For software creators, there’s always been a question of whether to stand out as an independent specialist on different freelance aggregators or join an IT outstaffing company or a dedicated product team. In this article, we will study the latest trends and statistics to answer the question: is Upwork good for software experts? Stay tuned.
The short answer is: yes. It is one of the largest official platforms where freelancers with different skills and professions connect with clients around the globe. Upwork offers services of individual specialists in various fields beginning with software-related services, including design, marketing, writing, and more.
To work on this platform legally freelancers have to follow its internal rules and their local guidelines regarding work permissions, compliance, and taxes. For each country, these guidelines would be different, so we will highlight the general ones:
So, if you ask a question “is Upwork legit?”, we would say: yes, if you follow its rules along with the business rules of your place of residence.
According to Upwork, every talented specialist can find a decent project there. From custom blockchain software development to interfaces design — a platform offers plenty of possibilities. Naturally, some of the skills are in higher demand than the others. If you possess a skillset that is in the highest demand, you can expect higher rates and a bigger amount of the open projects on Upwork.
According to the statistics, among the highest-paying freelance jobs in 2024 there are:
The competition in some particular spheres may be higher than in the others. And your skillset is again the thing that helps to stand out of it. Improve the existing skills and add new ones to become top in your speciality and offer more value to the customers, and your profile will be noticed.
Is Upwork good for beginners? Well, it might be a little bit harsh for a person without a proven track record. The truth is that clients are more likely to cooperate with a specialist who has proven their skills in the past.
How to improve your chances? Refine your profile and update your portfolio with the best samples from your pre-Upwork projects, even if you have only the ones from your studying courses. Upwork takes much effort to start, but as soon as you proceed with your executor reputation, it will pay you back. And these simple tips will help to show your previous experience in the most favorable light:
Previous experience of a freelancer is a precious baggage that will help you to win more profitable jobs. Make sure you have highlighted your strong sides and successfully completed projects in the profile to attract the right client.
To identify your strategy on the platform, it is important to understand what is Upwork used for by users. Some of them consider it as a source of additional income, while the others rely on it as a steady income source.
If you want to make extra money on freelance:
If you want to make Upwork basic source of money:
Main or additional — this platform will pay you back if you devote enough time and effort to build a strong profile and provide value in the projects you participate in.
Projects on Upwork are available for executors from all over the world. Despite different rules for freelancers in different countries, the platform offers similar opportunities for every person who registers. However, your location directly influences your earning potential, accessibility to projects, and client perception. For example, a client who wants to nearshore in Poland probably won’t choose an executor from Western Europe.
It doesn’t matter where are you located, take into consideration there factors to improve your experience with projects:
Find pre-vetted, skilled professionals with Talmatic—tailored to your needs.
The platform recently implemented several changes that make it harder to start with it for newcomers. They are mainly connected with quality standards, personality checks and service quality for the clients. Despite the fact that now it is a huge milestone to get started on the platform, newbies still try their best. We’ve made a short survey on the latest changes:
Even considering these challenges, new freelancers try their best on Upwork enterprise. And those, who are determined enough, succeed.
Freelancers have different experience working on this platform, so their testimonials also differ. Some of them share their positive experience with this digital workspace while others highlight cons of Upwork. We studied both sides, to show you the user’s feedback and let you create your own answer to a question “is Upwork legit or scam”.
To check what the people share about their experience with the freelance marketplace, we visited Indeed. Some of the users call it reliable and highlight that it is a good opportunity to make money despite all the complications. They also confirm that it is legitimate and profitable.
On the other side we see unsatisfied freelancers. If you ask them “Is Upwork safe?”, they would probably answer “no”. They admit poor contractor support, lack of insurance and risk of account suspension without any reason. Among the significant downsides they also notice high commission. Some of the people seem to be really frustrated with the negative experience.
The reputation of Upwork doesn’t exclude the difficulties you will face trying to connect with the possible contractors there. Especially if you are not sure how to select a vendor for outsourcing. Cooperation with the software development company may offer a more stable environment, job security and covered risks.
As an expert vendor, Talmatic offers all-covering services that include access to the global talent pool and high speed of contractor onboarding. We cover the risk of mismatching and are ready to replace the developer who didn’t fit the project for any reason. While on a freelance marketplace you would need to start your search again.
We ensure that you get the contractors with the proven expertise and skills thanks to the strong recruitment and technical specialists. They examine the CVs and conduct several rounds of interviews to provide clients with 100% matching candidates.
Cooperating with an IT vendor, you are protected in the legal sphere. You are sure that you cooperate with the registered legal entity and all the legislation nuances are considered in the contract.
Talmatic is aimed at long-term cooperation which means we respect your processes and business needs, and are fully responsible for the quality of services we provide. On demand, we can cover more of your software-related needs, proceeding from the individual contractors to the dedicated teams and full software outsourcing.
Is Upwork reliable? It is. But Talmatic commits to be more reliable. Let’s meet on a discovery call to prove it.
Looking to hire remote software developers but have a few questions unanswered? We are sharing our list of frequently asked questions by our clients when hiring software developers.
view allYes, Upwork is trustworthy despite the difficulties connected with the working process.
Among the critical disadvantages users mention poor support, high fees, high competition, and complicated compliance process.
Yes, in general it is safe, although there are some risks too.
No obligation to hire. No commitment from you.
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