Agency vs. Solo Developer for Your Project
For projects under €100k scope with a real timeline: solo developer wins on speed, cost, and communication. Agencies win at €200k+ enterprise-scale with a multi-team requirement.
Most founders default to agencies. Here's the honest breakdown of what you actually get.
Development Agency
- Multiple specialists — design, backend, QA
- Handles very large scope
- PM layer for coordination
- You pay for account management, not code
- PM layer between you and the builder
- 3–6 month timelines for MVP scope
- Incentive to pad scope and extend engagement
Senior Solo Developer
- Direct founder-to-builder communication
- Faster decisions — no approval chains
- Every line of code written by a senior
- Accountable — one person, one reputation
- Coverage risk — one person
- No built-in design team
- Bandwidth limit on very large scopes
0→1 MVP or product build under €80k: solo developer. 10-feature platform with €300k+ budget and no timeline pressure: agency.
Development Agency vs Senior Solo Developer — which should I choose?
For projects under €100k scope with a real timeline: solo developer wins on speed, cost, and communication. Agencies win at €200k+ enterprise-scale with a multi-team requirement.
When does Development Agency make sense over Senior Solo Developer?
0→1 MVP or product build under €80k: solo developer. 10-feature platform with €300k+ budget and no timeline pressure: agency.
I work on project-based engagements with direct founder communication — no PM layer, no scope padding.