Upwork vs Fiverr: Which Freelance Platform You Should Choose & Why
Written by Khalid Farhan
Last Updated:
Apples vs Oranges – which one is better? I guess you can’t compare that. But you can choose according to your tastebuds. Comparing Upwork and Fiverr is just like comparing apples and oranges. It’s all about what suits your tastebuds or health condition more. So clearly, there’s some personal preference involved. I have my own preference too. But anyway, I’ll try not to be biased and show you a clear picture to decide for yourself. Here’s my take on Upwork vs Fiverr: which freelance platform you should choose & why.
It’s very unlikely that you never at least heard of them. Upwork and Fiverr are the most popular freelance marketplaces widely used by clients and freelancers from all over the world. Upwork is an American company and Fiverr, on the other hand, is an Israeli company having total buyers of around 3.5 and 4.2 million respectively.
Both platforms got popular with the rising demand for remote work by skilled freelancers. Both provide an easy-to-use user interface and security of payment. Clients here can hire freelancers according to their choice for short-term projects without any long-term commitments and pay them accordingly. Well, projects can be long-term as well – however the client wants! The freelancers can gain good ratings by ensuring quality work along with good communication. Sorry, it was pretty long.
Here, you get what you give!
If you are not a ‘Yes-sir’ person like me and prefer working freely, Upwork or Fiverr may be exactly what you should sign up for. Now maybe you are thinking if both Upwork and Fiverr are all roses, how can you decide which one to choose? – Good question! Well, there are some differentiating factors for you to make up your mind.
Upwork vs Fiverr: Which Freelance Platform You Should Choose & Why
Which freelance platform you should choose – You ask? Then let me ask you what you are skilled in, how much experience you’ve got, and what you want out of this career. If you are looking for a one-word answer, I’m afraid I can’t give you that without knowing you. But yes I can tell you what different things are going on there in Upwork & Fiverr to help you choose between these two.
Scope of Work
Though Upwork and Fiverr have similar services, the clients of these platforms are more inclined to different kinds of services, meaning the maximum buyers of these platforms look for freelancers providing different services. Upwork is focused on a wider range of work – programming, marketing, writing, and designing – to name some of those.
Keeping contrast, Fiverr is more focused on quick services like graphic designing, data entry, video editing, copywriting, etc.
So if you are, let’s say, a programmer, choosing Upwork over Fiverr will bring you more possibilities to get a client. But if you are a graphics designer, go for Fiverr as it has more clients looking for that service. Hope I made it clear!
Contacting with Clients
Upwork may feel a bit troublesome for new freelancers on the platform. In Fiverr, buyers will just go through your gig and order your service if they like you. But in Upwork, things aren’t the same. You need to send proposals for their posted job and impress them to bag it.
Here comes the problem! Sending proposals to Upwork clients is not actually free – it’ll cost you ‘Connects’. Though you’ll get 20 free connects after opening an account but it’s not enough for a beginner. Any kind of message to clients will cost 1-6 connects. So clearly, 20 is not enough. You have to buy ‘Connects’ to send clients proposals for their posted job. To give an idea, each ‘Connect’ purchase will be for $0.15 – $0.30.
Bit of a hassle? Yes, I know! But there’s no such thing as a free lunch you know! If you don’t want it, go for Fiverr, you don’t need to spend a single penny to earn there.
Quality of Work
Upwork is for more experienced freelancers able to provide quality work, whereas, Fiverr is a platform for mainly less experienced freelancers who are still in a process of learning and working at the same time. You know what you are! If you think you are one of the bests of your kind, go for Upwork, and if you still need time for that, sign up for Fiverr.
Charge for Service
Upwork clients are, in general, willing to pay more than Fiverr clients. If you notice a service is getting ordered for $10 on Fiverr, don’t get overwhelmed seeing a similar job post offering $100 by an Upwork client.
Look at this job post on Upwork. Now look at the next one on Fiverr to compare the price gap – Crazy! Not always the price gap is this much, but overall this is the scenario.
Upwork is a better place for you to earn more money for your services, I mean – who doesn’t love to earn more right? I’ll suggest you learn well and be skilled first, and then choose Upwork. But go for Fiverr if you are okay with some steady income from some quick services.
Platform Charge
Upwork charges a sliding scale of fees depending on the freelancer’s earnings. Normally it’s 20% of the transaction but it will decrease to 5% in cases of long-term services.
But Fiverr cuts a flat 20% on any transaction – short-term or long-term! Some may try to justify this by saying – Fiverr is more of a platform for quick and short-term projects. But it has a place for long-term services as well. So in this factor, Upwork takes the crown!
Good Rating & Review
Upwork & Fiverr – both have a rating system to rate freelancers which can make or break them. Having a good rating for your service is all you’ll wish for as a freelancer. Trust me, it’s a big deal! Review is also a very important factor to get hired. Upwork clients are harder to satisfy than Fiverr clients. And why not? – in Upwork, clients are willing to pay way more than on Fiverr. So they also look for a great service. If you think, you can maintain the flow of good quality work for good ratings and reviews, take a chance on Upwork. And if you need more time to reach that greatness, Fiverr is your choice as clients here will expect less than Upwork.
Ease of Use
Upwork vs Fiverr: which is easier to use? – Fiverr any day! Both are not that complex but in comparison, Fiverr has a simpler interface, than Upwork. Upwork is definitely not rocket science, it just can seem a little hard for you to understand and navigate at first. It may take some time to get used to.
But talking about Fiverr, you can roam around it freely and understand everything even if it’s your first visit there. So in the factor of being user friendly, Fiverr is the winner!
Final Words
Ok, let me put this very simple for you! Upwork is like a very high-end restaurant where there’s quality food made by professional chefs and only people with good money come to eat and don’t hesitate to spend for better service. Whereas, Fiverr is like a local fast food chain where food is of good quality – obviously! But isn’t necessarily made by a very experienced chef. It’s more reasonable and people with tight budgets come here to eat.
So, Upwork vs Fiverr: which freelance platform you should choose & why? My final suggestion will be – If you are just about to begin or in a process of learning while working, just get on with Fiverr. When you’ll be skilled and experienced enough, and feel you know what you are doing, shift to Upwork for more premium clients who will not hesitate to pay you more for your service.
Hey, I am Khalid, a content creator & digital marketer who practices what he preaches. Over the last 6 years, I have built my own persona online with nearly 1m+ subscribers & followers on YouTube & social – along with 100s of happy clients for my agency. I blog about my journey here.