These top 6 marketspaces viz. Guru.com, Elance.com, LimeExchange.com, Rentacoder.com, Getafreelancer.com and oDesk.com, together capture about 90% marketshare (based on the revenues reported by them), the rest being taken by smaller sites (scriptlance etc) and niche / skill specific sites (Joomlance, 99designs etc).

For ease of comprehension, I have tabulated the features offered by these top 6. I will build up on this review in another post by writing about how to enter a freelance marketspace as a newbie.

	Guru	Elance	LimeExchange	Rentacoder	Getafreelancer	oDesk
Rank	1	2	3	4	5	6
Membership	- Basic (Free)- 2 levels of paid	- Basic (Free) - 3 levels of paid	- Basic (Free) - 3 levels of paid	Free	- Basic (Free) - 1 level of paid	- Basic (Free) - 1 level of paid
Profile	Overview, Resume, Skills, Education, Experience, References, Photos, Videos, Portfolio	Overview, Resume, Skills, Education, Experience, References, Photos, Videos, Portfolio	Overview, Resume, Skills, Education, Experience, References, Photos, Videos, Portfolio	Resume, Skills (2 fields only)	Overview, Skills	Overview, Resume, Skills, Education, Experience, References, Photos, Videos, Portfolio
Project Fee	Fixed	Fixed	Fixed	- Fixed - Hourly	Fixed	- Fixed - Hourly
Skill Testing	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Project Types	- Open- Invite Only - Guru Vendors only (highest paid plan) - Geographical Region specific (others can bid though)	- Open - Invite only - Select Providers (highest paid plan)	- Open - Invite only - Vantage Members (highest paid plan)	- Open - Invite only - Geographical Region specific (others can’t bid)	- Open - Invite only - Gold Members (highest paid plan)	- Fixed - Hourly
View Buyer History	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
HTML in bid proposal	Limited tags	Limited tags	No	Yes	No	No
PMB	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Bid Limit / month	- 10 (Basic) - 100 (paid)	- 3 (Basic) - 20 to 60 for paid members	- 10 (Basic) - 100 (paid)	Unlimited	Unlimited	2 to 20 per week
Payment Mode	- Invoice - Escrow	- Invoice - Escrow	Escrow Only	Escrow Only	- Invoice - Escrow	- Invoice - Escrow
Fee Calculator (Gross & Net Fee)	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes
Commission	- 5% on invoice - 7% in escrow	6.75% to 8.75%	4% to 8%	15%	- $5 / 10%  (whatever is higher) - 0% (Gold)	10%
Project Agreement (with milestones)	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
Bidders Visible	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes
Average Bid Amount Visible	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Minimum Bid	$25	$30	No minimum	No minimum	No minimum	No minimum
Arbitration	Only escrow	Only escrow		Yes	No	For Hourly Projects Only
Payment Withdrawl Options	- Check - Bank Transfer - Paypal - Payoneer	- Check - Wire Transfer - Paypal - Payoneer - ACH	- Check - Wire Transfer - Paypal - Payoneer - Moneybookers	- Check - Wire Transfer - Paypal - Moneybookers	- Wire Transfer - Paypal - Payoneer - Moneybookers	- ACH - Wire Transfer - Paypal - Payoneer - Moneybookers
Unique Features	- Simple interface - Package deals - Proposal templates - Work Room	- Pioneer -Keywords for search results depends on  member type	- Coupon codes for hosting etc from Limedomains - Payment from other sites considered for ranking	- Thorough buyer verification		Desktop App to log hours worked

I would love to hear what you think about these sites and ofcourse this comparison.

Here’s how it works:

How Online Freelance Marketspaces Work

1. Bidding Stage. Registered buyer posts a project (e.g. Web Design for Restaurant) with detailed description, budget, deadlines and other conditions or even questions. Registered freelancers / service providers places bid on the project with fees, payment terms, project proposal, experience or list past projects done, perhaps some samples and turnaround time.

2. Project Discussion Stage. Buyer and freelancer/s discuss the requirements and other details before awarding / accepting the project. e.g. buyer may ask some questions regarding the features required or the freelancer may have a query regarding the buyer’s deadline. As a freelancer, you must clarify all aspects to avoid frustrations and wastage of time later.

3. Project Award Stage. After reading all the proposals and discussion, the buyer has finally decided to go ahead with a freelancer and awards the project to her. The selected freelancer accepts / rejects the project. Some sites like Guru.com require you to upload a contract / agreement before you ask for the money to be paid into escrow.

4. Escrow Stage. Escrow works by placing money in the control of an independent and licensed 3rd party (in this case the freelance marketspace)  in order to protect both buyer and freelancer in a transaction. When both parties verify that the project has been completed as per terms set, the money is released. If at any point there is a dispute between the parties in the project, the process moves along to dispute resolution. The outcome of the dispute resolution process will decide what happens to money in escrow. Simply put escrow protects the interest of buyer as well as the freelancer. This is not mandatory on some sites like Guru.com, which allows the freelancer to invoice the buyer after project is completed, payment of which is not guaranteed by anyone.

5. Work in Progress. The freelancer gets on the job and provides feedback to the client / buyer about its progress, perhaps sends drafts / comps along the way for approval.Buyer may ask for changes or could enhance the scope of the project midway – this may / may not attract additional cost.

6. Project Completion. After the project is deemed complete by the freelancer s/he uploads / sends via email or other means, the project deliverables (website files, article in MS Word etc). The buyer, after review of the deliverables, may request some changes / amendments or enhancements before finally accepting the project as complete.

7. Payment Release. The buyer releases the payment in escrow or pays the invoice as might be the case.

8. Rate / Provide Feedback. Here the buyer as well as the freelancer provide feedback on each other and rate them (usually a 5 star or 10 point system). This is vital for the freelancers in bagging future projects as employers will in most cases will look at your ratings first.

The exact process might vary to a degree for some sites. Be sure to read and understand before you begin on that marketspace.