Several people have mentioned Upwork positively in this thread (first I'd heard of it). Why don't you recommend it?

- because they take 20% of fees

- they treat freelancers badly

- there're also a lof of other kinds of downsides about working there. google "why upwork sucks". or "odesk sucks".

how do they treat freelancers badly?

Disclaimer: I have used it three times, made requirements clear, and paid workers fairly, and had no problems.. but I am interested to hear about others' experiences.

I've used it for a few years.

they've introduced job success, now those who know how it works more or less or newbies with an empty job history -- are the top freelancers, whereas those who have been there for a long time, for years -- at the bottom. Needless to say, upwork doesn't disclose the exact formula used to calculate your job success.

more over: upwork claims it's guaranteed 100% you get your money if a job is hourly paid. No. they still can take your money and return it to a client.

they're many good freelancers who have been banned for no wise reason, among them are the top ones.

there're many other insights.

That's a nice list, but are there actual reviews of the services ?

Maybe not full reviews, but a short summary of why you do/don't recommend them would be very informative.