How to build a freelancer marketplace in Bubble

A freelancer marketplace in Bubble is built by defining clear Data Types (Users, Projects, Proposals), setting up User Roles, creating workflows for posting jobs and sending proposals, and using privacy rules so each user only sees what they’re supposed to. You then connect payments (usually Stripe), build messaging with simple Things in the database, and automate actions with backend workflows. The key is to build small: jobs → proposals → messaging → payments → reviews.

Core Data Structure

Create these Data Types:

• User: fields: role (text), skills (list of text), bio (text), rating (number)
• Project: title, description, budget, status, client (User), hired\_freelancer (User)
• Proposal: project (Project), freelancer (User), cover\_letter (text), price (number), status
• Message: sender (User), receiver (User), proposal (Proposal), content (text)

This mirrors how Bubble expects relationships to work: link Things with fields of type Other Thing.

Posting Projects

On a “Post a Project” page, the submit button runs a workflow that creates a new Project with Current User as the client. Set privacy so only the client and hired freelancer can see all details.

Submitting Proposals

Add a “Submit Proposal” popup. The button triggers Create a new Proposal and links it to the Project and Current User (freelancer). You’ll display proposals using a Repeating Group filtered by Project = Current Page Project.

Messaging

A simple messaging system is just creating a new Message Thing each time the user clicks Send. A Repeating Group shows messages where proposal = Current Proposal, sorted by Created Date.

Payments (Stripe)

Use Bubble’s Stripe plugin. Charge the client by creating a Checkout Session referencing the proposal price. On success, update Project → status = “paid” and set hired\_freelancer.

// Example backend workflow webhook checker
// Triggered by Stripe "checkout.session.completed"
if (request.data.object.status === "complete") {
  // Update the Project in Bubble using the API
}

Reviews

After project completion, allow each side to create a “Review” Thing linked to the other user. Update user rating by calculating average in a backend workflow.