Contest - Entries

Freelancers are given the option to seal their bids. Sealed bids hide bid details from other freelancers, preventing the bid from being copied. Only the person who sealed the bid and the employer will be able to view the details of the bid. A bid can be sealed for $0.10 USD.

To seal your bid, tick the Sealed option under the Optional Upgrades section when submitting your bid. You need to have available funds on your account to cover the Sealed bid upgrade fee.

To enter a contest, you need to be a registered user on the site. If you're not registered yet, sign up now, complete your profile, and read the contest holder's design brief on the contest page.

You're now ready to start submitting contest entries! Good luck!

On the contest page, click Upload an Entry. You will be asked to choose whether you will immediately submit your entry or participate first and submit your entry later on. Choose one option, then click Submit.

When you're ready to submit your design, upload your design on the contest page and agree to the Freelancer Terms and Conditions before clicking Submit.

To know more about contest entry submission, please click here.

The contest description written by the contest holder on the contest page will specify what you need to upload. 

Entries can be submitted in different file formats depending on the type of contest you participated in. Here are the accepted file formats for:

• Design contests - JPEG, GIF and JPG (Animated GIFs are not supported)
• Video-related contests - MOV, MPEG, FLV, and AVI
• Text-based contests - PDF and ODT

Freelancers should ensure their submissions have an aspect ratio of 6:4.

You can upload your entry in any file format accepted for the contest. If you win the contest, however, you need to upload the original submission in the contest holder's requested file format. This is usually specified in the contest description on the contest page.

To know more about contest entry file formats, click here.

Freelancers, please only use images for which you have the copyright to ensure your entry is not rejected!

To know more, read here.

We recommend checking the contest description for the contest holder's specified font.

If there is none, please only use fonts which you are legally able to use to avoid your entry being rejected. To know more, please click here.

Yes, you may upgrade your contest entry before submitting it.

Below are the entry upgrades you can choose from:

• Sealed Entry
• Highlight Entry

A Sealed Entry upgrade is an option for freelancers to protect their entries and ensure that they are unique and original.

An entry with this upgrade will be visible only to the contest holder and the freelancer who owns it. This upgrade is available on the entry submission form and has a small fee of $0.50 USD.

To know more about the Sealed Entry upgrade, please click here.

The Highlight Entry upgrade is an option for freelancers to feature their entries with a yellow border, making it stand out from all other entries.

This upgrade is available on the entry submission form and has a small fee of $0.50 USD.

To know more about the Highlight Entry upgrade, please click here.

Sell Price is an optional feature that allows you to sell your entry to the contest holder if you don’t win the contest. 

• This option is available when you submit your entry.

• Sell Price can also be set after you submit your entry.

To do this, just hover over your entry, click Sell Entry and specify the price amount, which can be equal to or lower than the contest prize. 

• If your entry is purchased, it will be tagged as a runner-up winner on the contest page. 

To know more about Sell Price, please click here.

A low rating indicates that your entry is not that close to what the contest holder is looking for in their contest description. There may also be constructive feedback from the contest holder to explain their rating.

As you can enter multiple entries while the contest is active, you can always check your other entries if they got higher ratings.

Note: Your entry's rating is not the sole basis of its quality. Sometimes, even if you follow the contest description, the contest holder may still give your entry a low rating it if it's not to their liking. 

Entries are usually rejected if the design is not what the contest holder is looking for in their design brief. Reported designs due to copyright infringement can also be rejected by the contest holder.

Note: Sometimes, even if you follow the contest description, the contest holder may still reject your entry if it's not to their liking. Should this happen, you can always submit more entries that may pass the contest holder's preferences.

Yes, you can leave a comment for the contest holder on your Private Message Board.

Just go to the contest page, click your username under your entry and you will be redirected to the page with all your entries and Private Message Board. To know more, please click here. 

Note: Please do not request or provide any contact information as it is against Freelancer's Terms and Conditions.

No. Freelancers, please do not comply with these kinds of requests. The contest holder should only preview your entry on the contest page. 

Contest holders can only take an entry once they award it as the winning entry and complete the Contest Handover with the winner.

Some contest holders may be unable to choose a winner from the submitted entries, and they can choose to have the prize refunded if their contest is eligible for it.  

In the unlikely event that this happens, it basically means the contest ends without a winner being selected. As the contest is not awarded to any freelancer, the contest holder will be unable to use your entry or any other entry.

However, if the contest is Guaranteed and no winner is chosen within 30 days after it closes, the prize will be shared among qualified entries. 

To withdraw your entry from a contest, just hover over your entry on the contest page and click Withdraw at its upper right corner.

If the contest is still active, you may still have time to submit another entry. If you withdrew an entry and you wish to submit it again, just hover over it on the contest page and click Resubmit.  

When a designer submits their first entry to your contest, we'll let you know by posting an item on the Newsfeed of your Freelancer Dashboard page and by sending you an email.

Yes. If you are the contest holder, you can send freelancers private messages through their individual design pages.

• Just click the username of a freelancer on the contest page to navigate to their entry page. From there, you can post messages on their Private Message Board. 

• Alternatively, you can chat with a freelancer by clicking their entry on your contest page. Once a full view window of the entry shows, click Chat beside their username. 

Note: Please do not ask or provide private contact information as it is against Freelancer's Terms and Conditions.

Comments can be left by the contest holder and other freelancers on any contest entry, as long as the contest is not Sealed.

To comment on an entry, click on the entry on the contest page and its full view will appear. On the full view window, you can write on the comment box at the lower left side.

To leave comments that can be viewed and responded to by everyone, you can also use the Public Clarification Board at the bottom of the contest page. It has a unique feature that enables you to reference an entry by adding a hashtag (#) before the number of the specified entry - e.g. #4. To know more, please check here. 

• Some freelancers may no longer wish to be involved in a contest or feel they no longer are in the running for the prize.

• They may change their mind about a design idea and would like to resubmit an updated version.

The best way to minimise the risk of withdrawn entries is to provide written feedback and star ratings for designs you like best so designers can revise their entries accordingly.

You can try sending the freelancer a private message and ask them to resubmit their entry.

Go to your contest page, and select the Withdrawn tab to view withdrawn entries. From there, just click the designer's name under their withdrawn entry and leave a message on their Private Message Board.

Ultimately, though, it's up to the freelancer to decide whether they will resubmit their entry or not.

Each entry has stars at their bottom right corner that you can hover over and select for rating (with 5 stars as the highest rating).

We recommend rating each design to let all contest participants know what you like and how they should alter their future entries. To know more, please click here.

To reject an entry, hover over it and click Reject.

If you change your mind and want to reconsider the entry, hover over the entry again and click Reconsider. To know more, please click here.

To prevent a freelancer from entering your contest, click their username on any of their entries then, click Reject Freelancer on their entry page.

This will prevent them from submitting entries to any of your contests, not just this one!

You can make a reference to any entry by putting a hashtag "#" in front of the entry number, which is located at the top left corner of the entry (e.g. #3). This can be done on the Public Clarification Board of your contest page.

To refer to multiple entries, place a hashtag before the numbers of the entries (e.g. #4, #80 and #120).

When referring to a freelancer in your comment, use the "@" symbol before the freelancer's username (eg. @designUser).