Artifex is a freelance marketplace owned by the people who do the work. Keep 95% of every project. Build portable reputation that belongs to you. Vote on the rules that govern your livelihood.
Freelance platforms built empires on your talent. They charge massive fees, trap your reputation, and change the rules whenever it suits them. You build their business while they extract your value.
Traditional freelance platforms bury fees in complex tier structures. On Artifex, every cent is accounted for and decided by you.
Modern tools, transparent fees, democratic governance. Everything the big platforms should have been, owned by the people who actually do the work.
A flat 5% covers all platform costs. No tiered pricing, no hidden fees, no surprise deductions. What you quote is almost exactly what you keep.
Your reviews, work history, and client relationships belong to you. Export them anytime. Take your professional record wherever you go.
Vote on fee structures, dispute policies, and platform direction. One freelancer, one vote. Your platform, your rules, your future.
Built-in payment protection with milestone-based releases. Dispute resolution designed by freelancers to be fair to freelancers.
Proposals, contracts, time tracking, invoicing, and messaging in one place. A professional workspace that rivals any enterprise tool.
Connect with peers, share leads, collaborate on large projects, and build solidarity. A network that works for you, not against you.
Whether you write code, design interfaces, or manage creative teams, Artifex is built to work for you.
Keep more of what you earn and build a reputation that follows you anywhere.
Access motivated, high-quality talent with lower overhead and better project outcomes.
Collaborate at scale with tools built for multi-person projects and long-term partnerships.
Adjust your typical project load and see the difference between extractive platforms and your cooperative.
I spent 8 years building my Upwork profile to Top Rated Plus status. Then they raised fees and changed the algorithm. On Artifex, I keep 95% and actually have a say in how the platform works. I will never go back.
As a designer, my portfolio is everything. On traditional platforms, my reviews and reputation were hostage. Artifex lets me own my professional identity. Plus the community is incredible for referrals.
I was skeptical about a cooperative model for freelancing. Then I did the math: on a $50,000 annual billings, I save $7,500 in fees alone. That is rent for months. The democratic governance is a bonus.
Showcase your skills, portfolio, and experience. Import reviews from other platforms. Get verified and start receiving project matches.
Browse projects or get matched with clients. Submit proposals, negotiate terms, and use built-in tools for contracts, milestones, and communication.
After your first completed project, become a member-owner. Vote on fees, policies, and platform direction. Share in any surplus. Build equity.
Every line of Artifex code is public on GitHub. The matching algorithm, the fee structure, the governance tools. No hidden logic, no secret manipulation. Fork it, audit it, improve it.
Full access to all features, zero fees on your first projects. Help us build the freelance platform we all deserve.
One simple fee that covers infrastructure and support. No tiers, no hidden costs, no fee increases decided without your vote.
Artifex will always be open source. Self-host for free, or use our managed platform for the convenience of payment processing and client matching.
Artifex is owned by the freelancers who use it. Traditional platforms extract 10-20% of every project for shareholders. Artifex charges a flat 5% that covers only real costs, and you vote on any changes. Your reputation is portable, and you have a real say in platform decisions.
A cooperative is a business owned and governed by its members. On Artifex, every freelancer who completes a project can become a member-owner with one vote on major decisions. There are no outside shareholders extracting value. Surplus revenue is reinvested or distributed to members.
Absolutely. Artifex is designed to support direct client relationships. Bring your clients, manage projects through our tools, and benefit from payment protection and professional invoicing. We will never try to insert ourselves between you and your clients.
Artifex supports all knowledge work: software development, design, writing, marketing, data science, consulting, video production, and more. If you do project-based professional work, Artifex is built for you.
Clients fund milestones upfront into escrow. When you complete a milestone and the client approves, funds are released to you immediately. Disputes are handled by a freelancer-elected panel, not by platform employees with misaligned incentives.
Yes. You can export your complete work history, reviews, and profile data at any time in standard formats. Your professional reputation belongs to you, not to the platform. This is a core principle of our cooperative.
During beta, Artifex is completely free. At launch, there will be a flat 5% fee on project payments, covering infrastructure, payment processing, and support. No tiers, no hidden fees. Any fee changes require a member vote.
Complete your first project on Artifex and you are eligible for membership. Members pay a one-time nominal membership share and gain full voting rights on all cooperative decisions, including fee structures, policies, and board elections.
Join thousands of freelancers building the platform they deserve. Free during beta, fair forever. Your skills, your rules, your future.
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