When you receive a job offer, you might notice it’s set up as either a fixed-price or hourly contract. Wondering what that means for your work, payments, and submissions? Here’s a simple breakdown to help you decide which suits you best.
What is a Fixed-Price Contract?
Under a fixed-price contract, you agree with the client on a set price to complete the entire project or specific milestones within it. Payments are released based on milestone completion or for the overall project amount, depending on how the job is structured.
Key Features
- Payments: Released per milestone upon client approval, or auto-released after 7 days if no action is taken.
- Work submissions: You’ll submit your work for each milestone through the “Submit Work” button.
- Funding requirement: Clients must fund the milestone before you start. If it’s not funded, they can’t access your submitted work.
Best for: Projects with clearly defined deliverables and deadlines.
What is an Hourly Contract?
Under an hourly contract, you’re paid based on the number of hours you work each week at an agreed hourly rate. There is usually a weekly limit set by the client on how many hours you can log.
Key Features
- Work logs: You’ll record your hours daily using the Work Log section and submit them by Sunday each week.
- Payments:
- Clients are charged on Monday for the previous week’s hours.
- Payments are automatically released to you on Friday.
- Edits & deletions: You can only edit or delete entries within the current week.
Best for: Ongoing work, projects with flexible scopes, or when deliverables are less clearly defined upfront.