Upwork — 236 certified H-1B filings (FY2016–FY2026)
- 14
- Filings · FY2025
- $224k
- Median base · FY2025
- Analyst
- Top role · 9 all-time
- CA
- Top state · 185 all-time
Upwork filed 14 certified H-1B LCAs in FY2025 (down 44% from the year before), with a median base salary of $224k and the middle 50% of offers between $200k and $265k. That is 20% above the market median for the same job titles. Across all years it has 236 certified filings since FY2016, most often for Analyst in California.
How much does Upwork pay H-1B workers?
Certified base salary by fiscal year: each box is the p25–p75 range, the heavy line the median, the whiskers reach p10–p90. $224k median in FY2025. Base pay only — hover a year for its figures.
How has Upwork's H-1B hiring changed by year?
16 certified filings in FY2016 → 7 in FY2026. The change column is each year against the one before.
| Fiscal year | Filings | vs prior FY | Median base |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 7 | −50% | $248k |
| FY2025 | 14 | −44% | $224k |
| FY2024 | 25 | +9% | $190k |
| FY2023 | 23 | −34% | $190k |
| FY2022 | 35 | +30% | $184k |
| FY2021 | 27 | +23% | $129k |
| FY2020 | 22 | −19% | $150k |
| FY2019 | 27 | +13% | $120k |
| FY2018 | 24 | +50% | $149k |
| FY2017 | 16 | 0% | $125k |
| FY2016 | 16 | — | $125k |
Which wage levels does Upwork file?
DOL prevailing-wage levels I–IV approximate experience tiers (I = entry, IV = fully competent). 70% of Upwork's filings sit at Level III–IV. A heavy I–II skew reads as entry-level or contractor-style hiring; a heavy IV skew as senior in-house roles — and higher levels earn more lottery entries.
Share of 214 filings with a wage level · all years
- Level I4.7%10
- Level II25.7%55
- Level III23.8%51
- Level IV45.8%98
What jobs does Upwork sponsor for H-1B?
The most-filed job titles across all years (DOL titles, employer pay-grade codes stripped), with base-salary percentiles.
| Job title | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Analyst | 9 | $100k |
| Senior Software Engineer | 7 | $145k |
| Senior Product Manager | 5 | $196k |
| Data Scientist | 4 | $144k |
| Senior Product Manager, Payments | 4 | $200k |
| Senior Product Designer | 4 | $135k |
| Treasury Analyst | 3 | $78k |
| Senior Data Engineer | 3 | $185k |
| Systems Analyst | 3 | $105k |
| Growth Engineer | 3 | $140k |
Where does Upwork hire H-1B workers?
Worksite states on the certified filings, all years. Deeper pink = more filings; hover a state for its figures.
| State | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| CA | 185 | $160k |
| WA | 15 | $200k |
| TX | 11 | $160k |
| IL | 11 | $110k |
| MA | 3 | $140k |
| PA | 3 | $145k |
| MD | 2 | $116k |
| GA | 2 | $128k |
| VA | 1 | $173k |
| AZ | 1 | $185k |
What has Upwork filed recently?
The 50 most recent of 236 certified LCAs: job title, worksite, prevailing-wage level and the offered base salary.
Common questions about Upwork's H-1B filings
- How much does Upwork pay H-1B workers?
- Upwork's median certified H-1B base salary is $224k (FY2025), from 14 filings. See the full salary distribution and percentiles above.
- How many H-1B workers does Upwork sponsor?
- Upwork has 236 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications on record (FY2016–FY2026).
- What jobs does Upwork sponsor for H-1B?
- Upwork's most-sponsored H-1B roles include Analyst, Senior Software Engineer, Senior Product Manager, Data Scientist.
- Where does Upwork hire H-1B workers?
- Upwork's top H-1B worksite states are CA, WA, TX, IL.
- Does a certified LCA mean an H-1B visa was approved?
- No. A Labor Condition Application (LCA) is the Department of Labor attestation an employer must have certified before filing an H-1B petition with USCIS. It records the job, worksite and offered wage, but not whether the petition was filed, selected in the lottery, or approved. Filing counts measure intent to sponsor, not headcount.
- What salary do these figures show?
- The base annual wage offered on the certified LCA, converted to a yearly amount. Bonus, equity, overtime and benefits are not included, so total compensation is typically higher. Figures are medians and percentiles over certified filings; wages above $5,000,000 a year are excluded as data-entry errors.
- What do prevailing-wage levels I–IV mean?
- The Department of Labor assigns each LCA an OES wage level from I (entry) to IV (fully competent) for the occupation and area. Under the FY2027 wage-weighted H-1B lottery rule, a higher level earns more selection entries, so an employer's level mix is a proxy for how senior its sponsored roles are.
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Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification — certified LCA disclosure data through June 2026 (FY2016–FY2026). An LCA is not an approved visa; pay figures are base salary and exclude bonus and equity. Methodology →