Boosting Your Connects on Upwork

What Are Connects?

Connects are virtual tokens you need for submitting proposals for jobs on Upwork. Every job requires a certain number of connects. As a novice freelancer, it’s essential to understand how to manage and increase them.

How to Get More Connects

There are a few ways you may consider:

• Monthly allocation: If you are on Upwork’s basic plan, you get 10 free connects each month. On the other hand, if you are on the Plus membership, you receive 80 connects per month.
• Purchase more: If you need more connects, you can buy them at the rate of $0.15 per connect. Keep in mind, however, that this can get costly if you’re submitting many proposals.
• Client invitations: It’s free to submit a proposal when a client personally invites you to a job. This is why creating a strong and professional profile is important—it increases your chances of getting noticed and invited by clients.
• Earn through contracts: For long-term contracts, you earn some connects after completing milestones or when the job is finished and the client is satisfied. This specifically applies to fixed-price jobs.

Proactive Measures

As a freelancer, you should not rely only on getting connects. Be proactive in the way you use them to increase your job success rate. For instance:

• Only apply for jobs that match your skills and you’re confident you can deliver.
• Personalize your proposal, pointing out how you can solve the client’s unique problem.
• Use your connects sparingly and wisely, so you don’t run out too quickly.

Remember, your objective is to turn proposals into successful contracts, and not just to apply to many jobs. Quality should precede quantity. The more successful contracts you get, the higher your Job Success Score (JSS), making you more attractive to future clients.