Yes. Collect 30 to 50 percent on signature, before the first hour of work. A $6,000 project with no deposit leaves $6,000 sitting on the freelancer's books. The same project with a 50 percent deposit puts $3,000 in the account on day one. Card fee at 2.9 percent is $87 on that deposit. $2,913 lands. The rest of the job can wait on a later invoice.

TL;DR

Bonsai found 29 percent of freelance invoices paid at least one day late, and invoices over $20,000 are three times more likely to be late than invoices under $100. QuickBooks' 2026 late-payments report put 59 percent of small businesses waiting on invoices 30 days or more, with $17.7K unpaid on average. A deposit does not change the fee. It changes how much unpaid work sits in the gap. Send the deposit invoice in the same session as the contract. Start work after it clears.

Why do freelance projects still start with $0 in the account?

A Brooklyn copywriter signs a $6,000 website rewrite on a Monday. The client is a mid-size brand. The contract says Net 30 after delivery. The copywriter spends three weeks on drafts, two rounds of edits, and a final pass. Invoice goes out Friday of week three. Cash, if it arrives on time, hits around day 51 from kickoff.

Rent is due on day 15. The copywriter puts $2,400 on a card. That is the pattern Plutio summarized from Bonsai and Clockify: 85 percent of freelancers see late payments at least occasionally, and 42 percent have missed personal bills because a client paid late.

None of that required a bad client. It required a $6,000 invoice with no money collected before the work started. Large invoices get paid late for the same reason. Bigger numbers trip more approvals. A deposit is a smaller number that moves first.

How much deposit should a freelancer ask for?

Thirty to 50 percent on signature is the range Colo described as the 2026 norm for freelance service work. Jobs under four weeks often use 50/50: half to start, half on delivery. Longer jobs keep 30 to 50 percent up front and split the rest across one to three milestones.

On a $6,000 job:

| Structure | Day 1 cash | Still at risk | 2.9% fee on day-1 invoice | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | No deposit, $6,000 at the end | $0 | $6,000 | $0 now, $174 later | | 30% deposit ($1,800) | $1,748 after fee | $4,200 | $52 | | 50% deposit ($3,000) | $2,913 after fee | $3,000 | $87 | | 50% + two $1,500 milestones | $2,913, then $1,457 twice | Last $1,500 | $87, then $43.50 twice |

The 2.9 percent fee is the same $174 whether the client pays once or three times. What changes is the calendar. The 50 percent structure funds week one. The no-deposit structure funds the client's AP queue.

Below 25 percent, the freelancer is still carrying most of the job. Above 50 percent, some clients stall. Fifty percent is the number most independent contractors already quote in public threads. Put it in the contract, not on a kickoff call.

When should the deposit invoice go out?

The same session as the signed contract. Not the next morning. Colo’s 2026 getting-paid guide is blunt on this: split "sign now" and "invoice tomorrow" and a share of deposits never arrive. Monday-morning cold feet is a cash-flow event, not a vibe.

A working sequence:

Client accepts the proposal.

Client signs the contract that names the deposit amount, the due date (a real date, not "upon receipt"), and the line that work starts after the deposit clears.

Deposit invoice goes out with a card payment link in the same email.

Work starts when the payment lands, not when the PDF is signed.

A $3,000 deposit at 2.9 percent is $87. The client pays $3,000. The freelancer receives $2,913. ACH is fine if the invoice still has a due date and work waits until the transfer clears.

How often freelancers should send invoices still applies after the deposit. Same-day invoicing on each milestone keeps the rest of the job from turning into another 51-day wait.

What if the client says deposits are not how they work?

Some AP teams will not pay until goods or files are received. That is a policy, not a law. A freelancer is not a bank. Net 30 versus due on receipt is the later fight. The first fight is whether any cash moves before labor does.

Options that still collect money early:

A smaller first invoice labeled "kickoff / discovery," due on receipt, with work paused until it clears.

A 30 percent deposit if 50 percent gets a hard no, then milestones so the last invoice is never the whole fee.

A kill fee in the same contract so a cancelled job does not zero out the hours already spent.

A client who will not put $1,800 down on a $6,000 job is telling the freelancer how the final $6,000 will go. Believe that.

New York’s Freelance Isn't Free Act still requires a written contract and payment within 30 days for covered work. A deposit does not replace that statute. It shrinks the unpaid balance the statute would have to chase.

Does taking a deposit look unprofessional?

No. Agencies invoice on signature as a default. Independent contractors who skip the deposit are the exception, usually because they are afraid the client will walk. Some will. Those are the clients who would have stretched the final invoice anyway.

What looks unprofessional is chasing a $6,000 balance for six weeks while the files already sit on the client's server. A deposit invoice with a card link is a one-line email. "Kickoff is booked once this $3,000 invoice clears. Link is in the invoice."

PayFly charges 2.9 percent flat per transaction, no monthly subscription. A $3,000 deposit costs $87. A $6,000 final invoice costs $174. Split or whole, the fee is the same percentage. The difference is whether week one is funded.

FAQ

Should a freelancer take a deposit before starting work?

Yes. Collect 30 to 50 percent on signature, before the first hour. A $6,000 project with no deposit leaves $6,000 at risk. The same project with a 50 percent deposit puts $3,000 in the account on day one. Card fee at 2.9 percent is $87 on that deposit, $2,913 landed.

What deposit percentage should a freelancer charge?

Thirty to 50 percent on signature. Jobs under four weeks often use 50/50. Longer jobs split the rest across milestones. Below 25 percent leaves too much unpaid work on the freelancer's books.

When should the deposit invoice go out?

The same session as the signed contract, not the next morning. Work starts after the deposit clears, not after the PDF is signed.

What if a client refuses to pay a deposit?

Treat a hard no as a cash-flow signal. Clients who will not put money down before work starts are the same clients who stretch Net 30. Offer a smaller first milestone if the relationship is new, then pause if that invoice sits.

Does a deposit cost the client extra on a card payment?

The freelancer pays the processor fee on a typical card invoice. A $3,000 deposit at 2.9 percent costs $87. The client pays $3,000. Splitting a $6,000 job into a deposit plus a final invoice does not change the total fee. It changes when cash arrives.

Send the first invoice at payfly.co.