Upwork Spring Update — And What to do About it

Upwork has been trying to improve their platform — since Fiverr changed the game with the 2024 set of updates.

The Upwork “Spring” updates have been in beta for a while now — but they’ve finally started rolling out some very important features, especially how the proposal dashboard looks for a buyer.

This is going to impact the way buyers make decisions — and freelancers will have to change their strategy to be more successful.

Here is a summary of what’s been happening:

Upwork Spring Updates for Buyers

And here’s how clients are going to see your proposals from now on:

Upwork Proposal Dashboard New View

Not so long ago, a client would see your profile — your JSS and the line of your proposal.

Now they have a lot more information atfirst glance, including the number of completed jobs, total hours worked, skills, “message” option, and a little more from your proposal. For reference, here is the old view:

Old Upwork Proposal Dashboard

On a first glace a few things are self-evident:

• The focus is shifted from your badge (Rising Talent, Top Rated, etc). Previously that was in center view, and now it’s only attached to your profile picture.
• The new dashboard is more about “how” you did as a Freelancer, rather than your total earnings only. The number of jobs you’ve done would be playing a part now.
• The Relevance of your skills now matters more than ever (more about this in a bit)
• Profile highlights are going to become a MUST.
• Boosting your proposal might not be the best option in all cases, as it’s far more highlighted now.

The Upwork AI — Uma

Guess the most creative AI name for the year? Uma — the Upwork Mindful AI.

Uma will be deciding who shows up first in the race of proposals, other than the boosted proposals.

So far, we know that JSS, your profile skills, and hours worked will be the main factors Uma willbe judging your proposal on.

But after some first-hand testing (re-visiting proposals from all the recent hirings we did) I would say that Uma also considers how much you’ve earned, and what you’ve written in your proposal.

Bottom line: Write better proposals, use less AI, and justify your “profile flaws” in your proposal because the client can see it at first glance.

Column Customizations

Here’s another bit that will be rolling out very soon as well. Right now the columns are composed of your Stats (JSS, Hours worked, etc) + your Qualifications (profile highlights and skills) + Details (your proposal).

Soon the client will be able to customize this view to their liking and your feedback, availability, and response time will be shown to them at first glance as well.

Key Takeaways to Be Successful on Upwork in 2025

If you’re wondering if is Upwork worth it in 2025 — well, it is going to be more fair than it was before. That said, here is what you need to know about the Spring Update of Upwork:

• Your clients are going to see your proposals divided into columns, giving them more information about you as a freelancer than before.
• Your JSS is still an important ranking factor, but jobs count too now.
• Less focus on freelancer badges, and more focus on your skills and profile highlights.
• Your textual client feedback and response time will be something important shortly
• Upwork AI is getting more sophisticated, and so should you rank better.
• The first two sentences of your proposal would still be the most influential factor toward conversions.

All these updates are with the vision to make Upwork effective for buyers, and fair for freelancers — and I feel like it’s going to do a great job at that. Transparency should be a winning factor.