Summary

The article provides a curated list of the top five websites for freelance writers to find paid writing jobs, along with tips for navigating these platforms effectively.

Abstract

The undefined website features an article that guides freelance writers to the best online platforms for securing paid writing gigs. The author, Nia Simone McLeod, shares her personal experiences and insights into using websites like Craigslist, Upwork, Freelance Writing Jobs, Facebook, and Twitter to find consistent freelance work. She emphasizes the importance of vetting job opportunities to avoid scams and offers advice on how to use each platform efficiently, including the use of tools like Search Tempest for Craigslist. McLeod also encourages writers to leverage their personal networks, suggesting that friends and family may have valuable connections. The article concludes with an invitation for readers to engage with the author's Medium publications and newsletter.

Opinions

The author has had positive experiences with Craigslist, despite its mixed reputation, and recommends using Search Tempest to filter through postings.
Upwork is acknowledged as a platform with a negative reputation, yet the author has successfully earned over $40,000 and suggests pricing work to account for the platform's fees.
Freelance Writing Jobs is praised for its daily updates on writing gigs from various sources, though the author notes it may be more suitable for specific niches.
Facebook groups are highlighted as valuable resources for freelance writers to connect with job opportunities and other writers

5 Best Websites to Land Paid Freelance Writing Jobs

Looking for paid freelance writing jobs? Consistent income is just a click away.

Background image from Canva Pro / Edit by author

As a professional freelance writer, the most time-consuming part of the job is the constant search for gigs. It can be difficult to find jobs that fit your skillset, while paying you what you’re worth.

To help all the writers and writers-to-be, I’m providing a list of quality websites to land paid freelance writing jobs. These are the websites that I’ve either had success with or saw quality job offers that didn’t quite fit my niche.

I’m also include super-secret tips to navigate these websites with ease, saving time — which saves money! Cha-ching!

Super important reminder: No matter what job you find, please vet the job before starting work/providing personal information. Do your research y’all!

There are a lot of scammy mofos out there, especially in the freelance writing/work from home space. Triple check the validity of everything you find. Protect yourself babes!

Happy job hunting!

1. Craigslist

Y’all — I know that Craigslist has a reputation for being a lil’ scammy. But, I’ve had surprisingly good success finding jobs with Craigslist. Through my local page, I found a consistent freelance gig at a local newspaper that I worked at for over a year.

Craigslist’s “writing / editing” section in its jobs category and the “writing” section in its gigs category are both worth checking out. But — there’s an underrated tool on the internet that’s makes finding quality Craigslist postings so much easier: Search Tempest.

Search Tempest gives you the ability to easily search through the entirety of Craigslist with specific keywords. You can specify certain categories, exclude certain keywords from your search, and search within a certain mile radius.

Excluding certain keywords has helped me save a ton of time since a ton of Craigslist spam uses similar keywords.

2. Upwork

Upwork also has a bad rep, but I‘ve been working on Upwork for years. I’ve made over $40,000 on the platform; check out my profile for the receipts.

But, I’m not gonna lie to y’all, Upwork does take 5% to 20% of your earnings depending on the project. Bummer, I know! BUT, if you price your work at a premium to account for the charge — it’s all goodie.

Also — I save a ton of time looking for clients because of its quality search engine. You can easily cut out the low-ballers and find a gig that gives you your coin.

3. Freelance Writing Jobs

I love Freelance Writing Jobs because they put out a new list of gigs every weekday. They congregate a bunch of freelance writing jobs from places all around the internet, including Indeed, BloggingPro, and Craigslist.

Although I don’t have much success on here, as a culture writer, they do have a lot of niche-specific jobs on there, whether it’s grant writing or content writing for a cybersecurity website.

This great source is definitely worth a quick daily check. You never know when you’ll find a gig that fits you like a glove.

4. Facebook

Facebook is, by far, the best place for groups to meet up on the internet.

There’s a lot of great freelance writer groups on Facebook. Some congregate freelance gigs; some provide clients with the platform to look for clients or vice versa.

Here are a few Facebook groups that I’ve had success with: Binders FULL of Writing Jobs, Cult of Copy Job Board, and Female Freelance Writers.

5. Twitter

When it comes to finding up-to-date job postings, Twitter is that girl. I’ve, 100%, secured the most freelancing gigs through Twitter.

It’s so lit that I wrote a whole article just on Twitter — check it out here for more info about the platform.

Bonus: Your Friends and Family

Everyone and their momma want to have a thriving social media platform or a website. That’s where you come in! Your friends and family probably have connections that you’ve never even thought of before — so you’ve got to ask.

Don’t keep it a secret that you’re a freelance writer! People can’t help you if they don’t know that you’re in need.

Where do you go to land paid freelance writing jobs? Do you have any questions about freelance writing you’d like me to answer in a future post? Let me know the deets!

Nia Simone McLeod is a writer, Hot Cheetos connoisseur, and professional complainer. The Medium publications she created, oh, write, coiled, and bling bling are super lit. And oh yeah — she’s got a newsletter too; because doesn’t every writer have a newsletter these days?