Client reporting and invoices are a trainwreck

[76f27762]

I have been using Upwork personally as a client for over 10 years and have hired dozens of freelancers. In the last year, I've been using it to hire freelancers for the company I work for. The freelancers are great. Upworks reporting is completely lacking for business.

Nearly all service companies provide invoices in which the customer receives an enumerated list of service details, including quantities and subtotals for each line item within the invoice period. These invoices also include lines any fees, at the bottom is a total amount. Accounting staff can easily understand what was purchased. Because all items are on a single statement it is straightforward to check the math and reconcile the account. I've attached a sample invoice for your reference. More detail in the sample could be helpful, but this is an acceptable level.

However, in the Upwork world, this is unavailable.

First, I have to look at the freelancer’s work diary to see their work in detail. I can only view one day at a time, but I can see all my freelancers. This information is copiable but not exportable. This is the greatest amount of detail, but this detail isn't integrated into any other reports.

Then, I can see the weekly report that shows the time charged by each freelancer per project. This aligns with the weekly labor charges for each freelancer in the transaction history, but it doesn't include any fees.

Following that, I can create a transaction history report that shows the weekly payments to freelancers, initiation fees, and marketplace fees. However, in order to see detail I must click a link to produce the related timesheet report to see what was charged in a freelancer’s invoice, but there is no work detail. I can also click on an individual invoice, but it only provides a summary line. Every charge or credit has its own invoice. A single report or invoice coordinating the charges, fees, credits, and payments into a unified view is unavailable.

To get the level of clarity required by most accounting departments, I would have to spend significant time creating a consolidated report. Even then, accounting would have to open a dozen or more individual invoices to audit my submission.

What am I missing here? Does any customer hiring more than a couple of freelancers find this acceptable? You have been in business long enough to address this.

When are you going to get this fixed?  Is fixing this even on the roadmap? Honestly, it should have been fixed long ago. If the rest of the platform was this bad, I would not be using it. As it is, I don't want to increase the number of freelancers I hire because of the reporting problems I will have to deal with.

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

[IvygailJ]

Hello Jon,

Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback and concerns. We'd like to assure you that the feedback we receive is shared with the rest of the team; likewise, we will continue providing updates to the Community about the team's initiatives.

[76f27762]

I appreciate the reply.