Rising Talent, Top Rated & Expert-Vetted
What Upwork's badge tiers mean, how to earn them, and what they actually do for your profile.
The badge progression
Upwork has three badge tiers: Rising Talent, Top Rated (and Top Rated Plus), and Expert-Vetted. Each builds on the last. Badges appear on your profile header and in search results, signaling to clients that Upwork has recognized your performance. They're not cosmetic — each tier unlocks practical benefits and changes how your profile is surfaced.
Rising Talent
Rising Talent is designed for newer freelancers showing strong early signals. Requirements:
- No JSS threshold — you may not have a score yet
- Complete profile
- At least one completed contract
- High contract completion rate
- Account in good standing
Rising Talent typically appears within the first 1–3 months for freelancers who start well. Its signal to clients: "this is a promising new freelancer that Upwork has identified as performing well early." It's most useful as a trust signal during the period when you lack reviews — it tells potential clients that Upwork itself is backing your early track record.
Top Rated
Top Rated is the primary badge for working freelancers and the most practically useful. Requirements:
- 90%+ Job Success Score maintained for at least 12 weeks
- At least $1,000 earned in the past 12 months
- 100% complete profile
- Active on Upwork within the past 90 days
Benefits of Top Rated status:
- Access to premium job postings — some clients restrict applicants to Top Rated freelancers only.
- Negative feedback removal — once per year, Top Rated freelancers can remove one negative client review from their profile. This is significant for JSS protection.
- Priority support — faster response from Upwork's support team.
- Improved search visibility — Upwork surfaces Top Rated freelancers more prominently in search results.
Top Rated Plus
Top Rated Plus is a higher tier for top earners. Requirements are similar to Top Rated but with higher earnings thresholds and sustained high JSS over a longer period. The practical benefit over Top Rated is access to a wider range of exclusive and higher-value job postings, including enterprise clients. If you're actively growing and consistently earning, this tier follows naturally from maintaining Top Rated status.
Expert-Vetted
Expert-Vetted is invitation-only — you cannot apply for it. Upwork extends invitations based on performance data to the top approximately 1% of freelancers in selected categories. Earning it requires a manual skills assessment and review by Upwork staff, not just sustained metrics.
What it unlocks: access to enterprise-level clients routed through Upwork Enterprise, including Fortune 500 companies and large organizations that engage Upwork for high-value engagements. The work available through Expert-Vetted channels typically commands significantly higher rates and comes with more professional clients who have larger scopes and dedicated procurement processes.
Expert-Vetted is a long-term outcome for freelancers who specialize deeply and perform consistently at the top of their field. It's worth knowing it exists, but it's not something to optimize for directly — it follows from being excellent in a specific area over time.
What badges actually do for you
| Badge | Visibility benefit | Practical benefit |
|---|---|---|
| Rising Talent | Appears in search; mild algorithmic boost | Trust signal for clients when reviews are sparse |
| Top Rated | Strong visibility boost; premium job access | Negative feedback removal; priority support |
| Top Rated Plus | Higher-tier job access; enterprise visibility | Access to higher-value exclusive postings |
| Expert-Vetted | Enterprise client access | Highest-value work via Upwork Enterprise |
Maintaining your status
Badges are not permanent. Top Rated status is re-evaluated regularly. If your JSS drops below 90%, you lose Top Rated. If earnings fall below the threshold or you go inactive, you lose it. It requires ongoing effort — not just one good period.
Rising Talent can also be lost if you stop performing at the level that earned it, or if a run of poor contracts changes your early-stage signals.