Fixed price vs hourly software development

Short answer: fixed price is better when the scope can be written on one page, such as an MVP or a well-defined feature. Hourly (time and materials) suits open-ended work where requirements change weekly. A monthly retainer sits in between for ongoing development.

	Fixed price	Hourly (time and materials)	Monthly retainer
Who carries the risk of delays	The builder	You	Shared
Budget certainty	High	Low unless capped	High per month
Flexibility mid-project	Changes are priced separately	Change anything, any time	Re-prioritise each month
Best for	MVPs, defined features, audits	Research, unclear requirements	Live products, ongoing roadmap
Main risk	A vague scope causing disputes	Bills that keep growing	Paying for idle capacity

Why we price fixed

Founders tell us the same thing: they can live with a higher number, but not with a number that keeps moving. A fixed price forces both sides to agree what “done” means before work starts, which is where most projects actually fail.

Contract terms that protect you either way

1. A written out-of-scope list. It matters as much as the feature list.
2. Change requests priced before they start. Never “we’ll sort it out later”.
3. Milestone payments tied to something you can use. For example 50% to start, 40% at a working staging link, 10% at launch.
4. Code in your accounts from day one. Not handed over at the end.
5. A short warranty. Fixes for defects in agreed scope for a period after launch; ours is two weeks.
6. A clean exit. Either side can stop with notice and finished work is paid for.

If you go hourly

Ask for a weekly cap, a weekly written update with hours by task, and the right to pause. Without a cap, hourly billing has no natural end.

See how this works in practice on our pricing page.