How do I evaluate an outsourced dev agency before signing a contract?
Short answer
Evaluate an agency on evidence you can collect in one week: use something it built, read the scope it writes for your project, read the contract for ownership and payment terms, and speak to one past client. If any of those four is unavailable, treat it as the answer.
By Kailesk Khumar, founder of HouseofMVPs. Last reviewed .
A one week evaluation
| Day | What you do | What you learn |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Send a one page brief and ask for a written scope | Whether they understood the problem |
| 2 to 3 | Use a live product they built | The real quality of their work |
| 4 | Read the contract: ownership, payment, changes, termination | Who carries the risk |
| 5 | Call a past client | How they behave when something goes wrong |
Reading the scope they send
The scope document is the best evidence you will get. A strong one restates your problem in their words, lists what the first version does with a test for each item, and lists what it leaves out. A weak one repeats your brief and adds a price.
If the agency cut features and explained why, that is a good sign. It means someone thought about what you need to learn from the first version.
Reading the contract
- Ownership: all code and IP assigned to you, with no licence back to the agency for your product.
- Payment: a schedule tied to delivery, not to dates on a calendar.
- Changes: a written change process with a price you approve before work starts.
- Termination: you can leave with the code written so far if you pay for the work done.
- Accounts: hosting, domains and third party services in your name.
What does not count as evidence
Awards, badges, a large team page and a long client logo strip are marketing. None of them tells you how your project will go. A single working product and a single honest reference outweigh all of them.
How HouseofMVPs handles this
We send a written scope with acceptance criteria within 24 hours of the scoping call, before any payment. Our terms are 50% at signature and 50% on delivery, a staging link by day 5, the repository in your account from the first commit, and a written quote for any change. If a reference matters to you, ask on the call and we will tell you plainly what we can and cannot share.
Get a written scope and fixed priceRelated questions
How long should it take to evaluate a development agency?
About a week. One day for the brief and scope, two to use their work, one for the contract and one for a reference call. If an agency cannot produce a scope and a contract within a week, the project is likely to move at the same speed.
Is a paid trial project a good way to evaluate an agency?
Yes, when it is small, fixed in price and produces something you keep. A one week proof of concept on the riskiest part of your product tells you more than any sales process, and you own the result either way.
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