More and more professionals are now cutting ties with their companies and going for freelance or work-from-home jobs. There was once a time when such a “gig” type of work was not encouraged.

Companies wanted all employees on a roll working from their office space. But now, both businesses and professionals are looking for freelance and consulting jobs.

This trend has led to the development of freelance marketplaces like Fiver, Upwork, Freelancer, and lots more. If you too are interested in building such a freelance market place, then the first thing you will wonder is “How much will it cost to create a website like Upwork?”

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In this blog, we will look into the approximate cost of creating a website like Upwork. But, before we go into the numbers, let’s take a look at the benefits of creating such a website and its core features.

Reasons to create a website like Upwork

A recent market trend found that in the next ten years, there will be an increase of 168% in the number of freelancers. It is also suggested that the number of remote workers being hired by companies is expected to increase by 5 times over the next decade.

Already many companies are outsourcing support jobs. So, this new trend will be a more economical and feasible solution for companies. Remote working and freelancing also reduces operation costs for the company and helps companies find the best talent without the hindrance of geographical boundaries.

So, all these factors point to the fact that creating a freelance website will surely be a good investment in the long run.

How to Build a Website like Upwork?

When you start planning a website like Upwork, decide on the type of website you want to have. There are three kinds of freelance marketplaces – location based, niche based, and “all for all” websites that cater to all kinds of jobs and professionals.

Before you build a website like Upwork, you need to identify the target audience, both in the freelancer side and the job provider side.

Choose between Quality and Quantity. You can choose to have all freelancers register without vetting any skills. This method will allow you to quickly build a large database. The other option is to vet the skills and abilities of the freelancers before you list them on your website.

It will allow you to create a database of skilled freelancers. Though the database may not be as large as the previous method, it will help you build a reputation in the market.

Core Features of a Freelance Website

Backend Architecture

The server side is the backbone of the website. It determines the functionality of the website.

Database

The database is the heart of the website. It contains the profiles of the freelancers, skills, and other details on the freelancer side.

The database will also have details of job advertisements, job descriptions, and other details that are added by the job provider. You can use a cloud provider to store all the files.

Freelancer Profile

The freelancer profile has details of the freelancer skills, experience, expertise, rating, reviews, examples of completed projects, and more.

Search and Filter Option

This option allows freelancers to search for available jobs and job providers look for specific skill sets or expertise.

Messaging Options

Job providers may want to talk to freelancers before assigning the jobs. At the same time, freelancers may want to clarify certain facts before working on an assignment. The messaging option allows them to connect and communicate.

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Secure Payment options

This option allows job providers to make payments to the freelancers for the services availed. Most websites use PayPal for payment processing.

Ratings and Reviews

Clients or job providers can give reviews about their experience working with the freelancer or rate the quality of their work.

Cost to Create a Website like Upwork

The cost of creating a website like Upwork depends on various factors, which include the size of your website, database, technologies used, and other components.

There are different ways in which you can create a website. No matter which method you choose, the cost to create a website like Upwork will include the following:

• Domain cost: $10 to $15 per year.
• Shared web hosting cost: $3 to $15 per month
• VPS web hosting cost: $15 to $50 per month
• Domain name cost: $10 to $15 per year

1. Build it yourself

If you have the technical skills and the expertise to build a website, then you can build it yourself. You can use a prebuilt framework and integrate the required API’s and technologies and get your website up.

Choose a content management system and the theme for the freelance website. You may also find readymade scripts that you can deploy after specific customizations.

Predesigned templates are available in WordPress, Wix, Weebly, and other website builder sites that you can choose from. Depending on your budget, you can go for free or paid themes.

Apart from the above costs, you may have to spend up to $200, if you are planning for a paid theme. You should also account the effort and time you spend in setting up the website and maintaining it.

2. Hire a Freelancer

If you are not very confident about working on the website by yourself, you can get the assistance of freelancers to build a freelance marketplace. Bring in freelance developers, designers, content writers and graphic designers to create the various elements of the website and bring them together.

You need to consider the fact that freelancers are paid on hourly rates. On average, it can take up to 1000 work hours to build a website like Upwork. The hourly rates charged by the freelancers will depend on their expertise and experience in the field. The average rates are:

Website designer: $25 to $90 per hour
Content creation: $30 to $200 per hour
Website development: $25 to $180 per hour

Apart from these costs, you may also have to consider the cost of designing logos, icons, and creating mobile app. The biggest challenge of hiring freelancers to build a freelance website is that you need to coordinate with multiple professionals to get your website up.

Also, all freelancers may not complete their tasks within the same time frame, which can delay your website launch.

3. Outsource to a Web Development Company

Outsourcing your website development to an agency will help you get the best value for your money. The web development agency will have a team of developers, designers, writers, and project managers to handle the entire project.

So, you just have to explain your requirement and the expert team takes care of everything. The cost to create a website like Upwork by website development companies is upward of $2000.

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As you integrate more technologies or go for high-end features and applications, the cost will increase. This cost is generally exclusive of the expenses for domain name, web hosting, cloud server, and other subscriptions that you avail.

Probytes offers professional website development services. We can create a freelance website like Upwork based on your budget and specific requirements. Contact us for a consultation.