Guide
How to choose a web developer: 12 questions to ask before you hire
The 12 questions to ask a web developer or studio before you hire, the red flags in their answers, and how to pick between a freelancer, studio or agency.
By Viva StudioPublished 4 min read
Short answer: choose the developer whose past work you can open and use, who gives you a written scope with a fixed price, and who puts the code, domain and hosting in your name. Portfolio screenshots and low hourly rates tell you very little. What separates a good hire from an expensive one is ownership, a clear scope, and what happens after launch — so ask about those before you ask about design.
Freelancer, studio or agency?
| Freelancer | Small studio | Agency | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical price | Lowest | Middle | Highest |
| Who you talk to | The person building it | The people building it | An account or project manager |
| Risk | Single point of failure if they get busy or leave | Small team; ask about cover | Staff turnover between pitch and build |
| Best for | Small, well-defined sites | Websites and web apps that need care and ownership | Large brands, many stakeholders |
None of these is automatically better. The questions below matter more than the category — and they apply to us too.
The 12 questions
About the work
1. Can I open and use something you have built? A live product or website you can click through beats a screenshot. Ask what they did on it, specifically. (Ours are on our work page, each with a link to the live site.)
2. Who will actually build my project? The person you meet, a team member, or a subcontractor overseas? Any of these can be fine; not being told is not.
3. What do you need from me, and when? Content, photos, logins and decisions are the usual cause of delays. A good developer tells you upfront.
About price and scope
4. Is this a fixed price for a written scope? You should get a document listing what is included and what is not. See fixed-price vs hourly quotes for when each model makes sense.
5. What does a change cost? Changes happen. Ask how they are priced and agreed before any work starts.
6. What does it cost to run each month? Hosting, domain, email, plugins, licences. Get the full list in writing — our maintenance and hosting guide has the usual items.
About ownership
7. Will the domain, hosting and code be in my name? The single most important question. If the developer owns the domain or the hosting account, you do not really own your website.
8. Can I move to another developer later? The right answer is "yes, and here is how". Proprietary builders and locked hosting make it hard.
About quality
9. How will it perform on a phone? Most of your visitors are on mobile. Ask how they test speed and whether they check Core Web Vitals.
10. What do you do for SEO at launch? At minimum: unique page titles and descriptions, a sitemap, structured data, Search Console setup and redirects from any old pages. See the launch checklist.
11. Is it accessible? Keyboard navigation, readable contrast, labelled forms. It is the right thing to do, and it overlaps heavily with good SEO.
About after launch
12. What happens when something breaks? Is there a warranty period, a response time, and an hourly rate for changes after it ends?
Red flags
- No written scope, or a quote that is a single number with no breakdown.
- The developer registers the domain in their own name "to keep things simple".
- Pressure to decide today, or a large deposit before any scope exists.
- Nothing you can open — only screenshots or mock-ups.
- "SEO guaranteed first page" — nobody can promise Google rankings.
- Silence on running costs until after launch.
We answer all 12 of these in writing before you pay anything. Book a free 30-minute call, or read about working with a Melbourne web developer.
Frequently asked questions
What should I ask a web developer before hiring?
Ask to see live work you can use, who will build your project, whether the price is fixed for a written scope, how changes are priced, what it costs to run each month, and whether the domain, hosting and code will be in your name. Then ask about mobile performance, SEO at launch, accessibility and what support looks like after launch. Get the important answers in writing.
Should I hire a freelancer or an agency?
Choose by project, not by label. A freelancer is often cheapest and fine for a small, well-defined website, but is a single point of failure. A small studio suits websites and web apps that need ongoing care. An agency suits larger brands with many stakeholders and budgets to match. Whichever you choose, insist on a written scope and ownership of your accounts.
What are the red flags when hiring a web developer?
Watch for no written scope, a domain or hosting account registered in the developer's name, pressure to pay a large deposit before scope exists, no live work you can open, guaranteed first-page Google rankings, and vague answers about monthly running costs. Any one of these is a reason to slow down and ask more questions.