Build a freelancer platform — the infrastructure behind the next Upwork.
Upwork takes 20% from freelancers. Fiverr takes 20% too. A custom freelancer platform lets you set your own take rate, own the freelancer relationships, and differentiate on specialization that Upwork can't offer.
Founder building a niche freelancer marketplace who needs the full platform infrastructure — freelancer profiles, client projects, proposal workflows, and payment escrow
Upwork and Fiverr are general marketplaces. The opportunity in freelancer platforms is niche specialization:
- Freelance platform for legal document work
- Freelance platform for clinical research
- Freelance platform for architecture and design
- Freelance platform for film production roles
Niche platforms can charge lower take rates because acquisition costs are lower — the audience is defined — and vetting is stronger.
Freelancer platform core flows:
Freelancer side: Profile, portfolio, skills, hourly rate/project rate, availability. Stripe Connect for payouts.
Client side: Post project, receive proposals, hire, milestone management, payment.
Platform side: Vetting queue, dispute resolution, take rate configuration, fraud detection.
Freelancer platform deployed — freelancer onboarding, client project posting, proposal flow, contract, payment escrow, and review system
Freelancer onboarding
profile, portfolio, skills, verification, Stripe Connect
Project posting
scope, budget, timeline, required skills
Proposal flow
freelancer proposal, client review, negotiation
Contract and milestones
agreed scope with milestone payments
Work delivery
deliverable submission, client review and approval
Payment escrow
Stripe Connect marketplace payments
One honest number to start.
Fixed-scope, fixed-price. The number below is the starting point — final scope is built from your brief.
Freelancer platform deployed — freelancer onboarding, client project posting, proposal flow, contract, payment escrow, and review system
Three steps, every time.
The same repeatable engagement on every project. No surprises, no mystery, no billable ambiguity.
Brief & discovery.
We send you questions, then get on a call. Output: a written scope with every step, feature, and integration listed.
Build & ship.
Fixed schedule, weekly reviews. No scope creep unless you change the scope — and if you do, we reprice it transparently.
Warranty & retainer.
30-day warranty on every launch. Most clients stay on a monthly retainer for ongoing features and maintenance.
Why Fixed-Price Matters Here
Freelancer platforms have defined supply, demand, and transaction workflows. Fixed-price from the spec.
Related engagements.
Questions, answered.
Any take rate. 5%, 10%, 15%, or a flat fee per transaction. Take rate is a configuration setting, not hardcoded.
Stripe Connect Express. Freelancers onboard to Stripe via OAuth. Payouts are scheduled (daily, weekly, or monthly) and deposited to their bank account.
Tell Ryel about your project.
Describe what you’re building and what outcome you need. You’ll have a written, fixed-price scope within the week.