Where you post the job shapes who applies. A project on Fiverr attracts a completely different crowd than the same project on Toptal or Lemon.io, with different experience levels, rates, and vetting. We compared the top 10 freelance marketplaces on reviews, popularity, and talent supply. The rest of the article includes tables comparing hiring experiences and how each marketplace works.
1. Freelancer.com
Freelancer.com is the largest freelance marketplace where you can find experts of all possible profiles. The company claims that 80% of jobs posted on their website receive bids within the first 60 seconds. But to hire senior talent, such as AI engineers or full-stack developers, you’ll need to access their Preferred Freelancer Program, which guarantees pre-vetted experts.
Primary talent regions: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh
Monthly visitors: 4.2M+
Primary visitors share: India (20.1%)
US visitors share: 12.8%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 4.4 / 5 (19K reviews)
When reading reviews, we noticed a strong imbalance between clients’ and freelancers’ reviews. The latter are mostly satisfied with their experience on the platform. While clients report negative hiring experiences, frequent payment issues, and scam hires with freelancers doing zero of the expected work while taking money for it.
2. Upwork
A famous freelance platform that has been particularly active since 2015, where clients can work with freelancers or agencies of all experience levels by posting remote jobs or searching for particular experts by skills, categories, and location. Freelancers bid for jobs they like by buying credits (e.g., 1200 connections can cost over $180 + tax), but often the competition is high, and users need to make 20 or 30 bids before landing a job. To speed up hiring, SMB clients and freelancers can also use Upwork’s custom AI virtual assistant, Uma, for talent matching, proposal writing, or project description creation.
Primary talent regions: Global, especially India, the Philippines, Eastern Europe
Monthly visitors: 35.7M+
Primary visitors share: Pakistan (11.5%), India (11.4%)
US visitors share: 21.5%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 4.1 / 5 (13K reviews)
There are too many negative Upwork reviews on Trustpilot. Mostly, they come from freelancers complaining about the company’s policies and slow payment processing. But we’ve also seen customers rant about high fees, refund issues, and poor customer service. Explore more Upwork alternatives, apart from what’s listed in this article.
3. Lemon.io
Even though we don’t focus on sourcing freelance work, Lemon.io is a reliable source for hiring senior pre-vetted developers with 3+ years of proven commercial experience. We rely on a multi-stage vetting process and accept only the top 1% Central/Eastern/Northern European engineers, as well as specialists from Latin America. We take time to interview every engineer to verify their hard and soft skills, and yet ensure a match within 24–48 business hours.
You can (and are encouraged to) sign an NDA with a freelancer you hire from Lemon.io. All the communication and project data transfers between you and the contractor are direct, so none of the information you exchange with them is stored on Lemon.io’s servers.
Primary talent regions: CEE, Canada, the UK, the US, and Latin America
Monthly visitors: 174K+
Primary visitors share: US (13.04%), India (11.08%)
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustliot score: 4.8 / 5 (313 reviews)
Lemon.io has overwhelmingly positive reviews on Trustpilot (90% 5-star reviews). Our devs and clients honor exceptional customer support, a respectful attitude, and a strong product mindset. Negative reviews mention AI features still in progress, developers whose communication gaps only showed up once the project started, and non-engineering applicants slipping through.
4. Behance
Founded in 2005, Behance is a freelance network with over 50 million members. It’s best-suited for finding web designers, video editors, illustrators, graphic designers, and other creators. A core distinctive feature of this platform is the possibility to browse creators’ portfolios and reach out to them directly without bidding. The platform is supported by Adobe and praises creators skilled with Adobe Creative Cloud.
Primary talent regions: Asia-Pacific (APAC), Europe, the Americas
Monthly visitors: 32.9M+
Primary visitors share: India (12.7%)
US visitors share: 8%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 1.7 / 5 (41 reviews)
Most of the positive reviews are two or even five years old, which indicates that the platform has gradually declined in quality despite a relatively stable search interest illustrated above. Recent negative reviews mention poor customer service and bad payment processing. One of the reviewers named the platform: “Adobe’s long forgotten project that they don’t care about.”
5. Contra
Founded during COVID times in 2020, when the hiring approach started shifting to remote and skill-first. Its founder, Ben Huffman, built a zero-commission model where freelancers keep 100% of their earnings. The platform has raised $45M in funding and, by early 2024, had built a network of over 1.5 million creative freelancers and 20,000 clients. It covers design, engineering, marketing, and writing. The platform’s unique AI product, Contra Labs, is using its freelancer network to help train AI models on human taste. It can also connect AI companies with vetted creative professionals.
Primary talent regions: North America, Western/Eastern/Northern Europe,
Monthly visitors: 1.6M+
Primary visitors share: US (14.33%)
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 2.5 / 5 (51 reviews)
With over half of negative reviews on Trustpilot, users are mostly dissatisfied with customer support, a limited number of jobs, and payment issues (specifically for clients). Freelancers keep 100% of what they earn. Clients often flag the payment fees, up to $29 per transaction, on top of standard processing charges.
6. PeoplePerHour
Founded in 2007 in the UK, PeoplePerHour is a trusted generalist freelance marketplace for content writing, voice-over, SEO, website development, logo design, and many other categories. You can search for the right candidate manually or use Phoenix, an AI matching service. PeoplePerHour combines two hiring models: post a project and receive proposals from freelancers, or browse “hourlies”, pre-packaged services listed at a fixed price, ranging from $20 to $1,500, depending on the project type.
Primary talent regions: The UK and Western Europe
Monthly visitors: 1.15M+
Primary visitors share: India (15.97%)
US visitors share: 6.8%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
G2 score: 4.0 / 5 (97 reviews)
Users highlight how effortless it is to find eligible freelancers and clients on the platform. However, some customers also point out the high fees, a lack of timely customer support, and technical issues.
7. Freelancermap
On Freelancermap, you get direct access to freelancers categorized by location, skills, salary, current availability, and even their willingness to travel. The platform has existed since 2005 and mostly targets German-speaking freelancers and clients from the DACH region. But there are also freelancers from Latin America, Africa, and CEE. As for projects, the platform currently has more than 900 mostly on-site jobs in its project catalog.
Primary talent regions: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Indonesia, India
Monthly visitors: 270K+
Primary visitors share: Indonesia (22.9%), Germany (11.04%)
US visitors share: 3.9%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 4.3 / 5 (399 reviews)
With more than 70% of 5-star reviews, this platform equally satisfies freelancers and clients. But some users complain about the ineffective vetting process.
8. Useme
Useme is a Europe-based freelance service with an open database of a global talent pool (e.g., 3K+ programmers in the coding and IT category). A simple interface with a clear, intuitive UI/UX only supports the platform’s positioning as a formalities-free marketplace. Useme Club members go through a vetting process, which makes them more trusted by clients and better positioned to land higher-value projects.
Primary talent regions: Poland, Eastern Europe
Monthly visitors: 400K+
Primary visitors share: Poland (70.2%), the UK (2.6%)
US visitors share: 3.07%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 4.2 / 5 (1.1K reviews)
User experience is mostly positive, with more than 80% of 5-star reviews on Trustpilot. The most common concerns are regarding payment issues. The platform claims to serve 170+ countries, but Poland dominates in both traffic and invoice processing.
9. 99Designs
99Designs is the right choice when you need a logo, graphic design, web design, animations, book cover design, or complete corporate identity for your startup or SMB. Unlike Behance, which skews toward portfolio showcasing and Adobe users, 99Designs gives you access to a global pool of designers across specializations. On top of that, the platform has built-in project management and escrow services.
Primary talent regions: Asia-Pacific (APAC), Europe, the Americas
Monthly visitors: 2M+
Primary visitors share: Indonesia (26.09%), India (16.2%)
US visitors share: 13.2%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 4.2 / 5 (1.5K reviews)
99Designs reviews on Trustpilot and G2 Crowd are mostly positive. Customers agree that the platform can deliver decent results for reasonable prices, although you should not expect anything extraordinary. Users also report that designers often submit AI-generated work. That’s why the platform could do with an AI content validation layer.
10. Gun.io
An engineers-only marketplace that vets senior devs and matches them with suitable projects. India and the US are the top hiring and talent countries. The platform serves startups, SMBs, and enterprises. Apart from the rigorous vetting process, the company also offers software engineer onboarding and work quality oversight to ensure that the clients are 100% satisfied with the result.
Primary talent regions: North America, Latin America
Monthly visitors: 109K+
Primary visitors share: India (17.8%)
US visitors share: 11.5%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
G2 score: 4.5 / 5 (16 reviews)
Users on Trustpilot are mostly dissatisfied with the platform due to unexpected account blocking or unreliable customer support. On G2, clients had more pleasant experiences with the platform, with some minor communication issues.
11. Fiverr
Fiverr is a marketplace specializing in quick side-hustles and same-day tasks. Customers can work with a vetting partner to quickly find the right freelancer or use Fiverr NEO, an AI matching service. Currently, the platform offers AI video director roles as a separate service for AI-powered cinematic commercials, video editing, and UGC content creation. Fiverr also has a business solution pack for clients who need off-the-shelf services, such as ClearVoice for end-to-end content creation and management or Digis for custom software development.
Primary talent regions: The US, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Eastern Europe, and Africa
Monthly visitors: 36.6M+
Primary visitors share: Pakistan (12.8%)
US visitors share: 24.8%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 2.5 / 5 (14K reviews)
Lots of negative reviews mention poor customer support. Also, some mention user accounts being suspended or blocked for no obvious reason. Positive reviews mostly come from customers satisfied with the freelancers’ creative skills.
12. Codeable
Codeable is a niche platform for WordPress website developers founded in 2012 in Denmark, with 500+ pre-screened specialists. Each profile shows ratings, experience, skills, and completed web development projects. You can get a free estimate before committing, and clients often return to the same developer for ongoing work. The platform serves everyone from solopreneurs to enterprises and e-commerce store owners.
Primary talent regions: The US, the UK, Canada, and Western Europe
Monthly visitors: 100K+
Primary visitors share: Canada (11.4%)
US visitors share: 27.3%
Popularity over time:
Reviews
Trustpilot score: 4.7 / 5 (946 reviews)
Codeable reviews usually praise the quality of the services its freelancers provide and the prompt response from the support team. Negative Codeable reviews often mention missed deadlines or refund issues (40% from the initial payment).
Marketplace Model Comparison
Platform |
Pricing |
Open or Closed Talent Pool |
Bidding |
Vetting Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Freelancer.com |
Companies: Freelancers: |
Open |
Yes |
Low |
Upwork |
Companies: Freelancers: |
Mostly Open |
Yes (Connects system) |
Low |
PeoplePerHour |
Fixed prices on pre-packed projects (from $20 to $1,500); direct freelance hires on an hourly basis |
Open |
Partial |
Low–Moderate |
Freelancermap |
Companies: Freelancers: |
Mostly Open |
Partial |
Low–Moderate |
Useme |
4.99% service fee, but never more than €99 per/mo |
Open |
Yes |
Low |
Contra |
Free for basic features; Pro: $199/year ($29 per/mo) |
Open |
No |
Low–Moderate |
Behance |
Free basic features for creators; Pro: $11.99 per/mo, with a free 7-day trial; Clients hire freelancers directly on an hourly or project basis |
Open |
No |
Low |
99Designs |
Design contests and direct hiring from $100 for simple logo designs to $5000 for a full brand pack |
Semi-Closed |
Contest-based bidding |
Moderate |
Lemon.io |
$25–75/hr typical rates |
Open |
No |
Very High |
Gun.io |
Flexible custom packages for freelancers; 20% of the first year’s salary for hiring employees |
Closed |
No |
High |
Fiverr |
Free access to global talent |
Open |
No (predefined gigs) |
Low |
Codeable |
Pricing depends on project complexity, urgency, and scope, and can range from $900 to $15K+ |
Closed |
No |
Very High |
Sources: Company websites, Trustpilot
Hiring Experience Comparison
Platform |
You Search Candidates |
Platform Matches Candidates |
Typical Time to Hire |
|---|---|---|---|
Freelancer.com |
Yes |
No |
Hours to weeks |
Upwork |
Yes |
Partial AI recommendations |
Hours to weeks |
Freelancermap |
Yes |
Limited |
Days to weeks |
PeoplePerHour |
Yes |
AI matching available |
Hours to days |
Useme |
Yes |
No |
Days |
Contra |
Yes |
AI recommendations |
Hours to days |
Behance |
Yes |
No |
Hours to days |
99Designs |
Designers compete via contests |
No |
Days |
Lemon.io |
No |
Yes |
Usually within 24 hours |
Gun.io |
No |
Yes |
24–72 hours |
Fiverr |
Yes (browse gigs) |
Algorithm recommendations |
Minutes to days |
Codeable |
No |
Yes |
Usually <24 hours |
Source: Company websites
Key Takeaways
-
- Marketplace size doesn’t necessarily translate into hiring efficiency. Open platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer.com provide the most candidate volume, but users frequently report spending significant time reviewing proposals, filtering applicants, and validating skills before making a hire.
-
- Generalist marketplaces dominate traffic, while specialized platforms compete through focus. Platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer.com serve nearly every freelance category, whereas Codeable, 99designs, Lemon.io, and Gun.io narrow their scope to specific professions or talent segments.
-
- Vetting has become the main differentiator among freelance platforms. Curated networks such as Lemon.io, Gun.io, and Codeable trade marketplace scale for pre-screened talent, faster matching, and reduced hiring risk.
-
- Pricing generally follows vetting intensity. Open marketplaces tend to offer the lowest entry costs, while curated talent networks command higher rates in exchange for stronger screening, higher talent quality, and less time spent evaluating candidates.
-
- Lemon.io delivers one of the fastest hiring experiences in the comparison, matching startups and SMBs with vetted software developers from CEE, North America, the UK, and Latin America, with most clients receiving candidate introductions within 24–48 business hours.
-
- Across almost all platforms, the most common user complaints are remarkably similar: customer support responsiveness, payment-related issues, and inconsistent freelancer quality, highlighting the trade-off between marketplace openness and quality control.
