Freelancers know the hustle is real, but sometimes, the gig isn’t. Many are running into a frustrating trend: job listings that never lead anywhere, even after putting in real time and effort to apply.

Nearly two-thirds of freelancers (65%) say they’ve applied to gigs that turned out to be ghost jobs, with 23% coming across more than 120 fake listings each year. The situation’s even worse for younger workers, with 69% of Gen Z freelancers having dealt with ghost gigs.

These listings never hire anyone, but they still cost applicants valuable time. For example, 1 in 5 have lost over 100 hours applying to gigs that never go anywhere.

Unpaid work is another major issue, with those in writing and editing, event services, and transcription being the most likely to get asked for free labor. About 1 in 3 freelancers have completed unpaid tasks like samples or test projects for jobs that never hired them. More than 1 in 4 (26%) say they were ghosted after doing unpaid work. And for 1 in 7, this meant a loss of $1,000 or more.

Some freelancers are turning to AI-powered tools to save time. Over a third (34%) have used ChatGPT to apply for gigs. But even with AI help, ghost jobs still show up across fields. The top five industries for ghost listings are tech, arts and entertainment, marketing, consulting, and education.

Ghost jobs aren’t just annoying. They’re changing how freelancers approach every new opportunity. Many are adjusting how they search, apply, and trust potential clients.

Most freelancers want clear expectations upfront: 95% believe companies should disclose if a job posting is only for pipeline-building or future roles. This means the company isn’t hiring at the moment and is simply gathering potential candidates for later. For freelancers, that can lead to wasted time on gigs that aren’t currently available.

More than half of freelancers (56%) say they’ve become more cautious about gig work because of ghost listings. In fact, 90% would avoid working with a company if they knew it posted ghost jobs. Most want platforms to step up, with 61% thinking freelance marketplaces should improve job verification to reduce scams.

Still, some believe the problem may never fully go away. About 1 in 6 think ghost jobs will always be part of the freelance world. And with trust wearing thin, nearly half of Gen Z freelancers (47%) say they’d pay for a vetted job board that screens out scams.

We surveyed 1,000 American freelancers to uncover the hidden costs of ghost jobs in the freelance economy. Respondents had an average age of 39, with a gender breakdown of 46% women, 52% men, and 2% non-binary. By generation, 6% were baby boomers, 20% Gen X, 52% millennials, and 22% Gen Z.

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