In recent months, I embarked on a journey to find small projects on the Upwork marketplace. Before diving into this venture, I was not fully aware of the high level of competition that exists. To my surprise, I discovered that there are often more than 100 applicants for a single job posting. If you happen to have very few or zero reviews on your profile, it becomes exceptionally challenging to stand out in this fiercely competitive landscape.
What saddened me was the realization that some Upwork job posters (though not all) tend to seek out the cheapest labor available. I came across numerous job listings from senior-level professionals offering rates as low as $20-30 per hour. While I understand that pricing can be subjective for freelancers, it struck me that a senior developer's skills could command a significantly higher income through other avenues.
I don't wish to discourage anyone from exploring the opportunities on the Upwork marketplace. I've seen many successful web development profiles that have thrived there. However, after sending out 50 proposals and reflecting on my experience, I believe there might be more lucrative and fulfilling ways to leverage your skills in the freelancer marketplace.
Here are the statistics from my 50 proposals:
I am a Full-stack [Angular, Java] freelancer developer, if you would like to contact me here are my contacts: