Who Pays Writers in 2025? Target the Right Client Types

Who pays writers these days? When it feels like freelance writing jobs can be hard to come by, it’s easy to get discouraged. But it’s not always a lack of gigs so much as a lack of imagination… not looking in the right places, or perhaps not in enough places.

Think about the type of writing you want to pursue, then look at who you’ve already targeted or worked with. If they’re not hiring right now, chances are good someone else is. But who?

Who Pays Writers? Clients Who Work with Freelance Writers

Who hires freelance writers? Pretty much any type of organization you can imagine. And individuals on top of those.

Big business, small business, nonprofits, for-profits, solopreneurs, artists, authors. And of course magazines, newspapers, and digital publications like blogs are all potential clients.

But what exactly do each of these client groups hire freelance writers to do? Let’s break it down to help you find new target markets that might be a good fit.

For each client group we’ll look at example project types they pay writers for, benefits of working with them, some downsides and other things you might want to consider, and how you can find clients in each category.

Who Pays Writers? - Corporate Clients

Corporate clients can be great for freelance writers. Different departments can have different needs—PR, internal communications, advertising, marketing, etc.—making it almost like having multiple clients in one.

Corporations come in all sizes, but for our purposes, we’re talking about mid-to-large corporations here.

Freelance Writing Projects for Corporate Clients

Web copywriting (website copy, landing pages, etc.)
Print copywriting (brochures, product packaging copy, etc.)
PR writing (press releases, backgrounders, corporate bios, etc.)
Email marketing copy
White papers
Case Studies
Other reports (trend reports, annual reports, etc.)
Ghostwriting

NOTE: One of my own favorite project types over the years was ghostwriting features for trade publications for corporate clients. I generally did this through a middleman client (which we’ll get to), but end clients ranged from an energy company CEO to a company specializing in custom closet solutions. The opportunities for corporate ghostwriting are practically endless.

Benefits of Working with Corporate Clients

Corporate clients may have big budgets (but that's not a guarantee).
Well-known corporate clients can lead to impressive bylined portfolio pieces.
Corporate clients may offer consistent projects (and possibly retainers).
There’s less risk of corporate clients disappearing without payment (though it can still happen).

TIP: Sometimes corporate client departments will have budgets that need to be used by the end of the company’s fiscal year. Otherwise, they risk having their budget cut the following year.

Know when your clients’ fiscal year ends, and be prepared to pitch your contacts on relevant work beforehand.

Other Considerations When Working with Corporate Clients

Budgets are not always tied to the size of the client, but to a specific department. So “big company” doesn’t always equal “big budget.”
“Approval by committee” can slow down the work process by requiring input or approval from several individuals.
Corporate clients can sometimes try to dictate your rates and / or payment policies.
They might try to treat you like an employee rather than a freelancer / business owner (misclassification).

How to Find Corporate Clients Hiring Freelance Writers

Search traditional job boards.
Search applicant tracking systems (Jobvite, Greenhouse, Lever.co, etc.) – services companies use to post internal jobs and accept applications.
Reach out to colleagues about referrals.
Seek referrals from past clients or employers (you might even freelance for a former employer on a more limited basis).
Look for people in a hiring position on LinkedIn (Head of Content, VP of content, Marketing Manager, Communications Director, etc.) and reach out to see if they need help on an upcoming project.
Build your own reputation with your freelance writer platform to help attract corporate clients.

TIP: To search ATS job boards, use a custom Google search for their domains.

For example, to find companies looking to hire a writer via Greenhouse, Google (without the quotes) “writer site:greenhouse.io” or something similar.

Who Pays Writers? Middlemen Clients

Middlemen clients can offer lucrative freelance writing opportunities. These are service-oriented companies that have clients of their own. But they don't have in-house staff to handle the writing side of their clients' projects (or they might have increased demand and need extra help).

Middlemen clients can include agencies and firms, or other independent contractors who subcontract writing to you. Here are some common examples of middlemen clients you might work with as a freelance writer:

PR firms
Marketing agencies
SEO agencies
Advertising agencies
Graphic designers
Web designers

Freelance Writing Projects for Middlemen Clients

Copy for specific campaigns the agency is working on
Design-centric copy (print marketing collateral, etc.)
Blog posts for the agency’s clients (especially for SEO firms)
Press releases (for PR and marketing agencies’ clients)

Benefits of Working with Middlemen Clients

They can offer a wide variety of project types even with a single client.
Others may offer consistency of one project type (press releases or SEO content for many of the agency's own clients, for example).
You'll have the opportunity to learn from designers, marketing pros, PR pros, etc. to pick up value-added skills for future work.
Middlemen clients can present case study opportunities to promote your business as agencies can be good about tracking metrics for their own case studies.
Work can come to you instead of you seeking it out when you build long-term relationships with middlemen clients. Every time they land a new client, you potentially land a new project too.

Other Considerations When Working with Middlemen Clients

Some middlemen clients might expect discounts if they bring you bulk work.
You'll rarely earn the full project fee because middlemen clients mark up your work when billing their own clients (so you do leave money on the table).
Non-compete clauses aren't uncommon. This means you can’t try to poach the firm’s clients to work with them independently, cutting the middleman client out.
You might have less interaction with the end clients (depends on the middleman client).
Middlemen clients might not offer bylines. The end client might not even know you’re sub-contracted to do the work.

How to Find Middlemen Clients Hiring Freelance Writers

Check traditional job boards, and include terms like "agency" in your search. Narrow your search to contract roles as well.
Search for marketing agencies, SEO firms, web designers, etc. in your local area. Reach out and introduce yourself, letting them know you're available if they ever need a subcontractor.
Reach out similarly to non-local agencies. See who's sought out freelance writers in the past (such as on LinkedIn) and introduce yourself.
Ask for referrals. If a direct client used a design firm, marketing agency, etc. for other work, ask if they'll make an introduction.

Who Pays Writers? - Small Business Clients

I've worked with small businesses (and solopreneurs, which we'll get to soon) for most of my career. And there are misconceptions you should know about.

The most important misconception is about money. Don't assume small business = small budgets. It simply isn't true.

If anything, in my experience, when you work with owners of small businesses, they're often more willing to part with money to get something done right the first time than larger clients that push for more for less.

If you haven't considered adding small business clients to your roster, maybe it's time to give them another look.

Freelance Writing Projects for Small Business Clients

Thought leadership pieces for the owner (including ghostwriting blog posts)
Website copy
Marketing collateral
Newsletters
Reports
E-books

Benefits of Working with Small Business Clients

You often work directly with the owner or another key decision maker, so things can get moving fast.
With small business clients, you can take on more of a consulting role at times (for added hourly pay).
There's satisfaction in seeing direct results of your work, often quickly. You're there to see the business grow, and you play a part in that.

Other Considerations When Working with Small Business Clients

Sometimes you'll have over-reliant clients (might expect you to be as focused on their business as they are). You want to set clear boundaries.
You might need to educate clients more when they don’t have dedicated staff for certain functions.
Budgets aren't always huge, but small business clients can still pay better than large corporate clients, and more often than you might assume. The catch? You need to convince them there's a worthwhile ROI on your work, and then you need to deliver.

How to Find Small Business Clients Hiring Freelance Writers

Keep an eye on local businesses. Look for opportunities to help them create or improve their website copy, marketing collateral, or something else. Then pitch them.
If you want to work with small online businesses, look for online business and marketing communities (forums, social media communities, etc.) and connect.
As always, check traditional job boards.
Or you can follow my long-time query-free freelancing approach of using PR and inbound marketing to attract clients rather than pitch them.

Who Pays Writers? – Solopreneurs & Fellow Creative Pros

Now we're talking about the smallest of small businesses -- solopreneurs and independent creative professionals. This is when you work one-on-one with someone building a similar career to your own as a freelancer.

I love one-on-one work as a writer. My first experience with this goes all the way back to 1999, working for a professor while still in college. I later ran a music PR firm where I worked with indie artists on a mix of consulting, campaign management, and writing. That work expanded to helping other creative professionals (like authors, working with them on book marketing and author PR) and solopreneurs building online businesses.

To this day, just over 25 years later, solopreneurs and my fellow creative pros are still some of my favorite clients to work with. Don't overlook them.

Freelance Writing Projects for Independent Professionals

Ghostwriting (such as thought leadership content in the solopreneur’s name)
Website copy
Social media writing
Email newsletters
Premium content (e-books, course content, membership site materials, etc.) and copy to promote it
Press kits (for musicians, authors, speakers, etc.)
Books (ghostwritten or co-written)
Pitch decks (if it’s a solo founder seeking early funding)
Product copy (album cover copy, book cover copy, etc.)
Video scripts (YouTube, TikTok, etc.)

Benefits of Working with Solopreneurs & Independent Creative Pros

You have significant creative freedom in many cases. And when not, the collaboration with a fellow solopreneur or creative can be stimulating work.
You have the ability to consult and advise rather than simply being handed a project brief and sent on your way.
Sometimes, you can get access to more metrics than larger clients might be willing to share, giving you more insight into results (and great case study material).
You work directly with the decision-maker.
The relationship can be friendly and casual, with the potential for it to grow as the business does.

Other Considerations When Working with Solopreneurs & Creatives

Solopreneurs often have limited budgets. (But not always!)
There can be relatively unstructured work in many cases. You sometimes have to be the more professional one enforcing deadlines, meeting schedules, and such.
Things can sometimes be too informal, such as them not wanting to put things in writing or trying to get you to do "favors" for them (unpaid work) because they start to view you as a friend.
There's a bigger risk of non-payment. Though, in 25+ years of doing this, I've only ever had one client not pay, and it was for a very small project not worth chasing down anymore. Most are good, honest people who pay what they owe.
There can be unrealistic expectations from clients who don’t understand things like SEO taking time or PR not having guaranteed results.

NOTE: Don't assume solopreneurs or creative professionals can't afford you. While, yes, many have limited budgets, it can depend heavily on the type of pro they are.

In my long history working with this client group, my experience tells me that while musicians and authors tend to have tighter budgets, online entrepreneurs (even the solopreneurs) can have significant funding due to being serial entrepreneurs in the earliest phase of a new project.

That said, even with creative pros, budgets vary wildly.

How to Find Independent Clients Hiring Freelance Writers

Check the traditional job boards, but know these kinds of clients are less likely to look for writers there than others.
Become a part of niche communities (but make sure they allow marketing). Author communities if you want to write book cover copy. Musician communities if you want to write album launch press releases or create media kits. Online marketing communities if want to find web designers, independent marketers, or other freelancers you can work with.
Networking events (not just with other writers, but with the types of independent professionals you want to work with -- like a real estate event if you want to write copy for real estate agents' websites).
Network. Network. Network! From PR consulting to freelance writing, I've found some of my favorite solopreneur and creative pro clients through networking and referrals.
And again, consider the query-free, inbound approach. Make yourself visible. Publish your own thought leadership content. When you're a recognized expert in your area of specialty, independent clients will find you.

Who Pays Writers? – Nonprofit Clients

While I don't regret leaving a nonprofit career to launch my own business, I do miss some of the projects. The event planning was fun. But I especially enjoyed writing newsletter content and PSA scripts.

If you're looking for more mission-focused freelance writing gigs, nonprofit clients might offer projects that are a good fit. Here are some examples of what these organizations might be willing to hire you to take on.

Freelance Writing Projects for Nonprofit Clients

Grant proposal writing
Newsletters (email and print)
Fundraising letters or scripts
PSA scripts (public service announcements)
Reports
Web copy
Blog posts
Social media updates

Benefits of Working with Nonprofit Clients

You get to support causes you care about. (This isn't a requirement though. You don't have to be passionate about every organization you work with for them to be worthwhile gigs.)
Initiatives can often be campaign-based, and that can mean multiple projects per campaign.
You can find a diverse set of projects to take on. It never has to get boring.
Decent pay. Remember, nonprofit does not mean non-paying!

Other Considerations When Working with Nonprofit Clients

Yes, you might feel pressured to offer unpaid labor (especially of others doing regular work for the organization are volunteers).
Bureaucracy can delay projects (depending on the organization’s size and structure). – This is partly why I left nonprofit PR to go into business for myself. I didn't like the waste I saw, and things moved much too slowly.
You might work alongside volunteers. This isn't inherently bad, but it might mean limited availability on their end, making it tougher to keep projects moving.
Your work might depend on grants and the funding might be unreliable.
You might have to wait around on boards to approve projects, drafts, and payments.

How to Find Nonprofit Clients Hiring Freelance Writers

Reach out to local nonprofits you’d like to work with directly.
Browse nonprofit-focused job boards like Idealist.org.
Search traditional job boards (like Indeed or LinkedIn Jobs).

Who Pays Writers? - Blogs

Blogs and other digital publications also often hire freelance writers. This is another favorite client type of mine, though I don't do a lot of bylined blogging for publication-style blogs anymore.

My preference is thought leadership ghost blogging for business blogs. Why? $$$

But that's not to say you can't do well financially with more traditional freelance blogging jobs.

Also, don't make the mistake of thinking blog-publisher clients only hire freelance writers for blog posts! Here are some of the project types they need:

Freelance Writing Projects for Blog Publishers

Blog posts (thought leadership, SEO articles, news-oriented articles, etc.)
Long-form content (e-books, longer guides and tutorials for the blog, etc.)
Web copy and landing pages to promote key products, services, and blog content
Email newsletters to promote the blog
Social media posts tied to blog content

Benefits of Working for (Publication-Style) Blogs

Often, though not always, you'll do bylined work.
You can get faster payments than you would with many print writing gigs.
You'll find a wide variety of post styles, niches, and client types you can pursue.
Freelance blogging work can be quick to find and complete compared to print writing alternatives.
There's always the possibility of retainers (monthly commitments).

TIP: I love retainer blogging clients. While I do this mostly for business blogs now, you can also set up retainers with publication-style blogs.

Retainers mean you get paid a set amount (such as monthly) to make yourself available to that client. You have a maximum workload covered by the retainer, such as a set number of posts.

If a client uses them all, great. They're covered, and you were paid up-front. If they don't, also great. You still keep your full payment because you committed your availability (meaning you couldn't pursue other clients to fill that time). If the client wants more than the covered number of posts, they pay extra for anything beyond what the retainer covers.

Securing just a few retainer blogging clients can give you a stable income source as a freelance writer. Just be careful not to over-commit to any one of them. You want a balance of regular clients, not a pseudo-employer where you would take a big hit if they decided not to renew their contract.

Other Considerations When Working for Blog Owners

This kind of work can present you with a lot of low-paying gigs (if you limit yourself to publicly-advertised options). That doesn't mean you have to take them, but it does mean there's a lot of garbage to sort through to find the gems.
These clients sometimes expect freelance writers to assist with marketing / promoting their own content. That's the blog owner's job. Unless you offer those services, and you're being paid extra for them, you might want to avoid those clients.
This kind of freelance blogging can sometimes require volume-based work (clients expecting dozens of posts per month with quick turnarounds) – Note: I highly recommend you don’t take these gigs; they’re a recipe for burnout.

None of this means freelance blogging for publication-style blogs is a bad thing. It just means you need to learn how to dig deeper and attract better clients than what you'll find advertised publicly.

How to Find Blogs Hiring Freelance Writers

Browse writers’ markets for blogs and other online publications hiring freelance writers.
Check freelance writing job boards, general job boards, or remote job boards. Don't expect to find many decent-paying options there, but once in a while you can get lucky.
Search Google for “write for us” pages. You do this broadly to find a wide variety of blogs that hire writers, or you can do a site search (include “site:website.com” in your search query) for a particular blog you want to write for.
Look into marketplace areas on forums targeting webmasters, digital marketers, and online entrepreneurs. This can be a good way to get "in" with early start-ups needing blog content.

Note: I do not recommend signing up for race-to-the-bottom freelance marketplaces to find blogging gigs.

Competition is high. Pay is generally low. And these marketplaces can lock you into ongoing fees and other terms that aren’t appropriate in a client-contractor relationship.

They also have a history of enabling the exploitation of freelancers, and the work you do for clients there won’t necessarily help you find better-paying work later.

Who Pays Writers? - Magazines

Better late than never, right? Of course magazines hire freelance writers, and for plenty of different article types. If building bylines in print publications is a goal of yours, pitching magazines might be a good way to go.

My magazine writing experience falls mostly in ghostwriting for trade magazines on behalf of business owners. If you go that route, projects can sometimes turn into a 2-for-1: writing queries for clients to pitch the publications, then writing the articles when pitches are approved.

Freelance Writing Projects for Magazines

Reported stories / investigative pieces
Feature articles
Profile pieces
Essays
Columns
Shorter departments

Benefits of Working with Magazine Clients

Bylines accompany many magazine articles. They can include some of the most prestigious bylines you'll earn.
Magazines can cover a wide variety of niches, industries, and audiences.
You'll often have longer lead times than with something like newspaper writing or blogging.
Building relationships with magazine editors can lead to regular assignments.

Other Considerations When Writing for Magazines

Payments can come slower if they're dependent on publication dates.
Writing for magazines can involve time-intensive querying with no guaranteed pay-off.
You might be asked to write on-spec.
Print publications can sometimes be inflexible when it comes to fees.

How to Find Magazines Hiring Freelance Writers

Browse writers’ market databases to find magazines’ submission guidelines.
Search Google for a niche, the word “magazine,” and something like “writers’ guidelines” or “submission guidelines.”
If you know specific magazines you’d like to write for, check their mastheads for editors’ names. Find the most appropriate editor, find their contact info (on the magazine’s website, on LinkedIn, or by using a search engine), then send them your pitch.
Do you know a freelance writing colleague who’s written for a magazine you’re interested in? Reach out and see if they’re willing to help you connect with an editor.
Keep an eye on social media accounts, blogs, and newsletters where magazines might put out calls for submissions.

Who Pays Writers? – Newspapers

Do you have dreams of being a hard-hitting reporter? Do you want to be more active in your local community through your freelance work? Maybe newspapers are a new client type you can pursue.

I know, newspapers (especially local ones) aren't exactly famous for paying well. But there are always exceptions, and these gigs could lead to more lucrative journalism gigs down the line.

Freelance Writing Projects for Newspapers

Local event coverage (town hall meetings, local school and sports events, etc.)
Breaking news stories
Features and human-interest stories

Benefits of Working with Newspapers

There's the potential for consistent work.
It's an opportunity to build bylines.
Build visibility in your local community (if you target other local clients).

Other Considerations When Writing for Newspapers

There can be tight deadlines compared to other assignments.
The gigs might require travel (such as for event coverage).
You might have less flexibility in your schedule (again, when considering things like event coverage).
Often newspaper writing comes with low pay (especially with local newspapers).

How to Find Newspapers Hiring Freelance Writers

Check journalism and media-focused job boards like JournalismJobs.com.
Visit the website of your local newspaper to see if they’re hiring.
Reach out to editors at the news outlets you’re interested in and pitch them directly.
Monitor social media (like LinkedIn) for job leads. Don’t only check job listings. On LinkedIn, search for posts where people mention they’re hiring reporters and journalists.
Not quite the same as newspapers, but search for "brand journalism" opportunities. This is when companies run their own publications, such as covering local news and issues for a particular community.

No list in this post is meant to be exhaustive. Each of these client types might have other benefits or drawbacks given your goals and experience. They might look for project types not mentioned here. And there are certainly more ways you can find freelance writing gigs with any of these groups.

This is meant to give you a place to start thinking about not only your existing clients, but other groups you might not have considered before.

So... who pays writers? Pretty much anyone!

Did this leave you with ideas of new client types to pursue? Were you held back by misconceptions (like the common assumption that small businesses have small budgets)? Have you pursued any of these types of clients in different ways than I mentioned here?

I'd love to hear your success stories about branching out to new markets. Share them in the comments!