Upwork Badges Explained: Rising Talent to Expert-Vetted (2026)

Upwork has four talent badges: Rising Talent, Top Rated, Top Rated Plus and Expert-Vetted. Rising Talent is for strong new freelancers. Top Rated needs a Job Success Score of at least 90% for 13 of the last 16 weeks. Top Rated Plus adds more than $10,000 earned in the past 12 months. Expert-Vetted is by screening only and is shown only to Upwork's largest clients. You cannot apply for the first three: Upwork awards them and reviews Top Rated eligibility every two weeks.

The criteria below are taken from Upwork's help center as of October 2026. Upwork changes them from time to time, so check Upwork's own page before you rely on a detail.

The four badges at a glance

Badge	Who it is for	Upwork describes it as	Key requirement
Rising Talent	New freelancers and agencies	Among the best new freelancers	Complete profile, recent activity, no negative feedback
Top Rated	Established freelancers	The top 10% of talent	Job Success Score of 90%+ for 13 of the last 16 weeks
Top Rated Plus	High earners on large contracts	The top 3% of performers	Top Rated criteria plus over $10,000 in 12 months
Expert-Vetted	Screened specialists	The top 1% of talent	Pass a screening by Upwork's Talent Managers

Rising Talent

Upwork gives this badge to freelancers and agencies who "show great potential based on strong backgrounds in their fields and early success with their clients."

Criteria Upwork lists:

A 100% complete profile with accurate skills and genuine work
A proposal submitted, or work done, within the past 90 days
No negative feedback from previous clients
The identification verified badge
A valid withdrawal method on the account
Following the Terms of Service, with no account holds

Upwork says the criteria "include" these, so meeting all six does not guarantee the badge. It is a judgment about your background and your first results.

What you control:

Finish the profile to 100%, including a portfolio item and your work history from before Upwork. The free Upwork profile audit shows what is missing.
Verify your identity and add a withdrawal method on day one.
Send proposals. The badge needs recent activity.
Make the first jobs go well. One piece of negative feedback rules it out. See how to get your first 5-star review.

Top Rated

Criteria Upwork lists:

Consistent high-quality work with multiple clients
A Job Success Score of at least 90% for at least 13 of the last 16 weeks
An up-to-date and complete profile
Availability for new jobs kept up to date
A strong earnings history
A first project on Upwork more than 90 days ago
Activity on Upwork during the past 90 days
Following the Terms of Service

Agencies also need a complete owner profile with a photo, an agency profile with a logo, overview and services, and member profiles at least 60% complete on average.

Two details matter in practice.

"13 of the last 16 weeks" means you need about three months above 90% before the badge can appear. One strong month is not enough, and one bad outcome can reset the clock.
"Multiple clients" means repeat work from a single client will not do it alone.

Upwork does not state a dollar figure for "a strong earnings history" on this badge. Older guides quote specific amounts. The current page does not.

For how the score behind this badge is built, see what the Upwork Job Success Score measures. For a realistic schedule, see zero reviews to Top Rated: the timeline.

Top Rated Plus

Everything Top Rated needs on score, profile and availability, plus:

Proven success on large or long-term contracts
Total earnings over $10,000 in the past 12 months (over $20,000 for agencies)

Eligibility is reviewed every two weeks, the same as Top Rated.

The route to it is fewer, larger contracts. Ten $200 jobs and one $8,000 contract earn the same $10,000, but only the second shows "large or long-term" work. See how to turn Upwork clients into long-term relationships.

Expert-Vetted

This one works differently.

You are screened by Upwork's Talent Managers on technical expertise and soft skills, including communication.
It is available only in certain work categories.
Only clients on Upwork's Business Plus or Enterprise plans can see it. Regular clients never see the badge.

So Expert-Vetted does not help with ordinary job posts. Its value is access to enterprise clients.

How much do badges matter for getting hired?

Less as a gate than freelancers fear, and more as a signal.

In the 116,224 job posts we tracked in September 2026:

2.6% set a minimum Job Success Score, most of them 90% or higher. Among Expert-level jobs it was 3.7%, and among Entry-level jobs 1.0%.
The large majority set no score or badge requirement.

So a badge rarely decides whether you may apply. What it changes is how you look in a list of 30 proposals, where the client sees the badge before reading a word. That is real, but it follows from the same things that win jobs without a badge: clear jobs, good clients and outcomes that end in strong feedback.

The fastest honest route

Choose jobs you can finish well. Clear scope, a client with a hiring history. Badges are built from outcomes, and outcomes are decided by which jobs you take.
Apply early. A new profile near the top of a short list gets read. See why being first matters.
Close contracts properly. Ask for feedback when the work is done.
Stay active. Every badge has a 90-day activity condition.
Keep the profile complete and your availability current. Both are listed criteria, and both are easy to forget.

Get to the jobs that build a badge

Vibeworker watches new Upwork jobs and alerts you to the ones worth winning, so the contracts behind your score are good ones.

Real-time alerts on your own filters: client hire rate, total spend, payment verified, budget floor, keywords, categories and experience level.
Alerts where you already are: Telegram, the iPhone and Android app, browser push, a webhook or RSS, within seconds of a job posting.
A score on every job for scope clarity, red flags and client quality, so you avoid the contracts that end badly.
One-click proposals drafted from your profile and the job.
Priority support, from the founder.

Browsing your scored job feed is free, with no time limit and no card, and you get 3 AI proposal drafts to try. Pro adds real-time alerts on every channel, unlimited proposal drafts, the iPhone and Android apps, and the API.

Try Vibeworker free →

How do you get the Rising Talent badge on Upwork?

Upwork's criteria include a 100% complete profile with accurate skills and genuine work, a proposal sent or work done in the past 90 days, no negative feedback, verified identification, a valid withdrawal method, and no account holds. Upwork then awards it to new freelancers it judges to have strong backgrounds and early success. You cannot apply for it.

What are the requirements for Top Rated on Upwork?

A Job Success Score of at least 90% for at least 13 of the last 16 weeks, consistent work with multiple clients, a complete and current profile, up-to-date availability, a strong earnings history, a first project more than 90 days ago, activity in the past 90 days, and compliance with the Terms of Service. Upwork reviews eligibility every two weeks.

What is the difference between Top Rated and Top Rated Plus?

Top Rated Plus adds proven success on large or long-term contracts and total earnings over $10,000 in the past 12 months ($20,000 for agencies). Upwork describes Top Rated as the top 10% of talent and Top Rated Plus as the top 3%.

Do you need a badge to get jobs on Upwork?

No. In September 2026 only 2.6% of the jobs we tracked set a minimum Job Success Score, and most jobs set no badge or score requirement at all.