The Jukebox Podcast from WP Tavern speaks with Adrian Sticea about a dramatic shift he’s seen in WordPress work arriving through Upwork. Adrian—who’s worked with WordPress since 2013, including roles at IBM and StellarWP and a long history of freelance and enterprise projects—posted a graph on LinkedIn that went viral. The chart shows a steady stream of Upwork leads for years collapsing to near zero by 2026. That post sparked a broader conversation about where WordPress work has gone and how professionals should adapt.
Adrian explains that for much of his career Upwork was a reliable source of leads. Sometimes he used it part-time while employed elsewhere; other times it was his primary income channel. Over roughly a decade, Upwork supplied most of the work he took, but around 2022–2024 that flow began to shrink dramatically until it essentially stopped.
Why the decline? Adrian and host Nathan Wrigley agree there isn’t a single cause. AI is a major factor: it has accelerated developer productivity, allowing developers to ship more in less time and reducing demand for the same number of hires. The broader economy and waves of tech layoffs also reduced overall demand. At the same time, the market has more tooling and platforms than in the WordPress boom years—Wix, Squarespace, Framer and JavaScript stacks are viable alternatives for many projects, especially simpler brochure sites.
Crucially, Adrian says the type of work Upwork now hosts has shifted. Simple website builds and small gigs still exist there, but the complex, developer-heavy projects he used to attract—enterprise builds, plugin development, legacy code maintenance—have largely moved off Upwork. Companies seeking higher-assurance talent increasingly rely on vetted marketplaces, agencies, temp staffing firms, or specialized platforms (Toptal, Codeable, recruitment agencies) that pre-screen candidates and handle vetting, which clients find more reassuring than sifting through standard marketplace listings.
Marketplace saturation and shifting buyer behavior matter too. Adrian heard from agency owners who traditionally sourced most work from Upwork but recently got no responses despite applying. Price sensitivity has increased; if they raise rates slightly, they fail to get responses. AI has also contributed to commoditization—buyers expect more for less or prefer less expensive, AI-assisted developers.
Relying on a single platform proved risky. Upwork’s convenience—easy to apply for jobs, low friction, asynchronous text-based interactions—made it attractive, especially for introverted developers. But that same convenience limited long-term relationship-building. Reviews on Upwork don’t translate into external referrals or a reusable network. Adrian notes he received almost no off-platform recommendations from clients sourced there, leaving him vulnerable when the platform’s demand shifted.
Adrian’s takeaway is pragmatic: diversify lead sources and rebuild relationships the old-fashioned way. He pivoted before an income drop, and his revenue hasn’t fallen as a result. His three-pronged strategy now is:
– Use LinkedIn consistently: create content, engage, and convert viral attention into leads. Adrian has landed new gigs and conversations there.
– Partner with agencies: reach out to website-building agencies that occasionally need senior help for complex or legacy work. Those relationships send higher-value, recurring or repeatable projects.
– Build ties with recruiters and temp agencies: they pre-vet and present vetted candidates to clients, opening doors to projects that wouldn’t appear on public marketplaces.
Those channels take longer to develop, but they produce better long-term outcomes: higher rates, repeat work, and referrals. Adrian emphasizes that direct client relationships are less transactional and more sustainable than the one-off cycle common on Upwork.
Nathan and Adrian also reflect on changing perceptions of experience. Where a decade ago deep WordPress expertise commanded trust and premium rates, buyers may now weigh experience differently against cost and AI-augmented productivity. For mission-critical web assets, companies will still value senior expertise. For simpler or new builds, buyers might choose cheaper, faster options or different stacks entirely.
For WordPress professionals, the practical lessons are clear: don’t depend entirely on a single marketplace; cultivate direct contacts and testimonials you can control; and be willing to adapt the kinds of services you sell and the channels you use to find work. Adrian’s experience shows that even when one channel collapses, other avenues exist—if you invest in them.
If you want to follow Adrian or reach out, he’s active on LinkedIn and runs CustomWP.io.