Introduction
To hire a web developer safely, decide what you need before you talk to anyone, ask every candidate the same questions, look at live work they've built, and get the scope, price, timeline and ownership in writing before paying anything. Most bad experiences we hear about weren't caused by a dishonest developer. They came from a vague brief, an assumption nobody checked, and an agreement that didn't say who owns what.
This applies whether you're hiring a freelancer, a small studio or an agency, including us.
Before you contact anyone: write a one-page brief
You don't need a technical specification. You need answers to these questions on one page:
- What does the business do, and who is the website for?
- What should a visitor do on the site: call, buy, book, enquire?
- Which pages do you think you need?
- Which features must work on day one, and which could come later?
- Who will write the content and supply the photos?
- When do you need it live, and is that date fixed?
- Two or three sites you like, and what you like about them.
Send the same brief to everyone. That's the only way their quotes become comparable.
Questions to ask every developer
About their work
- Can I see live sites you built that are similar to mine? Live links, not just screenshots. Open them on your phone.
- What exactly did you do on each one? Design, development, content, or all of it?
- Can I speak to one of those clients?
About the project
- Which platform would you use, and why for my project? A good answer refers to your brief, not to what they always use.
- What's included in the price, and what costs extra? Content entry, revisions, stock images, plugins, hosting setup.
- How many rounds of changes are included?
- What do you need from me, and when?
- How will we communicate, and how often will I see progress?
About after launch
- Who will own the domain, hosting, code and accounts? The answer should be "you".
- What happens if something breaks a month after launch?
- Do you offer maintenance, and what does it include?
Warning signs
- A price without questions. A quote sent back within minutes of a vague message is a guess.
- No live examples, or examples that are all templates you can find for sale online.
- Full payment upfront for anything larger than a tiny job.
- Accounts in their name. "We'll register the domain for you" often means they'll own it.
- Guarantees nobody can make, such as first place on Google within a month.
- Vagueness about who does the work, especially if it's being passed to someone else.
What must be in writing
Before any money changes hands, agree in writing:
- The scope: pages, features and what's excluded.
- The price, and whether it's fixed or estimated.
- The payment schedule, tied to milestones you can see.
- The timeline, including what you must deliver and when.
- The number of revision rounds.
- Ownership: that the domain, hosting, code, designs and content belong to you on payment.
- What support is included after launch, and for how long.
We'll go through what a good proposal should contain, and the red flags in contracts, in more detail later in this series.
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Talk to the developers who'd build it
No account managers. Send your brief and get one fixed price and delivery window in writing within 24 hours.
Comparing the quotes
Put the quotes side by side against your brief. Check each one covers the same pages and features, who supplies content, and the yearly running costs. A much cheaper quote often leaves something out; a much more expensive one may include work you don't need, or may simply be a better team. Ask about the differences directly. If you want to understand why quotes vary so much, our post on what a business website costs in 2026 explains the main drivers.
During the project
- Ask for a staging link so you can see work in progress.
- Reply to questions quickly. Delays on your side delay the launch.
- Keep changes in writing, and ask how each one affects the price and date.
- Before the final payment, check the site on your phone, test every form, and confirm you have every login.
Other things people ask about hiring
Freelancer or agency? Both can be right. A freelancer suits a well-defined, smaller project; an agency suits larger work that needs design, development and ongoing support. We compare the options properly later in this series.
Is it safe to hire a developer in another country? Yes, if the same rules apply: clear scope, milestone payments, accounts in your name and regular visible progress. Time zones need planning, but they're manageable.
How do I check a developer's reviews are real? Speak to a past client directly, and check the live sites they claim to have built.
Conclusion
A one-page brief, the same questions for everyone, live work you can open on your phone, and nothing paid until scope and ownership are in writing. That's most of it.
If you'd like our quote on your brief, get in touch; you'll get one fixed price and a delivery window.
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Want a fixed price for your project?
No account managers. Send your brief and get one fixed price and delivery window in writing within 24 hours.