop and offer a service for sale.
To start as a freelancer at Upwork, start by creating a profile. Make sure it contains details about you, your skills, and your work experience. Keep in mind that clients will decide if you are eligible by scanning your profile when applying for a job or implementing a project.
Upwork has a sliding scale, which means that the more you work, the less you get paid. For example, the commission fee will start at 20% for the first $ 500 bill and gradually decrease as you get more money.
There are several choices for withdrawal, including direct transfers, PayPal, and bank transfers.
- Pros: payment protection, credible clients, budget-based projects.
- Cons: lengthy selection process, high service fee.
2. Toptal
Toptal is an independent website that brings together qualified freelance professionals with companies. Toptal has a wide range of freelancers, from web developers and web designers to financial advisors and product managers.
Applying to Toptal as a freelancer requires going through five steps in the screening process, from a comprehensive English assessment to a project assessment. This process ensures that only the top 3% can reach the platform.
After completing all the steps, you will have access to various messages from leading clients and companies such as Motorola and Airbnb. However, a test failure will stop the application process for several months.
Toptal has a dedicated time tracking and billing service called TopTracker. Thanks to this service, freelancers receive the total price they offer and accept payments via Payoneer, Paypal, or direct local bank transfer.
- Pros: top-tier companies and talent, free invoicing and payments.
- Cons: extensive screening process, big projects only.
3. Fiverr
Fiverr is a platform that connects freelancers with business owners looking for services in a variety of digital projects, including website design, content writing, and voice messaging.
This freelance website provides freelancers and business owners with an effective way to interact. Remember that freelancers on the web are called sellers, their services - looks, and business owners - buyers.
Instead of sending offers, suppliers can register for free, state their performance and set their prices. In the meantime, buyers can easily browse different categories and make a purchase. Each time a buyer buys a show, the system automatically tops up his account and holds the money. The system then charges a commission and sends 80% of the price to independent workers.
Depending on the sales level of each freelancer, revenue collection may take up to 14 days. There are several payment options, such as debit card, PayPal and transfer.
- Pros: diverse category, free registration, online courses
- Cons: high commission charge, long payment process.
Freelancer.com is another freelance site where professionals and companies from all over the world collaborate on various projects. Thanks to extensive expertise, clients can easily find an expert of any class.
You can sign up as a freelancer or business owner. To register as a freelancer, you must complete a short registration form. Provide detailed information, including your skills, education, and work experience. In addition to projects, there are many challenges, such as visual or design work. Freelancers can benefit from these competitions by earning money through reviews on their profiles.
Each freelancer receives full pay upon completion of the job. However, the platform takes 10% of your total revenue from competitions and fixed projects. As with most independent sites, you can use PayPal or bank transfer for withdrawals.
- Pros: progress tracker, live chat, 24/7 customer support.
- Cons: complex interface, spam applicants, and fake clients.
5. Flexjobs
Flexjobs is a website that specializes in flexible and remote job opportunities, including freelance work, part-time work and full-time work. There is a wide range of categories, from education and training to journalism and writing.
Flexjobs ensures that every order published on the website is legitimate. Verifies and inspects all openings, filters fraud and fraudulent transactions. Unlike other online job boards, this freelance site does not display ads on its site. Users must subscribe in order to find a freelance job. There are four plans, starting at $ 6.95 / week. Each subscription provides unlimited access to job listings along with a personalized job portfolio, career guidance and free skills testing.
Users can pay for their subscriptions with a prepaid card or PayPal service. There is a 30-day satisfaction guarantee, which means that if you are not satisfied with the service, you can get a full refund.
- Pros: scam-free, 30-day money-back guarantee, reliable support.
- Cons: some premium jobs can be found outside the platform.
6. SimplyHired
SimplyHired is a job board where companies can post and create jobs for free. On one page, it also collects job offers from all over the internet. The site has a clean user interface that makes it easy to browse tasks by category.
There are a number of freelance opportunities in various fields, including finance and marketing. To find a specific job, simply enter a search box containing relevant keywords. Narrow them by entering a city, state, or zip code to get more relevant results.
Job seekers also have access to the company's website, where they can find out more information, such as an overview of the company's salaries, a list of benefits offered and reviews sent by their real employees.
People can browse SimplyHired without a profile. However, registering an account gives you access to a variety of work tools, such as payroll and resume creation.
- Pros: email alerts, helpful guides, free job tools.
- Cons: spam from unreliable third-party websites.
7. Guru
The guru is a place for independent workers and companies from all over the world to work together. Companies can hire professionals with different skills, such as programmers, graphic designers and product managers.
This freelance website makes browsing easier by providing clients with worklists and offers. Start by registering and creating a freelance profile. The system will offer you job recommendations based on your skills and work experience.
Freelancers can bid for long or short projects and give a specific price for each project. There are several ways to withdraw money, including PayPal and bank transfers. Above all, this site ensures that freelancers are paid on time with SafePay protection.
Every freelancer who registers on this site as a freelancer gets a basic membership for free. However, paid membership plans include many tools for viewing your profile.
- Pros: secure payment, customized job listings, free membership.
- Cons: potential fake clients.
As the name suggests, People Per Hour helps companies find professional freelancers to hire on time or on a project. There are millions of freelancers from various industries such as public relations, marketing and journalism.
Freelancers can create an account for free and start creating a profile. Please note that moderators will review each application before approving it. If approved, freelancers can start browsing jobs in several categories. When working on a project, freelancers can bid and set their prices. When they are ready, they can easily upload an invoice from their dashboard.
Like most freelancers, freelancers charge a client service fee. For $ 350, a freelance website charges a 20% service fee. Fortunately, wages will go down while you still work.
- Pros: automated invoice, location-based listings, secure payment.
- Cons: free bids are limited to 15 per month.
9. TaskRabbit
To make money shopping or assembling furniture, visit TaskRabbit. TaskRabbit is a same-day service provider that connects clients with freelancers to help them with a variety of day-to-day tasks.
Unlike most freelance sites that contain a list of professional orders, TaskRabbit provides a list of simple tasks such as homework, lighting installation and delivery. To get started, simply create an account, select an area and category, and set an hourly rate.
In each application, the TaskRabbit team performs a check and a background check. Once the profile is approved, the freelancer must pay a registration fee of $ 25. They can then start discovering tasks and managing tasks through a mobile application.
When freelancers complete the task, they send an invoice for the hours worked. Customers then deposit money directly into a registered bank account. TaskRabbit only pays for client services, so freelancers get the full amount they paid.
- Pros: custom hourly rates, no service fees
- Cons: only available in certain city areas
10. Behance
Unlike previous independent sites on the list, Behance is a social network for creative talent. People from all over the world use this website to create portfolios and share their creative works, from animations and illustrations to websites and graphic design.
Whether you are a freelance graphic designer, web designer or animator, Behance offers a place that potential employers can discover. Get started by registering an account and setting up your profile.
Because this is a network page, the more profiles you follow, the more posts will appear in your feed. It offers the opportunity to discover many freelance job opportunities.
Behance also provides a job offer. Each freelancer receives personalized job recommendations according to their skills and categories, making it easier to find a freelance job that matches their skills.
- Pros: large audience, networking opportunities, personalized content
- Cons: competitive environment, limited image file size
Tags:
earn money