Contra takes no commission from freelancers. Who pays the $15 and $29 platform fees, card and payout fees, and when Contra Pro pays off.
By StaffGrid · Published 2026-09-29
Contra takes no commission from freelancers. If a client pays you $2,000 through Contra and you withdraw to a US bank account, you receive $2,000.
That does not mean nobody pays. The fees move to the client's side:
Contra's pricing page says it "is always commission-free for all creatives" and offers plans "to waive fees for anyone paying you." On the Free plan it lists a client payment fee of "$15 or $29 per payment >$500" and digital product fees "Capped 5% (min $3 - max $29)"; on Pro ($29 a month or $199 a year) both are "No fees." It adds that this "does not include payment processing fees charged by third-party providers." [1]
| Free plan | Pro plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Price for the freelancer | $0 | $29 a month or $199 a year |
| Commission on earnings | None | None |
| Platform fee on each client payment | $15 (under $500) or $29 ($500 and above) | None |
| Fee on digital product sales | 5%, minimum $3, maximum $29 | None |
| Standard payouts | Free | Free |
| Faster payouts | 2% | Free |
| Crypto payouts | 2% | 1% |
Contra describes client fees in three different ways on its own site:
Contra's Fees overview, dated August 6, 2026, says "platform fees scale as the project value increases, capped at $29/transaction": $15 for projects of $1 to $499 and $29 for $500 and above on the Free plan, $0 on Pro. "Independents can upgrade to Pro for waived platform fees." [2]
Contra's client help article, updated May 12, 2026, lists platform fees of $2 ($1 to $199), $5 ($200 to $499), $10 ($500 to $999) and $29 (over $1,000), with lower fees ($1, $2.50, $5, $15) when the freelancer is a Pro member. [3]
Check the fee on the invoice before paying
This article uses the newest figures, from the pricing page and the August 6 Fees overview. All three versions agree on two points: the fee is flat, never a percentage of your earnings, and it never exceeds $29 a payment. Clients should check the total on the Contra invoice before paying.
On top of the platform fee, the client pays the cost of the payment method.
| How the client pays | Processing fee |
|---|---|
| Card (US) | 2.9% + 30¢ per charge |
| Card, manually entered | plus 0.5% |
| Card, international | plus 1.5% |
| Card, currency conversion | plus 1% |
| ACH bank transfer (US) | 0.8%, capped at $5; must be approved by Contra |
| SEPA bank transfer (Europe) | 0.5% + 30¢, capped at $6; must be approved by Contra |
| Contra Wallet | 1.5% |
Card payments cost "2.9% + 30¢ per successful charge for domestic cards", with 0.5% more for manually entered cards, 1.5% for international cards and 1% for currency conversion. ACH costs "0.8% capped at $5.00 per successful charge" and SEPA "0.5% + 30¢ capped at $6.00", both after approval by Contra's payments team. Posting a job is free; a job can be boosted for $199 for 30 days. [4]
For payments of a few thousand dollars, the payment method matters more than the platform fee. ACH caps at $5, while a card charge grows with the amount.
2005-2087 USD paid by the client for a $2,000 payment
A $2,000 payment to a freelancer on the Free plan: platform fee $29. By US card: 2.9% × $2,000 + $0.30 = $58.30, total about $2,087.30. By ACH: 0.8% × $2,000 = $16, capped at $5, total about $2,034. If the freelancer is on Pro, the $29 platform fee disappears: about $2,058.30 by card or $2,005 by ACH. In every case the freelancer receives $2,000 before any payout fee. We assume processing is charged on the payment amount, as in Contra's own example of about $30 on a $1,000 card payment.
Freelancers pay nothing on the money they earn. Costs only appear in how the money comes out.
| How the freelancer is paid out | Fee |
|---|---|
| Standard bank transfer, US (ACH) | $0 |
| Standard bank transfer, other currencies | varies, for example $1 for EUR |
| Faster payouts | 2% on Free, free on Pro |
| PayPal | 2% |
| Payoneer | $3 plus 1% to 2%, up to $15, depending on location |
| Crypto (USDC) | 2% on Free, 1% on Pro |
| Currency conversion | 0.40% for major currencies, 1.00% for others |
Contra's Fees overview lists payout fees that vary by country and currency (USD 0.00 for US ACH, USD 1.00 for EUR), 2% for PayPal, $3 plus 1-2% or up to $15 for Payoneer depending on location, a 2% crypto payout fee on the Free plan or 1% on Pro, and currency conversion of 0.40% for major currencies and 1.00% for others. [5]
Digital products. If you sell templates, courses or other files through Contra, the Free plan charges 5% of each sale, at least $3 and at most $29. Pro removes it.
Pro costs $29 a month, or $199 a year paid annually. It does not change what the freelancer earns on client work, because that is already commission-free. It changes three things:
7 client payments of $500 or more a year that cost more in platform fees than Pro on annual billing
Pro on annual billing costs $199. Each client payment of $500 or more on the Free plan carries a $29 platform fee: 6 payments = $174, 7 payments = $203, more than the Pro price. Faster payouts add to the case: one faster payout of $2,000 costs 2% = $40 on the Free plan and nothing on Pro.
As a rule of thumb: a freelancer billing a client at least once a month, or using faster payouts regularly, is likely to recover the annual Pro price. Someone paid a few times a year can stay on the Free plan and let clients pay the fee.
The fee is on the invoice, not your earnings
On the Free plan the platform fee is charged to the person paying you. If you quote a client $1,000, you still receive $1,000; the client sees the fee on top.
| Platform | Freelancer fee | Client fee |
|---|---|---|
| Contra | None | $15 or $29 per payment (none if the freelancer has Pro), plus processing |
| Upwork marketplace | 0% to 15% per contract | 3% to 5% on the Basic plan, 8% to 10% on Business Plus, plus a contract initiation fee |
| Braintrust | None | Not listed on Braintrust's payments page |
Upwork states that service fees on standard contracts "range from 0% to 15%, depending on the type of contract, plus supply and demand", and that clients pay a 3%-5% marketplace fee on the Basic plan and 8%-10% on Business Plus, plus contract initiation fees. [6]
Braintrust's payments page promises "$0 fees for talent" and says "We never charge talent — no fees, no markups, no surprises." [7]
On Upwork, a freelancer can pay up to 15% of each contract. On Contra and Braintrust, the freelancer keeps the full amount and the platform earns from the hiring side.
Is Contra really commission-free? Yes, for freelancers. Contra charges the client a flat fee per payment instead, unless the freelancer is on Pro.
Who pays the $29? The client, on payments of $500 or more to a freelancer on the Free plan. Payments under $500 carry $15.
Is Contra Pro worth it? If clients pay you through Contra about once a month or more, or you use faster payouts, Pro on annual billing ($199) usually costs less than the fees it removes.
Do I pay to withdraw my money? Not for a standard US bank transfer. Faster payouts (2% on Free), PayPal (2%), Payoneer and crypto have fees.
Does Contra take a cut of digital products? On the Free plan, 5% per sale (at least $3, at most $29). None on Pro.
Sources. Contra's pricing page, "commission-free" page, Fees overview (updated August 6, 2026) and client fee article (updated May 12, 2026); Upwork's fee explainer (July 23, 2026) and help article on the Freelancer Service Fee; Braintrust's payments page. All checked on September 29, 2026.
Where sources disagree. Contra's own pages give three different client fee structures. We use the newest (pricing page and Fees overview) and show the others above.
Calculations. The client cost and Pro examples are our own, using Contra's listed fees. We assume card and ACH fees apply to the payment amount.
What we did not check. We did not send or receive payments on Contra. We could not confirm on Contra's pages whether processing fees apply to the platform fee as well as the payment.
Affiliate relationships. We have no affiliate relationship with Contra or Braintrust. No vendor pays for placement.
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