When it comes to setting up a GigRadar setup, it's all about configuring your scanners and understanding the crucial role of the search function.

In this short article, we'll explore the importance of using the search feature effectively to discover relevant job opportunities.

The GigRadar platform, like Upwork, heavily relies on its search function to connect freelancers with the right gigs. While the GigRadar search may seem convenient, it's worth noting that it differs from Upwork.

To make things clearer, let's compare the search parameters of Upwork and GigRadar to help you understand their distinctions better:

Search Parameters	Upwork	GigRadar
Search type	Boolean Search	ElasticSearch
Advanced Search	✅	✅
Sorting job posts by new job posts	✅	✅
Sorting job posts by relevance	✅	✅
Sorting job posts by client spend	✅	✅
Sorting job posts by client rating	❌	✅
Filter By Category	✅	✅
Filter By Experience Level	✅	✅
Filter By Job type (fixed-hourly)	✅	✅
Filter By the Number of proposals	✅	❌
My Previous Client	✅	❌
Client's Hire History	✅	❌
Filter By the Client location	✅	✅
Filter By the Client's time zone	✅	❌
Filter By Project length	✅	✅
Filter By Hours per week	✅	✅
Filter By Connects needed	✅	❌
Filter By Contract-to-hire	✅	❌

Let's take a closer look at the different parameters that set these platforms apart:

Search Type

Upwork employs a boolean search, using words to denote commands such as AND and OR.

GigRadar, on the other hand, utilizes ElasticSearch, which relies on symbols to represent commands.

The main difference here is that you can use complex queries for most precise search:

Main Search Operators in GigRadar

🎯 Advanced Search

The Advanced Search function on Upwork provides a comprehensive set of fields for entering information, including options like "All of these words," "Any of these words," "Any of these words," "Exclude these words," "Title Search," and "Skills Search."

In contrast, GigRadar offers a similar set of features, although with a more streamlined approach.

Most of these fields have been replaced by syntax commands, simplifying the process.

You can find options such as:

"Include any of these words"
"Exclude all of these words"
"Title Search"
"Skills Search"

🔀 Sorting Job Posts

The most recent job posts are always visible on both Upwork and GigRadar.

In GigRadar, the "Preview Results" feature showcases all search results that match your criteria for up to 2 years (yes, most of the jobs that were removed on Upwork are still stored as snapshots in our database).

📙 Sorting by Relevance

Upwork features a specific switch for sorting by relevance, whereas GigRadar automatically presents the most relevant job posts based on your keywords and filters.

📙 Sorting by Client Spend

Upwork prioritizes clients who have spent the most based on your keywords and filters when you select this option.

In contrast, GigRadar allows you to set a specific client spending threshold and filter accordingly.

🥇 Sorting by Client Rating

Upwork displays clients with the best ratings based on your criteria when you choose this option:

In GigRadar, you can specify a particular rating that the client should have to filter job posts.

🔡 Filter by Job Type

Upwork offers a range of options for selecting both hourly and fixed-rate jobs.

GigRadar, however, lacks this choice and only allows filtering by minimum hourly rate or minimum fixed price budget.

Additionally, GigRadar offers filters for "Budget Placeholders" and "Unspecified Budget," which are not distinct filters on Upwork.

🔡 Filter by Client Info

Upwork provides two checkboxes for filtering by client information: "My previous clients" and "Payment verified."

GigRadar, in contrast, offers only the "Payment verified" filter.

📍 Filter by Client Location

Upwork provides a detailed filtering system based on regions, sub-regions, and countries.

GigRadar offers separate filtering options for regions and countries but does not combine them as comprehensively as Upwork.

However, using GigRadar, you can exclude certain countries from the search, which isn't an option on Upwork:

Keep these differences in mind when comparing search results on Upwork and GigRadar to adequately evaluate the search results.