The short answer
Hire an independent developer when you want direct access to the person building your software, a lower total price and a focused project. Hire an agency when you need many specialists working in parallel or round-the-clock support. The biggest risk with a freelancer, depending on one person, is removed by owning your code, accounts and documentation from day one.
Side by side
Who you work with
- Independent developer
- The person writing the code
- Agency
- Account managers, project managers and a rotating team
What you pay for
- Independent developer
- Engineering work
- Agency
- Engineering plus sales, management and office overhead
Typical US rates
- Independent developer
- Senior freelancers roughly $100–$220/hour, or a fixed price
- Agency
- US agencies commonly $100–$149/hour; NYC agencies $120–$300+
Decisions
- Independent developer
- Fast, one conversation
- Agency
- Slower, passed through several people
Parallel work
- Independent developer
- Limited to one engineer's capacity
- Agency
- Can staff many people at once
Continuity risk
- Independent developer
- Depends on ownership practices (see below)
- Agency
- Staff turnover on your account
| Independent developer | Agency | |
|---|---|---|
| Who you work with | The person writing the code | Account managers, project managers and a rotating team |
| What you pay for | Engineering work | Engineering plus sales, management and office overhead |
| Typical US rates | Senior freelancers roughly $100–$220/hour, or a fixed price | US agencies commonly $100–$149/hour; NYC agencies $120–$300+ |
| Decisions | Fast, one conversation | Slower, passed through several people |
| Parallel work | Limited to one engineer's capacity | Can staff many people at once |
| Continuity risk | Depends on ownership practices (see below) | Staff turnover on your account |
The real risk with a solo developer, and how to remove it
The fair criticism of freelancers is that they're a single point of failure. That risk is real, and it's solved by how the project is set up rather than by the size of the firm:
- Code lives in a GitHub account you own from the first day
- Hosting, database, payments and email run in accounts in your name
- The contract assigns ownership of the code to you in writing, since paying for software doesn't transfer copyright on its own under US law
- Mainstream technology that any experienced developer can pick up
- Documentation and a written handoff plan delivered with the software
Why smaller projects succeed more often
The Standish Group's CHAOS research has long found that small projects succeed far more often than large ones. Its 2020 figures put overall success at about 31%, with most large projects challenged or failed. The methodology has critics, so treat the numbers as directional. The lesson holds either way: break work into small, fixed phases with working software at the end of each one.
Questions to ask any developer or agency before you hire
- Who exactly will write the code, and will I talk to them directly?
- Will the code and every account be in my name?
- Does the contract assign ownership of the code to me?
- Is the price fixed? How are changes approved and priced?
- What happens after launch, and what will maintenance cost?
- Can I see live projects you've built?
- How do you use AI tools, and how is their output reviewed and tested?
When an agency is the better choice
- You need ten or more people working on different parts at once
- You need a staffed support desk around the clock
- Your procurement process requires a large vendor with its own SOC 2 report
Questions
Are freelancers cheaper than agencies?
Usually, for the same work. Senior freelancers and agencies can have similar hourly rates, but agencies add project management and overhead to every project, and more people means more coordination time.
What if my freelancer disappears?
If your code, accounts and documentation are in your name, another developer can pick up where they left off. Make that a condition of hiring anyone, freelancer or agency.
Can one developer build a large platform?
Yes, with the right experience and scope. GymOS was built this way: a multi-tenant platform with billing, scheduling, check-in, a store, an API and AI features. What one person can't do is staff ten parallel workstreams.