UpWork
reviews and complaints

Mostly scammers looking to prey on innocent individuals. Ive seen nothing but repetitive ads with individuals who have only been members for a few days or less. Of course I fell in the trap, didnt get paid, and lost $285 of my own money. I did all correspondence through Upwork and have reached out to them with screen shots of my entire conversation with client. They did say they are looking into it. I now dont trust anyone on Upwork is legit. I just wanted a simple job or two to help meet monthly financial needs.

Overbilled and a hard time getting a refund!Payments are very confusing!

I worked for a company that kept asking me to write more and more articles. I was staying up late and getting up early so that I could get all these articles done. When it came time to pay me, the company said my articles weren't done right and refused to pay me despite them asking me to do more and more articles. I filed a complaint with Upwork but they couldn't do anything.

As someone who values flexibility and independence in their work, Upwork has been a game-changer for me. The platform not only provides a vast pool of opportunities but also ensures that freelancers like me are protected and paid fairly for our hard work. I appreciate the payment protection feature that guarantees I receive compensation for the services I provide. Upwork's user-friendly interface and diverse range of clients have allowed me to grow my freelancing career steadily. While challenges may arise, the support and resources available on Upwork have been instrumental in overcoming them. Overall, Upwork is a platform that empowers freelancers to succeed and thrive in the ever-evolving gig economy.

I have mixed feelings about Upwork. I joined the platform in XXXX and had success with my first bid, but the client left the platform. Since then, I have been bidding and purchasing connects for almost a year. However, I recently discovered that my profile was set to "private" because I hadn't bid enough. I tried to contact support, but they informed me that I hadn't followed some rules set by myself or the client. I'm not sure what rules they are referring to, but they have suspended my account, claiming they tried to contact me, even though I only received a message from them this week when I reached out. Now it seems there is a conversion fee if you work outside the platform. They are currently emailing me to sign an agreement, but I want to understand the details before committing. I have had success on other freelance platforms and through referrals, so I'm hesitant about relying solely on Upwork. I'm also concerned about a team of specialists reviewing my case, as I didn't even know I had a case until a year later. Despite continuing to bid and purchase connects, my profile was put on private and then suspended for reasons that are unclear to me. Upwork's chat bot doesn't provide specific answers, and the person emailing me seems nice but limited by the system. I suspect the issue may have originated with the first client, but until I figure it out, I don't feel comfortable paying a fee, buying more connects, or using the connects and potentially facing another banishment in the future. My focus should be on working with clients and completing projects, not worrying about a platform that has let me down. I find their approach confusing, and I'm torn about whether to continue using Upwork. If I have the opportunity, I will review the agreement to learn more about the conversion fee. It lasts for two years, and as a freelancer, I value the freedom to work without being tied to one platform. In my opinion, there are too many ways to unknowingly make mistakes and face consequences. Both myself and my clients from other sources are not perfect, and I don't want to constantly worry about violating rules without any room for human error.

If it wasn't from Upwork, I certainly would have been homeless by now.

With the whole world now resorting to online alternatives for their usual go-to places to get stuff done, Upwork was already far ahead of anyone in this business with the quality and reliability of the services they offer to their clients as well as freelancers. I think of Upwork as being one of the best 'employment broker' out there, having a solid customer base with a proven history of positive long-term client relationships. I have been on Upwork on a daily basis for almost a month now and have already had more than 15 successful proposals and over 10 contracts. By working with clients from all over the world looking for skilled and professional people, Upwork has been constantly working 24/7 on linking those clients with freelancers that would suit their needs best.

At the end of the day, I believe that it is clear to everyone that it is in Upwork's interest to look after everyone relying on their platform and services to earn a bit of money, be it their clients, the freelancers, or even themselves. As long as all of our goals are aligned, I can't think of any reason for which I would give them anything less than a 5-star rating.

To Upwork: Keep up the great work, keep growing and keep improving the design and ease of use of this golden platform of yours!

I have been a freelance writer on Upwork for over 4 years now and have honestly been very lucky. Within the first month of looking on the platform (back in 2016, much has changed since then), I found a steady client to work with and the work helped me support my medical recovery at the time. Now, I'm able to work from anywhere in the world and work with clients from all over the world!

There are obviously downsides to every platform (particularly concerning % fees), and you have to be smart about what clients you accept and to vet projects the best you can. I've had a few unpleasant clients, but I have always chosen to have their best interest in mind, including if the project should come to a close.

I've enjoyed the perks of my hard labor (and over 37 jobs over the past 4 years), as now I've been able to hold my status as a top-rated freelancer for a long time. With that status, great clients find me and I rarely have to use connects for a new job proposal.

I personally think the key to success on this platform is to trust your gut on whether a client is a good fit for you. I've been asked to join projects that just didn't feel right, and those were always the ones that didn't go well. Upwork is great as a platform if you're building up your portfolio, or looking for a way to work from home. I continue to recommend it to friends, and they've also been successful on the platform!

To the self-entitled reviewers who can't read or follow the necessary policies that is required of any successful business or community of legitimate members: "Read & comply the instructions. Contact UW Support (anytime) if you have a legit problem. Otherwise, don't embarrass yourself with egocentric rants."

I've been writing professionally for more than 40 years, I have a dozen external, longstanding clients.and joined Upwork about 5 years ago. I've subscribed to no less than 9 other online platforms over the past 10 years. One by one, I have canceled all but Upwork. I long ago realized that I was wasting my time with any but UW.

Some of my projects require subcontracting services such as graphic arts, technology or other computer geek-type stuff. Maintaining both a freelancer & client accounts, being somewhat techno-stoopid, I can rely the company's focus on providing a human Support staff (available 24/7/365) & constant monitoring/anticipation of trolls/hackers/scammers, I can in turn provide one-stop service & to my clients.

Upwork's business model is why it is the most successful (among so few) publicly-traded freelancer companies. Its focus on service, security & protection of both freelancers & clients from the wannabe's & whiners is why I can have a 100% rating (and make a couple of bucks).

"Read & comply the instructions. Contact UW Support (anytime) if you have a legit problem. Otherwise, don't embarrass yourself with egocentric rants."

Mike S.

As a freelance editor, proofreader, and voice over artist, it would be difficult for me to find work without my own website. Upwork provides a platform for people and businesses which need the services of all sorts of freelancers, from website designers and graphic artists to proofreaders and editors like myself. Other categories of work include writing, project managing, translation, customer support, design, marketing, cinematography, programming, and these are literally just a few drops in the bucket of work available. For better or worse, the U.S. is to a large extent a "gig economy," and Upwork provides a well run, responsible, and supportive virtual environment which brings employers and workers together for their mutual benefit. Moreover, Upwork provides seminars and administrative support for its workers, and price and payment guarantees for clients and workers.

Other helpful features include video calls, messaging that allows for transfers of multiple files up to 95 MB in size, spreadsheets of clients and earnings, and verification of work hours through a Time Tracker feature. I once worked with a client in Israel who was particularly fastidious, and we talked via Upwork's video platform for over two hours! So there's a lot of opportunity for exciting adventures on Upwork's platform as well.

For anyone wanting to find reliable, talented workers to help with a project of any sort--or for anyone wanting to start a career or "side hustle" to supplement income, or try his or her hand at a new talent--I recommend using the numerous services and opportunities that Upwork offers.

Once your profile has been approved, dive in and begin applying for the jobs you are confident you can handle. Like in any other business, you need to be consistent in communicating with your clients.

As a beginner, expect to send in a number of applications before you can clinch a job, because clients, like other business people, seek to work with contractors/freelancers who have been tried before.

Gladly, Upwork has a system that displays how you have fared with different clients. So, once you have built a favorable profile history, probably over some months, the going gets easier, and soon you may even find yourself being invited for jobs you did not apply for; because the clients consider you a great fit.

As long as you are diligent and honest with your clients, you'll be able to build great working relationships with clients from all over the world. I've personally had wonderful experiences working with individuals and businesses from the US, UK, Netherlands, Canada, Kenya, Ukraine, Australia, and other regions.

Remember: Any business place has its share of unscrupulous participants. You need to read a lot of the material the platform provides regarding how to avoid being scammed. And when your sixth sense sends you an alarm, share your doubts on the community forum, where the 'old guards' can advise you accordingly.

Finally, whatever skill you are paid for in the conventional/brick&mortar world, you can find a client willing to pay for it on Upwork. So I say - it's worth joining & getting to choose from thousands of clients online, especially because the payment system is secure.

I started on Odesk now Upwork in 2014, helping my brothers in their website descriptions in french. Then they trained me how to do SEO tasks. Add links, submit websites in directories... Ater this I wrote some articles for them.

Then I created my own profile. After my second degree at the University, I was unable to find a real job in my country or the rare ones were not well paid, unser 200 USD/monh!

After some 12 months courses in Birtish Centre, I tried my chance in French translation, then Webinterpet, from Philipines, an a translation agency gave be my big deal, I was paid 400 USD/week! In Africa, it is enough to live well.

Since then, I have done more and more courses in English, writing and passing some exams such as IELTS.
Today, my average income in upwork since 2015 is estimated waouh USD.

But to be honest, sometime I passed 3 motnhs withut a good job, or witouth a real job.

Sometime I faced non recommended clients, those who pay with the lowest rate, as I did not have any job at that moment, I accepted; sometimes clients take the work delivred in a hurry with tight deaines and go withouth pay, you have to wait untile 14 days to be paid by the upwork platform itself.

But hapilly, you have best clients, to there is always a joy to work with them: Medschenker, Tuxcare, WebInterpret, Labster, Gapminder who pay well and you can live happily with this here, in Central Africa without travelling to abroad!

My areas are: real estate, IT, health, marketing, gas and oil...

Upwork is amazing, you dont need to travel, you learn something new every day fromyour clients and their varius projects, areas and subjects on which you work on. Odesk helped me to open my mind, to learn more, to overincrease my income and to help other!

Thanks

I hope you read this doc till the end.

Hi! How are you?
I just wanted to discuss my business idea for both of us.
I'm never a faker or a cheater and I am really serious.
I am a full-stack web developer with good experience of 7+ years.
I want to work on a Upwork.com site.
I have worked at Upwork.com before and my Upwork account was closed for some reason a few days ago.
Upwork.com prefers European and American freelancers and they are well treated. (in the price of their works)
So I need a European or American account to get more money.(Other nationality maybe possible)
If I don't pay you, you can close the account any time, because you will have all access and the profile image is yours.
In this case, it will be a great lost to me. So there is no need to worry about the payment.
If you are interested in me, please contact me through Skype.
We can discuss more detail.
If you dislike mine, please don't be angry with me.
Business is business! But I want you.
To think once more. Believe me.
If you agree, I should work on your pc using anydesk or teamviewer because of my location.
***
On your PC remotely, I ONLY use your computer for searching jobs on upwork.
I won't access/use any of your data on your computer but just need to access Upwork.com and work there only.
After I get hired, on my PC I will work on a project.
If I login to Upwork on my pc, the account will be closed soon. So, I need to work on your pc.
***
Eventually you will get money earned. You can choose one of 2 kinds of payments
? 10 % of my monthly income.(I can earn 3000$ after two months)
? 100$ per month.

My skype id:
Live:. Cid. 60f655b74ac5ada8 (username: ladyhand)

Thanks for reading.

With the very challenging economic climate, the un-availability of suitable jobs and the challenges of commuting to work if you are employed, more and more persons are seeking work at home opportunities, this is a well known fact. As a result of this there are many scammers out there who would stop at nothing to fleece on the innocent who are seeking legitimate work at home opportunities, jobs to do on the internet, at home.

I personally have known of individuals who are actually allowing others to pay them money just to give them one or two of these legitimate sites. I am one such person. I actually paid $JA10,000 just for someone to show me one of these sites and navigate me through it, this I could have done myself if only I knew of the website.

I spent many hours, days, months and money seeking legitimate Internet Income opportunities, at one point I almost gave up because it is not a very easy task. It takes a lot of time, effort and energy to search websites to locate legitimate work at home income. I only discontinued my search when I learnt about upwork.com.

It is a Website where you can find Freelancers to do any jobs you want done. These jobs can be done at any time, anywhere. Whereever you are in the world you can be registered on upwork to find available jobs that suits your profile, whether it's Data Entry, Typing, Executive Assistant jobs, Website building, Transcribing, you name it, it's there on upwork. If you want somone to do your job for you or you want to do a job for someone, the site is for all.

I have registered on the site, I am now employed full time so I do not get the chance yet to really actively seek a job, I will soon but I know of invividuals who are making a comfortable income on this site. I will not tell anyone they will get rich if they register on this site but I can tell you if your profile is attractive and you spend quality time reviewing and working this site you will have success.

So all those who are asking you for money to register on a website or to get an application from them that will help you to make thousands per day or week, I say thats an hoax, beware of those sites. Legitimate websites are usually free to sign up and they do not promise anything that sounds too good to be true. You have to work hard on upwork to accomplish your desired goal, that is of making a satisfactory income.IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE IT IS NOT TRUE.

I've been using Upwork (formerly known as Odesk and Elance) since 2007, both as a customer looking to get work done and as a service provider (freelance and agency). Over the years, I've completed over 800 jobs using Upwork, with some being direct clients and others using agency accounts. Upwork is often misunderstood and misrepresented, which is a shame because it has the largest freelance marketplace ecosystem.

One of the biggest misunderstandings about Upwork is that customers assume they can connect with experts and pay only a fraction of the cost. However, when they realize that native experts are not cheap, they often hire people from other countries who can match their price. This assumption often leads to frustration mid-way through the project, resulting in a not-so-nice deliverable or a failure. Additionally, some customers refuse to believe that "what you pay for is what you get," and try to force their legal rights, policies, and terms, which still wouldn't get their job done.

Upwork is a third party that connects two parties, has escrow, and optionally takes additional facilitation of disputes and arbitration. It does not guarantee terms or enter into agreements between clients and vendors.

Upwork is also misrepresented in many ways. For example, its fee is not actually 20% for freelancers, but Upwork makes it appear as if they are stealing. Additionally, they have an option for clients to pick from a monthly subscription/flat fee, but do not explain what it is for. Upwork does not promote a thorough education on what it would charge freelancers/vendors/clients in doing business directly/locally or getting into a full-time hiring position as opposed to getting a freelance hired.

Clients also often misrepresent Upwork when they need help in hiring. Upwork uses catch-phrases that they will help in getting their work done, which is not always the case. Upwork also assumes that their terms and policies or Help Center section is the place for people to know what it is all about, which is absurd.

Despite these misunderstandings and misrepresentations, Upwork has been a great platform for me and has contributed to my growth. On Upwork, there are people like me offering services while ensuring that customers are educated about the platform. Upwork is the best platform for people looking to get quality work done, and it cannot be matched with Fiver/Freelancer and others because when clients are looking for exceptional work rather than just quality work, only Upwork has such exceptional vendors that can produce such work.

I've had my fair share of experiences with Upwork and let me tell you, it's not all sunshine and rainbows. Sure, you can find a freelancer for almost anything you need, but finding a reliable and consistent one is like finding a needle in a haystack. I've hired so many people, only to have them disappear a few months later. It's frustrating to say the least.

Upwork and Elance may talk a big game, but they don't always deliver. I was once ripped off by a freelancer for $800. I'm not a programmer, so I didn't realize the code wasn't right until months later when I was trying to fill the database. I tried to get Upwork to do something about it, but they didn't. They even kept the freelancer on their platform. And to add insult to injury, they wouldn't let me update my 5-star review for the freelancer.

The quality of freelancers on Upwork is hit or miss. If you're running a business and need results, you may not find what you're looking for on the platform. Most of the freelancers aren't qualified for real-world jobs, which is why they're on Upwork in the first place. And don't even get me started on their attitudes.

Don't believe everything you see on their profiles either. I've caught too many fake samples. They claim they wrote something, but it's actually a copy. And when you hire them, what they deliver is nowhere near the quality level of their samples.

Web developers and SEO experts are some of the worst offenders. They may keep you busy and hopeful for a while, but they often can't deliver results. For example, if you hire a copywriter for a direct mail project, you may like the copy, but it won't sell. Copywriters on Upwork don't understand branding and idea. And SEO may improve your ranking, but it's likely on keywords no one searches for. And there's a good chance your pages will be blocked by Google for using cheating techniques.

Web development is a whole other story. They may make it halfway, but then you'll need to fix the code or start over completely. The website will be slow, and they'll keep charging you for "extra work" that should have been done in the first place. It's like having a car that needs body work and paint work. They'll do the paint job first, then tell you that you need body work. After the body work, they'll say you need another paint job. By the time you're done, you'll realize your car isn't even drivable. And some of the freelancers are just plain evil and will deceive you.

The worst part is, after all of this, you'll still hear marketing talk from Upwork and Elance. You can't take anyone to court, and you can't make the freelancers fix their bad work.

And to top it all off, the prices aren't even that low anymore. You can hire a local, trustworthy person or company for 10-30% more and avoid all the headaches.

Upwork is a platform that has been widely criticized for allowing fraudulent freelancers to post their services. This has been reported in multiple web articles, yelp reviews, and complaints on the better business bureau website, among other platforms. Unlike Facebook, which is trying to remove fake accounts, harmful content, and misinformation, Upwork not only refuses to reprimand and eliminate fraudulent businesses on their platform, but they also create an environment that supports such frauds.

Upwork's customer service team is not helpful and attempts to end and undermine complaints in order to facilitate continued service from their fraudulent vendors. They instruct their customer service team to facilitate toxic interactions with customers that complain, and they involve themselves in transactional payments by customers' banks to prevent customers' banks from reversing charges for fraudulent business. Upwork allows fraudulent businesses that have been on their platform for a number of months to expunge reviews critical of the vendors' service. As a result, fraudulent businesses flourish, unsuspecting new customers continue to pay fraudulent companies, and Upwork gains the associated fees.

One can only imagine why a company such as Upwork would want fraudulent businesses to flourish on their platform. An observation of Upwork's payment scheme eliminates any further imagination. The greater the amount of fraudulent business on their platform that remains unaccounted for, the greater the revenue for Upwork. Importantly, it is the fact that the fraudulent business is unaccounted for that permits greater revenue for Upwork.

Similar to the experience of many of the reviewers here and elsewhere, I was the victim of a fraud on Upwork. The Upwork customer service team was not only unhelpful but attempted, forcefully, to end and undermine my complaint in order to facilitate continued service from their fraudulent vendor. Fortunately, the fraudulent vendor is currently in a lawsuit and has been unable to scam further unsuspecting customers. However, unfortunately, I have spent the last 5 months disputing the fraudulent transactions with my bank, only because Upwork has been fighting hard to prevent the vendor's fraudulent business from being exposed.

As noted elsewhere in these reviews, it is unsurprising that Upwork's stock price has declined sharply from $20.99 after their IPO in October 2018 and $22.72 in February 2019 to $14.66 today, despite the fact that the S&P 500 peaked to its highest position since the beginning of the index, yesterday. I imagine the company is going to continue to fail because a business model based on fraud and a lack of customer service may be successful in the short run but cannot be successful in the long run.

The internet has been a game-changer for the world, and one of its most valuable contributions is the availability of remote work platforms like Upwork, Freelancer.com, and Fiverr. In this millennium, remote work platforms have proven to be an effective meeting point for the best talents and job demands, especially for high-skills demanding jobs. The uniqueness of the remote work model is highlighted by the fact that its opportunities are not limited by time and geographical factors. Thousands of families, individuals, and groups have been cashing in on it, taking advantage of its beautiful opportunities as either employees or employers. The vastness of its market makes it possible for players to collaborate with the best talents, share experiences and synergies, and ultimately find solutions to problems that possibly could have proven difficult, resulting in the escalation of business expansions, improvements, and successes.

Upwork is a great opportunity indeed! A room for collaborations and solutions-finding! An added advantage and a big plus to already vast internet opportunities. To many, it's a goldmine and pretty life-changer! Judging by my 1 month+ activities on it, I can experientially tell that Upwork offers both employers, employees, and freelancers across boards and borders a spacious room for growth and success. I work on it currently as a copywriter, and I can tell with provable facts that many have so far found both their old and new dreams on it: a lot of workers have had their financial needs completely met, while employers are not left behind as their job needs are critically, friendly, and humanly satisfied in line with Upwork's mission to serve and not to sell as it was typical of businesses before now!

I can only possibly believe that the future of remote working and collaboration is bright, while I encourage us to fine-tune it on and on, even as this digital age is getting smarter and more digital by the second. People should be enlightened more on its vast opportunities, while every hand should be on deck for its betterment, and mainly technically!

For Upwork, I raise my thumbs for you guys! One thing I admire particularly about you is the aesthetics of your display: the white background, blended with my favorite light green color! It dazzles me, tickles my fancy, spurs my explorative part, as I always feel fulfilled by only strolling on it like I'm walking on a gold street, relishing its inspirational beauties!

Upwork, keep pushing for better, my regards to you, and all, whom are making the world smarter, easier to live in, and sweeter! It is my strong belief that there is always room for improvement! So keep upping the games, just like as I had earlier noted among a few others that there should be an option for workers to edit their submitted cover letters! I can't feel less respectful for peeps like you folks there whom blaze trails, construct and reconstruct models and solutions, and always look out for better ways for better living!

To our onward successes,
Chimereuche Onwubiko.

I recently used Upwork to find someone to help me get my new website visible on Google. I didn't have the time to figure it out myself, so I thought it would be easy for a pro to do. However, I quickly realized that I was wrong. The person I hired was a male from India who asked me to work with his other account because his original account had reached its maximum amount of customers. This should have been my first red flag, but I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

I had to give him access to some accounts, but since he was on the other side of the world, the two-step authentication kicked in. He sent me a screenshot of the second question, which said that someone from Afghanistan was trying to log in to the account. I thought that was odd since he said he was from India. This was my second red flag, but I still looked past it because I just wanted to become visible on Google.

After 15 hours of paid "work," I still couldn't find my site on Google. He then told me that I needed to do link building, which would cost me $100 a week for 6-7 months. I said I wanted to research it and discuss it later, but a week later, I saw a $100 charge on my credit card. This went on for three weeks until I finally canceled the card. I wasn't happy since we didn't discuss it like I had said I wanted to.

I then started to learn Google myself and found out that all he did was make an AdWords account with 15-20 irrelevant keywords and post the Google Analytics code in the section on Shopify. This was only 20 minutes worth of work, and I wasn't pleased, but I didn't dwell on it.

However, today, I received an email from Upwork threatening to send me to collections for work I never authorized. They didn't reach out to me to see if there was a problem; they just threatened to ruin my credit. Generally, we pay contractors when the work is done, but all the things I asked for that I didn't mention still aren't completed except for the tasks I've done myself.

I'm extremely disappointed with Upwork and would not recommend doing business with them. They never replied to my questions on the legitimacy of my bill and have sent me to collections. For the record, I've had poor experiences with Fiverr and Freelancer as well. The people you're dealing with on these sites know how to play the game with these websites, so they will instruct you to do certain things along the way that leave you no recourse. All of these sites are bad. In the long run, it has cost me less to hire a local person. I've had better luck posting a gig on Craigslist, and I've been very pleased with the help I've found there.

UpWork, or as I like to call it, CheapWork or BugWork, needs to step up its game. I started freelancing on oDesk in February of this year and everything was great. I was able to get hired for my rates, which were way above $5, and I was at peace. UpWork had potential, especially since the introduction of connects. I was able to get a few good clients because of connects, but the rating and feedback system is killing freelancers.

The JSS isn't transparent or reliable enough. DownWork thinks clients know what JSS means, and the private feedback system is causing freelancers to get penalized without them knowing why they were suspended or banned. Just go to the forums, and you'll know just how flawed the JSS is. It's even known to cause your proposals to be hidden. HIDDEN.

No matter how good you are at writing cover letters or even if your profile is outstanding, if UpWork's biased algorithm goes for the newbie who charges $5/hr, then you're dead in the water. DEAD.

The most logical way to escape the wrath of an immature client? 100% refund. That's right, all your hard work is at the mercy of a client's dumb remarks on the freelancer. Heck, if I wanted free quality work, I'd sign up as a client, hire the best and expensive freelancer, get the work, then threaten them to refund or they get poor feedback. Some freelancers win disputes, others spend money on arbitration to win (around $250), others they'd rather refund than go to all the trouble and stress of losing their account for no legal reason whatsoever.

The best part of UpWork USED to be the community, but Garnor Morantes and Valeria Kochubei (community mods/bots) prefer fascism instead of democracy, so that means no one, I repeat, no one can say or mention anything wrong with the website in the forums. Otherwise, you get banned. The others are also NOT allowed to speak of the banned members, as if they didn't exist. Do you know how scary that is? Think 1984, except Big Brother is divided into 5 moderators.

The most sensible of the moderators is Lena, so if you have anything to ask, go for Lena and NO ONE else. Lena is generous enough to provide human feedback at the very least. She also drops hints on secret stuff sometimes. Hi Lena;)

I used to think UpWork is the end-all, but after the JSS mishaps, the bugs, and the sudden influx of cheap/scam clients (some of which are freelancers wanting to reduce other freelancer's connects), I was forced to go for private clients. I'm lucky to have scored two a few weeks back, and they're definitely a cut above the rest. One client is paying me $30/hr to write articles, and another for $50 per 500 words. On UpWork, you're lucky if you get hired for $18/hour. Heck, with the current state, you're lucky if you go past $11!

About the bugs, the site has a tendency to change or reprogram things while it's ONLINE. The engineers don't care about the ramifications of changing the wings of a plane mid-flight, but the passengers sure do. They also change things WITHOUT our consent. Like one day everything's fine, then the next our message system is changed, our UI is different, our applications interface was overhauled, it's like you go away for two weeks, and when you come back, you won't recognize the site at all. No announcements, no explanations, 0 transparency with EVERYTHING.

Odesk was great. Really great. I miss it like an old friend, and UpWork's like the bully in gradeschool who torments every other kid simply because he's bigger and stronger. The worst part is no one cares. I can't wait for the site to realize their mistakes.

In the meantime, I recommend you go with private clients or search for us on Freelance Portals. Freelance Portals is our stand against UpWork, and all freelancers are welcome to take refuge and get their best clients there, especially those who've had enough with UpWork's dictatorship.

I recently had a terrible experience with Upwork.com, a platform that connects freelancers with clients. I needed a freelancer to translate some documents for me, so I decided to give Upwork a try. I transferred the money for the job to Upwork's so-called "escrow" in order to pay my freelancer for the job done. However, things quickly went downhill from there.

After uploading the money for the job to Upwork's escrow, my account got "disabled", while I started to receive numerous and insistent requests from Upwork to send copies of my personal IDs. I was hesitant to do so, as I knew that almost all employees at Upwork are hired from India, Pakistan, and other South Asian countries. This corresponds well to the fact that at least 95% of all the freelancers in Upwork are also from South Asia. I didn't want to send copies of my ID to a private company, where it could be accessed and misused by the frequently rotating staff, consisting of hundreds of Indian, Pakistani, and other nationals.

When I refused to send copies of my IDs, and asked them to either release the money to my freelancer for the job done, or to refund the money back to the credit card, Upwork's so-called "Customer Support" did not do that. Each of my emails with a request either to pay the freelancer, or to return the money, they replied to by pasting in the same canned request to send copies of my ID, together with false statements that "I must" send my ID when requested.

As per today, my money (a few hundred dollars) have not been refunded, despite my numerous requests and demands. People behind Upwork clearly have a policy of keeping the money to themselves on the excuse of "routinely control" and "freezing" users' accounts, hoping that the users will get tired and leave their money to Upwork.

I am quite sure that I will never see the money again. However, I do intend to draw these scammers into the daylight. The next Monday a police report will be filed on the grounds of money scam, and a legal suit will follow.

It's important to note that many positive ratings of Upwork on Trustpilot may not be genuine. Many companies, just like Upwork, outsource their operations to India, Pakistan, and other poor South Asian countries. Such companies, in order to battle with the high number negative reviews, engage their own employees to put in positive reviews. In this case, Upwork has done a remarkable job.

Now, at least, you now a little bit more about the company with a notable name "Upwork Global Inc.", and that you will think twice before uploading your money to this scam company.

I started working for a client on Upwork on December 14th. I completed the task on December 18th and provided the script for the kids' project based on the given specifications. I thanked the client for the opportunity and asked if there was anything else they needed from me. I reached out to them again on December 19th, 21st, 22nd, and 27th, but didn't receive a response until December 27th. On that day, the client's colleague, who was present in the room, requested significant changes to the script. These changes included new information about the ages of the actors, specific footage that the script should match, and different sports from what I was originally hired to write about. The client provided a link to video footage. I mentioned that these changes were different from the original request and asked for a partial payment in good faith before making the revisions. The client asked me to revise the script and promised to release the full payment once it was done. They claimed that the requirements hadn't changed, despite my direct quotes from the messages and contract. On January 8th, I submitted a revised script based on the new specifications and requested payment. Since I didn't receive any response, I followed up on January 9th. However, another colleague of the client, who was also present in the room, abruptly ended the contract without any communication or explanation. The client then requested a refund. I replied that I hadn't been paid and asked why the contract was terminated. Unfortunately, I didn't receive a response. As I had completed the work twice and received no communication, I filed a dispute for payment. I discovered that this client had a history of receiving work and then requesting refunds, which was disappointing and against the Terms of Service. I hadn't seen these reviews before and felt let down by the client's dishonesty and misrepresentation. A "mediation specialist" named *** responded to my complaint and messaged both me and the client. However, *** allowed the client to not pay me for my work, even though they didn't actively participate in the mediation process. I have attached the communication related to this complaint.

I, THE HIRING CLIENT, TRANSFERRED MONEY TO UPWORK'S SO-CALLED "ESCROW" IN ORDER TO PAY MY FREELANCER FOR THE JOB DONE, BUT... UPWORK NEITHER PAID THE FREELANCER, NOR INTENDS TO RETURN MY MONEY BACK TO ME.

I needed a freelancer to translate some documents for me, and tried to find one on Upwork.com
After uploading the money for the job to Upwork's escrow, my account got "disabled", while I started to receive numerous and insistent requests from Upwork to send copies of my personal IDs.

I knew from before, that almost all employees at Upwork are hired from India, Pakistan and other South Asian countries (most of the programming work and customer support takes place in those countries; this corresponds well to the fact that at least 95% of all the freelancers in Upwork are also from South Asia).

Therefore, for me it was out of the question to send copies of my ID to a private company, where it could be accessed and misused by the frequently rotating staff, consisting of hundreds Indian, Pakistani and other nationals. Nobody would want to have their IDs copied, forged, and then used in human trafficking, illegal immigration, financial frauds or scams, other types of crimes or even in terrorism.

After I refused to send copies of my IDs, and asked them to either release the money to my freelancer for the job done, or to refund the money back to the credit card, Upwork's so-called "Customer Support" did not do that. Each of my emails with a request either to pay the freelancer, or to return the money, they replied to by pasting in the same canned request to send copies of my ID, together with false statements that "I must" send my ID when requested.

I don't know much about laws in US, but the legislation of my country Sweden, as well as of EU (which Sweden is a part of), says that no private company can demand private persons to send copies of their private, sensitive IDs. Private companies can ask, but they have no legal right to demand. The only thing private companies can do, is to refuse to sell services or products.

However, for me, living in Sweden/EU, and being subject of Sweden's and EU jurisdictions, Upwork's third-world employees (all disguised by western names, but still writing in the typical "Indian/Pakistani English"), stated that "I must" send my ID to them. Such falsely statements are a subject for legal suit against this company.

As per today, my money (a few hundred dollars) have not been refunded, despite my numerous requests and demands. People behind Upwork clearly have a policy of keeping the money to themselves on the excuse of "routinely control" and "freezing" users' accounts, hoping that the users will get tired and leave their money to Upwork.

By now I am quite sure that I will never see the money again. However, I do intend to draw these scammers into the daylight. The next Monday a police report will be filed on the grounds of money scam, and a legal suit will follow.

Furthermore - one could be a little confused, seeing this many positive ratings of Upwork on Trustpilot. However, there is a simple explanation of it. Since I work with IT, I have had experience with many other freelancing and other businesses, many of which, just like Upwork, too have outsourced their operations to India, Pakistan and other poor South Asian countries. Such companies, in order to battle with the high number negative reviews, engage their own employees to put in positive reviews. In this case, Upwork has done a remarkable job.
But this only can fool someone, who doesn't know how these scam-based "companies" operate. What is the real ratio of positive/negative reviews of Upwork, one can see on Yelp dot com, and here on Sitejabber (I do understand it's difficult for Upwork to hold track of, and try to fake the positive reviews on all the websites full of their victims' complaints).

Now, at least, you now a little bit more about the company with a notable name "Upwork Global Inc.", and that you will think twice before uploading your money to this scam company. To be continued.

I am a client who has hired many freelancers on Upwork. Recently, I have noticed several instances where Upwork seems to be favoring the freelancers over me as a client. I tried to express my concerns to a customer service representative at ComplaintsBoard.com named ***. Unfortunately, *** did not show any compassion towards me and even refused to provide his company ID or any further information about himself.

For example, I had a disagreement with a freelancer (whose name I cannot mention) and decided it was best to end our working relationship. To my dismay, the freelancer wrote an insulting and inaccurate review about me on a public forum, which greatly affected my reputation. I tried to defend myself by responding to the remarks, but the freelancer was given the privilege to hide my response. This left me with an unfair and negative review where I was called names, and the freelancer hid my reply.

I brought this issue up to *** and was informed that this particular freelancer is considered loyal and of high quality, so they have the right to hide comments about themselves. However, I do not have the same privilege. Despite being a good-paying customer with an impeccable record, apart from this one freelancer, Upwork allowed this slander of my credibility because the freelancer is a valued customer on Upwork. It is important to note that I have spent over $25k USD on Upwork and have received perfect scores and reviews for all my contracts, except for this one freelancer. *** did not even inquire about the freelancer I was referring to, showing no concern to investigate my complaint. Instead, he advised me to overlook this issue since I have had many positive experiences on Upwork.

Due to this unsatisfactory response, I decided to leave the Upwork platform and informed my current contractors out of courtesy. However, *** and his staff threatened me, stating that I must pay them 17% of all the money I have spent on Upwork because I informed my freelancers about my departure. Furthermore, they are now threatening my contractors to make money.

Actually i don't like share my issue to others, but this exception since it can ruin someone life and i hope i can protect other clients from Upwrok.

I used Upwork and lost $1150 + arbitrary cost $300 so total i lost by abuse and fraud of Upwork is $1450 and waste 3 months time.
It started when I post a job with detail description by Fixed Price
You can see the job desc on this link https://fileholic.com/share/Upwork-job-desc.png

As you see it show $1000 at the beginning but after Frelancer ask more, we agreed on $1150, with bold point it need work on Framework React/Angular for frontend.

Upwork has a great support during the progress and i don't have any bad impression about them.
Upwork also recommend a Freelancer to me (he is High Rate Freelancer with Good Reputation) and after Freelancer agreed, he start work on it and i already paid to Upwork $1150.

2 weeks later, He show me the sample via link to see the admin page and front page style, but he not work on it via Framework for frontend like we agreed before, so i ask he to not waste time anymore and do like we agreed with framework Frontend via React.

After 3 months later, he promised that he will deliver the same design frontend and admin like file that i already send to him 2 months before, but after i wait 2 months he show link the same page and same admin page like when he show on the first time without React.

So i felt i just fraud by this Freelancer, he not do any progress since 2 months ago, he just smart to explain but no work at all, also the fact that he never send any files to me that make me decide to stop waste my time with this Freelancer and plan to try find other freelancer that far better rather this one.

So i ask to Upwork how can i end of this with this Freelancer, and i already explain my issue to Upwork, and they said "according to TOS etc" i must click cancel from job page, and it can't done without confirm from Freelancer side, i really surprise with this funny rule, if Freelancer already send the files or do the work close with the requirement that will make more sense that Freelancer has rights to confirm my dispute, but this one, he never send me any files and never do the work closely with my requirements.

So Upwork not give me any choice to waiting confirmation from Freelancer, and like i thought 100% is correct that freelancer refuse to it and demand payment 50% from agreement, and it shocked me that this Freelancer use his chance to against my dispute and demand payment for nothing.

I reject it and explain i offer this job as Fixed Price mean i only able to pay that i want based on my description.
Do you want pay something that you already describe but you get nothing or see the item is not closely with you want?
So i ask Upwork as middle man / protection as side who held my money from fraud Freelancer like him, and again i shocked that Upwork state they not able to as middle man and there is other party that able to make decision on each issue on Upwork platform, and that party is not even you aware, that party is Arbitrary.

When you have issue with bad Freelancer and want to help to solve your issue, you must pay $300 more for fee Arbitrary, again, i felt Upwork abuse and fraud me since they only want my money but dont want take any responsibility if there is bad Freelancer or bad Client on they Platform.

So I pay Arbitrary and finally Arbitrary decide to pay Freelancer 100%, shocked by this Arbitrary decison, and i want to ask to Arbitrary what is the reason i must pay 100% to Freelancer and they have rule to not have to explain everything to anyone.

So here i am, Fraud and Abuse on the first time with famous platform Freelancer like Upwork, before this i never get this experience with other Freelancer marketplace because other is responsible and they will do action directly for Bad Freelancer and Bad Client so as long you stay good and clear, you will be safe, but not on Upwork.

I want make a point or advice from my experienced and you must knew this before you use Upwork:

1) Upwork not responsible with your money as client, from any issue you experience from job or from any Freelancer.
They only want your money, once you pay to Upwork, you no longer has rights and Upwork doesn't care if you get fraud by Freelancer.

2) Upwork will not give you any support/help and he will throw your issue to other party that completely outside of between you and Upwork, and remember, Arbitrary fee is $300 upfront.
This Arbitrary also doesn't care with your money and you must explain all things from beginning to them, and they can make any decision they like, and they don't have responsibility with their decisions (It's like dreaming job when you can do anything and you don't need do responsible with your action).

3) Upwork Community and Support is not a support, it build from them to build image they have great platform and support (which they are not), you will not get any help or proper support like on other Platform Freelancer Marketplace.

4) Rather you risk your precious money to Upwork, you better use on other Platform that want to take responsibility as middle man between Client and Freelancer and will not lap their hands to other party plus you not need to pay more for other party like Upwork.

While this is the rights of Upwork to lap their hands from any issue inside their platform, we as client especially need careful with their TOS, better you use other like Fverr or other like Freelancer.com

This Upwork or former is Elance (probably one of the reason they change brand is to avoid bad testimonial and try to rebrand new to give customers better company but, they really worse)

No files, no work you get and you lost $1450, that happen on Upwork for real.
After Freelancer win, he contact me by skype for laugh and mock me and it just give my day more worse.

Be Careful Guys.

Last One:
For Proof that i'm not boast, here is the more proof that you might interest to check
https://fileholic.com/share/Decision-Arbitrary.png (this the proof Arbitrary that win the Freelancer)
https://fileholic.com/share/Upwork-denied-responsible.png (this the One of the proof Upwork don't want responsible with your case even it happen on their platform)

Probably after this some Upwork team will try to defend their rights by TOS and blame that Arbitrary decision is final decision that everyone should accept, even the fact freelancer do fraud is the winner.
Also If you a Freelancer you can get free money like this Freelancer by abuse TOS Upwork, like you just need show link to your client that which seems to show you are already working, no need send any files, you can also can use any link you found from google, and make your client upset, and once your client dispute, challenge him, and prepare win on Arbitrary level for free money (some good Freelancer will not do this, but this method will use by bad freelancer person, and on the end, Client must pay that when they got trap)

I hope i already give you a point and warn you before you got "trap" on Upwork.
Seriously, use other freelancer marketplace, there are a lot alternative out there.

Time and time again services have been performed on behalf of a client. The work is then submitted to be paid according to their terms of service ( Restricts so much to ensure their control). The clients multiple times have disputed that the work was never done.

When the dispute arises their "customer support mediation" teams is to assist. They do not say nor mediate anything. They only go through the process and side with the client facilitating their return of funds and they have received free work

There have been many freelancers that have had this same issue with the site.

I gotta say, my experience with UpWork has been a real doozy. I mean, where do I even start? All I wanted was a simple game for both iOS and Android, but it turned into a total nightmare. I posted my job and got a bunch of candidates, and I ended up choosing this freelancer named Natasha Korecki based on her portfolio. Seemed like a good choice at the time, you know? But boy, was I wrong.

I gave her all the info she needed, references, examples of similar games, even a document with everything written out. We agreed on hours, but she kept dragging it out and couldn't finish on time. She started working on the design and graphics, which I actually liked, but the final product was nothing like what I wanted or what she had been designing. We went back and forth about redesigning, but she kept asking for more time and more money. I finally agreed to just get it over with and keep the current design, but then the game got rejected by Apple. When I asked her to fix it, she kept pushing me to start a new game with her. I explained that we'd discuss it once the current game was approved, but she refused to fix it unless I started a new game. And to top it all off, she wouldn't give me the source code to have someone else fix it either.

So, I reached out to UpWork for help. I've been emailing them back and forth for over a month now, mostly with this guy named Mark. But all I keep getting is "unfortunately" this and "unfortunately" that. I explained my situation over and over, but it doesn't seem like I'm getting anywhere. Finally, Mark forwarded me to another team, but there's no phone number for customer service, so it's been really frustrating trying to get my point across.

I did get a call from Michelle in the Talent Specialist department, but she couldn't really help me either. She said she only assists with hiring freelancers, but she'd let her team know. When I asked her to have someone call me instead of emailing, she didn't sound too reassuring. She said they use emails for tracking, so they might not be able to call. But come on, customer satisfaction should be their top priority, right?

Anyway, sorry for the long rant, but I just wanted to share my experience with anyone thinking about using UpWork. It's basically a free-for-all, and you're on your own.

I gotta say, I've been using Upwork for a while now and I have some serious concerns. I used to be on Elance, but they merged with Upwork and I got moved over. I was a top freelancer with a 98% success score for years, and I was even invited to be on their Enterprise Bench. That's a pretty big deal, but it doesn't mean much when you realize that Upwork is not what it claims to be.

Let's start with the Time Tracker. Upwork says it's supposed to protect both freelancers and clients, but it's a complete joke. It randomly cuts off, and when it does, you're screwed. If you manually enter the missing time, you lose all protection. I had tickets open with Upwork for months to try to fix this problem, but they never did anything about it. They know it's a problem, but they just don't care.

Then there's the Job Success Score (JSS). This is supposed to show how successful a freelancer or client is, but it's a complete lie. If a client leaves a contract open, Upwork claims it's "neutral" and won't affect your score. That's not true at all. Any feedback that criticizes Upwork in any way will be edited by Upwork. My score dropped from 98% to 88% because of contracts that were open but not active for a few weeks. That's not fair, and it shouldn't have happened.

For a company that takes 20% of any job and monthly subscriptions, you'd think they'd make sure everything works properly. But they don't. Upwork was making $600 to $800 a month off of me, and yet they couldn't fix these problems. It's ridiculous.

And don't even get me started on their customer service. They don't follow their own Terms of Service, and they ban people who raise these issues. They edit feedback and forums to make themselves look better. It's a complete mess.

At the end of the day, Upwork is a scam. The reviews are edited, the scores are inaccurate, and the guarantees are worthless. If you're a freelancer, you'll be exploited. If you're a client, you'll be lied to. It's that simple.

Honestly, I think Upwork should be hit with a class action lawsuit. They've ripped off so many clients and freelancers, and it's not right. And that's coming from someone who used to be one of their elite users.

Hey guys,

I've been using Upwork for a while now and I gotta say, it's been a bit of a mixed bag. I used to work on Elance, but my account got suspended for some reason and I couldn't get any help from their support team. They accused me of having multiple accounts, which I didn't, and even sent me a list of usernames that they claimed were mine. Some of them were my friends and family members, which was really weird.

I tried to explain the situation to them, but all I got were computer-generated replies that didn't address my concerns. I asked them when my suspension would end, if I could create a new account, or if they could at least give me access to my old account so I could show my work history to potential employers. But they never gave me a straight answer and eventually stopped responding altogether.

It was really frustrating because I had a 5-star rating on Elance and had completed over 120 projects. I relied on that platform for my livelihood, and suddenly I was cut off without any explanation. I know I'm not the only one who's had this experience, and it's a shame because Upwork could be a great platform if they just listened to their users and provided better support.

That being said, I've still managed to find some good clients on Upwork and make some decent money. It's definitely not a long-term solution, though. If you're serious about building a career as a freelancer, you need to be proactive and look for other opportunities outside of these platforms. They're great for getting started and building your portfolio, but they're not a substitute for real relationships with clients and employers.

Overall, I'd say Upwork is worth checking out if you're just starting out or looking for some extra income on the side. But don't expect it to be a magic bullet that will solve all your problems. You still need to put in the work and hustle to make it as a freelancer.

Thanks for reading,
Abdul Samad

I recently had a terrible experience with a freelancer on Upwork named JohnVT, also known as Vermontinternetdesign. I posted a job offer for WP Ecommerce Customization, which had been carefully reviewed and documented before being posted on the platform. I provided all bidders with complete documentation, source code, and databases to review before agreeing to the job. JohnVT was one of the bidders who claimed he could complete the job within the offered budget and time frame, so I awarded him the job.

However, shortly after awarding him the job, he started asking for more money, which I denied as we had agreed upon a budget. During the two months of the project, JohnVT never informed me about the progress and only sent sloppy and grumpy one-line answers by email. I explained to him multiple times that the project was crucial to my business, and any delay would result in a loss of money. However, he did not react to my requests and only responded with "Due date end of May."

On the last day of the deadline, he updated the project with "Need some more days" without any explanation. I offered him more time to present a working project, but he suddenly claimed that the job was not possible to complete. He did not accept my offer to refund the $500 he had received from us, and we had to cancel the job without taking any further actions.

John Anderson (Vermontinternetdesign) refused to refund the money and claimed that he had applied the balance to the time spent on the project. However, he never delivered a single line of code or anything else for the project. We lost two full months of time and income due to JohnVT's ignorant and disrespectful behavior.

All the details of this incident can be proved by email conversations and the job's workroom comments and documents. If you need any further proof, please let me know. I would never write a fraud warning without being 100% sure that this company knew from the first day that they would never deliver any work.

I want to warn others about this freelancer and urge them to be cautious when working with him. Upwork does not protect or support you in such cases, so it's essential to do your research and be careful when selecting a freelancer. Please feel free to get in touch with me if you need any further details.

Upwork is a platform that allows people to work from home and make an honest living. However, my experience with Upwork was not a pleasant one. I was disappointed to receive an email informing me that my account was suspended because I did not get hired for a month. I had just finished my profile in June and only spent 40 connections, not even all of them. The Upwork team decided to ban my account with no empathy at all.

I sent them an email explaining my situation and asking them to reactivate my account. I explained that I had been very active in the previous month because I plan to work through this website for a long time and I need to build experience on it. Lack of previous worked hours on the platform seriously hinders success with the applications. I was also aware of the monthly limit, but not that you can use that up in any way that would endanger your account. I explained that some of my Cover Letters were very similar if not identical, but that seemed normal seeing that the jobs had identical requirements. I also provided screenshots and asked them to reconsider reactivating my account if only with a stricter limit of monthly applications if they consider that fit.

Their reply was disappointing. They informed me that they had carefully reviewed my appeal and determined that my Upwork account will remain suspended. They wished me the best of luck in my future endeavors and informed me that it is unlikely that they will respond to any future correspondence regarding this matter.

Overall, my experience with Upwork was not a good one. I understand that they need to keep their platform leech-free, but I feel that they could have been more empathetic and understanding towards my situation. I hope that they will reconsider their decision in the future and provide better support to their users.

On the date of 06-04-2021, I released 220 USD to Freelancer Evgeny Sutulov as he promised to update my project after I released the money. I trusted his word, but unfortunately, after receiving the money, he stopped replying to my messages and did not fulfill his promise to update the EA after the dispute was resolved.

I complained to Upwork, but I received no reply. This experience has left me with only one word for this company: SCAM. I urge anyone reading this message to avoid using Upwork and to not trust freelancers working for them.

I also had a project with Freelancer Everyday Errors, which I had to change from a complex project to a simple one due to errors. Despite this, the work was still full of errors, and I had to ask the freelancer to cancel the order. I will still pay him some money because he tried to do the work and put in effort, but I cannot use the work as it is not up to standard. If I deliver this type of work to my clients, I will lose business.

Upwork's rules are not good at all. When a freelancer does error work and refunds the money back to the client, Upwork still charges a commission to the client, which is wrong. We give jobs to freelancers to do work, not to play games. I have lost three clients due to work not being done on time or not being done properly.

I have done a lot of jobs on Fiverr, and if any freelancer does funny things with a client, they refund the money 100% back to the client and block the freelancer. This is because the client pays money for services, not the freelancer. People who pay money also work hard to earn this money.

If Upwork had some strict rules, they would get more clients. As per my understanding, Upwork has no professional freelancers. I am starting to believe that maybe there are no freelancers, and all the profiles are fake to grab commission from clients. If every day, 1000 clients' jobs are not done, and every client Upwork charges a fee of 3.5%, they are already making good money. Why do they need to focus on completing work?

If Upwork is a genuine company, they should have a rule that if a freelancer fails to complete work or is full of errors, they will not be paid. Upwork fees of that project client will not pay for Upwork fees, and the freelancer will pay. If these freelancers are genuine profiles, they will only take jobs that they can do, and they will not waste client time and money.

Honestly, in my opinion, clients should make reviews about Upwork, and you will see how many clients are not happy with their service. Anyone can read these messages and understand that the freelancer did not finish the work. For this, Upwork is asking to go to arbitration and pay 291 USD more. I paid the additional 291 USD, but I still have to use the same coder and pay him money.

I am starting to believe that there is no arbitration. All the money goes to Upwork, and later they will say that arbitration said to pay the coder if he completes the work. For this, I will lose 510 USD. Is it worth using Upwork for all these scams that they are doing with clients?

I will file a case against Upwork in the consumer court for this scam.

Upwork (upwork.com) is a great platform for freelancers and businesses to connect and work together. It's easy to use and has a wide range of job categories to choose from. However, there are some issues that need to be addressed.

Firstly, there are some spelling and grammar errors that can be found on the site. This may be due to the fact that many freelancers are not native English speakers, but it can be frustrating for clients who are looking for high-quality work.

Secondly, there are some scammers and spammers on Upwork who post fake job listings in order to get free advice or to scam unsuspecting clients. This is a problem that needs to be addressed by Upwork, as it can damage the reputation of the platform and discourage legitimate freelancers from using it.

Finally, Upwork takes a commission from both the client and the freelancer, which can add up to a significant amount of money. While this is understandable, it can be frustrating for freelancers who feel that they are not being paid fairly for their work.

Despite these issues, Upwork is still a great platform for freelancers and businesses to connect and work together. It offers a wide range of job categories and has a large pool of talented freelancers to choose from. If you are looking for a freelancer or a job, Upwork is definitely worth checking out.

I've been using UpWork for a while now, ever since it was called ODesk. I've completed a bunch of jobs on and off over the years. However, since the merger in 2015, I've noticed that they take a larger percentage of the freelancer's pay. It's not fair, but I guess they need to make money somehow.

Anyway, today I got a message out of nowhere saying that my account has been suspended. The message said that my profile contained misleading information about my skills and experience, which is a violation of their terms of service. I've read other reviews and apparently, their customer service has improved, but I still think it's pretty bad.

I looked up their policy and it says that when you register for an account, you have to complete a user profile. If you're a freelancer, you have to use your profile to market your business to others for the purpose of entering into independent contractor relationships with other users. You have to provide true, accurate, and complete information on your profile and all registration and other forms you access on the site. You also have to update your information to maintain its truthfulness, accuracy, and completeness. You're not allowed to provide false or misleading information about your location, your business, your skills, or the services your business provides. You're also not allowed to register for more than one client account and one freelancer account without express written permission from UpWork.

I don't think I violated any of those rules. I think UpWork made a mistake. I tried to contact them to appeal the suspension, but they said that their decision is final and they're unlikely to respond to any future correspondence. I think that's really unfair. They should at least give people a chance to explain themselves.

I suggested that they revise their email response and consider providing an option for appeal. I think it's important to value the basic foundation in which this nation was founded. To not even engage in proper correspondence to try and resolve the conflict is really bad business.

I don't think I'll be using UpWork in the future.

I'm a freelancer who unfortunately got registered on Elance website. I'm a British citizen, and I'm a native English and Turkish speaker, and I'm also fluent in French and Spanish. Let me tell you about my experience with Elance and how it's not safe for freelancers like me.

In December, I received an invitation from Simi Agarwal from Telematic Solutions from India to submit a proposal for a translation project for a Turkish TV Show. The job description on Elance website was simple, or so I thought. It was about translating 50 hours [3000 minutes] of script of TV show from Turkish to English. The entire script was already written down in word files. I just had to translate it. I didn't have to do any time coding or transcription from Audios. They offered to pay USD 900 for this project. I was excited to start immediately and contacted them with my CV.

On Christmas Eve, Simi Agarwal contacted me and asked me to start working on the project immediately. I completed and sent the translated scripts for 3 episodes. However, Simi Agarwal asked me to watch all three episodes and arrange the scripts based on the video files, which was clearly not a part of the job description. It was not communicated to me. On that basis, she refused to pay me by relying on Elance website's policy which says "the client does not have to pay if they are not satisfied with the work provided". I replied many times and told them that downloading and watching videos was not a part of the job description and that it was not communicated to me. This person is constantly making false statements and already chose the "Cancel Project" option which froze all the funds for those three episodes.

I would like you to know that this person did not fund Escrow (Elance's payment system for the freelancer's protection in cases similar to this) prior to the start of the assignment. So she can ask the freelancer to do more work by threatening them with no payment, in my case double work, which was not initially included in the description. And when I refused to do so, she cancelled the payment and kept the scripts I provided.

A google search for "simi agarwal scam" gives a link to translatorscafe dot com website forum where freelancers explain how and when she was banned from posting any jobs on that website as she was on the Wall of Shame with "1? as rating.

I already contacted the UK police about this person, and also her client in the USA who was very worried to hear about this. I will let everyone know about this process. I simply would like to warn everyone against Simi Agarwal - Telematic Solutions, who takes advantage of Elance policy and steals others' work by providing an incomplete job description to convince people to accept the assignment and then threatening them with no payment if they refuse to do things that were intentionally hidden from the job description.

If you have any doubts, questions or require proof to verify the validity of my email, I will be more than happy to provide you with the screenshots of my Skype and email conversation with Simi Agarwal.

Overall, my experience with Elance was not good. They don't protect freelancers like they should. It's important to be careful when accepting jobs on Elance and to make sure that the job description is clear and complete. Don't fall for incomplete job descriptions like I did.

Hey there, I've been a voice artist for more than six years now and I've been using Upwork for over a year. I have mixed feelings about the platform, but overall, it's a decent place for people to collaborate and hire contractors.

One thing I really like about Upwork is the variety of tools available to communicate with clients. Whether it's through Skype, messaging, or phone calls, there are plenty of ways to get in touch and get the job done. I also appreciate being able to see how many people have applied for a job, so I can gauge whether or not it's worth my time to apply as well.

Another great feature is the ability to set my own price when submitting a proposal. This gives me more control over my earnings and helps me avoid low-paying jobs. I also appreciate the fact that I can report any job that seems illegal or illegitimate.

I've had the pleasure of working with some fantastic professionals on Upwork, and I love that companies can send me invitations to interview without me having to pay to audition. However, there are some things I don't like about the platform.

First and foremost, there are some jobs listed on Upwork that pay far less than minimum wage. Some clients ask for a huge amount of work for very little pay, and it's not always clear to applicants how much time the job will actually take. When I report these jobs, Upwork doesn't always take action, and I've even received emails from the platform promoting these types of jobs.

I feel like Upwork could do a better job of protecting voice artists from scammers and those who insist on slave labor. It's clear that the platform is more interested in making money than in ensuring that legitimate jobs with decent pay are available. This is especially concerning for new voice artists who may be taken advantage of on the site.

Another issue I've encountered is that it can be difficult for clients to set up a job on Upwork, and they sometimes ask me to do it for them. Unfortunately, I'm not able to set up an initial job for someone, and there's no way for me to provide adjustments when accepting or rejecting an offer. This makes the proposal process less flexible than it should be.

Finally, I think Upwork could provide more guidance for clients who are new to posting jobs for voice artists. Many of the job descriptions are too vague, which makes it difficult for me to apply without spending money. If Upwork provided a form or list of suggested details to include in job postings, it could improve the number of successful jobs on the platform.

Overall, I think Upwork has potential as a site for voice artists, but there are definitely some areas for improvement. The platform needs to do a better job of protecting its users from scammers and low-paying jobs, and it should provide more guidance for clients who are new to the platform. If these issues were addressed, I think Upwork could be a great resource for voice artists looking to find work online.

My social media ads, which I rely on for work has been hacked and my access has been completely restricted to the point where I have been locked out of my account via your freelancer, he is now sending messages laughing saying there is nothing we can do about it, please advise some sort of help with a level of urgency is this is a serious matter to attend to

I have tried for five days to reach someone regarding an issue with location verification and no one has gotten back to me. There is a warning on my account that says it will be closed if I can't verify my new location after moving to another state in the US. However, when I try to upload my new driver's license, the website does not work. I cannot click on the Continue button (it is grayed out). I have put in several tickets and they keep being deleted, but my problem isn't resolved. I even called and left a message with Human Resources, which isn't the right department, but I am getting desperate. This is the worst customer support experience of any company I've ever had. How can you make rules on your website and then not help people follow them? I have been working for this company for over fifteen years now — back when it was Odesk! The amount of money they've taken from me in exorbitant fees should, at the very least, get me some decent customer support. Instead, I've gotten nothing.

This problem has been going on since 11-17-2022. When trying login in to my Upwork account, I receive the following message:

Protect your account

Your password has been identified as compromised

Please update your password now to protect your account (update).

Trying to update from this screen, entered the information required.

Then get the message “I’m not a robot “

Then get the message “Email sent”, “We’ve sent an email to your email address,

Follow the steps provided in email to update your password.

No email ever arrived. It would be great to be able to talk to a human to resolved this problem.

Best regards,

Ron Rackawack (Freelancer since 2016)

This is the 2nd time in 2 months that Upwork has auto-suspended my account as a result of my bank flagging a $6.00 purchase of connects. I cleared the bank issue immediately, then received an account suspension message from Upwork.

The Impact: I just yesterday discussed a project with a new client - who intends to award the work to me: however, he can no longer see my profile and UW has pulled my proposal -- this is DIRECTLY IMPACTING MY ABILITY TO EARN.

When this occurred previously, I sent no fewer than 5 trouble-tickets over a one-week period: none were answered. I found a corporate phone number where an employee immediately withdrew the suspension, apologized and told me this type of suspension should not be happening.

That corporate number - and every other attempt to speak with a human in real-time (or even near-real time) has been replaced by a referral to the Upwork Customer Service & Support website. This experience is an unfriendly, automated system where articles bots reply with reading material.

To make it even more difficult to generate a customer-support request, this automated nonsense is designed so that I must submit my problem into the bot four times before provided the option to "contact a support agent".

Upwork has intentionally designed a CS system that prevents human interaction and timely support. This is absolutely horrible - and the C-Suite knows it and has done 'nothing' to improve it.