Fiverr just took a 20% cut on a $50 gig and I am heated

I knew Fiverr's fees were bad, but I just did a $50 logo gig last week and they took $10 right off the top. That leaves me with $40 before taxes. The client paid $56 total after their own service fee too. I get that they run ads and host the platform, but 20% feels like robbery compared to Upwork's sliding scale that goes down to 5% after $10k with a client. Has anyone else done the math on how much you lose to fees per year on Fiverr vs Upwork?

3 comments

3 Comments

casey3423d agoOG Member

Man I did the math on 2023 and I lost like $1,400 to Fiverr fees alone on around $7k of work. Honestly though I think the 20% cut makes more sense than people give it credit for. Fiverr puts your stuff in front of buyers who are already ready to spend money, and they handle all the payment disputes and chargebacks too. Upwork is cheaper sure but you also have to bid for jobs and chase clients more. I'd rather lose 20% on a guaranteed sale than spend hours applying for proposals that might go nowhere.

faithpatel3d ago

Wait, so they take 20% and then also charge the client a fee on top of that? Why not just call it what it is and have everyone pay a flat 30% upfront so we feel the full burn at once. I did the math on my yearly Fiverr fees once and had to lie down for an hour after.

the_elizabeth3d ago

Lie down for an hour" honestly that's the most RELATABLE thing I've read all week.