Global freelancer

income report
The ongoing rise of
the freelance revolution
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Introduction

The past two years have brought unprecedented disruptions

to the global employment market. As billions around the
world continued to shelter against COVID-19, the global
work force, including millions of freelancers, has adapted to
a new reality.

In this fourth edition of the Freelance Income Report, using

data from a survey of 2,000 Payoneer customers from over
100 countries who work with international clients, we set
out to better understand who today’s freelance workers are,
what unique challenges they face, and how they are
weathering the global pandemic.

As you will see, the results show that not only were most
freelancers able to maintain their levels of work and income
during these tumultuous times, but a third of them
experienced a growing demand, and 40% even saw an
uptick in rates during the pandemic.

In some respects, this should not come as a

surprise. The flexibility that freelancers offer
their clients lends itself to the uncertainty
created by waves of pandemic surge and
retreat. For many companies, freelancers
serve as a lifeline in filling essential functions,
especially in the shadow of what has been
described as the ‘great resignation’ or when
an unpredictable market creates a need for a
more agile workforce.
2

Furthermore, in an increasingly remote ‘work from

anywhere’ world, businesses are now much better
equipped to onboard remote freelancers than before.

To a large extent, freelancers were better prepared for this

new reality than most workers. After all, working from home
has been a way of life for many freelancers for some time.
The results of this survey provide a unique window into
how these global freelancers operate and what makes
them successful.

Although we cannot predict exactly what the world will

look like in the coming years, the proven adaptability of
freelance workers suggests the share of
freelancers in the global workforce will
very likely continue to grow.
3

Key findings
32% of respondents reported higher demand for their services since the
COVID-19 pandemic began, with a further 45% saying demand stayed
constant without slowing.

The worldwide average hourly freelance rate is $28, much higher than the
$21 average rate two years ago.

The fields of programming, marketing, and finance showed the strongest

growth in demand.

Younger freelancers were the main beneficiaries in the surge in demand,

while more seasoned freelancers saw a slight slowdown.

40% reported higher hourly rates since the start of the pandemic. Only
12% saw a decrease in rates.

Despite the increased representation and higher rates of education among

women, the gender pay gap persists, and has even widened slightly
since our 2020 Global Freelancer Income Report. Women are making 82%
of what their male counterparts make, at $23/hour on average compared
to men’s $28/hour.
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The fastest growing specialties - finance, marketing, and programming - are

among the top earning professions, while the lowest-earning freelancing
specialties are in decline.

Female participation has increased from 24% to 29% since the 2020
Global Freelancer Income Report.

Younger freelancers were able to command higher rates, offering them a

bright future in a growing freelancing market.

LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube continue to

gain popularity among freelancers, inching
closer to Facebook as the top platform for
freelancers to promote their work.
5

A changing world
is driving higher demand
for a flexible workforce
While global unemployment reached historic highs throughout the last two years of the
pandemic, freelancers as a whole appear to have weathered the disruptions relatively
well. The overall share of freelancers grew with COVID-19, as some workers were
pushed to find alternatives to traditional work and others were pulled by the newly
available opportunities to work remotely. Upwork reports that 12% of the workforce
started freelancing in 2020.
There has been
no change Demand is down–
Demand is up –
Despite the surge of new competition, I have more work I have less work
than before than before
our survey indicates that demand
remained high. Since the start of the
pandemic, a large majority saw either an
increase or no change in demand, with
less than a quarter of survey respondents
reporting a reduction.

COVID-19 Impact on Rates

50% 47% The impact of COVID-19 is

45%
40% even more pronounced when
40%

35%
it comes to rates commanded
30% by freelancers. As many as
25% 40% reported higher
20% post-pandemic rates, while
15%
12% only 12% saw rates decline.
10%

5%

It's higher It's lower It's the same

than before than before
6

The worldwide average

hourly freelance rate
The worldwide average hourly rate charged by freelancers is $28, significantly higher
than the $21 average hourly rate reported in our 2020 Global Freelancer Income Report.

Average hourly rate by region

$44

$31

$24 $22 $22 $22 $22

North Western South Central Asia Africa Central & Eastern

America Europe America America Europe
7

The most popular fields

are not the ones providing
the highest pay
As we have also seen in past reports, the most popular fields are not necessarily the
ones providing the highest pay. After all, clients are more likely and willing to pay higher
rates for professions which are more specialized and have less qualified practitioners in
them. Likewise, those fields which are more popular and have a large number of free-
lance professionals in them are more likely to have downward pressure on rates due to
higher levels of competition.

Top 10 most popular fields of work Average hourly rate of the top
10 highest paying fields
Web and
22%
Graphic design
Finance $41

Other 19%
Marketing $34

Programming 14% Multimedia

production $33

Content
10%
writing IT $29

Multimedia
production 9% Project
$28
management

Translation 7% Other $26

IT 6% Programming $25

Marketing Content
6% $24
writing

Administrative 3% HR $22

Web and
Sales 2% Graphic design $21

0 5 10 15 20 25 $10 $20 $30 $40 $50

8

Programming, finance
and IT surge
While the industry as a whole was able to persevere, demand for freelance work
shifted unevenly across different sets of skills. Fields that saw particularly higher
demand include programming and finance, while customer support exhibited the
most significant decline.

Net change in demand by field

Customer support -20%

Project managment -10%

Sales -8%

Other -6%

Multimedia procustion -4%

QA
0%

Web& Graphic design

2%

Administrative
4%
Translation
6%
Content
writing 12%

Marketing 14%

IT 14%

Finance 19%

Programming 21%

-25% -20% -15% -10% -5% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20%

9

As waves of younger people finished their full-time education over the last couple of
years, and with the job market hit hard by the pandemic, it is not surprising to see
that the surge in freelancing popularity and demand particularly benefited
younger workers.

Net change in demand by age

Age

65+ -39%

55-64 -8%

45-54 -7%

34-44 2%

25-34 6%

18-24 15%

-40% -35% -30% -25% -20% -15% -10% -5% 0% 5% 10% 15%

More seasoned freelancers, however, claim to have experienced a somewhat of a

slowdown in demand, and those over 65 experienced the most dramatic decline.
Broken down by region, we can see that the younger age groups make up an
overwhelming majority of the freelancer market in Asia and Africa. and in almost all
regions worldwide, the largest age group is the 25-34 bracket, closely followed by the
19-24 age group.
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Age distribution by region

North America Western Europe Oceana
40%
35% 33% 40% 50%
47%
30% 35% 45%
32%
25% 30% 40%
22%
20% 25% 35%
15%
15% 20% 30%
12%
11%
10% 15% 14% 25%
7% 21%
11%
5% 10% 20% 18%
5% 3% 15%
12%
18- 25- 35- 45- 55- 65+ 10%
24 34 44 54 64 6% 6%
18- 25- 35- 45- 55- 5%
24 34 44 54 64

18- 25- 35- 45- 55- 65+

24 34 44 54 64

Central America Middle East

South America
40% 39% 40% 37%
35% 33% 35% 35%
31%
30% 30% 28% 30%
27%
25% 25% 25% 23%
20% 20% 20%
16%
15% 15% 15%
11% 10%
10% 9% 10% 8% 10%
7% 7%
5% 3% 5% 3% 5% 3% 3%

18- 25- 35- 45- 55- 65+ 18- 25- 35- 45- 55- 65+ 18- 25- 35- 45- 55- 65+
24 34 44 54 64 24 34 44 54 64 24 34 44 54 64
11

Shifting work environments

can open the door for
greater female participation
The share of women responding to this survey has exhibited modest incremental growth
since Payoneer began these reports in 2015. This year, however, we saw a welcome
increase in women’s participation, up to 29% compared with 24% in 2020’s Freelance
Income Report, though there is still some way to go to reach parity.

This growth is particularly notable when considering that women were hit harder than
men by job losses due to the pandemic. Indeed, a less promising employment outlook
may have opened the door for more women to enter the digital economy.

Women's Share of Freelance

Respondents Over Time

2015 2017 2019 2021

22% 23% 24% 29%

In addition, a report from the Association for

Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed
found that a more flexible work arrangement and the
potential for higher earnings are cited as key reasons
why participation in the freelance workforce by women
has grown 57% over the last decade.
12

The gender pay gap

persists, with some
bright spots ahead
Even in the face of increased representation and higher rates of education among
women, the gender pay persists, with women making $23/hour on average to men’s
$28/hour. At 82% of the average man’s hourly rate, this is a slight widening of the gap
since our 2020 Freelance Income Report which showed women earning, on average,
84% of what male freelancers earn.

As seen in the chart below, the gap differs according to region. It should also be
noted that where the female hourly rate is higher than men’s, for example, in South
America, it is likely influenced by the higher paid industries that are more in demand
in these regions.

Average regional hourly rate by gender

$60

$52

$50

$40 $37
$33
$28
$30 $26 $25
$23 $24
$22 $22
$19 $19 $20
$20 $16

$10

North Western South Central Asia Africa Central and

America Europe America America Eastern Europe

Woman Men
13

This trend was also witnessed on an international level, with the World Economic
Forum reporting that the Global Gender Gap has widened slightly since 2020.
Overall, they note that the wage gap between female and male workers is 37%,
significantly higher than the disparity in freelancing. This suggests that, while women
have yet to gain equal access to economic opportunity, the playing field is more level
in the freelancing market than in traditional employment markets.

Level of education by gender

59%
60%
52%

50%

40%

30% 27% 26% 22%

20%
14%

10%

Post-Graduate Bachelor’s Graduated

degree degree High-School

Woman Men

Average hourly rate by education

$30
$24 $22

Graduated high-school

Bechelor’s degree

Post-graduate degree
14

Despite the pay gap, women report higher satisfaction from freelancing than men.
Women that work exclusively as freelancers are particularly satisfied, suggesting that a
full-time freelance position may provide autonomy that’s highly valued.

Average Satisfaction Score by Full Time/Part Time and Gender

3.28
3.21

3.03
2.96

I split my time between working for a company I work exclusively as a freelancer

and working for myself / my own business or for my own business

Woman Men
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Freelancers are highly

satisfied and excited
for the future
Reflecting well on the industry is that a clear majority of respondents reported being
satisfied with the freelancing lifestyle. Impressively, over one-third of the respondents
said they are very satisfied, 83% said they were satisfied or very satisfied, and only
a mere 3% feel unsatisfied.

35%
Very satisfied
14% Less than satisfied

Satisfied 3% Not satisfied

Even more impressive is how positive freelancers are about the future of their work.
Close to 75% of respondents believe demand will continue to grow and allow them to
expand their business, while only 3% predict their business will slow down.

Predictions for Demand of Freelancers in 2022

73%
I believe demand for freelancing will continue
to grow, and my business will expand

9%
I believe there will be no change
in freelancing demand next year

3%
I believe bemand for freelancing will fall,
and my business will slow down

16%
I am uncertain about 2022
16

Marketplaces are
where the work is
It is no surprise that freelancers today get most of their business via online
marketplaces. A large majority (71%) of the respondents find most of their work
through online marketplaces, while only 10% rely on more traditional sources like
word of mouth (often by way of email or social media introductions) and referrals.

With this in mind, it may not be too much of an exaggeration to say how much
freelancers owe their livelihoods to platforms such as Fiverr, Upwork, People Per
Hour, 99 Designs, and others, who have essentially been powering the freelance
revolution over the past 20 years. Without these platforms, freelancers would be
more limited in the number of clients they work for, the revenues they make and
the potential to expand their businesses across borders.

Where do you find most of your work?

Online marketplaces
like Upwork, fiverr, etc.

Word-of-mouth/referrals

Other

Linkedin or professional
networking site

Social media platforms

Headhunter/recruitment firm

My professional Facebook page

LinkedIn Marketplace, which was launched in October 2021, is quickly gaining

popularity among freelancers, especially the younger ones.
17

Freelancers are
a social bunch
While only 5% of respondents say their main source of new work is through social
media, two-thirds of the respondents use a myriad of social platforms to promote their
businesses. When comparing the results to our 2020 Freelance Income Report, it is
clear that LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube continue to gain popularity, inching closer
to Facebook as the leading social platform for freelancers.

Most popular Social Media for Freelancers

34%
Facebook
36%

28%
LinkedIn
35%

21%
Instagram
27%

9%
Youtube
14%

13%
Twitter 2021
13%
2022
4%
Pinterest
5%

1%
Tumblr
1%

2%
VK
1%

13%
Other
13%

26%
None
34%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

18

Takeaways:
Opportunities are on the
rise in an uncertain world
In many ways, freelancing provides an answer to our new world defined by
uncertainty. As the global workforce continues to respond to the stresses of the
pandemic, freelance workers demonstrate impressive resilience. Many freelancers,
and in particular many young freelancers, have seen both an increase in demand and
a raise in their hourly rates over the past year.

Indeed, over the last two years there has been a significant increase in the average
global hourly freelancing rate from $21 to $28, likely caused by the 40% of freelancers
who are now charging more for their services since the start of the pandemic.

Still, the success is not evenly distributed, and there is work to be done to make
freelancing more equitable. While there has been an increased number of women
entering the world of freelancing, women freelancers continue to lag in pay behind
their male counterparts, with that gap growing over the past two years.
At the same time, though, women reported higher levels of
satisfaction, revealing the ongoing potential of freelancing to offer
women an attractive alternative to the traditional workforce.

Regardless of hourly rates, though, nearly all freelancers

surveyed expressed high levels of satisfaction with their jobs.
Given the unparalleled levels of global turmoil, the relative
triumph of the freelance community during these times is
no small feat. We anticipate that this passion and
satisfaction for the freelancing lifestyle, along with the
new work paradigms that the pandemic has given rise
to, will continue to fuel the growth of freelancing for
many years to come.
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