Fiverr’s Third Annual Freelance Economic Impact Report Identifies the Top 30 Cities in U.S. for Skilled Freelancing - Seite 2

Though not widely considered hubs for economic activity, these cities are thriving due to increases in skilled freelance activity.

• Nashville and Austin continue to grow faster in both population and revenue than all other cities. In Nashville and Austin, the population of skilled freelancers grew by 26% and 27% respectively from 2012-2017. In terms of revenue, Nashville has exploded at 37% revenue growth, with Austin behind it at 29%.
• Miami’s skilled freelance workforce contributes the most to the overall GDP of the city. Skilled freelancers in Miami contributed 2.3% to the overall GDP of the city, followed by Austin, Los Angeles, and Nashville. Revenues from skilled freelancers across the U.S. represent 1.1% of total U.S. GDP.
• Skilled freelancers in Las Vegas, Nashville and Boston all earn more than freelancers in New York. Freelancers in San Francisco, San Jose, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Nashville, D.C. and Boston all rank above New York on a per person pay basis. For instance, skilled freelancers in Vegas are earning, on average, almost $49K annually. Skilled freelancers in New York are averaging $44.5K annually. However, this type of work is not necessarily full time for these workers. On average, they spend 25 hours a week at their work. Forty percent work fewer than 20 hours per week and just 6 percent work more than 50 hours per week.
• All three cities in Florida (Orlando, Tampa and Miami) are among the fastest growing cities for skilled freelancing in the nation. While Nashville and Austin lead the pack, all three cities in Florida have seen over 20% growth in both revenue and population. Additionally, all three markets are among the fastest growing for freelancers providing professional services like accounting, management consulting, and legal services. This makes sense given 41% of these workers are older than 65 and we know Florida has an older population.
• California is also a hotbed for skilled freelancing. Six out of the top 30 cities for skilled freelancing are located in California: Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Riverside, San Jose and Sacramento. That could change in 2020 and beyond given the recent passing of Assembly Bill 5 in the state.
• Freelancers providing technical services are more concentrated on the west coast but are seeing fast growth throughout the country. San Jose, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Portland are the top hubs for freelance technical services, but Miami, Austin and Nashville are all showing significant growth. Interestingly enough, Baltimore, one of the cities at the bottom of the list for share of workers, ranks in the top five for share of revenue.

Major Markets Rely Heavily on Skilled Freelancers