4 ms·

Ask HN: Is Freelancer.com for real?

• mrbarrett84 14y ago
  I'm not too sure about anyone else, but I had rather limited success with this site. The only jobs I were offered were not those I applied for, but shady third-party offers from companies who the site must've sold my information. Also, not sure what country you are in, but for many Web design and simple programming jobs it is hard to compete with those willing to do the work for a much lower price (I even saw some people bidding for jobs at $2 per hour in some cases). Just my take.
  • speeder 14y ago
    I am from Brazil... Also, I don't do web. For mobile I use cross platforms SDK or native.
• aiurtourist 14y ago
  As an employer, the only two places I've ever looked are odesk and elance. I've never heard of Freelancer.com. Just one data point though.
  • strobe 14y ago
    also guru.com is very good place for dev works
• tagabek 14y ago
  I've had experienced with sites like Freelancer. 99% of the time it becomes a bidding war. I was not happy with any leads and I ended up with $0 profit and a wasted day.
• AlexeyBrin 14y ago
  If you want to get paid by the hour try oDesk, better prices (just my experience).
• ig1 14y ago
  If you want to earn on a hourly basis rather then project basis you might want to look at http://peopleperhour.com http://peopleperhour.com and other similar site which specifically focus on hourly work.
• que0x 14y ago
  It's real. however, they became famous lately and they increased their fees. It was my source of money when i was a student (it used to be getafreelancer.com)
• Spoom 14y ago
  Personally I would recommend Guru.com instead of Freelancer; I've worked with a few of those sites and Guru seemed to be the most professional. Also, if you're worried about being paid, use the site's escrow system (Guru has one, I believe Freelancer does as well). Your employer pays into the escrow, you complete the project, you request that they release the escrow to you, you get paid. If they don't release the escrow, you can get (usually free) dispute resolution services through the site. This has saved me from a shady employer at least once. Your hourly rate very much depends upon your skills. Start bidding high, and see if you get any catches. There are people on these sites making $100 / hr., but these people have a lot of history and are well-known. Don't expect to make the higher rates when you're just starting out, and remember you're often bidding against people in third-world countries. At the same time, remember that you'll be taxed as self-employed, so make sure your rate includes the amount you're likely to pay in taxes in your country, and make sure you save that percentage back since you're likely going to owe big time when you file your income tax. Getting projects is a challenge; mostly it's about projecting a professional appearance through your proposals. Make sure your English and grammar are top notch. Justify why you are the best person for the job. Tell the employer what you'll do to build their project. Split the project into milestones (each with payment attached). Essentially you should be writing a highly customized cover letter in every proposal.