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Process5 min7 May 2026

Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Design Agency

The 15 questions that separate good agencies from bad ones. Ask these before signing anything.

Last updated: May 2026

You are about to hire a design agency. You have seen portfolios, had discovery calls, and received proposals. Everything sounds professional. But the questions you ask before signing determine whether the next eight weeks are productive or painful.

In brief: Before hiring a design agency, ask about code ownership, live portfolio sites, SEO inclusion, fixed pricing, post-launch support, and who will actually do the work. The answers reveal more about the agency than any portfolio or pitch deck. If they cannot answer clearly, they are not structured enough to protect your investment.

Before the first call

  1. Can I see live sites you shipped this year? Not screenshots. Not Dribbble mockups. Working URLs you can visit, test on mobile, and check for page speed. If the portfolio is all static images, the agency may not be shipping production work. Visit the sites. Check if they load fast. Check if they rank for the business name on Google.
  2. Who will actually work on my project? At large agencies, the person on the sales call is not the person building your site. Ask specifically: who designs it, who develops it, and who is my day-to-day contact. The fewer handoffs between people, the better the result.
  3. What is your process from start to finish? A good agency can describe their process in clear steps with rough timelines. If the answer is vague or changes depending on who you ask, the process is not defined. Undefined processes produce unpredictable results.

About the work

  1. When will I see real work, not mockups? Agencies that disappear for six weeks and return with a "big reveal" are gambling with your time. You should see working prototypes within the first two weeks. Feedback should be continuous, not batched into formal revision rounds.
  2. How many revision rounds are included? The best answer is "we do not work in formal rounds, we iterate continuously." The worst answer is "two rounds of revisions" because that creates pressure to approve work you are not fully happy with. Read more about red flags when hiring (/thinking/red-flags-hiring-web-designer).
  3. Do you design brand identity and website together? If the agency does brand and website as separate workstreams with different teams, something will get lost in the handoff. Studios that design both in one integrated process produce more cohesive results. Read about why this matters (/thinking/brand-website-designed-together).

About the technology

  1. What platform do you build on? Understand whether you are getting WordPress, Webflow, Shopify, Next.js, or a proprietary system. Each has trade-offs. The critical follow-up is question 8.
  2. Do I own the code? This is the most important question you will ask. If you leave the agency, can you take the website to another developer? If the answer is anything other than an unqualified yes, you are not buying a website. You are renting one.
  3. Is SEO included in the build? Technical SEO (semantic HTML, meta tags, schema markup, Core Web Vitals) should be part of every professional build. If it is listed as an add-on, the base price is for a website that will not be found. In 2026, also ask about GEO: visibility in AI search tools like ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews. Read our guide to GEO (/thinking/what-is-geo).
  4. How do you handle mobile? Over 60% of web traffic comes from mobile devices. Google uses mobile-first indexing. The answer should describe a mobile-first approach, not "we make it responsive at the end." Ask to see their portfolio sites on your phone.

About the money

  1. Is the quote fixed or hourly? Fixed quotes protect you from scope creep. Hourly billing is unpredictable. An agency quoting 50 hours at £100 per hour looks like £5,000 until the project takes 80 hours. Fixed pricing means you know the cost before work begins. See our pricing guide (/pricing) for reference.
  2. What are the payment terms? 50% upfront and 50% on completion is standard. Be cautious of agencies demanding 100% upfront or requiring payment before showing any work. Some larger projects use milestone-based payments, which is reasonable for projects over £10,000.
  3. What is not included? The cheapest quote is usually the one that excludes the most. Ask explicitly: is copywriting included? Photography? Analytics setup? CMS training? The scope of work should be written down and agreed before any money changes hands.

About what happens after

  1. What does ongoing support cost? A website needs maintenance: hosting, security updates, content changes, performance monitoring. If the agency has no post-launch offering, they are building you a product with no warranty. Ask about retainer options and what they include.
  2. What happens if we want to leave? Can you export the site? Do you retain access to the domain, hosting, and CMS? Is there a notice period? The answer to this question tells you everything about whether the agency is confident in keeping you through quality or through lock-in.

The pattern to watch for

Good agencies welcome these questions. They have clear, specific answers because they have thought about these issues and built their process around them. They are not defensive. They are not evasive. They do not redirect to a sales call.

Agencies that struggle with these questions are not necessarily bad. But they are not structured enough for a project where your money and your business reputation are at stake. Keep looking until you find one that answers every question without hesitation.

Frequently asked questions

How many agencies should I speak to before deciding?

Three is usually enough. More than five and you are likely overthinking the decision. The questions above will differentiate agencies more effectively than comparing ten portfolios.

Should I always choose the cheapest quote?

No. The cheapest quote is often the one that excludes the most or underestimates the scope. Compare quotes on what is included, not just the total number. A £6,000 quote that includes brand identity, SEO, and post-launch support is better value than a £4,000 quote that includes none of those.

What if an agency cannot answer all 15 questions?

Not every agency will have formal answers to every question. But the critical ones, code ownership, SEO inclusion, fixed pricing, and post-launch support, should have clear, confident answers. Vagueness on these points is a risk.

Is a written contract essential?

Yes. A professional contract should cover scope, timeline, payment, ownership, revisions, and post-launch terms. If an agency will not provide a written contract, do not proceed.

How do I know if an agency is too expensive?

Compare against UK market rates: freelancers charge £1,500 to £5,000, small agencies charge £2,500 to £10,000 for standard business websites. Anything significantly above these ranges should come with a clear explanation of what the additional cost covers. See our website cost guide (/thinking/website-cost-uk-2026).

Sources

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Brand + website studio
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