How Has AI Affected Freelance Virtual Assistants?

As with many other kinds of freelance gigs, virtual assistance has been impacted by the rise of advanced AI.

In the wake of the release of ChatGPT in 2022, many people expected this occupation to disappear entirely, since generative AI models can handle many tasks that VAs do, such as answering customer queries, entering data, and writing up marketing reports.

For many, this is still the expectation. In May 2026, the AI firm Anthropic published a research document, “Labor market impacts of AI: A new measure and early evidence,” which looked at the occupations most at risk of AI displacement.

In that list, customer service representatives, data entry keyers, and marketing specialists were all featured prominently.1 The core responsibilities of all of those jobs have significant overlap with what VAs do.

AI hasn’t replaced virtual assistants

Despite this, the evidence indicates that AI hasn’t eliminated the demand for virtual assistants just yet. According to a late-2025 report from the Virtual Assistant Institute, an online training and certification platform, that year saw a 35% increase in job postings for VAs.

Side Hustles spoke about this with Cynthia Johnson, a Florida-based freelance virtual assistant, who told us this matched her experience. Johnson worked as a proposal writer for the federal government before being laid off after the COVID-19 pandemic. She then transitioned to freelancing as a VA.

Although many freelancers worry that AI will put an end to their careers, Johnson told us she “wouldn’t say” this is the case.

“There’s only so much AI can do,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve had to compete much with AI.”

One of the reasons that AI has not been able to totally replace virtual assistants is that it still lacks the high-level reasoning capabilities of humans.

In a 2024 interview with the BBC, Mansoor Soomro, a senior lecturer in sustainability and international business at Teesside University in the UK, said “AI still struggles with complex tasks where an element of human-level decision making is needed.” It can handle tasks that are completely rote, but even routine tasks sometimes require judgment calls that it just can’t perform yet.

Johnson echoed this view, saying that her clients look for more than someone to complete basic tasks. “Businesses are looking for VAs who can do more than basic admin work,” she said. “The people who are willing to learn new tools and adapt are the ones who stand out.”

On top of that, AI is missing the emotional element that clients seek from assistants. The BBC interviewed another VA, Joanne Manville, and wrote that she told them that “dealing with client’s emotional ups and downs is also a crucial part of succeeding.”

“You need to be able to sense when someone is stressed, judge what’s going on and decide whether to ease off or offer more support,” said Manville. While AI models like GPT can be prompted to try to gauge their user’s mood, their ability to do that is limited, and many clients still prefer the real thing.

Even if AI hasn’t taken all of the jobs from freelance virtual assistants, it is changing how many of them work. Johnson said she’s incorporated AI into her workflow to be more productive.

“When I am working on a project, I like to use AI to map out a plan of action, so it’s easier for me to tackle,” she said. “Or if someone gives really overcomplicated instructions, I use AI to simplify it for me.”

While Johnson told us that she uses AI “all the time,” she acknowledged that it’s not something you can blindly trust. “When it comes to specific software or a client’s workflow, it can definitely be wrong or miss important details. I’ve had plenty of times where I had to double-check things or figure them out myself.”

This is the element of independent decision-making that Soomro said AI just isn’t able to reliably match yet.

“I think AI is a great tool that helps me work faster, but clients still need someone who can think things through and make sure everything is actually done right,” said Johnson.

Many VAs get started on Upwork, the largest freelancing website in the world.

According to Johnson, it’s possible to make a living and even thrive as a virtual assistant on Upwork in 2026. AI has gutted the market on the platform for some types of freelance and gig work, but fortunately, this isn’t one of them.

Johnson told us that the majority of her work comes from Upwork, and she said she hasn’t had as much success on other platforms. Since starting, she has earned over $30,000, and finding work isn’t a problem for her.

“I’m at the point where people reach out to me for projects instead of me applying for gigs, which is nice,” she said.

Challenges for VAs on Upwork

Even though Johnson has had a lot of success on Upwork and recommends the site to newcomers, she told us that it comes with challenges.

There’s a lot of competition from other VAs

Although Johnson said that AI wasn’t as big a deal for freelancers as the media often makes out to be, she acknowledged that the virtual assistant space has gotten pretty crowded.

“Maybe now there are more people freelancing,” she said. “I think that’s what makes it harder.”

What makes things especially challenging is that a lot of the competition now comes from freelancers who are located overseas, in countries where salaries and living costs tend to be lower. As a result, these VAs can afford to charge far less for their services than US-based workers.

Many of these overseas freelancers charge between $5 and $10 per hour on Upwork, whereas Johnson’s rate is $30 per hour.

It takes a while to find work

Johnson also told us that people who are interested in virtual assistance should be prepared to spend a lot of time finding work, especially in the beginning.

“You definitely have to keep applying constantly for gigs at first,” she said. “I would say for every ten I applied for, I would get one response in the beginning.”

When we asked Johnson how long someone starting out as a freelance VA should expect it to take, she told us that “it may take a while,” and that it took her “at least a year” to get where she is today.

She partly attributes her success to finding long-term clients.

“I was lucky enough to find a gig that lasted over a year, and I think this helped me look more accomplished on my profile,” she said. “People can see how much money you have earned on here, and when they see you’ve been with a client for a long time, it definitely helps.”

You have to pay to apply for work on Upwork

One common complaint from freelancers on Upwork, Johnson included, is that you often need to pay to get gigs.

Users need to purchase “Connects,” digital tokens that allow you to bid on jobs. Johnson told us that this is one of the most frustrating things about navigating Upwork.

Each Connect costs $0.15, and you have to buy a minimum of 10 at a time.

That might not sound like much, but it adds up. There’s also no guarantee that any given bid will be accepted, so you’ll often end up paying for the possibility of work that doesn’t materialize.

There are scammers on Upwork

Unfortunately, not all clients on Upwork are legit, which Johnson has experienced firsthand. She told us that she once completed a job but didn’t get receive her payment.

“It was a fixed-price project, and after I finished the work, the client never paid,” she said.

Johnson said she reached out to Upwork’s user support, but they told her “there wasn’t really anything they could do.”

Johnson said she wasn’t aware whether there were any consequences for the client who didn’t pay her, though she said that the experience made her more cautious when looking for gigs. “Since then, I’ve been a lot more careful about how I structure projects, and I mostly stick with hourly contracts because they offer better protection,” she said.

Although AI’s capabilities are growing and increased competition means that freelancing isn’t as easy as it once was, Johnson told us that she still believes being a freelance virtual assistant is viable and worthwhile.

It helps, of course, that she genuinely enjoys the work. “I found that I could learn so many new things and help so many different kinds of people in different fields,” she said.

Johnson also told us that, despite AI’s encroachment onto lower-level tasks, “you don’t need a ton of experience to get started” as a virtual assistant. “If you’re organized, reliable, and willing to learn, you’re already ahead,” she said.

However, she doesn’t rely solely on freelance virtual assistant work to make a living. “Sometimes the virtual assistant work is full-time, sometimes it is part-time, depending on the projects I’m working on,” she said, adding that she often dog sits when she isn’t getting as much VA work.

This is the reality of many kinds of freelancing in 2026. Given enough effort on your part, they can provide a meaningful income stream, but the work can be spotty and often varies with the whims of the market and broader economy.

If you’re interested in a side hustle as a freelance VA, Johnson offered a few tips for getting started, especially if you plan on using Upwork to find gigs.

Set up a solid profile (and maintain it)

You’ll need to build a solid Upwork profile. Johnson told us that you should “add as much as you can,” suggesting that you include an introduction video, your work history, and examples of past projects.

When you get jobs on the platform, you can update your profile with client testimonials and gigs you’ve completed.

Start by doing large numbers of small gigs

Once you’ve set up your profile, the next step is to find work. When you start out, you won’t have a reputation on the platform, so finding gigs may be tricky.

Johnson’s advice is to start off by completing small jobs so you can build up your reputation through as many client reviews as possible.

“I would say after you get your profile completed, spend at least an hour a day applying to as many gigs as you can,” she said. “Do as many small gigs as you can at first … once you have good reviews, it is easier to land gigs.”

Johnson reiterated that through all this, she recommends prioritizing hourly gigs to protect yourself from clients who try to get away with not paying you.

“Definitely avoid projects that pay by the project and not hourly,” she said. “Because if they end up not paying you, you are screwed.”

With fixed-payment projects, you could complete dozens of hours of work only for a client to decide it’s not good enough. On the other hand, if you’re on an hourly-paid project, you should still get some compensation even if the client decides they aren’t satisfied with your work.

Find a niche

With the market getting progressively more crowded on Upwork, Johnson said that she’s started focusing on niche services to help stand out from other freelancers.

“I’ve taken on a lot more project management, invoicing, and research, and I’m constantly learning new software depending on what my clients need,” she said.

Offering specialized services gives you an advantage over VAs who provide generalized assistance, and in an era where AI can handle most routine tasks, niche skills are also more valuable.

Continue to learn

Johnson said it’s also important to keep learning new skills and evolve in your freelancing career. Not only will this open you up to more opportunities, it will keep the work fresh and engaging.

“One of the things I love most about being a VA is that no two projects are the same,” she said. “I’ve done a lot of jobs I didn’t even know existed before I started freelancing, and I enjoy learning something new with every client. That’s what keeps it interesting for me.”