How to build a freelancing platform in Bubble

A freelancing platform in Bubble is built by creating three main things: users with roles (client and freelancer), projects (job posts), and proposals (freelancer offers). Then you add workflows for posting jobs, submitting proposals, messaging, hiring, payments, and status changes. Bubble is well‑suited for this because you can model everything in the database and build logic with backend workflows, privacy rules, and Stripe integration.

Core Database Structure

You need a few main data types. Each type is a “table,” and each field is a “column.”

• User: fields like role (text), bio (text), skills (list of texts), rating (number).
• Project: title, description, budget, status, client (User), hired\_freelancer (User).
• Proposal: project (Project), freelancer (User), bid\_amount, message, status.
• Message: sender (User), receiver (User), text, related\_project (Project).

User Roles

Store role as a text field inside User (e.g. “client” or “freelancer”). Use conditional logic in the UI to show or hide buttons like Post Project or Submit Proposal.

Posting a Project

Create a popup/form. When user clicks Submit, run a Create a new thing workflow to create Project and attach Current User as client.

Submitting Proposals

On the Project page, show a form only when Current User’s role is freelancer. Workflow creates a Proposal and links it to Project and Current User.

Messaging System

Use a repeating group filtered by both sender and receiver. Each message is a separate Message item. Keep privacy rules strict so only involved users can see them.

Hiring Flow

Client selects a Proposal → workflow updates Project’s hired\_freelancer field and sets statuses (e.g. Project status = “In progress”).

Payments With Stripe

Use Stripe plugin or API Connector. Simplest flow is client pays upfront → money goes to your Stripe account → you later transfer to freelancer.

• Create Checkout Session using Bubble’s Stripe actions.
• Use a backend workflow with a Stripe webhook to detect payment success.
• Update Project status to “Paid”.

// Example Stripe webhook event payload you'll receive
{
  "type": "checkout.session.completed",
  "data": {
    "object": {
      "id": "cs_test_123",
      "payment_status": "paid"
    }
  }
}

Privacy Rules

• Projects: visible to everyone, but editable only by Project’s client.
• Proposals: visible only to freelancer who wrote it and the project’s client.
• Messages: visible only to sender or receiver.

Backend Workflows

Use them for Stripe webhooks, sending emails, and scheduled events (e.g. auto-closing expired projects). They run on the server and don’t require the user to be online.

Final Flow

Users sign up → clients post projects → freelancers submit proposals → clients hire → payment → messaging → completion. Each part is built with Bubble’s database + workflows + privacy rules + Stripe.