How to Choose the Right Web Developer for Your Startup

The High-Stakes Decision

Your website is often the first impression potential customers, investors, and partners have of your startup. Get the development wrong and you're stuck with a slow, buggy site that costs more to fix than rebuild. Get it right and you have a reliable foundation that just works while you focus on building the business.

For non-technical founders, choosing a web developer feels like navigating a foreign country without a map. The terminology is opaque, the skill levels vary wildly, and the cost ranges from $500 to $50,000 for what appear to be similar projects.

Agencies vs. Freelancers vs. Studios

Agencies are larger organizations handling big, complex projects. High capacity, established processes, no single point of failure. But costs are $100-200/hour with $20,000+ project minimums, slower turnaround due to coordination overhead, and your project competes with larger clients for attention. For most startups, agencies are overkill.

Freelancers are individual developers offering the lowest costs ($50-100/hour) and maximum flexibility. You work directly with the person building your product. But capacity is limited, reliability varies, and skill levels range from expert to self-taught beginner. Freelancers work well for startups with clear requirements and tight budgets.

Studios are small, specialized teams (2-5 people) at middle-ground pricing ($75-150/hour). Deep expertise in their focus area, direct communication, enough capacity for moderate projects. Studios are often the sweet spot for startups building modern websites or custom web applications.

Reading Portfolios: What Actually Matters

Look for similar projects. If you need an e-commerce site, a portfolio of brochure websites isn't relevant.
Check if the sites work. Click through portfolio examples. Test on your phone. Many portfolios showcase beautiful screenshots of sites that are slow or broken.
Evaluate business context. Look for case studies mentioning business outcomes — not just technical showcases.
Notice what's missing. No recent work? Only templates? No variety? These gaps tell you something.
Ask about their role. "I built this" can mean anything from "I wrote every line" to "I updated the colors in a theme."

Red Flags to Watch For

Pushing their preferred platform before understanding your needs. Good developers ask questions first and recommend technology second.
Avoiding specific timelines or scope. Professional developers provide estimates and explain assumptions.
Unusually low prices. If the quote is half of everyone else's, something's wrong.
Poor communication during sales. If responses take 3 days when they're trying to win your business, expect worse after they have your money.
No questions about your business. You want a developer who understands context, not just code.
No ownership terms. Make sure the contract states you own the code, designs, and all deliverables upon payment.

Evaluating Quotes and Proposals

Look beyond total price. A $5,000 fixed bid and a $15,000 hourly estimate aren't directly comparable. Fixed price transfers risk to the developer; hourly transfers risk to you.

Understand what's included. Does it include design? Content entry? Hosting setup? Analytics? The lowest quote often excludes things others include.

Check post-launch support. Most professionals include a 30-90 day warranty period. After that, what's the arrangement?

Assess timeline realism. If everyone says 8-12 weeks and one says 3, be skeptical.

Review payment structure. Milestone-based payments (deposit, midpoint, completion) align incentives and protect both parties.

Communication and Working Style

Establish expectations early: update frequency (weekly is standard), feedback process (how many revision rounds), point of contact, and how decisions are documented. Technical skill matters, but the working relationship determines whether the project succeeds or becomes frustrating.

The Refitted Approach

Our model is built around what startups actually need: focused expertise, transparent pricing, direct communication with the people doing the work, and full code ownership from day one. We ask about your business before recommending any technical approach, provide fixed-price quotes with clear scope, and show work early and often.

If you're evaluating developers and want to see how we approach projects, start a conversation. We'll give you honest advice about what makes sense for your startup, even if that means recommending a different approach.