Top Freelancer alternative for tailored tech talent

Published on
Aug 12, 2024
Written by
Juan David Rodríguez
EDITED by
Maria del Mar Agudelo
Read time
3 Minutes
Category
Transparency Research

Teilur Talent emerges as a standout choice for businesses in search of an exceptional Freelancer.com alternative, particularly for those eyeing the prime tech talent within the IT outsourcing landscape. As a premier software engineer recruitment agency and one of the leading talent acquisition agencies, Teilur Talent offers transparent pricing and a client-centered approach. This approach transforms the traditional staffing company experience into a more customized and adaptable solution for tech talent acquisition, positioning it prominently among recruiting agencies especially for those inclined towards tailored tech talent solutions.

Teilur Talent Vs. Freelancer

Transparent Fair Pricing

Teilur Talent prides itself on its transparent pricing model, a stark contrast to the often opaque fee structure found on Freelancer.com. A review from Trustpilot underscores the frustrations faced by users of Freelancer, like Jorge Hugo's experience, where unexpected fees and inefficient customer support highlight the platform's lack of transparency and client care. Jorge faced unexpected additional charges and unhelpful support, issues that are conspicuously absent in Teilur Talent's straightforward and fair pricing approach. By eliminating hidden costs and providing a clear breakdown of fees, Teilur Talent ensures that businesses can forecast their project expenses with unparalleled accuracy, paving the way for more sustainable financial planning and a more reliable, secure hiring process.

Freelancer reviews

Team Focused, Not Client Focused

At the heart of Teilur Talent's philosophy is the importance of team integration, setting it apart from the client-centric model of Freelancer.com. Feedback from Glassdoor reveals a pattern of dissatisfaction among Freelancer's talent, pointing out significant challenges like finding consistent clients, unstable income, lack of benefits, and high demands with low pay. These concerns underline the instability and uncertainty freelancers often face on such platforms. In contrast, Teilur Talent emphasizes forming cohesive teams that share a common vision and objectives, addressing these core issues directly by offering stable, rewarding opportunities that enhance both project efficiency and job satisfaction. This team-centric approach not only nurtures a sense of unity and purpose among team members but also leads to higher productivity and overall satisfaction, making Teilur Talent a superior choice for those seeking a supportive and stable work environment.

Top cons Freelancer
Freelancer review
Freelancer reviews

The Right Candidate for Your Team

Teilur Talent champions a tailored approach to talent acquisition, focusing on matching candidates that aren't only skilled but are the perfect fit for the client's specific team culture and needs.

This customized matchmaking offers a considerable advantage over Freelancer.com’s broader strategy, which may prioritize filling roles with competent candidates without emphasizing cultural and specific role alignment.

Similarities and Differences Between Freelancer and Teilur Talent

Both platforms offer a global pool of talent and cater to a wide range of industries. However, Teilur Talent differentiates itself by focusing exclusively on the tech sector, providing a curated experience for both clients and talent. This specialization ensures a higher quality of matches, tailored to the unique requirements of IT projects.

When Would You Recommend That My Company Choose Freelancer or Teilur Talent?

Freelancer may suit broad, non-specialized project needs or when budget constraints are the primary concern. However, for tech-centric projects requiring specialized skills, a cohesive team approach, and high-quality outcomes, Teilur Talent is the recommended choice.

What Are the Top Benefits of Working with Teilur Talent Compared to Freelancer?

Teilur Talent offers:

  • Personalized matching service to ensure the right fit for your project.
  • A focus on team dynamics and culture fit, not just technical skills.
  • High retention rates through better matching and support.

Freelancer Handles Payroll, Compliance, and Recruiting. How About Teilur Talent?

Teilur Talent differentiates itself from Freelancer with a bespoke approach to payroll, compliance, and recruiting, meticulously designed to integrate with your company's unique processes. Its flexible payroll system ensures efficient handling of taxes and timely payments, while its compliance services navigate the complexities of legal standards to shield your projects from potential issues. The recruiting strategy is both technologically advanced and personally curated to match your exact technical and cultural needs. This seamless integration into your operational framework underscores Teilur Talent's commitment to not just fulfilling your tech talent needs but enhancing your overall operational efficiency, positioning it as the superior choice for forward-thinking companies.

How Does Teilur Talent Ensure the Talent is Retained Better Than Freelancer?

Teilur Talent's strategy of precisely aligning talent with projects from the outset minimizes turnover and boosts freelancer satisfaction, leading to enhanced retention and a more stable project ecosystem. This approach ensures a harmonious match that benefits both clients and talent, fostering a productive and reliable working relationship.

Our thoughts on the pricing structure of Toptal 

While it's not possible for us to find details about how much of what a client pays ultimately goes to a candidate, we believe clients looking for transparent and straightforward pricing may want to look at other alternatives.

Our opinion is that if they are charging a client more than $12,000 monthly for a developer, they should at the very least be giving $9,600 to the candidate, but it's likely that it's even less than that.


What Hiring Managers Should Ask Before Choosing a Talent Partner

Before partnering with any talent provider — whether Toptal, Teilur, or others — hiring managers should consider asking the following key questions:

  • What percentage of the fee actually goes to the talent?

  • Are replacement or satisfaction guarantees included in the contract?

  • How are regional salary benchmarks determined?

  • Is there full transparency in how rates are broken down?

  • What is the long-term cost difference between hiring directly and through a platform?

These questions can help businesses make informed decisions and ensure that pricing aligns with both market realities and ethical compensation practices.

Toptal vs Teilur Talent Comparison
Concept Toptal Teilur Talent
Transparency Pricing details are not publicly disclosed. Clients see a blended hourly rate that includes both Toptal’s fee and the freelancer’s pay. Fully transparent rate breakdown. Clients see exactly how much goes to the talent and how much is retained by Teilur as a service fee.
Commission / Markup Estimated at up to ~50% based on third-party reports and client testimonials. The exact markup percentage is not officially stated. Capped at 20%, ensuring that at least 80% of the client’s payment goes directly to the developer.
Monthly Subscription Fee $79/month, non-optional, grants access to Toptal’s vetted talent network. (Source: Toptal website). No subscription fees. Clients only pay when hiring or engaging talent.
Initial Deposit $500 refundable deposit required to begin a talent search. No upfront deposit required to start the matching process.
Trial Policy Two-week no-risk trial. Clients are billed only if satisfied with the match. N/A (direct matching) – Teilur focuses on pre-vetted, long-term placements with transparent trial terms discussed case by case.
Pricing Range (Developers) $60–$200+ per hour depending on experience and project complexity (includes platform markup). $6,000–$7,000/month for senior LATAM developers, equivalent to ~$35–$45/hour — transparent, with no hidden markups.
Payment Structure Bi-monthly invoices; payment terms like Net 10. Includes blended rate. Monthly invoices with clear cost breakdown (talent pay + Teilur fee).
Toptal vs Teilur Talent Comparison
Concept Toptal Teilur Talent
Business Model Global freelance marketplace connecting clients with vetted professionals in software, design, and finance. LATAM-focused recruitment company connecting businesses with full-time remote developers and tech professionals.
Selectivity Claim Claims to accept less than 3% of applicants, based on its internal screening process. Works only with pre-vetted, bilingual professionals in LATAM, selected for technical and communication skills.
Recruitment Process Multi-stage: timed skills test → English interview → real-world project → live screen evaluation. Direct evaluation of experience, portfolio, and communication ability. Matches candidates by vertical (QA, Software, Cybersecurity, Data & BI) and company culture.
Trial or Test Period Offers a two-week trial, refundable if client isn’t satisfied. No fixed trial period — focuses on long-term retention and transparent onboarding.
Contract Type Typically weekly contracts (20 or 40 hours) with limited flexibility for short-term projects. Flexible monthly agreements, allowing scalability per project scope and company needs.
Transparency Pricing details not publicly disclosed. Clients see a blended hourly rate including Toptal’s markup. Fully transparent pricing model. Clients see how much goes to the developer and how much is Teilur’s service fee.
Commission / Markup Estimated around 40–50%, based on user reports and external reviews. Capped at 20%. At least 80% of client payment goes directly to the developer.
Initial Deposit Requires a $500 refundable deposit to start the search process. No upfront deposit required.
Client Support Account managers available during hiring and engagement. Support quality varies by project. Personalized support from start to finish, ensuring alignment for both client and talent.
Developer Pay Transparency Developers are contractually restricted from disclosing their actual pay rates. Developers know their full compensation and see transparent rate breakdowns.
Geographic Focus Global, with talent from Eastern Europe, Asia, and LATAM. Exclusive to Latin America, optimizing time-zone alignment and cultural fit.
Turnover Rate Not publicly disclosed. Reported below 15%, reflecting strong retention and satisfaction.
Best For Large enterprises or teams needing globally distributed freelance specialists. U.S. and international companies seeking transparent, long-term partnerships with vetted LATAM developers.

Need help with cost expectations?

Our hiring costs vary depending on the candidate's accepted offer. Use our calculator to estimate costs for different roles.

These are our recommended salaries, but clients are free to set their own rates.

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Client Reviews

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Teilur Talent featured in...

"Argentina offers highly competitive labor costs compared to other nearshoring destinations. With a strong focus on software and IT services, Argentina's tech talent pool is growing, and the country is already a resource for tech giants like Google."

Teilur Talent featured in...

"Brazil offers an attractive combination of cost-effectiveness and high-quality talent. With reportedly more than 500,000 software developers and an impressive annual growth rate, Brazil boasts the largest tech talent pool in LATAM."

Teilur Talent featured in...

"Teilur Talent recognized as the top IT Recruiting & Staffing firm in Latin America, Teilur Talent has made valuable contributions towards making the IT workspace more efficient and streamlined."

Teilur Talent featured in...

"Teilur Talent is the world’s first talent development network connecting U.S. tech startups and remote developers from Latin America!"

At Teilur, Inc, we are committed to accuracy and fairness in all our content. Our discussions and comparisons, particularly those concerning other businesses in the recruitment industry, are grounded in the best interpretations made by our dedicated staff, based on publicly available information. We hold a deep respect for the unique qualities of each organization within our field and strive to offer valuable insights rooted in our core beliefs about the recruitment industry's workings. If you encounter any factual inaccuracies in our content, we encourage you to reach out to us at content-research@teilurtalent.com with the specific URL in question. Your feedback is invaluable, and we are committed to reviewing and addressing your concerns.

Got questions? We've got answers.

1

How is Teilur Talent different from other tech recruiting companies in LATAM?

At Teilur Talent, we take a mission-focused approach to recruiting, ensuring that our candidates are aligned with your company's vision and goals. Unlike other tech recruiting companies in LATAM, who may focus solely on technical skills, we prioritize the cultural fit and dedication of our team members to your company. For this reason, we do not support project contractor or freelancer roles. Instead, we focus on fully devoted team members who will help you achieve long-term success.

2

How does Teilur Talent attract and retain the best talent compared to other companies?

At Teilur Talent, we offer our candidates competitive salaries that are 2x to 3x higher than what tech companies would pay locally. This allows us to attract top talent and retain highly motivated and loyal team members. Additionally, we focus on finding candidates whose values align with the purpose, vision, and mission of our clients. This approach ensures that our engineers and tech talent are not just coding and completing task rather, they become part of a greater purpose, which gives them meaning and helps us attract and retain the best talent.

3

What are the typical tech roles that Teilur Talent recruits for?

At Teilur Talent, we specialize in recruiting for a wide range of tech roles that are typically in high demand. These include positions such as DevOps engineers, AI Developers, QA analysts and engineers, back-end and front-end developers, data scientists, product managers, business developers, and technical sales positions. Essentially, we recruit for most roles that are needed in B2B and B2C tech-focused businesses.

4

What are Teilur Talent's fees and pricing structure?

At Teilur Talent, we believe in transparency. We charge a flat rate fee of 20% of what the client pays. This way, our clients know exactly what they are paying for and how much the candidate gets. As an example: If a client hires a software engineer for $60,000 per year ($5,000 per month), Teilur's monthly fee would be $1,000 (20% of $5,000). We don't believe in hidden fees or unwanted surprises, so we disclose all costs upfront to both candidates hired and companies. When exploring other alternatives, make sure they are transparent about their pricing. We believe this is paramount for the benefit of all parties involved in this new era of remote work.

5

What is the candidate screening process at Teilur Talent, and how do you ensure a good fit for my company?

At Teilur Talent, we take candidate screening very seriously. We use a multi-layered approach to find the best candidates for our clients, starting with screening thousands of candidates from our internal and proprietary networks. We leverage AI technology to assess whether a candidate matches the technical skills required for a given job opening. We also perform additional personal evaluations to ensure that the candidate has the soft skills, culture fit, and English language skills required to excel in their new role. Our rigorous screening process ensures that only the best candidates make it through to our clients, saving them time and helping them find the best talent for their teams.