How much is
leaving your
pocket?
You invoice in dollars. You get paid in less. Between platform commission, withdrawal fees and an exchange rate nobody shows you, roughly 10–28% disappears before it reaches your MoMo or bank — Fiverr sits at the expensive end (~22–28% all-in), long-tenure Upwork at the cheaper end (~8–13%), and direct rails like Grey/Wise are cheapest. Numbers shown below are RANGES (estimates from published fee schedules, not quotes). Conservative mode is ON by default and plans using the worst case.
Five questions.
One receipt.
Nothing is stored against your name. All numbers are offline ranges. Ghana data is calibrated to real fee schedules; Nigeria & Kenya are WIDE estimates pending receipt-verification — if you ride a rail in NG/KE your receipt makes the next update tighter.
GH numbers built from published GH fee schedules. NG/KE numbers use country-specific FX/MoMo/M-Pesa/NGN-wire ranges — still coarse, tightened with real receipts.
Client country affects their payment options (Wise vs card vs SWIFT). Your FX & withdrawal cost happens on your side, so the numbers are calibrated to your country, not theirs.
Flat fees are charged every time. Weekly withdrawals cost 52× a year, not 12×.
Every route,
ranked by what you keep.
Sorted by all-in yearly cost on $1,000/month at your withdrawal frequency.
"Client friction" is how hard the route is for your client to actually pay you — the quiet reason good routes go unused. A route your client finds awkward is not a cheap route; it is a lost invoice.
Where the money goes.
Line by line, on your current route, per month.
Get the monthly fee update
Payment fees change. When they do, buyers get one short email: what changed, who it affects, and what to switch to. Buy the kit for 12 months of updates, or leave your email on the kit page to get notified of major changes.
No newsletter, no funnel. One email a month to buyers only.
Stop paying to be paid.
The Dollar Client Kit carries the full rails matrix, the rate calculator with every fee baked in, the outreach scripts that get you direct clients, and the contract that protects the money.
—
The fees, without the fog.
Ranges from published fee schedules, verified October 2026. Full guides linked under each answer.
How much does Upwork take in 2026?
Since May 2025 Upwork's service fee is 0–15%, set per contract at proposal — freelancers with long, well-rated histories land at the low end. Add withdrawal and FX and a full Upwork route costs roughly 8–18% all-in (worst case), about 8–13% for established accounts. Full Upwork fee breakdown →
How much does Fiverr take?
Fiverr charges a flat 20% commission on every payment you receive. Add withdrawal and FX to Ghana, Nigeria or Kenya and the all-in cost lands at roughly 22–28% — the expensive end of every rail on this page. Full Fiverr fee breakdown →
What is the cheapest way to get paid from abroad?
Direct USD rails (Wise, Grey, Payoneer, Raenest, LemFi and similar) into a local account or mobile money run about 1.5–6% all-in in Ghana. SWIFT wires cost 3–9% plus a $15–$50 flat intermediary charge. Mobile money receipt runs 1.5–5%, and e-levy has been abolished since 2 April 2025. Compare the rails →
Is this accurate to the cent?
No — and be suspicious of anything that claims to be. Fee schedules change, banks add charges, and exchange spreads move daily. Every figure comes from published fee schedules last verified in the month shown at the top of this page. Use it to decide; confirm the final number with your provider.
Why is conservative mode there?
Because fee schedules, bank charges and FX spreads shift day to day. Conservative mode uses the HIGH end of every published fee range so you plan against the worst case, not an optimistic midpoint. Switch it off to see midpoint estimates. The calculator never shows cent-precision numbers — only ranges.
Why do platform routes show two stages?
Because you cannot delete a 20% commission without changing how you get clients. Stage 1 is same clients, better payout rail. Stage 2 is direct billing. Combining them into one number would be the inflated claim.
Is stablecoin/USDC the answer then?
Usually cheapest on pure maths, hardest on trust and on/off-ramp access. Stablecoin is NOT RANKED in the default comparison because its regulatory status for on/off-ramps is still evolving across GH/NG/KE and fraud risk is real; check current BoG/CBN/CBK guidance before using crypto rails.
Where does my data go?
Your inputs are used to compute the answer and nothing else. No account, no cookie, no profile. Email is only kept if you type it in the box above.
Is there a free Upwork or Fiverr fee calculator for Ghana?
Yes — this page. Enter your billings, country and current rail; it returns worst-case fee ranges for Upwork (0–15% service fee since May 2025), Fiverr (flat 20%) and direct rails, for Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya. No signup, works on phone.
What you get, specifically.
Eight components. No video course, no community, no filler.