When thinking of hiring a graphic designer for your one-time project, looking for a freelancer is your best bet. The advantage is that you get access to a wider talent pool since they can work remotely from wherever they are. For instance, an individual in Boston can work from a coworking space in Boston, and send you the completed project wherever you are.
Freelancers are often better choices for certain specialized tasks too for which talent might be hard to find. Contractual obligations are often minimal and you can get started quickly to get work done within tight deadlines. In fact, many experts are of the opinion that future agencies and work patterns will increasingly find themselves depending on freelance professionals. Also in a recently published study graphic design skill is listed in 5 top Selling Gigs on Fiverr in 2021.
In this article, we’ll help you find freelancers for your graphic design assignments by curating the best 21 websites you can rely on to get work done fast.
Upwork
Upwork is a name that needs no introduction in the digital marketplace. The company has been around for quite a while now and has the reputation of listing the top talent in most work genres, graphic design being no exception.
Creating an account is very easy with a comprehensive training module. You also get suggestions for freelancers that match your job description.
Features:
- Top talent
- Easy to use
- Search filters
- Time tracker
- Mobile app
AwesomeWeb
Freelancers pay a fee to be listed here. This is an assurance that you only get the best designers to work with. AwesomeWeb helps you find professionals with a variety of skill sets to meet all of your needs.
You can also search for and shortlist freelancers by the desired platform you wish to work on. What’s more, the platform has been engineered by a freelancer himself with the aim of helping clients around the world find the best talent without hefty fees.
Features:
- Pre-vetting freelancers
- Starters to advanced designers: find a designer as per your pocket
- In-app messaging
- Sort freelancers by quickest turnaround times
Freelancer.com
One of the more popular online digital services portals, this site gives you control over your project and selections. You can wait to receive bids or browse freelancers yourself. You can also choose to pay in milestones, or when the project is completed.
Freelancer.com boasts flexible payment options and has a great selection of reviewed freelancers.
Features:
- Chat live with freelancers
- Secure payments
- Certification for freelancers
- Reliable dispute resolution system
The Creative Group
This site handles the hiring process for you, saving you time browsing through designers. They free you of all administrative and staffing tasks so you can focus on delivering great experiences for your customers with powerful designs.
The company prides itself on not relying just on machine algorithms to find you the right talent for the job at hand. The team actively seeks out the best professionals to help you deliver value.
Features:
- Designers are vetted to give you the right fit
- Quick client and designer matching
Fiverr
If you’ve ever hired freelancers online, chances are, you have already heard about Fiverr. Teeming with talent, this portal will offer endless opportunities to find specialized skills you might be looking out for.
Searching for freelancers is as easy as clicking the category that you need, sorting the results with your specifications such as price range, delivery time, language, and location among others.
Features:
- Multiple search filters
- Freelancers rating
- Diverse skill sets
- Reasonable prices
SolidGigs
This site provides tons of educational materials to designers. You can be assured of designers with top-notch and refined skills. The platform also facilitates freelance professionals in more ways than one.
A great place to meet a prospective long-term collaborator to handle all of your graphic design needs.
Features:
- Freelance designers reach out to you
- Solidgigs curates job opportunities and sends them across to their pool of freelancers
- Large database of freelancers
99designs
The platform lists over 90 varieties of design services. Whether you are looking for a logo or business card designs, one for your e-commerce website, this is the place to check. 99designs keeps its singular focus on helping brands maintain a powerful online presence.
It’s a creative platform that offers logo, product packaging, T-shirt, and book cover designing services, to name just a few. There are two ways to work on this platform when you begin. You can either work directly with a designer or start a contest on the platform to see lots of interesting ideas.
Features:
- Freelancers send pitches that you choose from
- Thorough screening and vetting of freelancers
- Get lots of inspirational ideas from freelancers around the world
- Great pool of talented designers
Toptal
This site is very strict in screening freelancers. You can be guaranteed that you are getting the best graphic design there is.
Toptal claims to host the top 3% of the global freelancing talent pool. It is a great network of graphic designers, web developers, project managers, and freelancers working in any imaginable field. The company is trusted by thousands of companies and startups around the world.
Features:
- The team does the selection of freelancers for the client
- Work is paid in an hourly rate
- Build your team of freelancers
- Trusted platform with a great selection of freelance talent
FreeUp
This site is considered by many to have one of the best support teams. FreeUp, true to its name, frees you up, helping you get work done faster. It’s easy to use as the team finds a good designer for your specific needs from its pool of pre-vetted freelancers.
Pre-vetting ensures you only collaborate with professionals with a proven track record that can deliver the quality standards you have in mind.
Features:
- Pre-vetted freelancers
- The site also has seamless billing management services
- Free sign up
- No monthly fee
Dribbble
The best thing with this platform is that you are saved from manually searching for freelancers as the team does that for you. Dribbble calls itself the home to the top creatives and designers in the world.
Having a dedicated team find the best professionals for you removes unnecessary stress over interviewing and hiring as the team takes care of that for you already.
Features:
- Basic support is paid a minimum of $99 a month
- Freelancer membership is done on an invite-only basis
- The platform is quite trustworthy and reliable, having rendered its services to top companies including Google and Slack
Guru.com
Guru is a digital services marketplace where companies can look out for freelancers that cater to their specific genres and work areas. Besides letting you post a job listing, you also get to browse freelancers’ accounts and reach out to the ones that catch your eye.
A great thing about Guru is its flexibility. You can choose to pay after the work is complete, via pre-funded milestones, and through hourly payments.
Features:
- Easy to use platform
- Large pool of freelancers from around the world with diverse skillsets
- No membership fee
- It offers a work room where clients and freelancers collaborate on the projects
FlexJobs
If you regularly need to hire freelancers, this site allows you unlimited access for a flat fee. FlexJobs carefully curates all jobs listed on the platform and thus attracts great talent. The platform is used by well-known enterprises including Apple and Salesforce.
Features:
- Customized geographical parameters
- Applicant tracking system that allows synching of designers information
- Hosts freelancers with diverse skillsets
PeoplePerHour
PeoplePerHour, like other freelancing platforms, provides companies access to great freelancers. You will be able to work with a professional on both a fixed-price and hourly basis. The platform also has a ranking system that categorizes freelancers into various skill levels.
The platform also has pre-defined gigs and packages posted by designers that you can select from without having to post a new job every time. Whatever your requirements, chances are, you’ll find a pre-built package for the service on the platform. All you need to do is choose the freelancer with the best portfolio and rates. It’s that easy!
Features:
- Freelancers can offer pre-set packages
- On-site communication between client and freelancer
- Flexible payment methods
DesignHill
DesignHill is one of the most popular design websites out there. The site allows you to ask for revisions until you get satisfying work without parting with extra money.
Features:
- 24/7 customer support
- Various membership options starting at $199 for 20-40 designs
- Fixed price model
- Capability to work directly with the graphic designer
- Host design contests
- Logo maker
DesignCrowd
The platform allows you to choose designers that you would like to work with, start a design contest and then choose the winner. You can also have custom designs made to suit your specific requirements. From business cards, logos, and T-shirts to flyers and web design, DesignCrowd has all the design services you might have in mind.
Features:
- Search filters for different categories
- Access to freelancers’ ratings and reviews
- Numerous design services
- You can get your money back if you’re not satisfied with the design
Design Pickle
Design Pickle exists for one simple reason: to remove all complexity out of the design process. Without burdening you with the hassles of interviews and the like, you get direct access to a professional designer who collaborates with you and your team to create exactly what you need. This site offers short turnaround time, with Pro members getting their project on the same day and Essentials within a day or two.
Features:
- Stock library with over 25,000 unique designs and templates
- Unlimited revisions
- Seamless design experience
LinkedIn ProFinder
LinkedIn ProFinder is the perfect place to find the freelance graphic designer you’ve been looking out for. The team suggests for you designers who are in your network or mutual network. That way, you get to work with a familiar individual. You can also work directly with a local freelancer.
Features:
- Monthly fee of $60
- It allows direct messaging with freelancers
- Trusted platform
Behance
Adobe’s Behance is one of the most sought after creative spaces where you get to work with great designers. The team gives a customized recommendation on the best graphic designers. The key to the power of Behance is its large talent pool which is home to some very skilled professionals.
Features:
- Monthly fee starting at $399
- Mobile app that allows syncing across devices
- Great community of professionals
LogoNerds
LogoNerds, as the name itself suggests, will serve your logo design requirements. You don’t have to browse through other categories to get what you want, thus saving you time.
Features:
- Variety of designs
- Affordable packages
- Get a professional logo for your brand for under $50
- Apart from logos, the designers on the site can also create a character mascot for your business
CrowdSpring
CrowdSpring is a home for creatives which helps businesses (including Fortune 1000 companies) get the designs, brand names, and creative graphics they need. It allows access to numerous unique package designs.
Features:
- 220,000 vetted creative professionals
- 100% money back guarantee
- Legal contract for intellectual property protection
Krop
This platform boasts of over 100,000 resumes and portfolios from the world’s top graphic designers. You are spoilt for choice. Krop works with companies including Netflix, ESPN, Twitter, and Apple.
Features:
- One-time fee or monthly subscription
- Multi-level search filters
- Create beautiful portfolio websites
Bonus Tools
PhotoADKing
PhotoADKing is a graphic design tool that lets individual marketers, freelancers, creators, and small businesses design anything from social media posts to printing materials. PhotoADKing has a huge library of a premade posters, brochures, business cards, logos, YouTube thumbnails, and flyer templates. It also offers short marketing video templates for businesses to promote their brand on a different channel.
- 1000+ Templates for image & video
- Integrated graphic and video collection
- Remove background from images
- Create objects with 3D editor
- Easy drag & drop online design tool
- Creative font library
- SVG support
Zyro
With Zyro’s AI Logo maker, you can get the most professional logo designed within a minute. This 100% free tool lets you handpick a great choice from their thousands of templates. The logo creation process is super fast, seamless, and professional. The logos can be highly customized to suit your brand needs. The best thing – your logo will be fully commercially licensed and owned by you. Most freelance designers do use it for creating amazing logos.
Brandcrowd
This platform is a dream place for graphic designers and not only. Businesses, companies, start-ups and individuals can develop their logo design due to the free logo maker tool in just a couple of minutes. More than 97000 premium logo designs are available here.
Browse thousands of templates, shapes, fonts, colors and create the ideal brand identity for your business. It allows you to create business cards, social media covers, and templates for your social media platforms as well.
Features:
- Thousands of customizable logo templates
- Free and paid feature plans
- User-friendly editing tools
- Free downloading
Wrap Up
There you have it. For your next graphic design job, consider checking through the above sites for the one that matches your needs.
Graphic design needs have only increased manifold in recent years. You will need access to specialized freelancers with the skills to give shape to your vision in line with your branding philosophy. Graphic and motion design is used everyone from social media and brochures to company business cards and emails.
However, coming by a talented professional is far from easy. You need to ensure they are skilled enough to meet your requirements and agree on the terms of payment. A platform such as Upwork, Behance, or TopTal helps act as a trusted intermediary so you can focus on getting the best work.
