Medium and Upwork are two completely different beasts. I'm pretty successful on Upwork and I've been on Medium for a decent amount of time. On Upwork -- it's work! Clients need something done and you're there to work, work, work, and deliver. The funny thing is that I started freelancing to get rid of corporations and a 9-5 job, but it turned out I started earning good money on Upwork only after I started doing work for big clients (corporations and big companies). Small clients simply didn't lead to consistent income. So, Upwork is work and then some more work, but it pays well. I never used Medium for income. I primarily use Medium to get new ideas and read interesting stuff. Why? The only way you can earn good money on Medium is by building a loyal base of followers. Not any followers, but those who really love your articles, and that's hard and takes time. Even having viral articles from time to time won't give you a consistent income. And even if you manage to build a good-size following, Medium's algorithm may award a few cents per article. Earnings on Medium fluctuate a lot. If you need money, stick with Upwork (provided you have the skills that other people need and you really know how to do things better than all other freelancers on Upwork - competition on Upwork is fierce). Stick with Medium only if you already have some money and can afford time to build loyal following (thousands of readers who really love you and your work). Hope this helps.