{"id":15127,"date":"2024-03-28T10:07:33","date_gmt":"2024-03-28T10:07:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/?p=15127"},"modified":"2024-03-28T10:07:33","modified_gmt":"2024-03-28T10:07:33","slug":"freelancing-statistics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/freelancing-statistics\/","title":{"rendered":"50+ Freelancing Statistics &amp; Trends Shaping the Future of Work [2026]"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>Sitting comfortably on your sofa and making dollars. Sounds fun, right?!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are <strong>1.57 billion freelancers<\/strong> worldwide today,&nbsp; who are doing just this!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the US, freelancer earnings make up to <strong>$1.5 trillion per year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>But what\u2019s the catch? It must not be as simple as it sounds. Yeah, freelancing can be challenging!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>66%<\/strong> of <strong>employees <\/strong>reported that <strong>finding enough work <\/strong>is the biggest challenge as a freelancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While <strong>60% <\/strong>of freelancers struggle to <strong>manage irregular work and client expectations<\/strong>, maintaining <strong>self-discipline<\/strong> and motivation is challenging for <strong>59%<\/strong> of freelancers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What&#8217;s the real story behind freelancing trends?<\/em> Here is your gateway to success in the freelance realm!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\"><nav><ul><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#top-freelancing-statistics-editors-pick\">Top Freelancing Statistics: Editor\u2019s Pick<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#general-freelancing-statistics\">General Freelancing Statistics<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#global-freelancing-market-statistics\">Global Freelancing Market Statistics<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#freelancing-statistics-by-demographics\">Freelancing Statistics By Demographics<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#freelancing-statistics-by-location\">Freelancing Statistics By Location<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#statistics-on-average-salary-of-freelancers\">Statistics On Average Salary Of Freelancers\u00a0<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#how-many-hours-do-freelancers-work\">How Many Hours Do Freelancers Work?<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#why-freelancing-benefits-of-freelancing\">Why Freelancing? Benefits of Freelancing<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#statistics-on-the-challenges-of-freelancing\">Statistics On The Challenges Of Freelancing<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#how-many-skills-do-freelancers-need\">How Many Skills Do Freelancers Need?<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#freelancing-trends-and-predictions\">Freelancing Trends and Predictions\u00a0<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"top-freelancing-statistics-editors-pick\">Top Freelancing Statistics: Editor\u2019s Pick<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"427\" src=\"https:\/\/dev.jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-stats.jpg-1024x427.png\" alt=\"There are 1.57 billion freelancers worldwide\" class=\"wp-image-15136\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-stats.jpg-1024x427.png 1024w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-stats.jpg-300x125.png 300w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-stats.jpg-768x320.png 768w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-stats.jpg.png 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>36%<\/strong> of freelancers are<strong> full-time, long-term<\/strong> freelancers.<sup> [20]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>About <strong>80%<\/strong> of freelancers are <strong>successful<\/strong>.<sup> [15]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Upwork <\/strong>is the<strong> world\u2019s largest freelancer platform <\/strong>and generates <strong>over $2 billion<\/strong> in revenue annually.<sup> [4]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There are <strong>52.3% female<\/strong> and <strong>47.7% male<\/strong> freelancers in the US.<sup> [17]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>10.4%<\/strong> of the freelancers are Asians, and they have the highest annual freelancing salary.<sup> [17]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>About 40%<\/strong> of freelancers work <strong>41-50 hours per week<\/strong>.<sup> [6]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>8 out of 10 IT managers<\/strong> said that freelancers help them get<strong> more work done<\/strong>.<sup> [22]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>One in five<\/strong> freelancers is looking forward to taking off <strong>three days per week<\/strong> in 2024<sup>. [13]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>28%<\/strong> of employees from the<strong> US <\/strong>and<strong> UK<\/strong> will start freelancing in the <strong>next five years<\/strong>.<sup> [14]<\/sup><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"general-freelancing-statistics\">General Freelancing Statistics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are <strong>1.57 billion freelancers<\/strong> worldwide today.<sup> [1]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There will be <strong>1.2 billion<\/strong> freelancers in the world in <strong>2022<\/strong>. It is about&nbsp; <strong>34%<\/strong> of the global workforce. <sup>[1]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The US had <strong>70.4 million<\/strong> freelancers in 2022, making it the <strong>largest<\/strong> freelancing market.<sup> [19]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>36%<\/strong> of freelancers are<strong> full-time, long-term<\/strong> freelancers.<sup> [20]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Is Freelancing Successful?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to an Upwork survey, about <strong>80%<\/strong> of freelancers are <strong>successful<\/strong>.<sup> [15]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>75% <\/strong>of freelancers <strong>earn <\/strong>as much, or more than they did when working <strong>full-time.<\/strong><strong><sup> <\/sup><\/strong><sup>[15]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In terms of total market value, <strong>Freelancer, Upwork, and Fiverr<\/strong> are the top freelancing websites.<sup> [20]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"global-freelancing-market-statistics\">Global Freelancing Market Statistics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"427\" src=\"https:\/\/dev.jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/global-flreelancing-market.jpg-1024x427.png\" alt=\"Global freelance market is worth $3.39 billion\" class=\"wp-image-15138\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/global-flreelancing-market.jpg-1024x427.png 1024w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/global-flreelancing-market.jpg-300x125.png 300w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/global-flreelancing-market.jpg-768x320.png 768w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/global-flreelancing-market.jpg.png 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Work Bank, nearly <strong>47%<\/strong> of employers worldwide are freelancers which is <strong>approximately 1.57 billion <\/strong>people.<sup> [1]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2018, the global freelance platforms market was worth<strong> $2.35 billion<\/strong>.<sup> [2]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2020, the freelance market worth expanded to<strong> $3.39 billion. <\/strong><sup>[2]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The global freelance platform market is projected to reach <strong>$9.19 billion<\/strong> by 2027.<sup> [2]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Payonee<\/strong>r data suggest that freelancers earn an average of <strong>$21<\/strong> <strong>per hour <\/strong>worldwide. <sup>[3]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Upwork <\/strong>is the<strong> world\u2019s largest freelancer platform <\/strong>and generates <strong>over $2 billion<\/strong> in revenue annually. <sup>[4]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"freelancing-statistics-by-demographics\">Freelancing Statistics By Demographics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Who is an average freelancer?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is interesting to note that the <strong>share of female<\/strong> freelancers is more than that of <strong>male <\/strong>freelancers by <strong>approximately 5% in the US<\/strong>.<sup> [17]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There are <strong>52.3% female<\/strong> and <strong>47.7% male<\/strong> freelancers in the US.<sup> [17]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>But the <strong>pay gap<\/strong> is still persistent, as, for every <strong>$1<\/strong> earned by men, <strong>women earn 95\u00a2<\/strong>.<sup> [17]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Looking at the educational qualifications of freelancers, <strong>51%<\/strong> of the freelancers in the US are <strong>post-graduates<\/strong>.<sup> [18]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>31%<\/strong> of the freelancers are just<strong> high school graduates<\/strong> or less.<sup> [18]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The most common ethnicity among freelancers is <strong>white<\/strong>, with <strong>70.2%<\/strong>, but they are also the<strong> least-paid<\/strong> freelancers.<sup> [17]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>10.4%<\/strong> of the freelancers are Asians, and they have the highest annual freelancing salary. <sub>[17]<\/sub><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There are <strong>only 0.4%<\/strong> of <strong>American Indians and Alaska Native <\/strong>freelancers<sub>. [17]<\/sub><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Here we have curated a list of freelancers with their race\/ethnicity along with their average annual salaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th><strong>Race or Ethnicity<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Share of freelancers<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Annual salary of freelancers<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>White<\/td><td>70.2%<\/td><td>$57,544<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Hispanic or Latino<\/td><td>10.6%<\/td><td>$58,512<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Asian<\/td><td>10.4%<\/td><td>$64,352<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Unknown<\/td><td>5.0%<\/td><td>$61,927<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Black or African American<\/td><td>3.4%<\/td><td>$57,708<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zippia.com\/freelancer-jobs\/demographics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Zippia<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"freelancing-statistics-by-location\">Freelancing Statistics By Location<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In the US, freelancer earnings make up to <strong>$1.5 trillion per year<\/strong>.<sup> [8]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>From<strong> 2020 to 2021<\/strong>, overall earnings from freelance work in the US grew by<strong> $100 million<\/strong>.<sup> [8]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>UK<\/strong> has about <strong>4.2 million <\/strong>freelancers contributing<strong> \u00a3162 billion<\/strong> to the overall UK economy. <sup>[8]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The number of freelancers in France, Germany, and Spain totals <strong>around 3 million<\/strong>. <sup>[9]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The number of freelancers in<strong> India<\/strong> jumped by <strong>46%<\/strong>. There are <strong>approximately 15 million<\/strong> freelancers in India, making it the second fastest-growing country by freelancers. <sup>[10]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to a recent survey, <strong>84%<\/strong> of companies surveyed in the <strong>Asia Pacific<\/strong> have outsourced work to freelancers. <sup>[11]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Only 10%<\/strong> of the <strong>global <\/strong>freelance workforce is from <strong>Africa<\/strong>.<sup> [12]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Freelancing has grown by <strong>78% i<\/strong>n the <strong>US<\/strong>.<sup> [7]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>UK<\/strong> is next in line with an <strong>overall freelancing growth <\/strong>of<strong> 59%<\/strong>.<sup> [7]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/dev.jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelance-revenue-growth.jpg.png\" alt=\"Fastest growing countries by freelance revenue growth\" class=\"wp-image-15139\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelance-revenue-growth.jpg.png 800w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelance-revenue-growth.jpg-267x300.png 267w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelance-revenue-growth.jpg-768x864.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/pubs.payoneer.com\/docs\/2020-gig-economy-index.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Payoneer<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"statistics-on-average-salary-of-freelancers\">Statistics On Average Salary Of Freelancers&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Wondering which are the highest-paid skills?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Technical and specialized freelancers earn higher wages than others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>How much can you make with your skills?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>US <strong>programmers, data analysts &amp; mobile developers <\/strong>earn average annual salaries of up to <strong>$120,000<\/strong>. <sup>[5]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s a list of the average salaries and annual earnings for the Major freelancing jobs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th><strong>Freelancer Job Titles<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Hourly Wage<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Annual Salary<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Writers<\/td><td>$30-40\/hr<\/td><td>$42,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Editors<\/td><td>$25-35\/hr<\/td><td>$40,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Programmers<\/td><td>$60-70\/hr<\/td><td>$120,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>General developers<\/td><td>$50-60\/hr<\/td><td>$100,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Mobile developers<\/td><td>$55-65\/hr<\/td><td>$100,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Web developers<\/td><td>$50-60\/hr<\/td><td>$90,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Graphic designers<\/td><td>$40-45\/hr<\/td><td>$90,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Transcribers<\/td><td>$20-25\/hr<\/td><td>$32,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Bookkeepers<\/td><td>$30-35\/hr<\/td><td>$40,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Online marketers<\/td><td>$50\/hr<\/td><td>$100,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Photographers<\/td><td>$35-45\/hr<\/td><td>$42,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>CRM managers<\/td><td>$50-60\/hr<\/td><td>$120,000<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Data analysts<\/td><td>$55-65\/hr<\/td><td>$100,000<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.upwork.com\/resources\/how-much-do-freelancers-make#:~:text=According%20to%202020%20freelancer%20research,higher%20%2428%2Fhour%20average%20wage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Upwork<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-many-hours-do-freelancers-work\">How Many Hours Do Freelancers Work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Wondering what a freelancer&#8217;s work week looks like?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>About 40%<\/strong> of freelancers work <strong>41-50 hours per week<\/strong>. <sup>[6]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Almost 20%<\/strong> of freelancers work <strong>over 51 hours per week<\/strong> freelancing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Over 25%<\/strong> of freelancers work between<strong> 31-40 hours per week<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"why-freelancing-benefits-of-freelancing\">Why Freelancing? Benefits of Freelancing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Curious why freelancing? What are the benefits of freelancing for freelancers and companies?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>83%<\/strong> of the people said they work as freelancers for<strong> financial gains.<\/strong><strong><sup> <\/sup><\/strong><sup>[16]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Flexibility<\/strong> is a top motivator for <strong>73%<\/strong> of freelancers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>67% <\/strong>of freelancers say they freelance because it helps them to pursue work that they are<strong> passionate about or find meaningful.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>70% <\/strong>&nbsp;of employees prefer freelancing because they can be their <strong>own bosses.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/dev.jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-motivators-statistics.jpg-1024x683.png\" alt=\"Top motivators for freelancers\" class=\"wp-image-15140\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-motivators-statistics.jpg-1024x683.png 1024w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-motivators-statistics.jpg-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-motivators-statistics.jpg-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/freelancing-motivators-statistics.jpg.png 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.upwork.com\/resources\/gig-economy-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Upwork<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-freelancers-benefit-companies\">How Freelancers Benefit Companies?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Nearly 7 out of 10<\/strong> <strong>IT leaders<\/strong> confirmed that the most common reason for hiring freelancers is to <strong>scale<\/strong> to meet project needs.<sup> [22]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Over half<\/strong> of IT teams use <strong>freelancers <\/strong>to find skills that are not currently available in-house. <sup>[22]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>8 out of 10 IT managers<\/strong> said that freelancers help them get<strong> more work done<\/strong>.<sup> [22]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Compared to hiring a <strong>full-time employee<\/strong>, hiring a freelance senior software engineer can save a company <strong>over $17,000<\/strong>.<sup> [21]<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"statistics-on-the-challenges-of-freelancing\">Statistics On The Challenges Of Freelancing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Do you think freelancing is easy money?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Well, freelancers do not think so!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>66%<\/strong> of <strong>employees <\/strong>reported that <strong>finding enough work <\/strong>is the biggest challenge as a freelancer. <sup>[14]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>62%<\/strong> of employees said that <strong>managing irregular income<\/strong> is a major challenge in freelancing.<sup> [14]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For <strong>60% <\/strong>of freelancers, it is challenging to <strong>manage irregular work and client expectations<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Maintaining <strong>self-discipline<\/strong> and motivation is challenging for <strong>59%<\/strong> of freelancers.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>59%<\/strong> of freelancers fear suffering loss if <strong>clients do not pa<\/strong>y.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For<strong> 58% <\/strong>of freelancers it is challenging to <strong>manage time.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Filing taxes<\/strong> is challenging for <strong>57%<\/strong> of freelancers.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-many-skills-do-freelancers-need\">How Many Skills Do Freelancers Need?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Freelancers need a majority of soft skills along with their marketing and professional skills to get clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is the list of important soft skills according to freelancers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th><strong>Soft skills for freelancers<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Share of freelancers that consider them important<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Communication<\/td><td>73%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Problem-Solving<\/td><td>62%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Self-motivation<\/td><td>55%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Willingness to learn<\/td><td>55%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Discipline<\/td><td>53%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Flexibility<\/td><td>53%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Self-confidence<\/td><td>46%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Perseverance<\/td><td>40%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Emotional intelligence<\/td><td>31%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Creativity<\/td><td>27%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Others<\/td><td>2%<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Source:<a href=\"https:\/\/www.demandsage.com\/freelance-statistics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"> Demandsage<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"freelancing-trends-and-predictions\">Freelancing Trends and Predictions&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>New freelance opportunities are projected to increase due to AI in the fields of<strong> data analysis, data science<\/strong>, and <strong>machine learning<\/strong>, with <strong>14.2%, 11.2%<\/strong>, and<strong> 10.3%<\/strong> of respondents, respectively. <sup>[13]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>One in five<\/strong> freelancers is looking forward to taking off <strong>three days per week<\/strong> in 2024. <sub>[13]<\/sub><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Freelancers in their <strong>30s<\/strong> will be saving a sum of <strong>15%<\/strong> each month. <sup>[13]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>28%<\/strong> of employees from the<strong> US <\/strong>and<strong> UK<\/strong> will start freelancing in the <strong>next five years<\/strong>. <sup>[14]<\/sup><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>21% of employees plan to do<strong> freelance<\/strong> work in <strong>2024<\/strong>. <sup>[14]<\/sup><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns has-background is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\" style=\"background-color:#fff9ed\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><strong>If you found this article interesting, you might enjoy these too:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<p>[related_posts_by_tax taxonomies=&#8221;category,post_tag&#8221; posts_per_page=&#8221;5&#8243; orderby=&#8221;post_modified&#8221; title=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"fa-qs\">FAQs&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"which-are-the-highest-paid-freelancing-skills\">Which are the highest-paid freelancing skills?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Programmers, data analysts &amp; mobile developers earn the highest with average annual salaries of up to $120,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"what-are-the-challenges-faced-by-freelancers\">What are the challenges faced by freelancers?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Some common challenges faced by freelancers are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>66% of employees reported that finding enough work is the biggest challenge as a freelancer.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>62% of employees said that managing irregular income is a major challenge in freelancing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For 60% of freelancers it is challenging to manage irregular work and client expectations.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Maintaining self-discipline and motivation is challenging for 59% of freelancers.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>59% of freelancers fear suffering loss if clients do not pay.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For 58% of freelancers it is challenging to manage time.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Filing taxes is challenging for 57% of freelancers.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-freelancers-benefit-companies-1\">How Freelancers Benefit Companies?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>There are numerous benefits of freelancing. Nearly 7 out of 10 IT leaders confirmed that the most common reason for hiring freelancers is to scale to meet project needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over half of IT teams use freelancers to find skills that are not currently available in-house. 8 out of 10 IT managers said that freelancers help them get more work done.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Compared to hiring a full-time employee, hiring a freelance senior software engineer can save a company over $17,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"conclusion\">Conclusion&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Freelancing is an increasing format of occupation among youngsters as it provides the flexibility of time and space with extra income. The US has the <strong>biggest market for freelancers<\/strong> and has increased by up to 78%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Work Bank, nearly <strong>47% of employers worldwide are freelancers<\/strong>, approximately 1.57 billion people. The global freelance platform market is projected to reach $9.19 billion by 2027.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Payoneer data suggest that <strong>freelancers earn an average of $21 per hour<\/strong> worldwide. Upwork is the world\u2019s largest freelancer platform and generates over $2 billion in revenue annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"sources\">Sources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>World Bank. <a href=\"https:\/\/data.worldbank.org\/indicator\/SL.EMP.SELF.ZS?end=2019&amp;start=1991&amp;view=chart\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Percentage of self-employed<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Absolute Reports. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.globenewswire.com\/news-release\/2022\/03\/07\/2397843\/0\/en\/Freelance-Platforms-Market-Size-and-Share-2022-Research-Report-by-Growth-Rate-Development-Status-and-Forecast-to-2027.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelance Platforms Market<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Payoneer. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.payoneer.com\/resources\/freelance-income-survey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">What is the average freelance salary around the globe?<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>VCBay. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vcbay.news\/2021\/02\/13\/top-10-freelancing-platforms-in-the-global-market\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Top 10 freelancing platforms.<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Upwork. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.upwork.com\/resources\/how-much-do-freelancers-make#:~:text=According%20to%202020%20freelancer%20research,higher%20%2428%2Fhour%20average%20wage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">How much do freelancers make<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>FreelancerMap. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.freelancermap.com\/blog\/freelancer-hours-survey\/#:~:text=Our%20results%20show%20that%20even,down%20to%2043%20hours%2Fweek.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelancers also work long hours \u2013 40+ hours working week<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Payoneer. <a href=\"https:\/\/pubs.payoneer.com\/images\/q2_global_freelancing_index.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Global Freelancing Index<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Statista. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/318234\/united-kingdom-self-employed\/#:~:text=As%20of%20August%202022%2C%20there,at%20the%20start%20of%202020.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Number of self-employed workers in the United Kingdom from May 1992 to July 2023<\/a>&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Malt + BCG. <a href=\"https:\/\/web-assets.bcg.com\/77\/62\/07a1c84f4be6b671ca10ec16f6f1\/malt-bcg-freelancing-in-europe-2021.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelancing in Europe 2021<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Payoneer.<a href=\"https:\/\/pubs.payoneer.com\/docs\/2020-gig-economy-index.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"> Freelancing in 2020<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Asean Post. <a href=\"https:\/\/theaseanpost.com\/article\/southeast-asias-rising-freelance-economy?fbclid=IwAR2ETysMy_89XB2lQP8-nQ5d9ejMjN74Xvk3QnVlqyE1W01X4CKsxVmKVmo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Southeast Asia&#8217;s rising freelance economy<\/a>&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Africa.com. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.africa.com\/freelancing-africa-growing-trend-continent\/?fbclid=IwAR3XLxS_lhRfC5eA8ModwCRlaPKJKtUZxPNsZIqFs5oKIFwDQTTkmszZa2E\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelancing in Africa<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fiverr. <a href=\"https:\/\/enterprise.fiverr.com\/blog\/2024-gig-economy-trends-to-watch-in-the-freelance-industry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">2024 Gig Economy Trends to Watch in the Freelance Industry<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Remote. <a href=\"https:\/\/remote.com\/blog\/freelancer-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Remote\u2019s Global Freelancer Report<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Waveapps.&nbsp; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.waveapps.com\/freelancing\/how-to-earn-money-freelancing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Complete freelancer guide<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Upwork.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.upwork.com\/resources\/gig-economy-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"> Gig Economy Statistics and Key Takeaways for 2024<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Zippia. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zippia.com\/freelancer-jobs\/demographics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelancer demographics research summary<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Upwork. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.upwork.com\/research\/freelance-forward-2021\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelance Forward Economist Report<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Statista. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/685468\/amount-of-people-freelancing-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Number Of People Freelancing In US<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Statista. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/531012\/freelancers-by-age-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Share Of Freelancers By Generation U.S. 2020<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Huffington Post. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.huffpost.com\/entry\/the-real-cost-of-freelancers-vs-full-time-employees_b_58efd87de4b0156697224d86\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">The Real Cost of Freelancers vs. Full-Time Employees<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Upwork. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.upwork.com\/press\/releases\/future-workforce-it?utm_source=PartnerCentric&amp;utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_campaign=10078_Skimbit%20Ltd.&amp;irclickid=SWoXBfXfZxyIUo60yRxfmyBLUkDz3C3W-UJGQ40&amp;irgwc=1?campaign=10078&amp;source=Upwork_Impact\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Future Workforce Report<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Demandsage. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.demandsage.com\/freelance-statistics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Freelancing statistics<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sitting comfortably on your sofa and making dollars. Sounds fun, right?! There are 1.57 billion freelancers worldwide today,&nbsp; who are\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":15142,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[156],"class_list":["post-15127","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-statistics","tag-freelance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15127"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15127\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobera.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}