Freelancer, agency or full-time hire?
There are four common ways to get a product built, and each one wins somewhere. Here's how they compare, from someone who has worked in an agency, as a freelancer and as a full-time engineer.
The four options, side by side
| Compared on | Senior freelancer | Agency | Marketplace freelancer | Full-time hire |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who builds it | One senior person, end to end | A team, with a project manager between you and them | Whoever the platform matches you with | Someone on your payroll |
| Hand-offs | None between design, backend and interface | Between roles inside the agency | Depends on the person | Between people on your own team |
| Getting started | Once the scope is agreed | After a sales and onboarding process | Fast to match, slower to trust | After a hiring process of its own |
| What you pay for | A rate or a scoped price | Team rates plus project management | The rate plus platform fees | Salary, taxes and benefits, every month |
| If someone leaves | The work depends on one person | The agency stays when people change | You start the search again | The knowledge leaves with them |
| Best for | A product that needs one owner with the whole picture | Large projects that need several specialists at once | Small, well-defined tasks | Work that never stops, owned in-house |
When a senior freelancer is the right call
- You need one person who can own the product from the database to the interface
- The first version has to ship before you commit to a team
- You want to talk to the person who writes the code
When an agency is the better choice
- The project needs designers, engineers and a project manager at the same time
- You need a team that stays the same size whoever is on holiday
- Your company buys from vendors, not from individuals
When to hire full-time
- The product is working and the roadmap is long
- The knowledge has to stay inside your company
- You need someone in your rituals every day, for years
Where I fit
I work as a senior contractor, and I'm also open to full-time roles. If your project needs several specialists at once, an agency is the better fit, and I'll tell you so.
Questions, answered
Is a freelancer cheaper than an agency?
Usually per hour, because there's no project management or sales layer to pay for. What matters more is how much gets rebuilt: one owner who sees the whole product tends to waste less.
What if the freelancer gets sick or leaves?
It's the real risk with one person. Ask for tests, documentation and access to the code from the first day, so someone else can pick it up.
Should a startup's first engineer be a contractor or an employee?
While you're still testing the idea, a contractor lets you build the first version without a long commitment. Once the product works and the roadmap is long, hire full-time, ideally the person who built it.
Tell me what you're building.
One message is enough to start. I read every one myself and reply within 2 business days.