Freelancers · head to head
Bonsai vs Freelancer.com
Bonsai
Freelancers
All-in-one business management for freelancers and agencies
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
Freelancer.com
Freelancers
Find the best freelancers for any job online
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Bonsai elite plan, the only tier with custom permissions, timesheet locking and Xero integration, requires a 3 user minimum at $49/user/month; Freelancer.com freelancers pay 10% or $5 (whichever is greater) on fixed-price projects, plus a further 15% fee on Preferred Freelancer Recruiter projects
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Bonsai and Freelancer.com actually diverge.
| Attribute | Bonsai | Freelancer.com |
|---|
Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Freelancers).
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Bonsai
- Elite plan, the only tier with custom permissions, timesheet locking and Xero integration, requires a 3 user minimum at $49/user/month
- Invoices, proposals, contracts and the client portal are withheld from the entry Basic plan and only unlocked on Essentials at $19/user/month
- Monthly billing costs noticeably more than annual, for example $15/user/month versus $9/user/month annually on Basic
- Free trial is limited to 7 days
Freelancer.com
- Freelancers pay 10% or $5 (whichever is greater) on fixed-price projects, plus a further 15% fee on Preferred Freelancer Recruiter projects
- International wire withdrawal costs $25 and card/PayPal transactions add $0.30 plus 2.3%
Pricing, plan by plan
Bonsai
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Bonsai review.
Freelancer.com
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Freelancer.com review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Bonsai if
Nothing in the data separates Bonsai from Freelancer.com on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Choose Freelancer.com if
Nothing in the data separates Freelancer.com from Bonsai on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is Bonsai or Freelancer.com better?
- Neither clearly leads. Bonsai starts at On request and Freelancer.com at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Bonsai or Freelancer.com?
- Bonsai starts at On request and Freelancer.com at On request.
- Does Bonsai or Freelancer.com run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.