Trust and Safety is a top priority for Upwork, and our goal is to help you find skilled freelancers who can get your work done while maintaining a safe and trusted marketplace.
One of the ways we build and maintain our trusted marketplace is by providing freelancers and clients ways to rate and review each other at the end of a project, so you both can share positive and negative experiences you had over the course of a contract.
We address client complaints related to freelancer quality in two key ways:
- We monitor client feedback submitted at the end of each contract
- We review client complaints related to the accuracy of a freelancer’s professional background
End-of-contract feedback
When freelancers receive multiple instances of negative feedback, we may block them from securing new contracts. They are still able to complete existing projects to honor their current contract commitments. After six months, the freelancer can apply to appeal the block on their account.
Professional background issues
If multiple reports are received about a freelancer’s ability to accurately represent their professional background (including job positions, degrees, licenses, certifications, and badges), we review the complaint and assess the available evidence against the Terms of Service or Optional Service Contract Terms. When a freelancer receives several complaints, their account may be restricted or permanently blocked.
Frequently Asked Questions
Contracts where clients report dissatisfaction around a freelancer’s stated skills, experience, availability, or the actual performance during the contract period are counted as negative feedback.
You can change public feedback once a freelancer agrees. Learn more about how freelancers can enable clients to change feedback. Private feedback cannot be changed.
Freelancers have a couple options when they receive feedback they may disagree with. Learn more about freelancers’ options for responding to or reporting feedback.
If multiple clients express dissatisfaction with a freelancer's performance, we’ll block their ability to submit new proposals and take on new contracts. This pause doesn’t impact existing contracts and freelancers should continue to fulfill existing commitments. Negative public feedback is visible on the freelancer’s profile and also will be reflected in their Job Success Score.
