Fixed scope vs hourly: which engagement fits?
Clients often ask for “a developer for a month”. Sometimes that is right. Often a fixed-scope package is clearer, cheaper to manage, and easier to approve.
Fixed scope works best when…
The outcome is clear: a landing page, a site rebuild, a bot for FAQ, an MVP slice.
You want a price and timeline before work starts — with written inclusions.
Decision-makers need a predictable invoice, not an open-ended burn rate.
Hourly / outstaffing works best when…
Priorities change weekly inside an existing product team.
You need dedicated capacity rather than a packaged deliverable.
Discovery is still open and forcing a package would invent fake certainty.
How we keep either model honest
Extra features are agreed in writing before we build them.
Content delays pause the clock on timeline packages — not the price by surprise.
If a request does not fit a package, we say so early and quote custom work.
Have a similar question? Send a short brief — we reply with a realistic next step.
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