A US-based nonprofit providing free contract tools, educational resources, and policy advocacy for independent workers.
Freelancers Union is a nonprofit organization founded in 1995 that advocates for the rights and interests of independent workers in the United States. Unlike most tools in this directory, it's not a software product — it's an organization that happens to offer useful tools and resources as part of its mission. Membership is free, and the organization funds itself through insurance products and partnerships rather than subscription fees.
The contract creator tool walks you through a series of questions about your project — scope, payment terms, kill fee, revision limits, intellectual property ownership — and generates a plain-language contract based on your answers. The output is a Word document you can edit further before sending. It's not as polished as AND.CO's workflow, and it doesn't include e-signature functionality, but the contract language is solid and the tool is genuinely free with no account required for basic use.
The resource library covers topics that matter to freelancers but are rarely addressed in one place: what to do when a client doesn't pay, how to handle taxes as a self-employed person, how to negotiate rates, and how to evaluate health insurance options. The guides are written for a general audience rather than legal professionals, which makes them accessible. The tax content is particularly useful for freelancers new to self-employment who aren't yet working with an accountant.
Freelancers Union has been involved in pushing for legislation that protects independent workers, including the Freelance Isn't Free Act in New York City, which requires written contracts for freelance work above a certain dollar threshold and provides legal recourse for non-payment. This kind of policy work doesn't directly help you today, but it represents a meaningful long-term benefit to the freelance community.
Almost everything Freelancers Union offers is specific to the United States — the contract templates reference US law, the tax guides cover US self-employment tax, and the health insurance options are US-based. If you're a freelancer based outside the US, the contract creator and educational content may still be useful as a starting point, but you'll need to verify that the legal framework applies in your jurisdiction. The advocacy work is entirely US-focused.