An agency is a group of freelancers who have come together on Upwork. Freelancers who join an agency may do all their work through an agency (exclusive) or may maintain independent contracts too (non-exclusive).
The only way to join an agency is to be invited by an agency administrator. Your relationship with them, including how you get paid, is managed privately outside of Upwork. You can learn more about agencies below to help you decide if agencies might be a good fit for you.
Agency relationship types
Exclusive Agency Relationships
Exclusive agency members work on Upwork only as part of their agency. This is the most common type of agency relationship. Your profile and proposals will be branded with your agency to make the agency’s part in the work relationship clear to the clients. All contracts will be paid to the agency and the agency will pay you. In this relationship, you cannot submit proposals for jobs as an individual or bill clients directly.
Non-Exclusive Agency Relationships
Non-exclusive agency members can work on Upwork independently and as part of an agency. Agency contracts will be paid to the agency. Independent contracts are paid to you.
If you wish to be treated as an agency member in search results, on your profile, and when clients reach out to you, you’ll need to set the agency as your default team in your Settings › My Teams.
Either way, you’ll have the choice every time you submit a proposal to specify if you’d be working on that project independently or as an agency member.
