Reviews and expert opinion PeoplePerHour

Not Just an Internet Based Freelance Site

What distinguishes PeoplePerHour from other freelance sites, is its location-based targeting feature. This allows buyers to hire people from their local area for specific regional-related  jobs; likewise, freelancers looking for local work may address buyers in their area.

PeoplePerHour showcases an immense platform for freelancers, seeking to work online. But as is customary in this day and age, they have not succeeded in avoiding the spam problem that is rampant in many other freelance sites. This negatively affects both buyers and sellers. Another cool feature is that you can manage a freelancer, as well as an employer account under one roof. Simply switch between the two, registering a single credit card!  This is a brilliant time saving feature that benefits both parties.

Why Choose PeoplePerHour?

• Access to freelancers worldwide, as well as workers in your area
• Manage one account for both selling and buying services
• Payments are secured through Escrow and  PeoplePerHour Wallet system

Wondering if PeoplePerHour is the best option for getting your project off the ground?

Let us tell you about it!

Newer Than Most But Just as Good

Established in 2007, PeoplePerHour showcases jobs and employment opportunities to people around the globe. Despite its buyers’ option to hire  freelancers based on location, you may choose to hire freelancers from anywhere. With more than 330,000 freelancers on this platform, people can get hired for an assignment or offer their services through promotional posts. Many candidates, particularly from India and China post jobs for a very low fee in order to secure assignment, so competition is fierce for freelancers.

Despite the demographic variety of the PeoplePerHour’s population, most job postings and mini-portfolios are written in good English, a fact that has become increasingly rare these days.  While abiding by the site’s rules, some freelancers advertise self-promoting posts, that hinder the overall impression of the site. However, PeoplePerHour does not seem to discourage this shameless competition.

The quality of  services provided through PeoplePerHour varies greatly, depending on the kind of  assignment you are seeking to outsource. PeoplePerHour’s standing rates between the cheap and easily available offers from sites like Fiverr and the outsourcing giants like Guru or UpWork. Before hiring through this site you should consider if it is the right place for you. One thing that really makes PeoplePerHour stand out, is that unlike other similar sites that strictly prohibit any direct communication between the employer and the contractor, PeoplePerHour encourages personal contact. The range of jobs and professionals available through this site vary from the standard IT, multimedia, writing and design categories to some totally bizarre things like a job offer for people who own grinding machines.

If you have dealt with other freelance websites, even prior to 2007, when PeoplePerHour launched their platform, you probably have seen it all. The scheme to make a match between employers and employees is an old classic. The employer creates a bid; potential workers bid via a cover letter. The employer reads the cover letter and, if interested, skims through the potential contractor’s portfolio.  When and if everything is agreed upon, both parties create an Escrow agreement and deposit a guarantee. Once the assignment is completed and the buyer is satisfied, payment is released to the employee. The site survives through charging service fees. The scheme is old as the world of web freelancing itself.

The main feature of PeoplePerHour is the option to search for local contractors. Social media integration makes it easier to avoid scams and frauds. However, it complicates the lives of those working under nicknames and pen-names. You might also want to think twice before you integrate your Facebook account with compromising pictures and embarrassing wall posts into your user profile. Think about it.

We Told You We Were SPAM

PeoplePerHour made an honest statement during the registration process. Their registration letter is most likely considered as SPAM and that’s precisely the folder where we found the registration letter a couple of hours later, after we pressed the “resend” button about a dozen times. This disqualified PeoplePerHour to a certain extent.

The dashboard interface looks like a hideous cross-breed between LinkedIn and Twitter on steroids. The numerous “Me! Me! Hire me! I can do this and that for so and so!..” reminded us of a market full of pushy vendors, screaming at you to buy their wares. This is an instant put-off for any serious potential employer. Hence our verdict is: the registration process is replete with bugs and the interface is unattractive.

Emergencies Can Only Occur During Business Hours, Right?

Despite the fact that PeoplePerHour deal with our money directly, they haven’t taken the trouble to provide live-chat support. There are e-mail forms to fill-in, describing your problem, leaving you with no other option than praying for a prompt reply.  In fact, their response time is quite fast, and usually takes just a few hours. There is a forum and a phone line. However, the latter is accessible only during location-specific business hours and is very expensive. Start-ups on a tight budget, we recommend you opt for the email option and practice patience!

Fly Now, We Will Charge You Later

For an initially free service, PeoplePerHour tends to charge exaggerated fees once assignments begin.  The commission fee for every transaction is 3.5% –  which sound reasonable, although depending on the date the account was opened, it can go up to 5% (excluding VAT). In any case, the fee is applied only after you have invested or earned your first £175 ($280 equivalent) in the month. PeoplePerHour persists in showing all charges, fees, and prices in £ pounds.  This is not only inconvenient for both buyers and sellers, but it also makes both parties incur in additional bank charges on currency exchange.

• Payment System – Escrow through your credit card and PeoplePerHour built-in wallet.
• Payment Protection – Escrow protects the money of the both participants in the deal.
• Once you’ve registered your credit card within the system, your money is safe within the PeoplePerHour Wallet. Afterward, you can swiftly deposit and withdraw funds through the site. Thanks to Escrow, you may rest assured your money will not disappear without a trace. But it means that without an initial deposit into your PeoplePerHour account, you will be blocked from either hiring or working.