How to Find an App Developer Who Is Truly Worth Your Money

It has never been easier to find an app developer. The web is populated with freelance coders and app development agencies advertising their services. You can choose whether you want to hire app developer for an hour to quickly fix a known bug in your app, or whether you need someone full-time for a large project. With all this choice, do you know how to find an app developer who is truly worth your money? A lot more should go into hiring app developer than just a quick glance at the feedback left by the developer’s previous customers.

How to Find an App Developer and Where They Dwell

The most popular freelancing platforms for finding app developers for hire are Upwork and Fiverr. Also, they can be found as employees of various app development agencies.

Independent developers working on freelancing platforms. They are perfect for smaller projects that can be completed either by a single person or just a few people. Most freelance app developers work for around $50 per hour. You may also find people working for as little as $5 per hour or as much as $200 per hour. It depends mostly on their geographical location but also on their experience and skillset.

The annual median per capita income in India is just $616, according to Gallup, which places the country at the 99th position amount 131 countries. Compare India to Norway, where the annual median per capita income is $19,308. Those extra $100 per hour charged by Norwegian developers may not necessarily get you a better mobile app. A higher coast per hour mostly reflects how strong Norway’s economy is, not how skilled their developers are.

Pay Your Attention to the Geographical Location of Your Future App Developer

You will need to discuss project details, hold regular meetings, and maybe even sign a legal contract. You can accomplish these things much more easily if you and your developer reside in the same country, or at least the same time zone or hemisphere.

App development agencies are perfect for clients who don’t want to take on the role of the project manager. Besides coders, they also employ graphics designers, UX experts, technical architects, strategy consultants, QA engineers, and others. You can approach an agency with a rough idea and let them turn it into a finished product. Unlike with an independent developer, you don’t have to hire app developers just because you would like your app to have a unique interface or come with a backend—the agency can take care of everything.

Of course, app development agencies also charge accordingly for their services, so you need to calculate how much does it cost to build an app with help of the agency. The big players won’t even talk to you unless you have at least $100,000 to spend, and even smaller agencies are still expensive. A Kinvey report based on a survey of CIOs and Mobile Leaders found that the average cost of an app is $270,000. If you’re a large business, this may be pocket change to you, but most clients won’t ever be able to afford an agency.

Finding a Needle in a Haystack

Now that you know where to find mobile app developers, it’s time to learn how to avoid the bad eggs.

Online portfolios can help you find a contractor who has already worked on a project similar to yours. Go beyond the first impression and download and use a few apps from your candidates. Focus on their functionality, usability, polish, and maturity. If you lack experience with mobile app development, read the comments below the apps. How many users have experienced compatibility issues? How many complain that something doesn’t work right?

Once you have a list of a handful of candidates, it’s time to check their references. The overly positive and overly negative reviews may stand out the most, but they hardly ever tell the full story. It’s by reading balanced reviews that you can learn the most about your candidates. This includes their work etiquette, time-management skills, coding proficiency, and so on.

Try to Find App Developers You Can Build Relationships With

The right partner is always more important than saving a few thousands. The right contractor can add value in the long run and help you spot vital details that might otherwise escape your attention. Arrange Skype interviews with your candidates to see if you can establish rapport with them.

It’s understandable when somebody just doesn’t seem like a good fit for you even though the person has all the right skills. Emotions play a significant role in our decision-making. We should learn to embrace this fact rather than try to ignore it.

The Dotted Line

Once you decide who you want to hire, it’s time to deal with all the formalities. You need to agree on the scope of the project, the milestones, the cost, the payment method, the time of delivery, and so on. You may also want to consider having the app developer sign a non-disclosure agreement along with the main contract.

You should now know not only how to find an app developer, but, most importantly, how to find a good app developer for an app. Remember not to let price influence your decision too much—you might end up paying for it later.