DeenTask vs Upwork
Contract work at the larger end, with time tracking and hourly billing.
On DeenTask you keep
£200
of a £200 job, paid by transfer or cash. We take nothing either way.
On Upwork you keep
About £180, less what you spent on Connects
Around 10% service fee, plus paid Connects to bid.
Upwork is the more corporate of the big marketplaces: longer contracts, hourly billing with time tracking, and clients who are used to hiring remote teams. The service fee is lower than Fiverr's at around 10%, but you also spend money on Connects to bid, and you can spend a lot of them without winning anything.
DeenTask has no bidding economy. Applying to a job is free and unlimited, your portfolio is attached automatically, and there is no commission when you win — but the volume of work is much smaller and much more local.
Side by side
Fees checked August 2026
| DeenTask | Upwork | |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Leads only — we introduce you and step back | Commission marketplace with bidding — you pay to submit proposals |
| What it costs you to earn | Nothing to us, ever | Around 10% service fee, plus paid Connects to bid |
| What the client pays on top | Nothing to us, ever | Payment processing and contract fees on top |
| How you get paid | Direct to you — bank transfer, cash, or your own card link | Escrow and hourly billing through Upwork, with a security period |
| Your own portfolio page | Yes — deentask.com/yourname, free | An Upwork profile, visible mainly inside Upwork |
| Who's on it | Muslim community organisations, mostly UK: masjids, schools, institutes, charities | Global, skewed to longer contracts and business clients |
| You keep, on a £200 job | £200 | About £180, less what you spent on Connects |
DeenTask takes nothing in every case. Paid by bank transfer or cash you keep the lot; by card your own processor takes roughly 1.5% + 20p. On the other platforms that processing sits on top of the commission, along with any withdrawal or currency fees.
Headline rates only — these platforms tier and change their pricing, so confirm on Upwork's own pricing page before deciding anything on the strength of this table. More on taking payment yourself.
They do different jobs.
Here is where each one genuinely wins — including the cases where we lose.
Use Upwork if…
- You want long-running hourly contracts with time tracking and weekly billing.
- Your rates are high enough that 10% is worth paying for access to that client base.
- You want escrow and milestone payments on larger projects.
- You're building a track record with international business clients.
Use DeenTask if…
- You're tired of paying to apply for work you might not get.
- The jobs you want are community jobs — a poster, a website for a masjid, cover teaching, an event filmed.
- You want a portfolio link you can share outside the platform.
- You'd rather invoice the client directly than bill through a platform.
Nothing here is exclusive — plenty of people keep a Upwork account and use DeenTask as the portfolio they send people to.
Questions
Does it cost anything to apply for work on DeenTask?
No. There's nothing like Connects here — applications are free and you can send as many as you like. The only paid thing on the site is an optional £5 boost that lifts your portfolio up the listings.
Can I track hours and bill hourly through DeenTask?
No. There's no time tracking and no billing here at all. You can put an hourly rate on your profile so clients know what you charge, but the invoicing is between the two of you.
Other comparisons
Your portfolio is free either way.
Fifteen minutes, one link instead of screenshots, and keep working wherever else you already do.
Build my portfolio — free