One of the main advantages of freelance work is the freedom to do as you please and do what you want with your money, to a certain degree. One point is you do your own taxes and thus can save money from doing so.
Generally speaking free lance rates are higher and get paid more than someone on contract, however this is only over a short period of time. Although this does mean you do not have the security that someone who works contract has.
Once you have gotten to a point where you have made a name for yourself and are financially stable you can pick and choose what jobs you take and do. However before you reach that point, you may have to do things that you do not agree with just to get some money.
A huge bonus of working contract work is the security, depending on the contract you have, you can't just not have a job one day without some notice. Tax is also done for you and taken out of your pay, this can be a plus if you're fine for money and you don't need every penny, however you then have no control over where it goes. Although, again there is more security that you will have money in your bank the end of the month. Whereas with freelance (private) clients don't have to pay you legally for up to 90 days. (Others have up to 30 normally). Many bigger firms have pension plans which are mostly stable, however if you work in freelance pensions are your problem so to say, and you need to organised and get one yourself.
Getting money from banks is easier when you have full time contracted work , rather than freelance. This can make a huge difference when trying to get a mortgage on a house. However during a contracted job, you cannot decline it, or decide you don't want to do it. You have to do it. You also have fixed holidays, however you do have paid holidays and other circumstances where you aren't working. However with freelance, if you aren't working, you aren't making money. Simple as.
