Shortlisted proposal

Shortlisting is one of five actions a client can take on a proposal in Upwork's review screen, alongside reaching out to the freelancer, hiring, declining and archiving. Upwork organises the client's view by those actions, with tabs for Shortlisted, Messaged and Archived proposals, plus an Invited tab for the invitations the client sent.

What the freelancer can see. The client-side article does not say that a freelancer is told when they are shortlisted. The signal reaches freelancers in aggregate: proposal insights, for Freelancer Plus accounts, break a job's organic proposals into how many the client opened, shortlisted and messaged. Those counts update hourly and leave out invitations.

What it costs a boosted proposal. Shortlisting counts as an interaction. If a client shortlists a boosted proposal while it sits in a boosted slot, the boost Connects are charged, the same as for an open, a message, an offer, an archive or a decline.

What it means for the bidder. A shortlist is intent without commitment. It says the client wants to come back to the proposal, not that they wrote to you, so it is not a reply and does not belong in a reply rate. It is a reason to keep the proposal's terms competitive and to answer fast when the message does come.

Where it fits in the funnel. Opened, shortlisted and messaged are three steps of the same review, and a job's insights show how far down that path the client has gone. A job with many opens and no shortlist is a client still looking; a shortlist with no messages is a decision being prepared.