I’m back with a post that I’ve seen being asked a few times now.
I remember when I had this problem. I was completely freaking out, because I didn’t know why my Top-Rated eligibility week wasn’t moving forward, and I thought there was something wrong with my profile or earnings.
If you’ve been on UpWork for a while, or you’re reading this (or any of the other articles on the ‘net) about Top Rated, then you’re likely wondering why you haven’t become Top Rated yet.
Before we get into some of the reasons why let’s talk about what it really means to be Top-Rated and how it can affect your business. UpWork’s own definition:
| Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Discover strategies to overcome challenges in achieving Top Rated status on Upwork. |
| 2. Gain insights into common obstacles that may hinder your progress during the eligibility week. |
| 3. Learn practical tips to improve your Upwork profile and boost your chances of success. |
| 4. Explore effective methods to stand out among other freelancers and attract high-quality clients. |
| 5. Implement actionable advice to maximize your potential and make the most out of Upwork opportunities. |
Top-Rated status
Is a special designation reserved for the top 10% of freelancers within a category? Proven professionals who maintain consistently high levels of success and client satisfaction are rewarded with greater visibility and exclusive opportunities to win more work.
See, UpWork knows that clients want to hire the best freelancers (who doesn’t?) so they’ve created a way for clients to quickly find those freelancers by giving them a special badge and making them more visible in search results. This is a good thing! If you’re not Top Rated, then you’re missing out on this opportunity. But don’t worry, I’m here to help!
Before I start, I’ll note that there are many ways to become Top Rated, but this article focuses specifically on doing so via Eligibility Week (EW).
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16 Eligibility Week
It usually takes about four months for a freelancer who has a JSS above 90% to reach their eligibility week, but this can vary based on a variety of factors such as:
The frequency with which you work with clients (a freelancer who works with several clients every month may reach their eligibility week faster than someone who works with a single client every few months)
The size and value of contracts that you land (the more contracts you land, and the more valuable they are, the faster you’ll reach your eligibility week)
Let’s start by taking a look at the criteria to have it going forward.
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Job Success Score At Least 90%
The top-rated badge icon shows up only when your profile has 90% JSS (Job Success Score). I have seen many people with JSS of 80% to 88%. So if you have a JSS of 88%, it’s very unlikely that you will get any ranking.
So here is what you can do to increase your job success score by 2%.
- Get back to your clients and ask them if they can improve your feedback if they are satisfied with your work.
- Ask them to submit their feedback within 7 days of work completion, so that it doesn’t get too late for them.
- If you feel like your client is not giving feedback or he isn’t responding to your emails/messages then try contacting him in different ways, like calling him/her up on Skype or Google Hangout if possible. Or send him/her an SMS from Up Work directly.
- Always respond to your client messages in under 5 minutes, even if it’s just to say “Hi, I’ll get back to you within the next 24 hours to tell you what my availability is this week”.
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Contact UpWork Support
In case you have a job success score above 90% and still, have the eligibility week stuck consider contacting the Upwork support team by clicking on the “Contact Us” link at the bottom of the page and report your problem.
After explaining your situation and providing your profile link, let them check it for you. Then they will try to update it by the system. I got my week updated in 24 hours after submitting my request.
Important: Your eligibility week is not based on your hours worked with clients, but on your job success score (JSS). This is the number that appears in parentheses next to the Top Rated badge. The higher this number is above 90%, the faster you’ll move towards your eligibility week. It’s important to note that if this number falls below 90%, your eligibility week will be frozen where it was at the time of the drop, and won’t move forward until you bring it back up again.
Hope this helps.
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Further Reading
UpWork Freelancing: Your Guide to Finding Remote Freelance Jobs: This comprehensive class on Skillshare offers valuable insights and strategies to land remote freelance jobs on Upwork, helping you kickstart your freelancing career.
Upwork FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions: Have questions about Upwork? Check out this FAQ section on Comparably, where you’ll find answers to commonly asked questions about the platform and its services.
Upwork Reviews: What Freelancers and Clients Say: Learn from real experiences of freelancers and clients with Upwork. This blog post on Revelo shares insightful reviews and feedback to help you make informed decisions.
Upwork Eligibility Week FAQ
So why am I not getting the badge?
The solution is very simple: Contact the Upwork Support team and just ask them to check why I am not eligible for the Top Rated badge.
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How do the jobs in the eligibility window affect my JSS score?
The way the Upwork job success score system works is that any job you have completed within the last 90 days is included in your overall JSS calculation. Your current job success score will be used to determine whether or not you are eligible for a membership level upgrade.
How much do I have to earn per job during eligibility week to become Top-Rated?
There is no minimum amount your job needs to pay. However, you will not achieve Top-Rated status if you don’t earn at least $1,000 total on Upwork during your Eligibility Week.
What are the best practices to ensure that I’ll get a Top Rated badge?
- Make sure that you have at least 10 reviews from this month (October) and that all of those reviews are positive. If a review is negative, Upwork will not consider it.
- Make sure that you have at least $1000 billed with Upwork in lifetime billings.
- Make sure that your Job Success Score is above 90%.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.