Fiverr's 20% cut is too high

[wanderingvoice]

It's always been 20% since the dawn of time, but why is it that it is only occurring to me now that that's a HUGE chunk out of the buyer's pocket/work effort. I understand the whole 'Fiverr is the middleman' argument—I can live with that. But considering that buyers already have to pay an additional fee when ordering, isn't taking an additional 20% from the seller just... too much? If it were 10% at most, that wouldn't be too bad I guess. But, come on... freaking 20??

I realized just how much money I lost during the three years I've been freelancing on Fiverr. Being on Fiverr is so darn expensive.

And before you tell me, "Oh, just adjust your prices." Come on. Don't say that as if you don't have a competitive market to consider. What would stop buyers from going to another seller with lower rates, even if you think that your quality of work is better than theirs? Be for real. 

I don't know. I might be alone with these sentiments. As you all know, currencies are valued different all around the world.

It's just that when Fiverr takes its commission of $20 on an order, that's $20 I can't afford to give away. That could have been a small step towards better equipment so that I can do better work. That could have been a much needed break I afforded myself after working seven days a week for so long (the brutal life of a freelancer). That could have been money I worked for that I get to spend on whatever the hell I want. 

It just feels so oppressive. I wanted to work as a freelancer because I wanted to work for myself, to build an actual career out of something I'm passionate about. I was given the impression that Fiverr would help with that, and for the longest time I believed that. But now, I don't know, I feel cheated on.

Is this something someone else has talked about yet? Is there just something I'm missing? I just want to call for revolution. It's just so hard to find a decent platform as a freelancer sometimes, which is why I feel like I let Fiverr get away with their 20% commission for so long, 'cause you know, supply and demand or something I guess. But jesus 10% would've been more than enough.

 

 

 

Edited March 30, 2023 by wanderingvoice
Typos

[visualstudios]

Upw has gone to 10% across the board. The market is shifting. Fiverr will have to adapt, or be left behind. 

Honestly, I'd much rather pay a fixed fee to use the platform. The % based payment always felt unfair to me - you're paying more if you make more. It's the same with taxes on work, btw. Why should success mean you need to pay more for the same thing? It shouldn't. I get the same service from Fiverr if I can sell $10000 as if I can sell $100 - same site, same cs, same marketing. Make it a flat fee, if you make more it's because you earned it.

[followthefundev]

Adding a fixed fee to use the platform would lower engagement from occasional users or people that just want to try out the platform which would stunt growth.

While 20% is a large chunk to see just disappear, I think its a little extreme to call it oppressive. It’s industry standard (steam is 30% for example).

A reason why Upwork may undercut this by offering 10% could be that they are the underdog and need a reason to make you swap. I use Upwork too and the workflow is very messy there (from a buyers perspective). I’d much rather use Fiverr and pay the extra fees for the luxury of a nicer interface and high quality support.

[wizard_of_oz]

fiverr takes 20% from income of every project. this is quite a lot of money when the project is over 1000$.

this money goes away from our clients, and eventually leads to either very high cost, or if calculated badly, a loss on seller side.

this is a situation that no one wants: not us, not buyers and certainly not fiverr.

 

i have 2 proposals.

1. clarify on each offer we make to a client, the NETO amount that seller would receive.

2. consider a program where at higher project cost, fiver takes less fee.  

[wanderingvoice]

What makes a project 'big' can be a very subjective/ambiguous discussion. A $50 project would have a $10 deduction from Fiverr, and, at least in my country, that $10 can go a looong way.

Just make it 10% for all transactions. It's the sellers' hard earned money anyway. I don't know why it seems as if majority of the sellers here think that the 20% cut is fair.

[newsmike]

7 hours ago, wanderingvoice said:

I don't know why it seems as if majority of the sellers here think that the 20% cut is fair.

Because many of us are experienced business people who understand how finances work. For example, I understand that I could never keep 80% of gross revenue if I had to:

1. Pay for a website.

2. Promote the website to attract millions of visitors

3. Pay dev and engineers to maintain site full time

4. Establish credit card and payment services globally

5. Maintain an accounting department which complies with tax regulations of 150 countries

6. Maintain a legal department to insure compliance

7. Rent commercial real estate in Tel Aviv, Orlando and more

8. Provide 24/7 customer support

9. Provide a living wage and benefits to my employees. 

10. Perform as a publicly traded corporation on the NYSE with all the regulation that entails...and lots more.

Those are just off the top of my head. I do realize that it is not as well thought out as your "It's not fair" theory.  But one thing nags at me?  If you can do it more cheaply, why don't you leave the platform and start your own Fiverr?  You did, after all agree to these terms, assuming you actually read and understood them.

 

Edited April 27, 2023 by newsmike

[donnovan86]

38 minutes ago, newsmike said:

If you can do it more cheaply, why don't you leave the platform and start your own Fiverr? 

Because people are self-entitled and they think they deserve all the money they earn. They think Fiverr MUST offer them all the money, and they don't understand or care about any of the platform's costs. I guarantee none of these complainers ever tried to create their own business and paid for any of the 10 points you mentioned.. The 20% is fair, but you'll always have people complaining it's too much. They can easily charge more just to cover those expenses, but the truth is that most complainers are meksells that just want to earn online without having great skills under their belt. 

I just canceled an order from a dude that thought if he places an order on Fiverr he receives a comission. I just hope Fiverr adjusts my cancellation rate because this is severely unfair.. This dude even told me to send him a PP refund AFTER I canceled. So yeah, there will always be people that don't even read the rules, gig descriptions, and which complain about Fiverr fees being too high.

Edited April 27, 2023 by donnovan86

[nancygichuru]

sure.

 

[newsmike]

1 hour ago, donnovan86 said:

a dude that thought if he places an order on Fiverr he receives a comission.

Get a commission for buying?  Wow, just wow. 

[donnovan86]

36 minutes ago, newsmike said:

Get a commission for buying?  Wow, just wow. 

I am not even kidding you. Here's his message asking for a refund.

[smashradio]

On 3/30/2023 at 6:09 AM, wanderingvoice said:

It's always been 20% since the dawn of time, but why is it that it is only occurring to me now that that's a HUGE chunk out of the buyer's pocket/work effort. I understand the whole 'Fiverr is the middleman' argument—I can live with that. But considering that buyers already have to pay an additional fee when ordering, isn't taking an additional 20% from the seller just... too much? If it were 10% at most, that wouldn't be too bad I guess. But, come on... freaking 20??

I realized just how much money I lost during the three years I've been freelancing on Fiverr. Being on Fiverr is so darn expensive.

And before you tell me, "Oh, just adjust your prices." Come on. Don't say that as if you don't have a competitive market to consider. What would stop buyers from going to another seller with lower rates, even if you think that your quality of work is better than theirs? Be for real. 

I don't know. I might be alone with these sentiments. As you all know, currencies are valued different all around the world.

It's just that when Fiverr takes its commission of $20 on an order, that's $20 I can't afford to give away. That could have been a small step towards better equipment so that I can do better work. That could have been a much needed break I afforded myself after working seven days a week for so long (the brutal life of a freelancer). That could have been money I worked for that I get to spend on whatever the hell I want. 

It just feels so oppressive. I wanted to work as a freelancer because I wanted to work for myself, to build an actual career out of something I'm passionate about. I was given the impression that Fiverr would help with that, and for the longest time I believed that. But now, I don't know, I feel cheated on.

Is this something someone else has talked about yet? Is there just something I'm missing? I just want to call for revolution. It's just so hard to find a decent platform as a freelancer sometimes, which is why I feel like I let Fiverr get away with their 20% commission for so long, 'cause you know, supply and demand or something I guess. But jesus 10% would've been more than enough.

 

 

 

If you believe that a 20% fee is excessive, you have the option to either leave the platform or adjust your rates to account for the fee.

We all operate within a competitive market, and each of us must pay the 20% fee.

Consider this: if one had to incur expenses for hosting, web design, website maintenance, CRM, payment processing fees, legal counsel to protect against problematic clients, and ensuring compliance with relevant laws in every country of operation, in addition to hosting delivered files, the costs would likely surpass 20% of revenue.

If you're unable to make a living from the remaining 80% (post-tax), there may be an issue with your business strategy. Maybe you didn't account for the 20% fee in your initial plan, targeted an unsuitable market, or failed to effectively communicate your value proposition.

If you feel cheated by the 20% fee you agreed to upon registration, I can only reiterate that you can leave the platform or adjust your rates – or continue to feel cheated. It's completely up to you. 

The reality is that operating a business involves costs. When a client pays you for a voice-over, they are using money that could have been spent elsewhere – funds they worked for. They chose to spend it on your voice. They didn't have to. Just like you don't have to pay the 20% fee. 

  

On 3/30/2023 at 1:07 PM, visualstudios said:

Upw has gone to 10% across the board. The market is shifting. Fiverr will have to adapt, or be left behind. 

Honestly, I'd much rather pay a fixed fee to use the platform. The % based payment always felt unfair to me - you're paying more if you make more. It's the same with taxes on work, btw. Why should success mean you need to pay more for the same thing? It shouldn't. I get the same service from Fiverr if I can sell $10000 as if I can sell $100 - same site, same cs, same marketing. Make it a flat fee, if you make more it's because you earned it.

I agree that Fiverr must adapt to stay competitive. However, when considering the additional time spent on sending proposals, purchasing connects, and boosting proposals, as well as the time spent searching for jobs, the ROI may not be as favorable as the 10% reduction might suggest. I haven't done the math, though. 

It's true that Upwork now offers a gig marketplace similar to Fiverr, and for certain industries and professions, it may even be better. In my case, however, I haven't found the platform to be all that great, and merely logging into the platform feels rather stressful. On the other hand, when I access Fiverr in the morning, I look forward to working on the platform. Naturally, this is my subjective opinion. 

Regarding a flat fee, there are arguments both for and against it. As you know, I support the idea of a paywall, but there are immediate counterarguments to basing the entire fee structure on a fixed rate. 

1. A percentage-based fee means every seller is contributing proportionally. Society, in general, is built upon this principle, and while I realize you disagree with it, it is the norm and is considered fair. A fixed fee would disproportionately burden smaller sellers. 
2. The percentage-based fee is an incentive for Fiverr to invest more in growth and the success of its sellers. Platform revenue directly depends on our earnings. A fixed fee would lead to less such investment since platform revenue would remain the same regardless of our success. 
3. It's in both Fiverr's and our interest to use a percentage. When we increase our earnings, Fiverr does the same. It's a relationship that has worked for a long time. 
4. We're headed into challenging times for many freelancers. Having the burden of a fixed fee to cover might affect those who struggle the most first, and many sellers on Fiverr are from low-income countries, yet I'm sure they contribute a substantial portion of the platform's total revenue. Losing that because they have to find work elsewhere is not ideal. 
5. In the end, paying 20% is fairer than a flat fee, simply because the biggest earners have the most to gain from the platform, and therefore also contribute more to maintaining the platform. 

Edited April 27, 2023 by smashradio

[visualstudios]

44 minutes ago, smashradio said:

A fixed fee would disproportionately burden smaller sellers. 

Yes, and bigger sellers disproportionally finance Fiverr. The argument goes both ways.

[donnovan86]

1 hour ago, smashradio said:

I agree that Fiverr must adapt to stay competitive. However, when considering the additional time spent on sending proposals, purchasing connects, and boosting proposals, as well as the time spent searching for jobs, the ROI may not be as favorable as the 10% reduction might suggest. I haven't done the math, though. 

 

I have a presence on another platform (mind you, I am not a newcomer, I have great reviews and not just a couple), and I did exactly that, spent 2 days sending proposals and stuff, and I ended up either extremely low balled and pushed into a really low pricepoint or downright denied every time. I didn't earn a dime so it was pretty much wasted time all around. So I can definitely attest to that. 

Edited April 27, 2023 by donnovan86

[smashradio]

1 hour ago, visualstudios said:

Yes, and bigger sellers disproportionally finance Fiverr. The argument goes both ways.

But do they? 

Bigger sellers contribute more to Fiverr, incentivizing Fiverr to provide those sellers more visibility and better promotion. That helps the big fish earn even more. 

Bigger sellers also tend to get heavily promoted on sections such as Fiverr Business, giving them access to premium clients with higher budgets. That, in turn, helps the big sellers in building a stronger portfolio. 

Bigger sellers tend to obtain high levels, such as TRS and Pro. That gives them access to faster support from senior support agents. 

The very contributions some may say are disproportionate are the ones enabling Fiverr to improve the platform, in turn benefiting us all. 

So I wouldn't call it disproportionate. It might feel that way when you have a 5000 dollar project and see the "You earned 4000" headline on the order page, but it's not a fact if what you get is a better end product.

With all that said, I think one argument you're making is very valid: an important competitor has lowered their take. Fiverr will need to figure something out if they want to keep the best sellers on the platform. Otherwise, all the above arguments would be invalid, because no big seller would want to stay. Even if the deal offered on the other side of the fence isn't much better, in reality, a 50% lower fee can seem attractive to many. 

Edited April 27, 2023 by smashradio

[donnovan86]

15 minutes ago, smashradio said:

an important competitor has lowered their take.

Yes, but the important thing to note is they did that for everyone. Not just top earners. They were keeping people with repeat buyers on a pedestal, now that's not the case anymore. It's an even number for everyone. 

[waheedseostudio]

16 hours ago, wanderingvoice said:

What makes a project 'big' can be a very subjective/ambiguous discussion. A $50 project would have a $10 deduction from Fiverr, and, at least in my country, that $10 can go a looong way.

Just make it 10% for all transactions. It's the sellers' hard earned money anyway. I don't know why it seems as if majority of the sellers here think that the 20% cut is fair.

But it is on Fiverr. He is the owner and they know what to do. And I think Fiverr is a good platform to work on it to find jobs. Thanks

[leannelrivers]

On 4/5/2023 at 6:12 PM, followthefundev said:

I use Upwork too and the workflow is very messy there

It's not great to use as a Freelancer either. I used to do quite well on there but I hardly bother now. They may have introduced a similar direct order feature, but the general site doesn't seem to have moved along at all. It's clunky and not worth paying for additional connects in my opinion. Job descriptions can be extremely vague and the budgets for voiceover aren't worth the time it takes to write a proposal, even with the decrease in commission. 

[amitguptoctc]

Are you agree with me or not?

[smartdezigns]

2 hours ago, amitguptoctc said:

Are you agree with me or not?

Elaborate your Question Again 🤔🙏🤦‍♀️

[saimii]

Why Would They do it? If you are comparing it with other Platforms, Fiverr gives you all the clients in your Inbox, while on other platforms, you have to spend time finding jobs and bidding on those jobs by writing long manual bids. Then, if you have spent 50 connects, someone will overtake you with 100 connects. 
If you have a Gig Promotion option, You only pay for Leads/clicks on your Gig. So taking 20% in this scenario is justifiable. Try and focus on what you have.

[mahir_labib007]

Agree with you. It's too much.

[codeloghin]

If you find the fee too much and want to bring a valid argument on why it should be lower that's great. What fee do you think Fiverr should take from you instead of the 20% and why?  Also, no one is forcing you to accept the said fee. You can open your own website and take full profits at any time. Fiverr provides a platform for freelancers to offer their services to buyers worldwide, and the platform invests heavily in marketing, customer service, and infrastructure to ensure a seamless experience for both buyers and sellers.

Have you ever wondered how well you think you would do and how much would you have to invest in ads to bring sales to your website? On Fiverr, you at least have the luxury to open shop for free and see if sales come through. In the business world, nothing is free. You would have to advertise your business with no promise of sales. It is not uncommon for businesses to waste 1000$+ budgets on advertising and get no/bearly any sales in return.

[glow_writer]

It is only Fiverr that knows whether or not they want to reduce it to 10% or maintain the 20%. None of you writing long notes knows Fiverr's overhead cost.

[dereck_s]

I think the 20% of the price is fair and can certainly be worked around. What I do disagree with is Fiverr taking 20% of all tips as well and creating an environment where to be successful you might also need to promote your gigs which can also be expensive as well (normally around 10% of what the gig earned that month). Not to mention to get full access to the features on fiverr I'd also argue you'd need to seller plus, there's another 30 bucks.

I would love to only be paying 20% now a days, whenever I do the quick math in my head it feels closer to 35-40% if you count them taking a portion of your tip as well. Keep in mind while I say this I do still like Fiverr and think it's overall worth it but you're paying way more than 20%.

Edited May 17, 2023 by dereck_s

[donnovan86]

13 minutes ago, dereck_s said:

What I do disagree with is Fiverr taking 20% of all tips as well and creating an environment where to be successful you might also need to promote your gigs which can also be expensive as well (normally around 10% of what the gig earned that month). Not to mention to get full access to the features on fiverr I'd also argue you'd need to seller plus, there's another 30 bucks.

Well the tips would be manipulated by buyers and sellers alike to try and avoid any fees. It's a bad idea, so obviously they are charging tips too. 

As for Seller Plus, those features are not exactly mandatory or must-haves. They are nice to have, true, I like some of them, but some feel useless. Coupons... you can easily send a custom offer with a lower price if you want. Negative keywords.. you can just avoid using certain keywords.. Even the success manager can only help so much, it's great for newcomers but not for someone with years of expreience on the platform. Even the early payout requires a fee and support response time is not guaranteed to 5 hours, there were times when they were overloaded with work and had to wait over a day. So yeah, there are nice things to have there, but at the same time not mandatory. You can try it for a few months and see.

That being said, if you try to promote yourself as a business you're paying way more than 20% just on advertising alone, not to mention your own website, etc. It's the better approach for sure and great for personal branding, but Fiverr does take care of a lot of things, they advertise for you, while also offering a place to host and share your files. So yeah, the fees are fair more or less. 

I don't see any MUST to have promoted gigs. It all comes down to the buyer satisfaction rate, if it's low you drop in search results and it can kill your gig/s for a while. I am dealing with that myself right now, but not sure why that happens or what orders were the issue. My problem is with the lack of transparency with the buyer satisfaction rate. I believe having a graph where we can see at least what buyer satisfaction rate we have is a great idea. Right now I don't understand why I have barely a few clicks on my gigs and why I am pushed back in search results, and some transparency regarding the buyer satisfaction rate would help with that. I dislike disturbing my success manager just to ask what happens with my buyer satisfaction rate..