Upwork (UPWK) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 revenue was $185.6M, down 8% YoY, and GSV was $914.1M, down 10%; net income rose to $31.8M and adjusted EBITDA increased 7% to $63.8M.

• Strategy prioritizes higher-value, more complex work and growth across Enterprise, SMB and AI-enabled channels, including Business Plus, Lifted and the MCP server.

Financial highlights

• Q3 revenue was $185.6M versus $201.7M a year earlier; nine-month revenue was $572.7M versus $589.4M.

• Q3 net income was $31.8M and diluted EPS was $0.25, versus $29.3M and $0.21; nine-month net income was $88.7M versus $99.8M.

• Adjusted EBITDA was $63.8M in Q3 and $185.3M in nine months, up 7% in both periods; Q3 adjusted EBITDA margin was 34.4%.

• Q3 free cash flow was $53.9M, or 84.4% of adjusted EBITDA; nine-month free cash flow was $102.7M versus $165.8M.

• Q3 non-GAAP operating expenses were $84M, or 45% of revenue, versus 50% a year earlier.

Outlook and guidance

• FY 2026 revenue guidance is $742M–$750M, including ~$4M from WorkMotion in Q4 and offset by a lower-margin Managed Services project leaving the platform.

• FY 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance is $236M–$240M, with 32% margin at midpoint; non-GAAP diluted EPS guidance is $1.45–$1.47.

• Q4 guidance is revenue of $169M–$177M, adjusted EBITDA of $51M–$55M and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.30–$0.32.

• GSV, active clients and revenue are expected to remain pressured through year-end; cost reductions are expected to support adjusted EBITDA growth.

• Growth is expected to face headwinds in H1 2027 and improve in H2; Lifted mix and WorkMotion integration may dilute adjusted EBITDA margin by 3–4 points.