The Real Difference Isn't Price, It's Risk Distribution
A freelancer is a single point of skill and a single point of failure. An agency spreads that risk across a team and a project manager, at the cost of a markup.
Price Comparison: What You Actually Pay
- Independent freelancer: $50 to $150 an hour
- Small boutique agency: $90 to $160 an hour blended
- Typical MVP cost, freelancer route: $15,000 to $45,000
- Typical MVP cost, agency route: $35,000 to $90,000 for the same scope
How to De-Risk Either Choice
Getting several providers to quote against the exact same structured brief is what makes a real comparison possible. Devizy scopes every project into a modular scope of work before quotes go out, and a transparent match score surfaces providers, of any size, whose track record actually fits your project. Payment routes through a Merchant of Record releasing funds against validated milestones, so you're never exposed to a full upfront payment before either has delivered anything.