Choosing a web development contractor is a decision that locks you in for six months to a year. A wrong pick is more expensive than it looks: time, budget, reputation. Here is a checklist of questions that filter out 80% of unprofessional contractors before any contract is signed.
8 questions before you sign
1. "Can we see the code while it is being written?"
The right answer: "Yes, from week one — access to the repository and a staging environment." Any "we will show it at the end" is a reason to pause.
2. "Who owns the code after launch?"
It should be written into the contract: the code, the rights and the access credentials are transferred to the client. Not "a license to use", not "depends on the tier".
3. "What if we want to stop mid-project?"
A healthy answer: "We close the current sprint, hand everything over, you pay only for what is done." Penalties or "you cannot stop" — keep looking.
4. "How does payment work — sprint-by-sprint or fixed price?"
Both are fine. 100% upfront is not. "We will figure it out" is not either.
5. "Who specifically will work on the project?"
In a small studio you talk to the same people who write the code. In a large agency it is a sales manager, then an account, then maybe the developers. Neither is bad — but you should know.
6. "How many projects do you run in parallel?"
One — your attention is guaranteed. Five — attention is split. A vague answer is a signal.
7. "What about support after launch?"
There should be a warranty on their code (we offer one year). Without a warranty you pay for every fix after launch.
8. "Will you sign an NDA?"
Any reasonable studio will sign a standard mutual NDA before any spec is shared. Refusal is a red flag.
4 red flags
- 100% payment upfront. No professional contractor works that way.
- Vague timelines ("two or three weeks, we will see"). A professional gives a range with specific dates and updates it every sprint.
- No staging environment or repository access on request.
- No contract or "let us do a prepayment by card". Without a contract you have neither rights nor guarantees.
What to ask for at the brief
A professional contractor leaves a brief with artefacts, not a "statement of intent":
- A written summary of the meeting (what was discussed and what was fixed);
- A proposal with timelines, budget and a stage-by-stage breakdown;
- 2–3 approach options with their pros and cons;
- Clear constraints: what is definitely NOT in this scope.
If after a 45-minute call all you get is "thanks, we will send the invoice" — that is not a professional.
The main thing
In the first conversation, do not test the stack or the portfolio. Test how the contractor answers uncomfortable questions about money, accountability and risk. If they dodge — that is the working style you will live with.
If you want to test our approach against a real task — see our pages on development from scratch, MVP development and reworking an existing project. Or go straight to a 45-minute conversation — no strings attached.