Purpose
This SOP sets up a Claude connector workflow that checks Upwork for new jobs on a schedule, filters them against your own criteria, and drafts a proposal for anything that qualifies. You review and approve before anything goes out. Nothing sends itself, and nothing pings you unless there is a real match.
Who this is for
Freelancers and agency owners who post or bid on Upwork regularly and want a standing job scan running in the background instead of refreshing the feed manually.
Tools needed
| Tool | Role |
|---|---|
| Claude (claude.ai) | Runs the scheduled task and the matching logic |
| Upwork connector | Community connector that gives Claude read access to your job feed and freelancer dashboard |
| Your Upwork account | The account being monitored and bid from |
Procedure
Open Connectors in your project
- a.Go to Projects in Claude.
- b.Open the project you want this workflow to live in, or create a new one for it.
- c.Click Customize, then Connectors.
Connect your Upwork account
- a.Search Upwork in the connector list. It is listed as a community connector.
- b.Click connect and sign in with your Upwork credentials when prompted.
- c.Confirm the connection is active before moving to the next step.
Note
Community connectors are built by third parties, not by Anthropic. Only connect accounts you are comfortable granting read access to.
Set your matching criteria
Before Claude can filter anything, it needs to know what a good job looks like to you. Give it, in plain language:
- The job categories or keywords you want it to watch for
- A minimum client hire rate, the floor below which a job gets skipped regardless of fit
- Any budget range or contract type you want it to respect
Claude uses this to pull the freelancer dashboard on each matching listing and check the client's hire rate against your floor before deciding whether it counts as a real match.
Create the scheduled task
- a.Ask Claude to set up a recurring task that checks Upwork for new jobs roughly every hour.
- b.Point the task at the criteria you defined in step 3.
- c.Confirm the schedule is active. Claude will now run this check on its own, with no manual trigger from you.
Set the approval step
- a.Tell Claude that when a job clears your criteria, it should write a draft proposal, not send one.
- b.Have it hold the draft and notify you for approval before anything reaches the client.
- c.Review, edit if needed, and approve. This is the only point where a proposal actually goes out.
Important
Claude does not send proposals on its own at any point in this setup. Every send goes through your approval first.
Confirm the no-match behavior
When a run finds nothing that clears your hire rate floor or matching rules, Claude should log what it checked and stop there. No notification, no noise. You only hear from it when a job is actually worth your time.
FAQs
Does Claude send proposals on its own?
No. It drafts the proposal and holds it for your approval before anything is sent to a client.
What happens when no job matches my criteria?
Claude logs what it found and moves on. You are not notified unless a job clears your hire rate floor and matching rules.
How often does Claude check for new jobs?
Roughly every hour, on the schedule you set in step 4, with no manual trigger needed from you.
Where do I find the Upwork connector?
Inside a project: Customize then Connectors, then search for Upwork. It is listed as a community connector.
Troubleshooting
Upwork does not appear in the connector search
Community connectors can change availability by region or plan. Try refreshing the connector list, or check your account's connector settings directly for a manual add option.
The scheduled task is not running hourly
Reopen the task settings and confirm the recurrence is saved as hourly, not a one-time run. Some task setups default to a single execution unless a repeat interval is explicitly set.
Claude is surfacing jobs below the hire rate floor
Restate the floor as an explicit numeric threshold rather than a general instruction, for example "only proceed if client hire rate is above 90 percent," so there is no ambiguity in the check.
Draft proposals are sending without approval
Revisit step 5 and confirm the task instructions explicitly separate drafting from sending, with your approval as a required gate in between.
Version history
| Version | Date | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | September 2026 | Initial SOP created |