EARNISTAN

The world’s two freelancing giants oDesk and Elance, who merged precisely a year ago, have published Elance-oDesk’s Annual Impact Report, 2014. The report reveals top-earning freelancer countries on the two platforms among many other groundbreaking statistics.

Though the companies have merged, their freelancing operations still work on their existing models. The statistics shown in the annual impact report are stated as combined figures of both Elance and oDesk.

According to the report, about $900 million was earned by some 9.4 million registered freelancers from more than 180 countries. The portals have over 3.7 million registered businesses. In 2014 alone, more than 2.7 million jobs were posted.

Here are some statistics published in the report.

Top 10 client countries by spend on Elance-oDesk (Q2 2014)

1. United States
2. Australia
3. United Kingdom
4. Canada
5. United Arab Emirates
6. Germany
7. France
8. Netherlands
9. Israel
10. Singapore

Top Earning Freelancer countries (Q2 2014)

1. India
2. United States
3. Philippines
4. Ukraine
5. Pakistan
6. Russia
7. Bangladesh
8. Canada
9. United Kingdom
10. China

10 Fastest-growing client countries (2-year CAGR · Q4 2012–Q4 2014, $100K minimum)

1. Finland
2. China
3. France
4. Russia
5. Sweden
6. Malta
7. Germany
8. Mexico
9. Brazil
10. Romania
    

10 Fastest-growing freelancer countries 2-year CAGR )Q4 2012–Q4 2014, $100K minimum)

1. Montenegro
2. Madagascar
3. Venezuela
4. Slovenia
5. Norway
6. Nicaragua
7. Bosnia and Herzegovina
8. Chile
9. Japan
10. Costa Rica

11 Most Valuable Skills on Elance-oDesk

1. Web programmer
2. Graphic designer
3. Writer/Blogger
4. Online marketer
5. Mobile Developer
6. Admin asst.
7. Sales/Lead gen
8. Marketing strategy expert
9. Project manager
10. Engineer
11. Financial expert/Accountant

This report presents the results of three online surveys conducted by Genesis
Research Associates, an independent marketing research consultancy. The first
survey assessed the work attitudes and satisfaction of Elance-oDesk freelancers
vs. average workers (Work Fulfillment Survey); the second was an in-depth
profile of Elance-oDesk freelancers (Freelancer Profile Survey); the third was an
in-depth profile of Elance-oDesk clients. Genesis Research Associates collected
and tabulated survey data for all three reports and consulted with Elance-oDesk
on the presentation of data

You can read the complete report here.