Does anyone ACTUALLY make money here?

[j_wallace_jr]

I'm just curious. I'm new here, and really trying to understand this program. They charge 20% off the top on any job.. I'm guessing a pretty standard fee.  They charge for 4 out of the 5 ways I can actually collect my money. I cannot get my money until I am at a minimum $100 balance, which means it sits in their account earning them interest while I'm waiting on it. I've leapt through hoop after hoop to get myself "verified", which is a joke. If I was savvy enough to steal an identity, pretty sure I could fake an id, which would of course match the video chat they make you do.  To be honest, this has been a very discouraging experience and I'm hoping someone can give me a little sunlight at the end of a long tunnel.

Jesse

[dzadza]

Hi Jesse,
well...you can make money here - but UW can't be the only source of income (at least that's my experience). Actually, you can withdraw money to payment method of your choice, even if you have less than $100 (I just withdrew $20) - just go to "my jobs" and click on "get paid"
It's tough - too many freelancers, to few serious clients - but that's the issue everywhere - not just with UW.
Oh, and...welcome 😉

[j_wallace_jr]

Thank you, I was feeling a bit frustrated. The get paid information is
good.

Thank you again,

Jesse

[prestonhunter]

re: "Does anyone ACTUALLY make money here?"

Well, yes.

Lots of people earn a lot of money here.

You can click on the names of freelancers who participate in the Forum to see how much money each has earned. Each freelancer page shows how much that freelancer has earned (unless the freelancers has take some steps to proactively block that information from being displayed to everyone).

Keep in mind that MOST of the freelancers who make serious money - even hundreds of thousands of dollars per year - don't participate in the Community Forum.

re: " I cannot get my money until I am at a minimum $100 balance"

That is incorrect.

You can withdraw your money at any time, but clicking a button to withdraw now.

The $100 threshhold is simply a number that can be used to AUTOMATICALLY withdraw money for non-U.S. freelancers, if they set their setting to do so.

But for what it's worth... I can assure you that most people who work on Upwork as writers are not doing it primarily for the money. It is a lifestyle choice. If your goal  is to maximize your earnings, there are MANY, MANY, MANY better ways to earn money than to start on Upwork these days as a writer.

The freelance writers who earn a LOT of money on Upwork? They aren't newcomers. They have "paid their dues" and established themselves.

[mwiggenhorn]

Upwork has stated over and over and over that no interest is earned on freelancers' fees.  It acts as an escrow agent and cannot earn interest on those funds. 

Writers can make as much as anyone else on Upwork if they have the credentials, experience and expertise to write well.  And usually, they limit themselves to a particular niche in writing.

[j_wallace_jr]

I based the $100 on the choices I had on the "getting paid" settings. I'm
just trying to get some work under my belt, I didn't think I would get rich
here. LOL

[prestonhunter]

Jesse:
You seem like you have a good attitude.

Don't hesitate to ask if you have questions.

That $100 thing confuses a LOT of newcomers.

As for getting rich?
I don't think you will get rich here, either.

But for what it is worth, a lot of Upwork freelancers HAVE become rich. Maybe not in the U.S., but in some countries the amount of money that Upwork freelancers earn is so grotesquely out of synch with their local economy, that those freelancers are the wealthiest individuals in their towns or neighborhoods, and the disproportionate economic impact that Upwork has can actually be destabilizing.

[tlbp]

The platform is very competitive because there are far more freelancers than there are clients. I would not recommend it to anyone just getting started unless they could present an impressive portfolio. 

The $100 amount triggers an automatic transfer of funds. You can request a transfer at any time. However, if you aren't transferring directly to your bank, there may be a fee. 

There are freelancers who make money. You can add a client account to your existing freelancer account to see available freelancers and see what they have earned. 

[a_lipsey]

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Jesse W wrote:

I'm just curious. I'm new here, and really trying to understand this program. They charge 20% off the top on any job.. I'm guessing a pretty standard fee.  They charge for 4 out of the 5 ways I can actually collect my money. I cannot get my money until I am at a minimum $100 balance, which means it sits in their account earning them interest while I'm waiting on it. I've leapt through hoop after hoop to get myself "verified", which is a joke. If I was savvy enough to steal an identity, pretty sure I could fake an id, which would of course match the video chat they make you do.  To be honest, this has been a very discouraging experience and I'm hoping someone can give me a little sunlight at the end of a long tunnel.

Jesse

---

Jesse, I was kind of surprised to see the state of your profile. Do you think anyone will hire someone who calls themselves a "hobby writer"?  Clients want professional consultants who are experts, not hobbyists. 

You seem like a bright guy so I'm sure you can figure out how to implement this advice. Your profile is not a bio. It's an ad - you tell clients what you can offer them and why you can do it better than anyone else. If anything in your profile can be said of anyone else, it's not good enough. It needs to show why you are entirely unique and an expert, and what you will do to make their project totally awesome beyond all expectations. 

Right now you have grammatical errors and you talk about how your English teachers thought you were smart. Um...no...not good. I think you can do better. You're very articulate here in the forum. Use that in your profile. I think if you give your profile and maybe cover letters more thought, you will find success. 

Good luck. Hope this helps (and understand it's meant to be helpful and not harmful). 

[hodecker-stephen]

no