Best sites to Find Top Freelance Professionals & Consultants
In recent years, businesses have changed their recruiting strategies. An increasing number of firms are turning to freelancers. And quite honestly, it is not shocking that the trend has changed in this direction. Freelancers can be more cost-effective and less of a drain on company resources than in-house hires. Let’s figure out some of the leading & best freelance consulting websites.
If we talk about hiring freelancers, the first step for the firms is to locate freelance sites that have talented people, easy-to-use search features, and, in some cases, escrow services before recruiting them. All of these factors play a great role in maintaining a long-term working relationship with a freelancer.
Due to the boost in the freelance world, a variety of online websites have emerged that enable companies to connect with professionals for hire. Since there are plenty of freelance sites to choose from today, it can take some trial and error to find the best match for your needs.
Companies must be vigilant enough when recruiting freelancers to avoid employing someone who isn’t a good match for the project or who acts in an unprofessional manner. However, you don’t need to worry much because we’ve got you covered!
In this article, we will enlighten you on some of the best places to find top freelance talent.
Quick Comparison Table: Best websites for hiring top Freelance talent (Professional Domain expert Freelancers & Consultant)
| Freelancing website | Area of specialization | Types of freelancers | Cost-pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toptal | Development and designing, Business consultants, Project Management, | Top-notch talents | Fair (Yes, it’s fair ) |
| Upwork | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Expensive |
| Guru | Multiple | Advanced | Expensive |
| Freelancer | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Budget-friendly |
| Mechanical Turk | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Budget-friendly |
| CodingNinjas | Development and IT | Experts | Fair |
| Fiverr | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Budget-friendly |
| Flexjobs | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Fair |
| iFreelance | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Budget-friendly |
| Craigslist | Telecommunication | Both beginners and advanced | Budget-friendly |
| People per hour | Coding and designing | Experts | Fair |
| CrowdSource | Content creation and editing | Both beginners and advanced | Fair |
| Aquent | Marketing | Top-notch talents | Fair |
| 99Designs | Web & Graphic Designing | Both beginners and advanced | Expensive |
| LinkedIn Profinder | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Fair |
| SimplyHired | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Fair |
| Skyword360 | Multiple | Both beginners and advanced | Fair |
| Solidgigs | Content operations | Experts | Expensive |
| Gigster | Development and designing | Top-notch talents | Fair |
| Dribbble | Designing | Both beginners and advanced | Fair |
#1. Toptal
You should go to Toptal when it’s an important & complex project and when the stakes are high. Also, you need to have enough budget for the best of the resources.
Features & Advantages:
Toptal stands for “top talent”. It is a marketplace for elite, experienced freelancers. Most freelancers are paid between $50 and $250 per hour. The vetting process here is relatively comprehensive, including an interview and experience checks. Toptal also bought Skillbridge in 2016 which is another online freelance marketplace.
Best for
Jobs on Toptal are generally focused on development & designing, software development, business consulting, product & project management & finance.
Where it’s lacking
Not for beginners
#2. Upwork
Upwork has secured its position in the list of the world’s largest platforms for freelance talent. It was formed as an outcome of merging Elance and oDesk, which were previously considered leaders of online freelancing.
Features & Advantages:
Upwork freelancers build profiles that provide details about their talents and experiences, as well as their work histories and portfolios.
On the other hand, the clients post their job listings that provide details about their assignments and the qualities they need in a freelancer.
Freelancers then submit applications for projects that interest them. Clients may choose to review profiles, freelancer proposals, their portfolios, and then, and pick the best match for their needs.
After this, clients and freelancers collaborate via an online workstation, with no off-platform contact in most cases.
Best for
It offers a wide variety of areas including writing and translation, finance and accounting, engineering and architecture, designing and development, etc.
Where it’s lacking
It may get a little pricey for short-term projects.
#3. Guru
Guru started as a personal project in 2001. The business is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and primarily serves freelancers in the United States.
Features & Advantages:
Rather than incorporating any poor job listings, Guru’s built to draw a more expert base of clients and freelancers. It aims at helping businesses in searching for and hire freelancers from all over the world.
This website verifies freelancers and publishes their ratings as well as transaction data to assist hiring managers in discovering professionals from all over the world. Guru is more flexible than a lot of other websites when it comes to paying freelancers.
Best for
Its cost-effective and flexible program allows users to employ freelancers for a variety of tasks, including programming, writing, editing, design, arts, marketing, and more.
Where it’s lacking
High fees
#4. Freelancer
As of 2019, Freelancer.com has over 29 million users.
Features & Advantages:
Freelancer operates similarly to Upwork. You can create a freelancer profile and start applying for the jobs that are posted by various clients. It also allows you to post your previous works, keep clients notified of your progress while finishing any assignments, and also talk to them through a live chat feature. It is worth mentioning that it is preferred by companies like Intel, Microsoft, and SAP.
Best for
Freelancer is a good option for those who want to enter the freelance world while working from home.
Where it’s lacking
It can be a task to find high-paying work there.
#5. Mechanical Turk
Mechanical Turk marks the entry of Amazon.com into the online freelance world.
Features & Advantages
It works quite similarly to Upwork, Freelancer, and other sites. It helps you connect to a wide variety of freelancers with different professions who are in the search of small jobs. These small jobs are known as human intelligence tasks (HITs) on this site.
Best for
It is primarily used for the completion of all such tasks that require human intelligence.
Where it’s lacking
One can only find a majority of microtasks.
#6. Coding Ninjas
Features & Advantages
At Coding Ninjas, you get to access a large network of vetted developers to hire from. Approximately 4% of their candidates are employed. In less than 24 hours, Coding Ninjas will help you find the ideal match, and they thoroughly test every engineer so you don’t have to worry about that. Furthermore, each developer must pass live interviews, an English test, and a code quality test.
You provide your specifications for a price quote before starting a project. Then you can choose whether to pay per hour or subscribe to one of their plans. They offer three different plans: hourly at $39 per hour, fixed price (based on your quote), and monthly subscription packages beginning at $23 per hour, which you can cancel anytime.
Best for-
Development and IT
#7. Fiverr
Features & Advantages:
All work on Fiverr costs $5, or $5 increments, as you would expect. Fiverr is an ideal platform for people who are just getting started and want to develop a portfolio quickly.
Clients and freelancers can both post listings on Fiverr, unlike various other platforms. For example, a client may have a job labeled as “Write a 700-word article”. On the other hand, a freelancer’s version would say “Will write a 700-word article.”
Best for-
Fiverr primarily specializes in micro tasks such as writing or rewriting short articles, customizing WordPress codes, etc.
Where it is lacking
Hard to make regular money.
#8. FlexJobs
Features & Advantages:
FlexJobs mainly focuses on flexible work opportunities for freelancers. It scans job listings before publishing them on its website. This ensures that jobs are almost always legal, which is sadly not the case everywhere. FlexJobs is used to recruit talent by large and reputable corporations such as CNN and NBC.
FlexJobs aims to save freelancers time.
Best for-
It is a great option for people with nontraditional schedules, those who are seeking to increase their salaries, and others.
Where it’s lacking
No career opportunities or development
#9. iFreelance
Features & Advantages:
The membership model at iFreelance takes a different approach to link freelancers with jobs. Clients can post jobs for free, while freelancers pay a monthly fee that varies based on the benefits they get. Freelancers get to keep 100% of their stipend.
Since the fixed monthly rate is likely smaller than the percentage of earnings charged on other platforms, this can be a good choice for freelancers who do a lot of work.
Best for
Beginners who are searching for a budget-friendly option in the long term.
Where it’s lacking
It is important to note that it might not be the most cost-effective platform if you just do occasional work.
#10. Craigslist
While Craigslist isn’t the first place most people think of when searching for freelance work online, many companies and entrepreneurs looking for assistance for specific tasks will want to recruit someone locally.
Features & Advantages:
When you look for a job on Craigslist, remember to check both the “jobs” and “gigs” sections for the city or area you want to work in. To target the skills you possess, you can use keywords in the search form. Designers, for example, should look for words like “Photoshop,” while backend developers should look for “SQL.”
If you’re looking for work on Craigslist, remember to read the articles carefully and follow the application guide. In case there is no guide, you can mail to their email address with a cover letter and resume. You will find the email address beside the “Reply to this post” option at the top.
Best for:
Telecommunications
Where it’s lacking
Certain categories are not free
#11. People per hour
Features & Advantages:
People Per Hour aims to make freelancing easier by organizing communication, payments, and job management. Freelancers can submit 15 proposals to clients before having to pay for any plan. However, they can also search for vacancies and be informed of new opportunities for free. It’s worth looking into for someone working on a web-related project.
Best for-
People per hour is a great tool for marketers, SEO experts, and software engineers that primarily focuses on web projects.
Where it’s lacking
Less job security
#12. CrowdSource
CrowdSource has been referred to as one of the biggest freelance companies in the market.
Features & Advantages:
The platform is unique in the sense that it breaks down big tasks into tinier and more manageable chunks. Through the integrated framework, freelancers who are considered eligible will work on these tasks. If freelancers’ work is found to be of high quality, they will be paid more and will be able to access more opportunities.
Best for-
It is a great choice for online retailers, media firms, and publishers as its primary focus lies in content creation, editing, and monitoring.
#13. Aquent
As a freelance agency, Aquent has received several awards.
Features & Advantages:
Although Aquent provides that they prefer people with 2+ years of experience, fresh graduates are welcome to look at the vacancies. If you’re unsure of the worth of your talent, there’s a stipend guide to help you figure it out.
Best for-
The freelance website is well-known for supplying top-notch staff for innovative, digital, and marketing projects.
Where it’s lacking
No long-term commitments
#14. 99Designs
99 Designs is a unique freelance work platform. As the name itself suggests, the platform caters specifically to designers, and each job is introduced to participants in the form of a competition.
Features & Advantages:
Clients are allowed to crowdsource their operations rather than going through a catalog of portfolios and résumés. They can then set a budget, provide guidance and let designers deliver work based on the project summary. The client selects the best design at the end of the week, and the designer is provided with a stipend.
Best for-
This is an excellent site for designers who want to put their skills to the test and change their routines.
Where it’s lacking
A lot of designs on 99Designs are stolen
#15. LinkedIn Profinder
Features & Advantages:
With over 420 million users from more than 200 countries, LinkedIn is undeniably the go-to place for learning about all things job-related. LinkedIn recently marked its entry into the freelance world by quietly introducing LinkedIn Profinder, a tool that assists freelancers in seeking new work.
LinkedIn can easily link freelancers with strong leads based on their keyword searches and companies followed thanks to its massive amount of user data.
Best for-
Profinder is a fantastic choice for experts in multiple fields.
Where it’s lacking
Unverifiable claims
#16. SimplyHired
Features & Advantages:
SimplyHired has the most diverse range of freelance work of any of the websites on this list. The platform has a plethora of jobs for those looking for extra work, ranging from construction to concierge work.
Another interesting thing about this site is that it helps freelancers find work in more than 24 countries. It is worth mentioning that it isn’t limited to English-language jobs, rather it enlists jobs available in 12 different languages.
Best for-
Experts in various fields
Where it’s lacking
Website glitches
#17. Skyword 360
Features & Advantages:
Content is at the heart of all marketing efforts on the Skyword360 website. It is a platform that ensures that all cross-channel preparation, content creation, and activation are in line with a company’s overall content strategy and marketing objectives.
All of the critical components of content operations like procedure, planning, creation, compilation, activation, personalization, and optimization are managed by Skyword 360’s tools.
Best for-
Marketing executives can use Skyword360’s content-centric approach to develop exclusive and aligned user experiences that differentiate their work and achieve remarkable results.
Where it’s lacking
Little complex
#18. Solidgigs
Features & Advantages:
Solidgigs is considered one of the best freelance sites for top-tier work opportunities for information freelancers. This is accomplished by the use of two useful resources: a Weekly Gig list and a Courses & Tools column.
SolidGigs’ team of freelancers trawls through hundreds of work boards regularly to notify freelancers about the best 1% of positions available.
It has worked with people in the freelancing and solopreneurship industries to provide training and education on a range of subjects, including pricing, sales, pitching, and client acquisition.
Best for-
Content Operations
Where it’s lacking
High price level
#19. Gigster
Features & Advantages:
Gigster is a fantastic freelancing platform that integrates top designers and developers with artificial intelligence. Developers are chosen for projects based on more than 20 requirements to ensure that they consistently produce a high-quality product. When you will start with a project, a Gigster project manager will put together a team of their own to lead it.
Furthermore, Gigster’s artificial intelligence allows project managers to anticipate failures beforehand and change the paths if necessary.
Project managers create specs 80 percent faster than the average because they reanalyze every phase to streamline for pace. Moreover, developers also get to start with up to 60% of the code that is written already. As a result, developers can start and complete projects more quickly.
Best for-
Developers and designers
Where it’s lacking
No long term commitments
#20. Dribbble
Features & Advantages:
Dribbble is one of the most popular places to look for talented designers around the world. Crew’s firm, which employed top-notch creative freelancers, software developers, and small agencies, was also acquired by Dribbble.
Dribble is a famous destination for millions of designers and companies regularly. Dribbble’s recruiting services have been used by 40,000 businesses and more than 1.4 million creative experts.
Best for-
Developers and designers
Where it is lacking
Less engagement
Wrapping up…
There’s something on this list for everyone, whether you’re an expert programmer looking to leave the office for good or an inexperienced photographer looking for hourly jobs. Check out these websites if you want to join the rapidly developing freelance economy!
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