New South African Platform "FreelanceLocals" Launches to Remove the '20% Tax' on Gig Workers

Cape Town, Western Cape – A new South African marketplace, FreelanceLocals.com (https://southafrica.freelancelocals.com/), has officially launched to challenge global giants like Upwork and Fiverr by offering a 0% commission model for local freelancers and businesses.

While international platforms typically charge service fees ranging from 10% to 20% on every transaction, FreelanceLocals operates as a direct connection marketplace. It allows South African businesses to find, chat with, and hire local talent-from software developers to accountants-without paying "middleman taxes."

The platform supports a wide range of categories including web development, bookkeeping, design, artificial intelligence and administrative support. It is fully POPIA compliant and designed specifically for the South African context, allowing for direct negotiation in ZAR without currency conversion fees.

"The equation is simple: freelancers need income, and clients need affordability," says the founder. "Traditional platform fees mean that freelancers walk away with less money and clients are forced to pay more. We cut out the middleman tax entirely, giving both sides exactly what they want-direct access at zero cost."

Unlike "bidding-only" sites, FreelanceLocals offers a flexible model where businesses can either post a project for free or browse the database to contact freelancers directly. The platform's sustainability is built on a capital-light operational structure, ensuring the core connection features remain free forever.

"We run a very capital-light operational model, which means it does not cost us a lot to keep the lights on," the founder adds. "We don't need to tax every transaction to survive. While we plan to add premium search and discovery features in the future, everything that clients and freelancers need to connect and work will remain free."

FreelanceLocals is now live and accepting registrations from freelancers and businesses across South Africa.

About FreelanceLocals: FreelanceLocals is South Africa’s commission-free freelance marketplace. It connects businesses with verified local talent across creative, technical, and trade industries. By removing transaction fees, it aims to keep 100% of freelance earnings within the local economy.