To help you connect with the top talent on our platform, we created Talent Badges for freelancers and agencies. These badges highlight proven talent and expertise.
Rising Talent
The Rising Talent badge highlights freelancers and agencies who are among the best new freelancers in the Upwork marketplace.
Rising Talent freelancers show great potential based on strong backgrounds in their fields and early success with their clients on Upwork. Agencies either have strong backgrounds or were started by Top Rated freelancers.
Freelancers who have been inactive on Upwork for a while may also get the Rising Talent badge if they start taking clients on Upwork again and demonstrate success.
Criteria
To qualify for the Rising Talent Badge, freelancers must:
- Have a 100% complete profile with signs of great experience prior to joining Upwork
- Have positive performance on Upwork — submit high-quality proposals, be selected for jobs, and complete projects on time and as promised
- Keep their availability status up-to-date
- Have been active in the past 90 days or joined in the last 30 days
- Follow the Upwork Terms of Service
In addition, agencies who receive the Rising Talent badge must also maintain:
- Two or more team members, including the agency owner
- A 100% complete agency profile
- A 100% complete agency owner profile
- A 60% or higher average profile completeness across the agency
Top Rated
Freelancers can earn a Top Rated badge when they have built a strong reputation on Upwork by getting positive feedback from their clients, time after time. Top Rated represents the top 10% of talent on Upwork.
We update eligibility every two weeks to be sure to help you connect with the most current outstanding members of our marketplace.
Criteria
To qualify for the Top Rated badge, freelancers must:
- Demonstrate consistent high-quality work with multiple clients
- Have an outstanding Job Success Score (at least 90%) for at least 13 of the last 16 weeks
- Have an up-to-date and complete freelancer or agency profile
- Keep their availability for new jobs up to date
- Have a strong earnings history
- Have had their first project on Upwork more than 90 days ago
- Have been active on Upwork during the past 90 days
- Follow the Upwork Terms of Service
In addition to the criteria already listed, agencies must maintain:
- A 100% complete agency owner profile with photo
- An agency profile with a logo, overview, and services offered
- Agency member profiles that are at least 60% complete on average
Top Rated Plus
To earn a Top Rated Plus badge, freelancers must display proven success on large or long-term contracts. They’ve built a strong reputation on Upwork by getting consistent positive feedback, including work on high-value contracts. Top Rated Plus talent represents the top 3% of performers on Upwork.
We update eligibility every two weeks to help you connect with the most current outstanding members of our marketplace.
Criteria
To qualify for the Top Rated badge, freelancers must:
- Demonstrate consistent high-quality work with multiple clients
- Have an outstanding Job Success Score (at least 90%) for at least 13 of the last 16 weeks
- Have an up-to-date and complete freelancer or agency profile
- Keep their availability for new jobs up to date
- Have a strong earnings history, with total earnings over $10,000 in the past 12 months
- Follow the Upwork Terms of Service
- Agencies must have earnings of over $20,000 in the past 12 months to qualify.
Expert-Vetted
To earn an Expert-Vetted badge, freelancers go through a pre-screening process with our Talent Managers. Expert-Vetted badges are only available for certain work categories. The screening process evaluates technical expertise and soft skills in select categories.
Expert-Vetted talent represents the top 1% of talent on Upwork, and this badge only displays to Enterprise and Business Plus clients, giving you the most access to top talent.
To qualify for the Expert-Vetted badge, freelancers must:
- Possess exceptional expertise in their field
- Pass a screening process by Talent Managers
- Possess strong soft skills including excellent communication