Manage how you get paid

We understand that knowing when you’ll get paid is important for planning and peace of mind.

The time when your earnings become available depends on the type of payment — hourly, fixed-price, for a Project Catalog project, or a bonus:

• Hourly contracts are based on a weekly billing cycle. The weekly billing period ends on Sunday. Your funds will be available 10 days later (the following Wednesday). Some contracts are eligible for faster payments. Learn more here.
  
• Fixed-price contracts are based on milestones. Once the client approves a milestone, you'll be able to withdraw your earnings after a five-day security period.
• Project Catalog contracts are based on project approval. Once the client approves your project, your funds are available after a five-day security period.
• Bonus payments are available to you after your client's payment has been successfully processed and the five-day security period has passed.

To access your earnings, you'll need to add a payment method and set your tax status.

Select how you get paid

To make it easy for you to access your money, we offer a number of choices for withdrawing your funds. You can withdraw directly to your bank account with the following payment methods:

• Direct to U.S. Bank (ACH) — Free
• Direct to Local Bank (outside of U.S.) — $0.99 per transfer
• U.S. Dollar Wire Transfer — $50 per transfer
• Instant Pay for U.S. Freelancers — $2.00 per transfer

We also work with the following third-party payment vendors:

• PayPal
• Payoneer (outside the U.S.)
• M-Pesa (Kenya only)

The availability of payment methods varies by country, and some banks may charge incoming fees additional to those listed above. Your available options will display when you add a payment method. Consider comparing costs and access options in your country before selecting a method.

Set up a payment method

1. Go to Settings › Get Paid
2. Choose Add Method
3. Choose the Set Up button for your chosen method and enter the information
4. Choose a payment schedule and choose Next

We take the security of your account very seriously. For security reasons, your new payment method will become active in three calendar days.

Be sure to double check your account number(s) and details carefully. You must enter these details accurately to withdraw your money.

Consider setting up a second payment method as a backup. Then, if your first payment method isn't available for some reason, you will still be able to access your funds. You can add as many methods as you want and make changes as needed.

Automatic payment schedules

If you’d like to be paid on a certain schedule without having to request a withdrawal each time, you can set up an automatic payment schedule. We added this option to make getting paid more convenient for you.

First, set up a payment method. Next, choose your payment schedule. Then, we’ll disburse your available balance to your preferred payment method automatically according to your chosen schedule. Learn more about setting up and changing your payment withdrawal schedule.

Even after you set up an automatic payment schedule, you can still withdraw your available funds manually at any time.

Reserve balance

If you want to keep earnings in your account to purchase Connects or a monthly membership plan, you can set a reserve balance of up to $250 USD that won’t be disbursed with your scheduled withdrawals.

For example, you may want to keep $150 USD in a reserve balance to easily buy Connects. When you purchase Connects and your balance drops below $150 USD, we’ll automatically use any earnings you collect to keep the reserve balance at $150 USD.

To set up, edit, or remove a reserve balance:

1. Go to Account Settings > Get Paid
2. Choose the pencil icon 🖉 in the Withdrawal schedule section

Withdraw your earnings manually

You can withdraw your available balance at any time using the "Get Paid Now" option.

1. Go to the Settings › Get Paid.
2. Choose the Get Paid Now button.
3. Choose the amount to withdraw.
4. Choose Get Paid Now.

To edit payment information

1. Go to Settings › Get Paid
2. Under Payment Methods, find the one you want to edit
3. Choose Edit from the (...) options menu
4. Edit your information and select Save Changes

To protect the security of your account, we don’t allow you to edit certain information within a payment method. You cannot edit email addresses, bank account numbers, and bank codes. You must add a new payment method if these change. These new payment methods will be subject to the same three-day waiting period that we applied to your first payment selection. Don't forget to remove the old payment method at that time, too.

To remove a payment method

1. Go to Settings › Get Paid
2. Under Payment Methods, find the one you want to remove
3. Select Remove from the (...) options menu

Troubleshooting