Paid video work, without losing a cut of it.

Businesses post what they need made. You browse the briefs, pitch for the ones you want, and agree a price directly with the client. Plumely doesn't take a percentage and doesn't sit between you and your money — which also means you're responsible for how you get paid.

You keep all of it

Most platforms take 10–20% and hold your payment for a clearing period. Plumely takes zero and holds nothing, because it isn't a payments company — it's an introduction. You invoice the client the way you already invoice clients.

  • No commission on any deal, at any volume.
  • No payment holds, no withdrawal thresholds, no currency spread.
  • Your rate is whatever you and the client agree. Plumely never sees it.

Prove you're real, for free

The hardest part of freelancing is convincing a stranger you're not going to disappear. Verification is free, takes a few minutes, and puts the proof on your profile as a fact with a date rather than a vague badge.

  • Connect your YouTube channel — proves you control the account that owns it, and shows your subscriber count if it's public.
  • Link back from your portfolio site or any social profile using a rel="me" link — the same open standard Mastodon uses.
  • Verify a domain you control, if you work under a studio name.
  • Each proof is single-use across the whole platform, so nobody can borrow your credibility for a second account.

How bidding works

A bid is a short pitch, not a price list. The clients who get good results are the ones who say what they'd actually do with the footage, so lead with that rather than with your day rate.

  • Reference the brief specifically — the generic template bids are obvious and they lose.
  • Attach two or three relevant pieces, not your whole reel.
  • Give a band or a starting point, and leave the number for the conversation.
  • Bids are metered — Pro includes five a month, extra ones are credits. That's deliberate: paying a little to bid is what keeps the brief list free of spray-and-pray applications.

Never pay a client. Ever.

This is the one rule worth memorising, because it's the scam that targets creators on every marketplace like this one. A legitimate client will never ask you to send them money before you start work.

  • No security deposits. No refundable equipment fees. No "registration" or "onboarding" charges. No buying software through a link they send you.
  • A payment screenshot is not a payment. Only confirm you've been paid once the money is in your own bank app.
  • If someone "overpays" and asks you to refund the difference, it's a forged transfer. Never refund it — tell them to reverse it through their bank.
  • Nobody legitimate pays for video editing in gift cards or crypto.
  • Report it. It costs you nothing and it's how the next person gets warned.

Protect yourself on the money side

Because payment happens off Plumely, we cannot recover it for you. The upside is you keep your full rate; the trade is that the usual freelancer discipline is on you.

  • Take an advance. 50% before you start is normal and it is not rude to ask.
  • Agree scope, revision count and deadline in writing before you open the project. The marketplace gives you a place to record it, timestamped.
  • Deliver watermarked or low-res drafts until the balance clears.
  • Check how long the client's account has existed and what they've verified. A brand-new unverified account offering an unusually good rate is the oldest signal there is.

And yes, you can edit it here

Plumely's editor is free, runs entirely in your browser and never uploads client footage anywhere — which is a genuinely useful thing to be able to promise a client handling anything sensitive. It's optional. Use whatever you already use.

FAQ

What does it cost to bid?+

Plumely Pro includes five bids a month; beyond that, bids are one-off credits. There is no commission on the work itself — the metering is the business model precisely so the deal isn't taxed.

Why do I have to pay to bid at all?+

Because free bidding produces spray-and-pray applications, which makes the brief list worthless for clients and then worthless for you. A small cost per bid is the cheapest anti-spam mechanism that exists, and it's why the briefs here get read.

Do I get a refund if I withdraw a bid?+

No. Otherwise the pattern becomes bidding on forty briefs and withdrawing the thirty-five that get ignored. You'll see this stated before you confirm.

How does Plumely handle my payment?+

It doesn't. You invoice and get paid directly by the client. That's why there's no cut — and why the precautions on this page matter.

Is verification free?+

Yes, all of it. Verification is what makes the marketplace work, so gating it behind a subscription would be self-defeating.

Do I need to use the Plumely editor?+

No. The marketplace and the editor are separate — plenty of people will use one and not the other.

Get in before the briefs pile up

Early creators get first look at the briefs in their categories.

Get early access →