Upwork (UPWK) Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] (2018 - 2026)
Upwork (UPWK) posted Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] of 11.15% for Q3 2026, down 0.58 percentage points from 11.72% a year earlier but up 2.02 percentage points from the prior quarter.
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Analysis
Upwork (UPWK) Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] (2018 - 2026) Analysis & Trends
For FY2025, Upwork's Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] came in at 10.13%, up 2.33 percentage points from FY2024.
- Annual Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] has increased for three consecutive years, with a five-year change of +17.76 percentage points (FY2020 to FY2025).
- In prior years, Upwork's Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] was 7.81% in FY2024 (+9.20 pp), -1.39% in FY2023 (+9.94 pp), -11.34% in FY2022 (-1.75 pp) and -9.59% in FY2021 (-1.96 pp).
- Quarterly Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] has run from a low of -12.91% in Q1 2023 to a high of 11.72% in Q3 2025 over five years.
- On a year-over-year basis, Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] has declined in each of the last three quarters, with an average year-over-year change of +2.86 percentage points over the last eight quarters.
- The strongest year-over-year quarter for Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] in the past five years was Q2 2024, with a gain of 18.76 percentage points; the weakest was Q3 2022, with a drop of 6.07 percentage points.
- According to Business Quant data, Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] for the three prior quarters was 9.13% (Q2 2026), 9.61% (Q1 2026) and 9.85% (Q4 2025).
Peer Set
Peer Comparison
| # | Company | Market Cap | Enterprise Value | Gross Profit (Qtr) | ROIC (Qtr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alphabet | 3,505.75 Bn | 3,240.65 Bn | 76.16 Bn | 16.69% |
| 2 | Meta Platforms | 1,636.37 Bn | 1,300.89 Bn | 51.23 Bn | 21.70% |
| 3 | Netflix | 264.79 Bn | 226.09 Bn | 6.80 Bn | 29.22% |
| 4 | Alibaba Group Holding | 244.49 Bn | 58.13 Bn | 15.16 Bn | 2.39% |
| 5 | Shopify | 196.00 Bn | 174.81 Bn | 1.78 Bn | - |
| 6 | Uber Technologies | 145.16 Bn | 115.98 Bn | 6.42 Bn | 12.36% |
| 7 | AppLovin | 136.87 Bn | 125.40 Bn | 1.94 Bn | 74.11% |
| 8 | Spotify Technology | 125.04 Bn | 81.96 Bn | 1.89 Bn | - |
| 9 | Booking Holdings | 122.68 Bn | 56.42 Bn | - | 75.14% |
| 10 | Upwork | 1.22 Bn | -951.96 Mn | 141.30 Mn | 11.15% |
Historic Data
Download Data
Historic Data
| Date | Value |
|---|---|
| Sep 30, 2026 | 11.15% |
| Jun 30, 2026 | 9.13% |
| Mar 31, 2026 | 9.61% |
| Dec 31, 2025 | 9.85% |
| Sep 30, 2025 | 11.72% |
| Jun 30, 2025 | 11.00% |
| Mar 31, 2025 | 9.63% |
| Dec 31, 2024 | 7.66% |
| Sep 30, 2024 | 7.89% |
| Jun 30, 2024 | 6.95% |
| Mar 31, 2024 | 3.53% |
| Dec 31, 2023 | -1.50% |
| Sep 30, 2023 | -4.52% |
| Jun 30, 2023 | -11.81% |
| Mar 31, 2023 | -12.91% |
| Dec 31, 2022 | -11.44% |
| Sep 30, 2022 | -11.63% |
| Jun 30, 2022 | -9.48% |
| Mar 31, 2022 | -8.60% |
| Dec 31, 2021 | -6.59% |
API Access
Upwork Return on Invested Capital [ROIC] API
Pull this series into your own models, spreadsheets and apps with the Business Quant
Historical Metrics API. The request below matches the chart above — change the
frequency, period or values and it follows. Swap YOUR_API_KEY for your own key.
https://data.businessquant.com/historic?slug=return-on-invested-capital-%5Broic%5D&ticker=UPWK&period=max&api_key=YOUR_API_KEYimport requests
url = "https://data.businessquant.com/historic"
params = {"slug": "return-on-invested-capital-[roic]", "ticker": "UPWK", "period": "max", "api_key": "YOUR_API_KEY"}
data = requests.get(url, params=params).json()const res = await fetch("https://data.businessquant.com/historic?slug=return-on-invested-capital-%5Broic%5D&ticker=UPWK&period=max&api_key=YOUR_API_KEY");
const data = await res.json();