30 questions to ask app developers before you hire them

The right questions to ask app developers are the ones that are hard to answer with a sales deck. Anyone can say they are senior, agile, and focused on quality. Fewer can explain what they would cut from your scope, who will write your code, or what happens when a deadline slips.

Below are 30 questions in six groups, with notes on what a good answer sounds like. They work for agencies and freelancers alike. You do not need to ask all of them. Pick the ones that matter most for your project and ask them on every call, so you can compare answers side by side.

Questions about the team

You are hiring people, not a logo. Start here.

1. Who exactly will work on my project, and in what roles?
2. How many years of experience does each person have?
3. Will the same people stay on the project from start to finish?
4. Who is my main contact, and are they involved in the actual work?
5. Can I meet the designer and lead engineer before I sign?

What a good answer sounds like: names, roles, and years of experience, offered without hesitation. A vague “our team of experts” is not an answer.

Questions about scope and product thinking

A good developer does not just build what you ask for. They tell you what you do not need yet.

6. What would you cut from my first release, and why?
7. What is the biggest risk you see in this project?
8. Which parts of my idea are technically harder than they look?
9. How do you decide what goes into the first version?
10. Have you built something with a similar shape before? What did you learn?

What a good answer sounds like: specific opinions about your product, including some you may not like. If every feature is fine and nothing is risky, they have not thought about it yet. Our guide to MVP feature prioritization explains how to make these cuts yourself.

Questions to ask app developers about process

This is where most projects succeed or fail. You want to know how work flows, how often you see it, and how problems surface.

11. How often will I see working software?
12. What tools will I have access to: the task board, builds, the repository?
13. How do design and development work together once the build starts?
14. How do you handle a question that comes up outside my working hours?
15. What do you need from me each week to stay on schedule?

What a good answer sounds like: a concrete rhythm. “You get a build every Friday and a written update every day” is an answer. “We keep you in the loop” is not.

A note on frequency

The gap between updates is the longest a mistake can hide. With monthly demos, a misunderstanding can cost a month of work. With daily builds, it costs a day. At Batriders we send an update every day, and 2Sprint clients follow their project in TwoSprint, where each completed task is visible. Whoever you hire, ask for the shortest cycle they can honestly keep.

Questions about cost and contracts

Price matters, but how the price behaves when things change matters more.

16. Which pricing model do you suggest for this project: fixed price, time and materials, or a dedicated team?
17. What exactly is included in the quote, and what is not?
18. How do you handle scope changes once work has started?
19. What are the payment milestones?
20. Who owns the code, designs, and documentation, and when does ownership transfer?

What a good answer sounds like: a written change process, payments tied to delivered work, and full IP ownership for you once you have paid. If you want to understand the pricing models first, read fixed price vs time and materials.

Check the contract for the jurisdiction too. You should know which country’s law applies before anything goes wrong, not after.

Questions about quality and testing

Bugs are normal. A team that has no plan for them is not.

21. How do you test the app before I see it?
22. Do you test on real devices, or only on simulators?
23. Do you use automated builds and deployment (CI/CD)?
24. How do you handle performance and security?
25. What does the store submission process look like, and who does it?

What a good answer sounds like: a named process with steps. Real-device testing should be standard for mobile apps, because simulators miss problems with performance, cameras, and notifications. For store submissions, ask whether they prepare the listing, screenshots, and review notes, since those cause many rejections.

Questions about launch and after

An app is never finished at launch. Know what happens on day one after.

26. What do I receive at handover: code, documentation, accounts, credentials?
27. Can my own team take over the code later without a rewrite?
28. Do you offer support after launch, and how is it priced?
29. How quickly do you respond to a critical bug in production?
30. What would you recommend we build in the second release?

What a good answer sounds like: a clear handover list and a support option you can choose or decline. Our post on app maintenance cost after launch covers what to budget for.

How to use these questions

A list of 30 questions to ask app developers can turn a first call into an interrogation. A better approach:

• Before the call, send a short brief so the developers have context. It saves the first 20 minutes.
• On the call, pick five to eight questions that matter most for your project. Team, scope, and process are usually the priority.
• After the call, write down the answers while they are fresh. Compare candidates on the same questions.
• Before you sign, send the contract questions in writing and ask for written answers.

Pay attention to how people answer, not only what they say. Developers who ask you good questions back, push back on scope, and admit what they do not know are usually the ones who deliver. If you are still deciding between an agency, a freelancer, and your own team, start with agency vs freelancer vs in-house.

Frequently asked questions

What is the single most important question to ask?

“Who exactly will work on my project?” The quality of an app depends on the people building it. If that answer is vague, the rest of the answers matter less.

Should I ask for references?

Yes, if the developer has client work they can share. Ask the reference what went wrong and how it was handled, not only whether they were happy. Every project has problems. The useful information is how the team responded.

How can I judge technical answers if I am not technical?

Focus on clarity. A good developer can explain a technical choice in plain language and tell you what it means for cost, speed, or risk. If you do not understand an answer after asking twice, that is a communication problem you will have for the whole project.

Is it a red flag if they quote a price on the first call?

Usually. A fair estimate needs at least a brief and some questions about your users, platforms, and integrations. A price given before that is a guess, and guesses tend to grow.

Good developers are happy to be asked hard questions, because the answers are how they win the work.