The rules
How Kestro works
One mechanic across the whole platform: money moves only when the work moves.
From a brief to an accepted result
- 01
Top up your balance
Your balance is what funds projects. Top-ups go through a payment provider — card or SEPA transfer.
- 02
Describe the job
Title, brief, budget and skills. The project appears in the directory straight away.
- 03
Read the proposals
Each one carries a price, a delivery time and a cover letter. Shortlist the ones worth a second look.
- 04
Hire someone
At that moment the budget leaves your balance and is locked in escrow until the work is done.
- 05
Accept the work
Accept it and escrow goes to the freelancer. If the result is wrong, open a dispute instead.
From a profile to a payout
- 01
Fill in your profile
What you do, your skills, your rate and your portfolio. This is how clients find you.
- 02
Apply to projects
Your price, your timeline, and a letter that shows you understood the brief.
- 03
Wait for escrow
The moment you are hired, the amount is already held on the platform. Your contract shows it.
- 04
Deliver the work
Mark the contract delivered. The client then has to accept the result.
- 05
Withdraw your money
Once accepted, the amount minus the 8% fee lands on your balance — then out to a card or by SEPA transfer.
When the two sides cannot agree
Who opens one
Either side. The freelancer when the work is done and no approval comes. The client when what was delivered does not match the brief.
What happens to the money
Escrow stays frozen. Neither side can take the amount until arbitration has ruled.
How it is settled
An administrator reads the messages, reviews what was delivered, and sees the amount. The ruling: pay the freelancer, refund the client, or split it.
The platform fee
8% is taken from escrow at the moment the freelancer is paid. Posting projects, sending proposals and messaging are free.