Upwork's Freelance Forward survey, a representative study of 3,000 professionals, found freelancers contributed approximately
“The data tells us that freelancing continues to play a vital role in the
Key findings of the report include:
- Freelancing remains a significant part of the
U.S. labor market and economy: Freelancers contributed$1.27 trillion to theU.S. economy in annual earnings in 2023. This was a 78% increase from the estimated$715 billion to the economy in 2014, the first year of the study.1 - Freelancing hits a new all-time high: The number of professionals freelancing increased to 64 million Americans, or 38% of the
U.S workforce, an increase of 4 million from 2022.2 - Freelancers are 2.2 times more likely to regularly use generative AI frequently in their work: 20% of freelancers use generative AI tools on a regular basis (multiple times per week), which compares to just 9% of non-freelance professionals.
- Nearly half of freelancers provide skilled knowledge services: 47% of all freelancers, or nearly 30 million professionals, provided knowledge services such as computer programming, marketing, IT, and business consulting in 2023.
- A quarter of freelancers are creating influencer-style content: 23% of all freelancers, or 14.7 million professionals, created influencer content including livestream services, social media videos, images or blogs in 2023.
- Gen Z and Millennials are the most likely to explore freelancing: In 2023, 52% of all Gen Z professionals and 44% of all Millennial professionals performed freelance work.
- Older Americans continue to be part of the freelance market: In 2023, nearly 8.3 million professionals, or 13% of all
U.S. freelancers, were aged 59 or above. - The future is bright, according to freelancers: Over 85% of freelancers say the best days are ahead for freelancing.
“I’ve been a freelancer for over ten years and it’s been remarkable to witness the extraordinary ascent of the freelance economy. It’s not just a trend—it's a dynamic shift in how we work and thrive,” said
To read the full report, visit the
About Freelance Forward
To see further insights, please visit https://www.upwork.com/research/freelance-forward-2023-research-report. The study is conducted by independent research firm Edelman Data & Intelligence. 3,000
About Upwork
Upwork is the world’s largest work marketplace that connects businesses with independent talent from across the globe. We serve everyone from one-person startups to large, Fortune 100 enterprises with a powerful, trust-driven platform that enables companies and talent to work together in new ways that unlock their potential. Our talent community earned over
Contact:
press@upwork.com
1 Percent increase does not account for inflation
2 Based on Total
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/57e63234-e893-4050-8d5b-b391f1218f6b
![](https://ml.globenewswire.com/media/ZDc3NTQ0OWYtMmQ0OS00OGY3LTgxNDctNjA1ODM4YWVkYjIwLTEwOTkxNTE=/tiny/Upwork-Inc-.png)
Freelance Forward 2023
![](https://ml.globenewswire.com/media/57e63234-e893-4050-8d5b-b391f1218f6b/medium/freelance-forward-2023.png)
64 million Americans performed freelance work in the past year, an all-time high, representing 38% of the entire U.S. workforce, and an increase of 4 million total professionals from 2022.
2023 GlobeNewswire, Inc., source