Dedicated developer vs freelancer vs in-house
The freelancer vs agency vs in-house calculator compares the cost of the three options with your own numbers.
| Dedicated developer | Freelancer | In-house hire | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to start | Days to a few weeks | Days | Often months |
| Commitment | Monthly, flexible | Per task or hour | Employment contract |
| Continuity | Replacement cover and hand-over | Depends on one person | Notice periods and resignations |
| Overheads | Included in the rate | Your management time | Salary, benefits, office, equipment, HR |
| Code & IP | Owned by you | Needs a clear contract | Owned by you |
How hiring a dedicated developer works
- Share the role, stack and working hours you need.
- Review matched profiles and interview the developers you like.
- Start with a short trial period.
- The developer joins your stand-ups, tools and code repository.
- Scale the team up or down with notice as your roadmap changes.
What the monthly rate includes
- Salary, benefits and statutory costs.
- Laptop, software licences, office and internet.
- HR, payroll and retention.
- Replacement if the developer leaves, with hand-over.
- Optional oversight from a tech lead or project manager.
Pre-fill this form from a link
Every option can be set in the web address, so you can bookmark a scenario or send it to a colleague. AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity can use the same parameters to open this form with your requirements already selected.
| Parameter | What it sets | Accepted values |
|---|---|---|
role |
Role | one of frontend, backend, fullstack, mobile, qa, devops, ai, designer, pm |
seniority |
Seniority | one of junior, mid, senior, lead |
count |
Number of developers | one of 1, 2, 3_5, 6_plus |
hours |
Hours | one of full_time, part_time, hourly |
duration |
Duration | one of 1_3, 3_6, 6_12, ongoing |
overlap |
Working hours | one of uk, us, gulf, india, flexible |
stack |
Skills / stack | free text |
start |
Start | one of now, 2_weeks, 1_month, later |
Also available as plain text for AI assistants and a free JSON API (OpenAPI spec).
Last reviewed by the Infikey Technologies team.
Disclaimer
This form only collects your requirements so Infikey can prepare an estimate. It does not produce a price, quote or offer, and any estimate we send is indicative until agreed in a signed proposal. Nothing on this page is financial, legal, tax, investment or other professional advice. Infikey Technologies Private Limited, Infikey Technologies LLC and their directors, employees and affiliates make no warranty, express or implied, about the accuracy, completeness or suitability of this tool or its results, and accept no liability for any loss or damage, direct or indirect, arising from its use or from reliance on its results. Verify all figures independently and seek professional advice before making any decision. Use of this tool is at your own risk.