Agency vs Developer for SaaS: The Real Question
When founders ask whether they should hire an agency or an individual developer to build their SaaS, they’re usually trying to solve a different problem than they realize.
This question comes up most often right before the first serious build—or when a product is starting to grow beyond its original scope. The real question is not about team size. It’s about how technical decisions get made, reviewed, and owned over time.
Both agencies and solo developers can work well. Both can also fail badly. The difference usually has less to do with cost or skill, and more to do with how technical decisions are owned over time.
Agencies tend to work well when:
- You need continuity even if individual developers change
- You expect the scope to grow or shift over time
- Your contact at the agency actually understands what is being built and can evaluate technical tradeoffs
Agencies tend to fail when:
- The salesperson disappears after the contract is signed
- The project manager cannot evaluate technical tradeoffs
- Communication gets filtered through non-technical layers
A useful question to ask is not “how big is the agency,” but: Who is making technical decisions day to day, can I talk to them directly, and are they involved in writing the code themselves?
Solo developers tend to work well when:
- The scope is narrow and well-defined
- You can work directly with them day to day
- Their availability is stable and predictable
They tend to struggle when:
- The project grows faster than expected
- They are balancing multiple commitments
- There is no second set of eyes reviewing architectural decisions
The risk is rarely code quality on day one. It is what happens six months later when requirements change and no one is evaluating earlier tradeoffs.
In practice, I have seen all four combinations work and fail: cheap solo developers, expensive solo developers, small agencies, and large agencies.
The consistent failure mode is not who was hired. It is when no one is clearly responsible for technical direction and long-term decisions.
— Joshua Dwire
So what do you do with that?
If you’re making this decision right now, the goal isn’t picking the “right type” of provider. It’s making sure someone is clearly responsible for technical direction as the product evolves.
That responsibility shows up in small, day-to-day calls—tradeoffs, architecture choices, and what gets built next—especially once the scope starts to shift.
Below is how I approach this in practice when working with SaaS founders.work.
What we actually do
Bold Compass provides technical leadership for SaaS products that includes hands-on development. You work with one accountable US-based technical lead (the person you talk to), backed by a small team. That technical lead is directly involved in building the product, documenting key decisions, and keeping the technical direction consistent as the codebase grows.
- Architecture decisions that support future growth
- Hands-on feature development and implementation
- Stability as features are added or changed
- Reducing risk during releases
- Keeping the codebase understandable and maintainable over time
This is not task-based freelancing. This is direction + execution.
Goals, priorities, context
Direction + hands-on development
Build, test, ship, maintain
One accountable technical lead. Hands-on delivery under clear direction.
How this works at Bold Compass
- You work directly with a senior technical lead in the United States as your consistent point of contact
- That lead is hands-on and participates in day-to-day implementation
- Decisions are documented so the product doesn’t become hard to change later
- As the roadmap evolves, the technical direction stays consistent
Who this is for (and who it isn’t)
Good fit if you:
- Are preparing to build a SaaS product (or rebuilding it the right way)
- Want one team accountable for long-term technical direction and delivery
- Care about maintainability and stability as you grow
- Prefer a long-term partner, not a short-term contractor
- Are ready to invest in building it correctly, not just quickly
Not a fit if you:
- Are looking for the cheapest option
- Need quick one-off help without ongoing ownership
- Want task execution without shared responsibility
- Are still validating whether you want to build a SaaS at all
We’re selective about engagements to protect continuity and quality.
How engagements typically start
We talk through your product idea, goals, and constraints.
We define a sensible architecture, initial scope, and delivery path.
We build, ship, and keep the technical direction steady as you grow.
Many engagements start around $10k and grow as the roadmap becomes clearer. Some clients plan $50k–$150k over 12 months as they scale.
What you can expect
Clear technical direction, documented decisions, and a maintainable codebase.
Fewer surprises in production and releases that don’t feel like a gamble.
Hands-on delivery that keeps moving without constant resets or rewrites.
Let’s see if this makes sense for your product.
If you’re serious about building a SaaS product with long-term stability, it’s worth a quick conversation.
Prefer a written estimate? Get a quote.
Want examples first? See past projects.