Buying connects??? I have no idea what this means - New to Upwork

[#1]

Hello,

I am new to upwork and I received a prompt on needing to buy connects soon. What does this mean? I thought my accout was free.

I appreciate taking your time to answer my questions!

Maggie

[#2]

You have to buy connects to bid. Budget for each bid costing 6 connects when you decide how many you want to buy.

[#3]

So when I submit a proposal I will need to buy a connect? I don't understand why? Thanks for your help

[#4]

You buy them in bundles. I don't know how they are bundled. The only one I remember is $12 for 80 (I think?) and then you should just count on each bid costing 6 connects.

[#5]

Maggie, every new freelancer gets 20 complimentary connects to start with, but since the majority of jobs seem to require 6 connects to apply, after 3 proposals or so, you’ll need to buy more, in bundles of 10 at 15 cents a connect, so it’s $1.50 for 10 connects, etc.

[#6]

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Maggie O wrote:

So when I submit a proposal I will need to buy a connect? I don't understand why? Thanks for your help

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Because upwork needs to make money.