When you’re first starting out as a freelance writer, you don’t have clips to show clients. I always tell new writers that if they want a good place to publish their work where it will look professional, Medium is a choice. Post your best stuff there and you’ll have instant clips you can show off to potential clients. (BTW, LinkedIn is another good option.)

You can even get paid for posting on Medium, if you join the Medium Partner Program. All you have to do is sign up, then tick on the distribution and earnings setting before you publish the piece. Here’s what you need to know, no matter if you are a new freelance writer or a seasoned one.

Will you really make anything?

How realistic is it that you’ll earn money from a site you’re primarily using as a portfolio for your work until you get published by paying clients? Well, every month Medium releases stats about who’s earning what.

According to Medium, in October 2018:

59.1% of authors or publications who wrote at least one story for members earned money.

9.1% of active authors earned over $100.

$8,745.25 was the most earned by an author, and $2,203.91 was the most earned for a single story.

Fast forward to March 2019:

55% of writers or publications who wrote at least one story for members earned money.
7.5% of active writers earned over $100.
$9,707.36 was the most earned by a writer, and $3,702.39 was the most earned for a single story.

And in September 2020:

68.7% of writers or publications who wrote at least one story for members earned money.

6.4% of active writers earned over $100.

$49,705.40 was the most earned by a writer, and $16,685.5 was the most earned for a single story.

That’s better than a lot of pay-per-view or -click sites, at least in my experience.

How to use the Medium Partner Program if you are an established writer

For seasoned writers, you probably have plenty of clips to show clients. For you, Medium is a good place to post articles that were rejected by clients or that you just can’t seem to find a home for. Having the chance of earning is better than them rotting away in a folder on your hard drive., after all. This is what I use the site for and I really like having a fall-back for on-spec articles.

Get published by Medium magazines

There are also magazines owned by Medium that pays writers very high flat rates for articles. Here’s a list of the top 19 high-paying Medium magazines.

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