Subscriptions & Connects

A subscription is a recurring plan that changes what you can do on the marketplace. Connects are the credits freelancers spend to send proposals and boost them.

Plans

Plans are created by the administrator. A plan can include:

• A number of connects per period.
• A limit on active projects or orders.
• A lower commission rate.
• A lower proposal or boost cost.
• Priority support.
• Access to features that are otherwise locked.

The plan page shows the price, billing period, and what is included. Read the limits carefully: "unlimited" means the administrator has removed the cap, not that fair-use rules do not apply.

Buy a plan

1. Open Subscriptions from the dashboard or the pricing page.
2. Compare plans.
3. Choose Choose plan.
4. Choose a payment method. You can pay by wallet or by a supported gateway.
5. Complete the payment.
6. The plan activates and the invoice is created.

If the payment is manual, the plan activates after an administrator approves it.

What happens after purchase

• The plan appears under My subscription.
• Quota meters show how much you have used.
• The expiry date is displayed.
• An invoice is available to download.

Quotas

A quota is an allowance that resets with the billing period.

When a quota is used up, the action is blocked and a paywall appears with the plans that raise the limit. You can also wait for the next period if the quota resets.

Connects

Connects are spent when you:

• Send a proposal to a job.
• Boost a proposal so it appears higher.
• Use a feature the administrator has priced in connects.

The proposal form shows the cost before you submit. If a plan waives the cost, the form shows Free.

Buy connects

1. Open Connects from the dashboard.
2. Choose a pack or a plan that includes connects.
3. Pay by wallet or gateway.
4. The connects appear in your balance.

If you do not have enough connects

• Buy a pack.
• Upgrade to a plan with more connects.
• Wait for the next period.
• Check whether the cost is waived for your freelancer level.

Bid boost

A boost moves your proposal higher in the client's list for a period.

1. Open the job and send a proposal, or open an existing proposal.
2. Choose Boost.
3. Review the connect cost.
4. Confirm.

The cost is set by the administrator (proposal_boost_connect_cost, default 5). A subscription plan can lower it. A boost does not guarantee a hire; it only changes visibility.

Renewal

• Renew before expiry and the new period starts after the current one ends, so you do not lose time.
• Renew after expiry and the new period starts immediately.
• The invoice is created at purchase.

The site does not automatically charge a saved card unless the administrator has enabled recurring payments. Check the plan page for whether auto-renew is on.

Cancel

1. Open My subscription.
2. Choose Cancel.
3. Confirm.

The plan stays active until the expiry date. After that, the account returns to the free limits. Cancelling does not refund the current period unless the site's policy says otherwise.

Downgrades

There is no direct downgrade. To move to a lower plan:

1. Cancel the current plan.
2. Wait for it to expire.
3. Buy the lower plan.

This rule prevents a user from consuming a high plan's connects and then immediately switching to a cheap plan for the rest of the period.

Subscription offers

Freelancers can sell recurring services through Subscription Offers.

• A freelancer creates an offer with monthly or annual plans.
• Each plan lists what the client receives and the deliverables.
• A client subscribes and receives invoices each period.
• The freelancer manages deliverables from the offer dashboard.
• The administrator sets the commission rate for these offers.

This is separate from a marketplace-wide plan. A client can subscribe to a freelancer's service without buying a site plan, and a freelancer can sell offers without buying a plan.

Plan changes and commission

• Commission can be global, per freelancer, or set by the plan.
• A plan's lower commission applies while the plan is active.
• When the plan expires, the global or per-freelancer rate applies again.
• Freelancer level can also change commission. The most specific rule wins.

Troubleshooting

I paid but the plan is not active

• Gateway callbacks can take a few minutes.
• Manual payments wait for administrator approval.
• Check Wallet → History for a pending spend.
• Open a support ticket with the transaction ID.

My connects disappeared

Connects are spent on proposals and boosts. Open Connects → History to see each spend. If a proposal failed after the connect was taken, contact support with the job and proposal.

I cannot send a proposal

Check, in this order:

1. You are signed in as a freelancer.
2. The job is still open.
3. You have not already applied.
4. You have enough connects, or the cost is waived.
5. Your plan allows another proposal.

I cannot create a service

Your plan may limit active projects. Close an old service or upgrade the plan.

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Last updated: October 21, 2026