Upwork reviews

3.8

59% would recommend to a friend

(633 total reviews)
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Hayden Brown

54% approve of CEO

42% positive business outlook

Upwork has an employee rating of 3.8 out of 5 stars, based on 633 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Upwork employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Tecnologías de la información industry (3.9 stars).

Reviews by job title

633 reviews
1.0
Feb 6, 2024

Huge let down

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I can't think of a good enough reason to stay at this company. I had thought the unlimited time off would be worth it but they don't want you to ever use any of it. I watched people get fired for taking a normal amount of time off.

Cons

-Account managers only care about their numbers, anything happens that they view as negative and they will throw you or anyone else under the bus, run to their managers and have their manager talk to your manager. Then you'll get written up because your boss will believe every single thing even if it's not true. -I felt like I couldn't be human here. If you're sick, have an emergency etc it doesn't matter. The company only cares about how much they can squeeze out of you. -Our manager had no idea how to actually manage people, they only knew how to manage 'yes people'. Had zero capability in fostering growth or improvement. Provided no one for my training and just expected me to know everything. -I spent 6 weeks in training that had nothing to do with my role. When I brought this up I was told that's just how it is and it could be helpful to know all the information. It was not helpful at all to my role. -You'll have managers from other teams constantly calendar checking you and trying to make you look bad. -When I first started and was added to a meeting, I overheard managers talking about how new people were a liability likely to lose them money. (Great attitude for adding people to your business) -The managers of the account managers spent more time fixing their appearance when they thought they were off camera than actually helping. -Someone was seriously injured and they were pressured to come back to work sooner than they should have. -The company tries to say that they're inclusive by making a few slack channels and calling it good. -The company wide meetings made it clear that upper management just said a bunch of words but had no idea what to do. -Entire teams were "promoted" all the time, people also left constantly which should have been a sign. -A coworker of mine never took a day off, never said no to anything and was constantly praised for their efforts, martyring themselves for everyone else. I literally took one look at them and did not want that as my future. -I was pressured and singled out because I didn't want to join in on giving money to and praising a mom to be. Some of us apparently cannot have boundaries around work.

4.0
Jul 27, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Working at Upwork is one of the least stressful jobs I have held. The company provides ample vacation days, and reimburses for wellness. No one is working that hard which is great for stress, but also a negative if you enjoy working with the smartest and most motivated individuals.

Cons

Upwork offers almost zero opportunity to move up so negotiate a salary and position you can live with long term. The stock has performed poorly the last couple years so my total comp is much lower than anticipated and the refreshers are pretty small. The bonus is also low for a "tech" company and waiting all year for my real payday is a little annoying. Lastly, because everyone seems to be resting it is a place where motivation and innovation goes to die. Several co-workers came from real tech companies and/or important roles and every one of them says they came for a break and are somewhat sorry they joined because they worry about their future career prospects. C-level leadership is also very weak. I am not sure why the CEO is still in place since she is particularly rudderless, but the CTO and CMO have impressive backgrounds so hopefully they can help shape the business while the weaklings take a back seat.

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Upwork Response
3y
Thank you for the candor in your comments. I am concerned by your feedback and would welcome the chance to discuss. Obviously you see opportunities for us to improve, which we are always striving to do. Please slack me so we can find time as soon as possible. -zoe
1.0
Mar 1, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

What the CEO and LT share about company culture, mission and values are inspiring. They are fantastic at selling the story; if only it was true.

Cons

People seem nice overall but there are definitely snakes in the grass and a significant amount of politics and bureaucracy. Employees work extra long hours with no reward or recognition. The culture in marketing is toxic and unbearable with leadership not driving a strategy, every team being siloed, and complete lack of integration across all the marketing teams. Marketing is driving our story and growth instead of product, which seems backwards. The team is cliquey and you are either in or out depending whether or not you were recruited from Robert Half. Colleagues are hanging in just to have a job but are overworked and under appreciated. Everyone seems stressed out and miserable. There's a push for diversity and inclusion but the system itself is biased and the goal to grow the company (clients and freelancers) focuses on the US, whereas the mission is aimed at global audiences. They are working at cross purposes.

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Upwork Response
5y
I'm so sorry to hear that your experience has been disappointing at times. While we're excited about the growth of our company and our platform, we also recognize that growth brings growing pains and that we must tune our processes along the way. We have launched important initiatives recently to address team member feedback such as yours, and look forward to seeing improvements for those team members who have experienced frustration. I'm happy to connect to discuss further. - Alexis
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Glassdoor has 923 Upwork reviews submitted anonymously by Upwork employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Upwork is right for you.