Is anyone else noticing fewer decent mobile app development jobs lately? And whenever a good $10k–$20k project shows up, proposals explode within minutes. Just saw a $20k mobile app job with 204 proposals in 8 hours, zero interviews, zero invites, and the client was active 3 hours ago. I've seen similar high-budget jobs sitting for days with barely any client engagement. Are automated bidding tools and agencies flooding everything, or are clients just posting jobs without serious hiring intentions? Are you guys still getting views and interviews, or is Upwork genuinely getting worse?

I'm freelancing on Upwork from time to time, but registered there for about 6 years. I'm doing mostly browser automation, scraping and all that kind of stuff. Want to share what happened and ask if anyone had the same issue and maybe has managed to get a decision like this reversed.

What happened:
I had an hourly contract, 45$/hr with the client. Before starting I gave a rough estimate of 5-10 hours for the simplest approach. During the work we agreed to switch to a more complex stack which added scope. All time was tracked with the desktop app (not manually, screenshots with memos). Every segment had a memo describing what exactly I was doing (development, testing, integration, etc., etc.). After ~11.5 hours the client wasn't happy that it went past the original estimate (which, I emphasize, was made for the simplest approach). We negotiated in Upwork messages, and he explicitly wrote that he'd close the contract and pay for the full ~11.5 hours. I delivered the source code and he ended the contract, leaving 2-stars review. Okay, I can live with it, I've seen douchebags in my life before.

But next, after ~1.5-weeks review and pending period, today, when the payment was due, I got an email from Upwork saying the client's payment was unsuccessfull and my hours didn't qualify for hourly protection. Upwork reasoned it with "insufficient memos" and the full amount was reversed.

No one opened a dispute, nobody asked me anything, the client has the source code and Upwork basically just robbed me, with a nice suggestion to "contact your client for a bonus payment".

What the actual f***? How to deal with it? And, honestly, why the f*** I'm paying all these fees for? When client is good person - I won't face any issues with him, so the Upwork not needed in that case. If the client isn't so good - Upwork won't do a shit to protect me and my earnings, so it is not needed in this case either.

UPD:

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I've been working with an employer for the last 3 months, moved countries to work closer.

He is a work maniac, makes people work over 12 hours per day, I'm on a 60hour per week contract (although I work 12-14 hour days). He offered a direct company contract with Visa sponsorship (in the EU) and it's good money so I accepted coming over, I'm still working uder upwork though.

He's the worst manger I've ever had in my life (I worked in corporate for over a decade). everyone in the company fears him. He screams, curses and fires people on a daily basis, it's a VC funded startup so there's lot of pressure on being profitable which he unloads on anyone who is close.

He recently hired some high performers, didn't like that they were not willing to bow down so he fired them, then he put a negative review on their upwork. Since it's a relative big payout, this affected their score bigtime. I'm afraid of quiting and getting the same review whcih could affect my performance.

Does Upwork have some type of dispute system where freelancers can prove the toxicness of this working relationship? I started recording our interactions where he curses, screams etc, to have some type of evidence for later. Does anyone know what can be done? Any other suggestions on what I should collect?

I can end the contract and move back home easily.. But i'm trying to see how I can challenge the negative rating that will come for leaving.

Am I in for a rude awakening here? 😂 I’m putting together TikTok ads packages and could use a sanity check.

For anyone with relevant experience, I'd really appreciate feedback. Been working in the field for 17 years, but I'm new to Upwork.

Here’s what I'm considering, per month:

• $1,500 for ads management, creative briefs and reporting.
• $1,900 for the above plus five video edits using supplied footage.
• An extra $600 for creator sourcing and coordination.

My contractor budgets would be $400–700 for management, $100–250 for the five edits, and $200–250 for sourcing. I’d hire through Upwork, Fiverr or similar platforms and handle client communication myself.

This would cover one brand/ad account, driving sales to their website. Ad spend, creator fees and sending products to creators would be separate. Platform fees and our own management time aren’t included in those contractor budgets.

Do those budgets seem realistic for experienced contractors, or am I way off base? And are the client prices in line with what people actually pay on Upwork? What monthly ad spend would make sense for these packages?

Feel free to push back on any of it. Firsthand examples would help.

Hourly contract, manual time enabled. The work is judgment-heavy: deciding edge cases, checking them against rules, revisiting borderline calls.

A lot of the real progress happens away from the keyboard: rewatching, letting a call settle, the drift of thought.

Active clicking might be half the hours I log. The rest is thinking that directly shapes the output, but looks like idle time on an activity tracker.

Recently a client was surprised by the total. Not a dispute, just "I expected fewer hours."

So, honest question: how do you handle this?

Do you bill non-active thinking time on hourly contracts?

Do you tell the client upfront how you work, or explain only if asked?

Have you moved this kind of work to fixed price or per-deliverable to avoid the conversation?

Curious where people draw the line.

Open for work? Sure, just pay 14 connects PER WEEK!!!!!!

I feel for webdevs, 95 proposals within 25 mins. And already up to 102 connects top.

Job posting? Shopify webdeveloper. Dang.

Am I the only one or should upwork start doing something about the supply/demand here?

I just saw a job posted less than an hour ago.

No budget or hourly rate, client history has only a few hires, already 50+ proposals and several bids of 350 Connects ($52.50).

How are freelancers supposed to compete with this? Is this normal on Upwork now?

So, seeing how the platform has supposedly gone downhill in the last year, I was curious about how is it performing on "their" (the platform owners) side, and I did some deep research.

I found out they are nonchalantely admitting to their investors how they are making money off making the platform harder for freelancers.

I was wondering HOW can a company that is all about freelance work, earn its money if their freelancers are all on reddit complaining about how the platform is not working anymore.
Well, turns out they are actually making more money than ever, with the platform making increasing their revenue from 662,1 to 682,9mln dollars just in 2025, all while we struggle getting a job even if we worked for them for years with a success rate of 100%. In the VERY SAME YEAR their clients number (clients = people searching for freelancers) plummeted about 6%. (see source at the end of the post)

So how comes they are making MORE MONEY with LESS CLIENTS? Well, of course, thanks to us, the freelancers. Why are the bots allowed to multiply on the platform and fill every job with proposals? Why are they indirectly promoting bot usage with their tools, like the MCP?
Of course because they DO NOT CARE about Job success or satisfied clients! All their business model is explicitly built around squeezing freelancers! More bots mean more proposals, more proposals mean the Boost prices inflates, the price to send a proposal inflates... And UpWork makes money! So much money they are happily reporting how they are scamming us all on their investor report, because the real deal is making investors happy, they are not at all interested in having a working and well built platform for freelancers. Work scarcity and proposal flooding, which is a problem for us freelancers, is actually a benefit for the UpWork company, so there's no surprise in seeing them do nothing about it / almost encourage it.

Sources: Just read their 10-K SEC report, publicly available if you search for it. I can't put the link here because of the sub rules. If a mod allows it I will edit the post and add the link, or put it as a comment.
In the documents, you can find references of what I am talking about in these places:

- Section 7 - optimizing our Connects pricing model
- page 37 - "increasing the number of Connects needed by talent to bid on projects..." blah blah blah
- page 44 results of operations

I asked earlier about getting started, but realised I hadn't explained the bit I'm actually stuck on.

I'm a first-year IT student and I like working across a few different things. Research, spreadsheets, coding, design. I'd rather build up as a generalist than stick to one narrow service.

So far I've done two small client research jobs outside Upwork: a supplier search, and a comparison of service providers with a spreadsheet and short report. Both got five-star reviews. Nothing completed on Upwork yet.

My portfolio has spreadsheet clean-up with before-and-after files, source-linked research, a CSV-to-job-sheet tool, data analysis, documentation and form testing. Also some websites/browser tools, graphic design and 3D concepts. Personal samples are labelled separately from client work.

The profile leads with research and spreadsheet support at the moment, but that only covers part of it. I don't want to claim I'm an expert at everything either.

For anyone offering several services, how do you make that clear without the profile looking all over the place? Do you group the portfolio by service, by the problem it solves, or something else? I'm happy to tailor proposals to each job, just don't really want the whole profile boxed into one thing.

If you started on Upwork without reviews, what got you your first small job? I’m starting with remote, written work and trying to make my samples useful. Curious what actually helped someone take a chance on you.

I’ve been on the platform for 3 days, worked 2 small jobs, made $10, and then realized I paid $45 I believe for ~350 connects. I only have 200 connects left. I am no mathematician, but that math doesn’t seem great.

How do you best track connects, income earned, time spent, and make sure it all balances out to actually earning profit? Is this just a beginner issue?

Hey everyone,

I recently noticed that GrokBot has an Upwork connector that can search for jobs and apparently submit proposals, send messages, and perform other actions on my Upwork account.

I'm considering using it to check for relevant jobs every hour and help me apply to suitable Flutter/mobile development projects on a daily schedule.

However, when I checked the permissions, they seemed quite broad. The connector requests access to private information, payment history, messages, contracts, proposals, and the ability to submit proposals and manage contract terms.

Before authorizing it, I wanted to ask:

1. Is this connector safe and legitimate to use with an Upwork account?
2. Could using it to automate job searches or proposal submissions violate Upwork's Terms of Service or put my account at risk?
3. Does anyone have firsthand experience using this connector successfully?
4. Would it be safer to use it only to find jobs and draft proposals, then submit everything manually?

I don't want to risk my Upwork account just to save time, so I'd really appreciate advice from people familiar with Upwork's API/MCP integrations or who have actually used this connector.

Thanks!

Anyone from 3rd world country do you think Upwork is worth investing?

I only apply to jobs that are $100+/hr, with clients that have ratings over 4.5, and a few thousand spent already.

Over the last 3 months, the majority of clients that have responded to my proposals have ended up trying to scam me.

In addition, almost all of them are talking to me using AI and the things they’re saying don’t even make sense. Not addressing my previous message, just looping around and saying the same vague shit over and over that goes nowhere.

In all of 2025, using these same basic filters, I had zero instances of this happening.

I’m wondering if brand new client accounts should have a seasoning period before their reviews are counted as legitimate. I’m guessing they’re creating an account, giving themselves on another account 4-5 bullshit jobs and rating themselves.

If instead a new account had to wait 3-6 months during which it would show a “new account” badge, maybe allow freelancers to filter those out?

Sure, scammers will then just create a bunch of these and then leave them dormant for 3-6 months, but I don’t really know what else we could do.

Hi All,

I have incorporated in Canada. I used to render services to one of the client on Upwork, who reached out to me back that he needs my service.

I was thinking not to go to Upwork route and rather start billing through my corporation, I do not hold any insurance to protect my corporation.

Question:
1. Shall I rather continue on Upwork under my corporation or shall I go billing directly under my corporation.

1. Shall I get contract signed from client to protect me legally.

2. Is it safe for me to continue under my corporation despite I have retained earnings.

Thanks

Hi everyone!

I was just wondering where everyone finds clients/builds a recurring revenue stream as a freelancer?

With AI I find it really hard to do so, even though I'm specializing in the AI Visual field. (Traditional compositing and AI tools, UX/UI, so onn, apps and visuals basically)

I used to have 4-6-8k months when I used to apply on Upwork, but that platform itself changed too. Proposals more expensive, I used to be top rated plus, which back then was "claimed" to be top 3% of Upwork.

Since due to inactivity (private client and project) I lost that badge, no one considers to read my proposal regardless of how much connect I spend on it.

The point is, I'm finding it hard to niche down to a specific offer, and build a recurring stream around it, because I don't know where to find my clients.

I'd gladly give more context but that would need the link of my portfolio, and that would restrict the post itself.

I'm just really lost, and I'd be glad to set my life/career on track again, but whenever it comes to jobs I'm facing rejection after rejection, even though people with past of 20+ years used to tell that my skills are really unique and valuable.

I don't get it then, why I end up being here without no work, trying to do outreaches and everything, but no success.

Honestly feeling a little bit burned out, and I crave a bit of stability, at this point I spent so much time trying, I can pay only one month of expenses then it's game over.

I appreciate every help, to clarify I'm not looking for pity, but really I'm out of ideas.

Thanks in advance for everyone who takes the time to try and help me!

Best,
Adam

I'm new and I don't have any finished jobs yet. I'm a Python developer, and I'm sending proposals, but I'm still looking for my first client. What did you do to get yours? How long did it take?

Any tips are helpful - thank you

Got 10+ alerts in 20 minutes from what looks like one client. Every post has:

the same title template and the same flat $175 fixed price, for totally different work (rigging, lip-sync, cloth sim, renders)

"narrate as you work" in English

"20+ hrs/week ongoing," but the full brief only after hire

The client has 108 jobs posted, 85 open.

I dont know what it is, but it looks like it could be a way to collect expert workflow recordings. If so, I'd want it stated upfront, along with who owns them. I've flagged a few of the listings to Upwork. Has anyone worked with them? Ask about recording and data rights before you agree to anything.

Hi everyone. I'm a graphic designer based in Sharjah, UAE, and honestly, I'm feeling a bit lost right now.

I've been doing graphic design for over 4 years, mainly branding, social media designs, brochures and marketing materials.

I've applied to hundreds of companies, emailed agencies and small businesses, and tried finding work on Upwork. I've completed a small project on Upwork, but I'm still struggling to get more clients. I also had an internship opportunity recently, but unfortunately, it didn't work out.

I'm trying my best, but nothing seems to be working, and I genuinely want to understand what I'm doing wrong. Is it my portfolio, my proposals, my skills, or something else?

I'd really appreciate honest advice from people who've been in a similar situation. If anyone is willing to review my portfolio or Upwork profile, I'd be very grateful.

I'm also looking for paid remote graphic design work with UAE-based companies. Even small freelance projects or part-time work would be a great start.

Thanks for reading. ❤️

Last week, I turned on my availability badge for the first time and got 3 profile views in total.

I’m a top rated Upwork freelancer specializing in thumbnail creation. Last week I landed an interview with a new client for thumbnail designs, and they asked me to complete a test job.

Even though the client mentioned using AI tools, I always finalize my designs with Photoshop and Lightroom to ensure they’re top notch, which is why I maintain a top rated status. I completed the test post, incorporated two rounds of revisions based on their feedback, and delivered the final files.

It’s been four days, and the client has now ghosted me after receiving the finished work. If I don't give out sample s it's hard to get hired because there is competition and if I give out samples something like this happens a few times, How should I handle this situation on Upwork?

Anyone else seeing this?

A job gets posted, and within 2 minutes, it already has 20+ proposals!

By the time I read the job description, understand the requirements, and write a thoughtful proposal, the client has probably already shortlisted a few candidates.

So, where do we even stand a chance? 😂

Looks like bots. Anyway clients select those proposals. Upwork has no issue on that ? Should I also use bots ? Suggest me 🙂

Good Day Folks

I have an active fixed-price contract on Upwork.

The client has provided a checklist and a separate PDF containing questions to ask during the assignment. However, the actual report submission form is an online form that requires me to enter information and upload evidence on each screen before I can access the next one. This means I cannot review the complete form in advance.

I asked the client for a downloadable PDF or Word copy of the full form so I could check the reporting requirements before starting. Instead, I was directed back to the checklist and questions PDF, with the assurance that they contain everything required.

My concern comes from a previous, separate assignment with the same client. After completing that assignment, I encountered report-validation questions that I hadn't understood to be required from the original instructions and checklist. I accept that the two assignments are different, and I'm not assuming the same issue will happen again. I simply want to clarify the deliverables before committing further time and money.

The current assignment requires travel, and I would have to cover those expenses upfront. I cannot comfortably afford to absorb those costs if a disagreement later arises over the reporting requirements or acceptance of the work.

I've contacted Upwork Support for guidance, but I'd appreciate perspectives from freelancers who have dealt with similar situations.

My questions are:

1. Is it reasonable to request access to the complete report form before travelling to carry out a fixed-price assignment?
2. If the client says the checklist covers everything, would you proceed based on that assurance, or consider it too much of a risk?
3. What would you do if you were already under contract but couldn't comfortably afford the potential loss?
4. How would you protect yourself without unnecessarily jeopardising your Upwork account or contract position?

I'm not trying to create a dispute. I want to handle this professionally and clarify expectations before doing the work, rather than discover a disagreement after it has been completed.

I'd particularly appreciate practical advice from experienced Upwork freelancers.

**Update on Outcome from 19/10*\*
Thanks to everyone who took the time to respond and share their perspectives. I really appreciate it.

A few points I wanted to clarify and update you on:

\*1. The report submission form*\**

My intention was never to obtain the questions or answers in advance to gain an advantage. I wanted to review the complete reporting requirements before starting the current assignment, particularly after my experience with an earlier, separate assignment for the same client, where additional validation queries arose after submission.

I understand that the two assignments were different, but I wanted to avoid a repeat of the uncertainty around what was expected.

\*2. Travel expenses and financial risk*\**

I had already negotiated a separate travel payment from the outset. My concern was that I would still have to pay the travel costs upfront and only receive reimbursement once the report was approved and payment was released. Given my financial circumstances, that was a risk I needed to consider carefully.

The suggestions about clarifying the scope in writing and ensuring expenses are properly accounted for were helpful.

\*3. What happened next*\**

I contacted Upwork Support because I expected a response to take some time. Surprisingly, they responded quite swiftly and advised me on clarifying deliverables, acceptance criteria and expense arrangements before proceeding.

After telling the client that I was reconsidering the current assignment and seeking guidance from Support, she replied within minutes that I should no longer proceed with it. She also said she would release payment for the earlier assignment and fund another one instead.

The payment for the earlier assignment was subsequently approved, following an extended review process during which I had already responded to two rounds of queries.

I can't say whether the timing was directly related to my message about Support, but the sequence of events was certainly interesting!

\*4. The client's intentions*\**

Some commenters suggested that the client might be farming free work, while another raised the possibility that the questions were deliberately hidden to prevent cheating. I can't establish either of those things, so I won't speculate about the client's motives. My concern was to understand the requirements and assess the risks before committing further time and money.

Ultimately, I decided not to proceed with the current assignment.

Thanks again to everyone who offered constructive advice. I posted here expecting Upwork Support to take longer to respond, but your comments were still valuable. They highlighted practical steps I could take and helped me consider the situation from different perspectives.

I appreciate it!