UpworkReviews 2,129

I had been using Upwork as a freelancer and went through their identity verification process. I provided documents (driver ID and bank bills), but instead of requesting additional documents or clarifications, Upwork permanently suspended my account. I later submitted more documents (including bank statements from multiple banks and proof of residence), but by then my account was already closed. Since then, I only receive automated responses and no real opportunity to resolve the issue. This feels very unfair — freelancers should at least be given a proper chance to provide additional documentation before being permanently banned. Losing access to my account also means losing access to clients and pending funds. I hope Upwork improves its verification process and gives freelancers a fairer opportunity to resolve issues instead of closing accounts without recourse.

As a new user, my experience with Upwork has been extremely frustrating and frankly unacceptable. My account was suspended without a clear explanation, and despite fully complying with every instruction and sending repeated follow-ups over several days, I've been met with little more than inconsistent, generic responses. Their support team has offered no meaningful help or accountability throughout this process. This has derailed a critical client project, put my professional reputation at risk, and left me in a position where I'm unable to move forward — all due to Upwork's failure to act with urgency or clarity. I came to the platform expecting a reliable, professional service. What I encountered was a system that is opaque, unresponsive, and disconnected from the real-world consequences of its actions. I would strongly caution anyone considering Upwork for important work to look elsewhere.

The platform is a great idea; however, the company does not act in a professional manner. They will ban your account without an explanation and although the company claims there is an appeal process, there really is not, because they refuse to tell you what term you violated. The site ignores your appeal and closes the communication as case solved when the case has not been solved. The platform seems to discriminate by picking and choosing who they want on their site and kick you off without a valid legal reason. This is probably why they do not tell you why you got kicked off, because you really did nothing wrong and they do not want legal liability by claiming a false claim. Be careful, because you will not get a refund on money paid and they also slander you by sending all people you have connections with that you were suspended, so it seems as though you did something wrong. DO NOT TRUST THIS SITE!

As a client who entrusted Upwork with a professional web design project, I now feel compelled to warn others of what I consider to be a systemically flawed and ethically irresponsible platform. I hired a freelancer for a clear, well-defined project: two full web pages for a fee of €650. I deposited €250 in escrow as per Upwork's process. The freelancer delivered two half-baked prototypes — not usable designs, not functional interfaces — in clear breach of the agreed scope. What followed was a case study in how Upwork's system fails to protect clients, even when the facts are indisputable. Communication with the freelancer was fragmented and circular. Despite detailed briefs, the individual demonstrated an inability to grasp the requirements. I initiated a formal dispute. Here's where the platform shows its true nature: Upwork proposed a partial refund (70%) — fair on the surface — but the freelancer rejected it. The alternative? A $600 arbitration fee ($300 each) — a deliberately prohibitive cost designed to discourage resolution. This makes no legal or moral sense when the total escrowed amount is only $250. Eventually, the freelancer offered a partial refund of €125. I accepted. But because the freelancer failed to re-confirm that agreement in writing within the dispute thread (despite having already proposed it!), Upwork closed the case and released 100% of the funds to the freelancer. This is not a one-off technicality. This is a loophole baked into Upwork's dispute process that gives freelancers the power to: Propose false resolutions to appear cooperative. Go silent and force dispute expiry. Walk away with unearned money while Upwork refuses to intervene. Upwork claims to provide a secure platform with escrow protection and dispute mediation. In practice, it delivers neither. Their framework: Incentivizes abuse by dishonest freelancers. Imposes costs on clients to pursue justice — regardless of merit. Fails to enforce written agreements and good-faith negotiations. I am writing this not just as a dissatisfied client, but as someone deeply concerned by the structural vulnerability this platform creates for honest clients and businesses. In my view, this is a consumer rights issue, and regulators should take notice. My advice: do not use Upwork if you expect legal clarity, ethical standards, or even basic fairness. The platform is optimized to protect itself and disengage when the situation becomes inconvenient — even if it means facilitating unjust enrichment of freelancers at clients' expense. Upwork may work for quick gigs or low-risk tasks. But for any serious project, you are far safer working with professionals directly or through platforms with accountable dispute mechanisms.

I hired Danish Qureshi through Upwork to create a logo and brand kit for my new business. The contract clearly outlined the deliverables—multiple file formats, layout variations, and branded elements. Despite six rounds of detailed, constructive feedback, he ignored critical revisions, added elements I never asked for, and ultimately refused to deliver required variations, claiming they "don't work"—even though they were clearly included in the scope. When I escalated to Upwork Support, I was told I no longer qualified for formal mediation because 30 days had passed since payment was auto-released—despite providing a clear paper trail proving breach of contract and non-delivery. Upwork offered "informal mediation" but never followed through. I was left with incomplete, unusable files and wasted $200. I then had to hire a second designer—costing me more money and delaying my launch. As someone starting a small business, I felt completely taken advantage of. To make matters worse, Danish Qureshi was rude, dismissive, and blamed me throughout the process. Upwork made it clear they don't stand behind their contracts, protect their clients, or enforce accountability on their platform. If you're a small business owner or anyone looking for reliable work, stay away. You're better off spending your money elsewhere than trusting Upwork with your project.

I'm a newfound freelancer on Upwork, and I've always done my best to stay in compliance and serve my clients well. But recently, something happened that made me seriously question how support handles accountability and how freelancers are treated when we're the ones being mistreated. I was suspended, reached out multiple times for clarity, and was completely ignored by the agent handling my case. Someone else had to step in to reactivate my account days later. I moved forward, stayed compliant, and hoped that was the end of it. But now, the same agent just issued a new policy violation for something that happened before my suspension. No explanation, no conversation, just a retroactive strike out of nowhere. When I asked for a fair review, all I got was a copy-pasted policy link. No investigation. No accountability. To be honest, it feels personal. It feels like retaliation or at the very least, laziness dressed up as enforcement. And it raises the question: if an agent can ignore us when we need help and then reappear only to penalize us, who's protecting us? Freelancers make this platform what it is. We deserve transparency, fair handling, and support that doesn't punish us for their own internal missteps. Has anyone else experienced something like this? I'm speaking up because silence protects broken systems.

I was charged twice for one Upwork membership — once via the mobile app (Apple) and once via the website — due to a system issue with no confirmation shown during the first attempt. Apple rejected my refund request twice, and Upwork refused to help, saying they can't track Apple payments. I paid Upwork, not Apple. The lack of proper system feedback and Upwork's unwillingness to take responsibility is extremely disappointing. I'm only asking for a fair solution: either extend my membership or compensate with 100 Connects — yet they've ignored the issue entirely.

This was my first experience with Upwork. I hired a freelancer, funded the project with $1,000, and trusted the system. But the freelancer delivered absolutely nothing. Instead, he kept making up excuses: claiming his father passed away, then that he was hospitalized, and even saying he was working on a home generator. Eventually, his account was suspended by Upwork due to suspicious behavior — but by then, my money was already gone. I contacted Upwork support. And what was their response?
Since I had already released the payment, they said there was nothing they could do — even though they admitted the freelancer is under investigation. Not only did Upwork fail to protect me — they have now started to deny responsibility altogether, and refuse to acknowledge that I was financially defrauded. Instead of support, I received canned responses that solved nothing. 📎 Attached are all my communications with both the platform and the fraudulent freelancer — fully documented. Be extremely cautious with this platform. Upwork is not safe.
Look for better alternatives.
Don't risk your money.

Disappointing Experience on Both Sides – High Fees, Poor Support I've used Upwork as both a client and a freelancer, and I can confidently say, the platform overcharges on both ends. The fees are excessive, especially considering the lack of real-time customer support. When issues arise, you're often left in the dark for up to 4 weeks waiting for a response—if you get one at all. In my experience, Upwork is unreliable when you need it most. If you're considering the platform, be wary of the sneaky fees and lack of timely help. Not recommended unless you have the patience of a saint and a calculator ready for all the deductions.

I have 100% successful jobs with 15 years account and I played according to their greedy rules: buy expensive connects to be able to post proposals but I tried for years and I get nothing no jobs in programming section at all after I was working full time in addition to this they wanted to verify my address so I sent them utility bills but they told me it is fake and closed my account permanently while the address was correct! I noticed many men their accounts closed for no reason or small mistake without any warning. And I never saw a girl or a woman get banned they are sexist. Recently they launched an ID verification and you have to pay for that too. Also 14 connects per week for availability. They are thieves

Fake jobs fake invitations, lack of service, and highly problematic business practices overall. For example,
They send unwarranted notifications of a policy violation for providing contact information in proposals when this is blatantly not the case. In this way, they are literally robbing freelancers of work. Several times clients sent me an invitation after perusing my profile, which I accepted only to find that my proposals were removed for the above unwarranted policy violation. This has continued to occur for months even though Upwork support promised it wouldn't and admitted it wis an engineering problem. Again In NO CASE was contact information provided as I understand the TOS. In short, the site is highly unreliable, engages in highly questionable business practices and is full of spam/fake job posts.

As an unexperienced user on Upwork, my experience has been extremely disappointing, and I feel compelled to warn others—particularly infrequent users—about the platform's flaws. The default settings do not cater to those of us who don't use the platform regularly, leaving us vulnerable to financial loss without clear recourse.
My primary issue came when I hired a freelancer for a project, but the work was never delivered as agreed. Despite paying the freelancer for hours logged, an Upwork default, I was left without a final product, and when I sought assistance from Upwork, the platform did nothing to help resolve the situation. The window for disputing hourly charges is so narrow that, as a new user, I missed it without even realizing the full implications of the system's settings.
Furthermore, when Upwork automatically charged my PayPal account due to an expired credit card on file, I incurred additional fees that should have been avoided with clearer communication about payment methods. This issue compounded my frustration, as I was not informed about the payment method change in time to act.
The platform also levies costs in the form of freelancer fees, which are not made fully transparent, adding yet another layer of frustration to the experience.
In the end, Upwork failed to provide any meaningful assistance in obtaining a refund from the freelancer. The lack of proactive support for disputes, particularly in the case of new or infrequent users, has left me feeling entirely unsupported and out of pocket for a project that was never completed.
Caution to new users: If you're not a frequent user, be extremely careful to review all terms and settings. Upwork's system heavily favors the platform's interests and can leave you in a difficult position—paying a freelancer, without any protections, and without receiving a final product.

I hired a freelancer on the platform for the creation of an article. Paid more than $4k for the work. Eventually the freelancer started to be a bit too relaxed with the billing and I had to close the contract (apparently, this has been my terrible mistake, to terminate instead of pausing the contract).

Due to revenge the freelancer kicked me out from the content they created, so I paid, and got no document under my control.

Texted the customer support (case *******) and obviously they told me there was nothing they could have done to help me.

Moral of the story, I got scammed of the money.

Stay away from using Upwork. Just look for a good freelancer on your own but at least, don't give any commission to these individuals who clearly have no interest in helping or protecting customers.

I've been on Upwork for a month and now I want to leave. In the past month, I've submitted 18 proposals, but only 5 were even viewed. Out of the 4 clients who contacted me:
2 asked me to register on a suspicious virtual currency website (I flagged these posts, but they keep messaging me).
1 wanted to pay outside of Upwork and ghosted me when I insisted on a contract.
1 rejected me for a reason that contradicts their own job posting (they require freelancers from City A & City B, and I'm in City A!). Upwork support told me connects aren't refunded for unresponsive clients or unfair rejections. I understand the challenge of building a reputation without prior reviews since the platform is designed to perpetuate a frustrating cycle: no reviews, no contracts, no reviews. However, the problem already goes beyond just lacking reviews. Despite targeting jobs well within my expertise, most of my proposals aren't even viewed. I accept rejections if they are due to my profile or skills, but the constant stream of scam messages and wasted connects on unviewed proposals is unacceptable. Investing time and resources into a platform that seems rigged against new users is demoralizing. I'm not opposed to fair competition, but Upwork's current system creates unnecessary obstacles for those trying to build a freelance career. This, combined with the prevalence of unresponsive and unscrupulous clients, has led me to give up on this platform.

After several years they closed my account without any chance to appeal and explain. Now all my work and reviews are gone

If I could give upwork a zero rating I would. I have been permanently deleted from upwork because of a simple error in my original job post 3 weeks ago when I mentioned "PayPal" in the post. Typing this work apparently violates their policy, which they did not notice for three weeks. Only today (three weeks later) did "Upwork Trust and Safety" notice and delete my account. The problem is I hired a contractor, put the money in escrow according to the terms of service, and the contractor is ready to deliver the work this week. Because upwork has deleted my account, I cannot contact the contractor, pay him for his work, or receive the completed work. They speak of word violations but violate a good faith contract concerning an honest exchange of money for services.

I lost about $7000 on Upwork. I think Upwork is extremely unsafe and they canceled our fixed contract with the freelancer before the project was finished. Since we did not receive the project, we opened a notification and requested a refund. The freelancer did not even respond. Upwork just watched this and now it does not respond.

Full of scams, my very first job was a scam confirmed by Upwork, but even so they won't refund the amount I invested buying connects to work on Upwork. And the platform still blames you and has no real intention of helping.

After having had success with Upwork on previous projects, we had one not work out. The contractor was unable to meet our specifications on a fixed price contract. He pleaded poor and asked for final payment before completion with a promise to complete in the next 90 days. Based on previous success, we were admittedly naive and acceded to the request. The "finished" product never materialized. What was delivered was unusable. We waited beyond the 90 days as they attempted fixes, but it was clearly beyond their ability to deliver. Attempts to get a complaint handled with Upwork wound up with "it's too late. Talk to the contractor." After the struggle to get through to Upwork assist in requesting a refund, they told us it was up to us to settle with the contractor. Given no support from Upwork, we were without leverage and without the money we paid for the botched contract.
Fair warning. In our case, Upwork worked well if there were no problems and was of no use when problems arose.
I can't drag this to your "proof of purchase" drop zone, so am leaving it here.
Payment report - Contract ID *******