Budget-Friendly Toptal Alternatives Worth Trying in 2025
5 minutes
25 March 2025
As more companies outsource marketing, software development, and other specialised projects, freelance platforms have become a go-to solution for quickly finding specialised talent. The U.S. market for freelancers expanded dramatically, showing a 260% hiring jump in just two years (2022-2024). Toptal is definitely one of the most well-known options in this space, but it’s not the only one.
In this article, we’ll cover:
What is Toptal?
Toptal is a freelance marketplace that connects businesses with highly skilled professionals in software development, design, project management, and finance. It stands out for its strict vetting process, claiming to accept only the top 3% of applicants to maintain high talent quality.
Toptal’s rates often match those of traditional full-time hires, making it a costly option if you are looking to optimise budgets. Additionally, new clients must pay a $500 deposit to start using the platform, which isn’t ideal for startups or mid-sized businesses testing the freelance model.
If you need skilled professionals but don’t want to pay a premium, there are more cost-effective alternatives that still offer vetted talent, flexibility, and strong hiring support. In the next section, we’ll explore the best alternatives to Toptal that can help you find high-quality freelancers at a much more affordable cost.
Budget Friendly Alternatives To Toptal
Upwork is one of the largest freelance marketplaces, connecting you with freelancers across various industries ranging from sales and marketing to AI and machine learning. The platform allows you to browse a vast talent pool, review freelancer profiles, and hire based on experience, ratings, and price range. It offers flexibility in hiring and supports both short-term and long-term engagements.
Cost: The pricing varies widely depending on the freelancer’s experience and the nature of the project. Rates can start as low as $10 per hour, while top-tier experts can command rates similar to Toptal’s talent. Upwork does not require an upfront deposit, and you can choose between hourly or fixed-price contracts. This flexibility, along with a broader range of pricing options, makes it a viable alternative for you if you want to hire freelancers without the structured pricing model of Toptal.
Fiverr is a freelance marketplace where professionals offer services in industries such as graphic design, digital marketing, writing, video editing, and programming. It operates on a gig-based model, allowing clients to browse listed services and hire directly. This structure is suitable if you want to hire freelancers for predefined tasks rather than long-term engagements.
Cost: Fiverr's pricing starts at $5 per gig, though more complex services and experienced freelancers charge higher rates. The platform provides transparent pricing upfront, reducing negotiation time. Unlike Toptal, which requires a deposit and enforces minimum commitments, Fiverr allows businesses to purchase services on demand without ongoing contracts. While this makes it a cost-effective option for smaller projects, it may not be ideal if you want highly specialised or long-term freelance support.
PeoplePerHour is another platform that allows you to post job listings and receive proposals from freelancers or hire directly through pre-packaged “hourlies,” which are fixed-price services similar to Fiverr’s gig-based model.
Cost: Pricing varies depending on the freelancer’s experience and the nature of the project. Rates start at $10–$15 per hour, with fixed-price projects available for one-off tasks. The platform does not require upfront deposits or long-term commitments, making it more accessible for businesses that want to control costs.
Compared to Toptal’s structured pricing and vetting model, PeoplePerHour offers a broader range of freelancers at different skill levels, allowing you to find talent that fits your project needs and budget constraints.
Guru is a comparatively lesser-known platform that still offers a wide variety of freelancers to choose from. One of its standout features is WorkRooms, which allows you to collaborate with multiple freelancers on a single project, track progress, and manage communication in one place. This makes Guru particularly useful if you are handling larger or more structured freelance projects.
Cost: Guru offers various pricing models, including hourly, fixed-price, task-based, and recurring payment options. Additionally, it provides a SafePay system, ensuring that payments are held in escrow and released only when work is completed, adding a layer of security for both parties.
However, unlike Toptal, Guru does not have a strict screening and pre-vetting process, so businesses must rely on ratings, reviews, and prior work samples to assess freelancer quality.
Freelancer.com is also a central freelance marketplace offering professionals in software development, graphic design, marketing, writing, and data entry. It operates on a bidding system, where you can post job listings and receive proposals from freelancers competing for the project. This approach helps reduce costs but requires additional effort to filter through bids and identify the best candidates.
Cost: For each project you post, Freelancer.com charges a one-time $4.95 fee and a 5% fee on all transactions. Hourly rates start as low as $5, and you can expect to pay a 3% fee on fixed-price projects or hourly contracts, while freelancers are charged a commission of up to 10% on their earnings. This platform also offers membership plans that provide additional features and reduced fees, but these plans also come at an extra cost.
Unlike the other options here, GrowthBuddy is not a freelance platform. But if you’re looking for high-quality remote talent without the premium price tag, we are definitely worth considering. We know you’d rather focus on growing the business than sorting through freelancer profiles, handling contracts, and dealing with inconsistent availability. So we find, rigorously vet, and embed full-time remote professionals directly into your team while still saving you 55% in payroll costs compared to hiring locally.
We handle the entire hiring process end to end and shortlist the top 0.05% talent within 3 weeks, ensuring you don’t waste time sifting through hundreds of applications: no hourly billing, no unexpected freelancer drop-offs – just top-tier talent working full-time on your working hours. Let's talk if you’re serious about hiring long-term talent without the hassle (or Toptal’s price tag).
If you’d like to know more about how GrowthBuddy can help you build a cost-effective remote team, contact us here!
Conclusion
Finding the right freelance talent at a reasonable cost isn’t always straightforward. Freelance platforms allow you to choose between a range of professionals, but they also demand a lot of time and effort in filtering through candidates, negotiating rates, and ensuring quality work. While these platforms are affordable, they all come with trade-offs in reliability, vetting, and consistency.
If cost is a concern but you still need reliable, high-quality remote talent, there are alternatives beyond traditional freelance marketplaces. Whether you choose a budget-friendly freelance platform or explore full-time remote hiring solutions, the key is finding an approach that balances affordability, efficiency, and long-term value for your business.