Survey of 10k freelancers, their salaries, locations and tools
Contra surveyed over 10,000 freelancers across design, engineering, product, writing, marketing, and social to gather insights on the future of work.
Survey of 10k freelancers, their salaries, locations and tools launched on June 15, 2021 with 40 votes, #1,189 of 3,650 launches that month and more than 75% of that year's launches. The site was still online in September 2026, 5 years on.
In plain words
This is a dataset survey covering 10,000 freelancers, documenting their salaries, work locations, and the tools they use. The data was collected and published on Contra, a freelancer platform. It serves as a reference resource for people interested in understanding freelancer compensation patterns, geographic distribution, and software adoption across the independent workforce. The survey provides factual information about how freelancers work and what they earn globally.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
Download the full in-depth report for even more insights into the future of work. Download the full in-depth report for even more insights into the future of work. Welcome to The Freelance Industry Report, where we gather insights on how independents are redefining the future of work. Every independent surveyed earns at least $70k+ annually, and works worldwide in design , engineering , product , writing , content marketing , or social media . On average, how many projects do you have going simultaneously? Being independent is one of the best ways you can be free to create immense value for your clients and customers. The only constraint is your imagination. As an independent, you get to…from contra.com
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