Which freelance platform
keeps the most for you?
Enter any contract amount and compare exactly how much you keep on Upwork, Fiverr, PeoplePerHour, Freelancer.com, Guru, Contra, 99designs, and Toptal — side by side, in real time.
Quick overview of each platform's fee model, strengths, and caveats. Click any card for the full dedicated calculator.
- ✓ Freelancers keep 100% of contract value
- ✓ Clients pay $2–$29 flat (not your earnings)
- ✓ Optional Pro plan for faster payouts
- ✗ Smaller client discovery pool vs Upwork/Fiverr
- ✗ Best for bringing your own clients
- ✓ Rate shown before you accept each offer
- ✓ 0% on Direct Contracts (Freelancer Plus)
- ✓ Largest active freelance marketplace
- ✗ Rate unpredictable — varies per contract
- ✗ Freelancer Plus costs $19.99/month
- ✓ Fee sharing: clients can cover up to 5%
- ✓ Low/no client handling fee for eCheck
- ✓ Flat fee model — predictable per project
- ✗ Paid plan needed for best rates (Pro: $21.95)
- ✗ Basic+ costs $11.95/mo with no fee reduction
- ✓ Drops to 3.5% above £5,000 per client
- ✓ Strong platform in UK/European market
- ✓ No fee on client side beyond Connects
- ✗ 20% on all new clients (no exceptions)
- ✗ Tier resets per client — not platform-wide
- ✓ Simple, predictable 10% flat fee
- ✓ 0% for self-referred new clients
- ✗ $5 minimum hurts small contracts (<$50)
- ✗ Clients pay additional 3% on top
- ✗ 15% for Recruiter/Preferred Freelancer
- ✓ Top Level designers pay just 5%
- ✓ Design-specialist client base
- ✓ Contest model for client discovery
- ✗ 15% for Entry Level designers
- ✗ Not available for non-design work
- ✓ Easy to set up gigs and start selling
- ✓ Very large buyer marketplace globally
- ✓ Strong algorithmic client discovery
- ✗ 20% flat — no loyalty or volume discounts
- ✗ No discount for repeat clients
- ✗ Most expensive platform for high-value work
- ✓ Freelancers keep 100% of negotiated rate
- ✓ Enterprise clients with premium budgets
- ✓ Premium rates — typically $75–$200+/hr
- ✗ Fewer than 3% of applicants accepted
- ✗ 3–8 week screening process required
- ✗ Client markup undisclosed (est. 20–50%+)
Complete fee schedule for all 7 platforms — verified from official pricing pages, June 2026.
| Platform | Your fee | Structure | Client fee | Key detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ⚡ Contra | 0% | None | $2–$29 flat | Freelancer keeps 100%. Optional Pro at $29/mo. |
| 🔗 Upwork | 0–15% | Variable per contract | Up to 7.99% | ~10% most common. 0% Direct Contracts with Plus. |
| 🎯 Guru | 5–9% | By membership plan | 2.9% (0% eCheck) | Fee sharing available. Free plan = 9%. |
| 🕐 PeoplePerHour | 3.5–20% | Tiered per client | None (Connects) | 20% first £250 → 7.5% to £5,000 → 3.5% above. |
| 💼 Freelancer.com | 10% | Flat ($5 min) | 3% or $3 min | 15% Recruiter. 0% for self-referred clients. |
| 🎨 99designs | 5–15% | By designer level | 5% + intro fee | Entry 15% → Mid 10% → Top 5%. Design only. |
| ✦ Fiverr | 20% | Flat | 5.5% | Flat 20% always. No discounts for volume or loyalty. |
| ⬡ Toptal | 0% | None (markup on client) | Undisclosed markup | Invitation-only (<3% accepted). Clients billed at higher rate. |
Individual Platform Fee Calculators
Each platform has a dedicated calculator with platform-specific features — reverse calculator, tier breakdown, ROI tools, and more.
Which freelance platform has the lowest fees in 2026?
The answer depends on your situation — but here's how each platform compares:
Contra — 0% (best for self-sourced clients)
Contra is the clear winner on fees alone: zero commission on every contract. Freelancers keep 100% of the agreed project value. Contra earns by charging clients a small flat fee ($2–$29 depending on project size), which doesn't come out of your earnings. The trade-off: Contra is newer and smaller, making it less effective for finding new clients. It works best as a professional layer for managing contracts and payments with clients you already have.
Guru Executive — 5% (best paid-plan value for high earners)
Guru's Executive plan at $49.95/month reduces the job fee to just 5%. At $1,250/month in Guru earnings, you break even — above that, you're paying less than on any other major marketplace. The unique fee-sharing feature also lets you negotiate for clients to cover some or all of your job fee, potentially reducing your effective rate below 5%.
PeoplePerHour — 3.5% for repeat clients
For freelancers with long-term client relationships, PeoplePerHour's 3.5% tier (above £5,000 lifetime billing per client) beats every platform. The problem: you start at 20% with every new client, and the tier resets per-client — not per-platform. High-value, multi-year client relationships are where PeoplePerHour's fee model truly shines.
Upwork — 0–15%, typically ~10%
Upwork's variable fee system (introduced May 2025) means your rate is set per contract. Most freelancers pay around 10%. The unpredictability is a trade-off, but for client discovery — finding and converting new clients — Upwork's marketplace is significantly larger and more active than most alternatives.
Fiverr — 20% flat (highest, hardest to justify for large projects)
Fiverr's flat 20% makes sense for gig-based, high-volume work where its algorithmic discovery is genuinely generating clients you wouldn't otherwise find. For large contracts ($2,000+), the absolute cost becomes difficult to justify: a $5,000 project costs $1,000 in Fiverr fees alone. For freelancers who have already built their client base, transitioning to a lower-fee platform typically pays off quickly.
How to choose the right freelance platform for your situation
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Match platform to use case, not just fee rate. Contra's 0% is only valuable if you bring your own clients. Fiverr's 20% is less painful if the platform's discovery generates consistent work you couldn't source elsewhere. Always weigh fee vs. client flow together.
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Use two platforms strategically. Many experienced freelancers use Upwork or Fiverr for discovery, then migrate long-term clients to Contra (0% fee) for ongoing contract management. This splits the cost optimally: pay for discovery on high-traffic platforms, keep margins on repeat work.
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Fee sensitivity scales with earnings volume. At $500/month on a platform, the difference between 10% and 20% is $50 — possibly worth paying for better client flow. At $10,000/month, the same difference is $1,000/month. High earners benefit most from optimizing platform fees.
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Always factor fees into your rate. A $1,000 project on Fiverr nets you $800. To take home $1,000, you need to charge $1,250. On Upwork at 10%, charge $1,111. On Contra, charge exactly $1,000. Use each platform's individual calculator to find the exact quote for any take-home target.
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Remember client-side fees affect your negotiability. Platforms that charge clients (Freelancer.com: +3%, Fiverr: +5.5%, 99designs: +5%) increase the total cost the client sees. Some clients will resist higher total costs — understanding the client's full cost helps you negotiate rates on platforms where clients are also being charged.