Bottom Line Up Front: Building a quality MVP in 2026 costs between $8,000 and $30,000 depending on complexity. Simple MVPs with basic features start at $8K-12K, standard SaaS platforms with dashboards and payments run $12K-20K, and marketplace platforms with multi-vendor capabilities cost $18K-30K.
This guide provides transparent pricing based on real projects, helping you budget accurately and avoid hidden costs that can double your investment.
Why MVP Pricing Varies So Dramatically
You've seen MVP quotes ranging from $3,000 to $80,000 for similar-sounding projects. This isn't random—it reflects fundamental differences in quality, approach, and what's actually included.
Three factors drive MVP costs:
Technical complexity: User authentication, payment processing, admin panels
Integration requirements: Third-party APIs, email services, analytics
Build quality: Scalable architecture vs quick hacks, professional design vs templates, proper testing vs hoping for the best
A $3,000 MVP typically means WordPress templates, minimal customization, and code you'll need to rebuild within six months. An $80,000 MVP often includes enterprise features you don't need yet.
The sweet spot: $10,000-$25,000 — enough to build something genuinely useful without over-engineering.
Three Tiers of MVP Development
Tier 1: Simple MVP ($8,000-$12,000)
Simple MVPs focus on validating one core idea quickly. These work well when you need to test market demand before building complex features.
What you get:
Professionally designed landing page and 3-5 core pages
Basic user authentication (email/password login)
Simple dashboard with essential features
Contact forms and lead capture
Basic admin panel for content management
Responsive design for mobile and desktop
Deployment and hosting setup
2 weeks of post-launch bug fixes
Technology stack: Next.js or React for frontend, Node.js for backend, PostgreSQL for database, deployment on Vercel or DigitalOcean.
Timeline: 4-6 weeks from kickoff to launch.
Best for:
SaaS waitlist platforms
Booking systems
Portfolio sites with client management
Content platforms with basic user accounts
Internal tools for small teams
What's NOT included: payment processing, complex user roles, third-party integrations beyond basics, custom illustrations or branding, mobile apps.
Tier 2: Standard SaaS MVP ($12,000-$20,000)
Standard MVPs include the features most SaaS products need to function and generate revenue. This tier represents the majority of successful launches.
What you get (Everything from Tier 1, plus):
Full authentication system with password reset and email verification
User dashboard with core functionality
Payment integration (Stripe or PayPal) with subscription management
Admin panel with user management and analytics
2-3 key integrations (email automation, analytics, support chat)
Notification system (email and in-app)
Basic API for future mobile app
Proper error handling and monitoring
4 weeks of post-launch support
Technology additions: Stripe for payments, SendGrid or Postmark for emails, basic analytics dashboard, automated backups and monitoring.
Timeline: 8-12 weeks from discovery to launch.
Best for:
Subscription SaaS platforms
Project management tools
Customer relationship systems
Scheduling and booking platforms with payments
Membership sites with premium content
Real example: We built a SaaS platform in this range for team collaboration that includes user workspaces, real-time updates, Stripe subscriptions with three pricing tiers, invite system for team members, and admin analytics showing usage metrics. Launched in 10 weeks, processing payments within the first month.
Tier 3: Marketplace MVP ($18,000-$30,000)
Marketplace MVPs involve multiple user types, transaction handling, and complex workflows. These require more planning and development time but enable powerful business models.
What you get (Everything from Tier 2, plus):
Multi-role authentication (buyers, sellers, admins with different permissions)
Vendor onboarding and management
Product catalog with search, filtering, and categories
Shopping cart and checkout flow
Payment processing with commission splits
Order management and tracking
Vendor dashboards for managing their products and sales
Admin panel with vendor approval and analytics
Notification systems for orders and updates
Multi-language support if targeting international markets
🔧 Technology additions: Advanced payment logic for commission splits, image optimization and CDN, search functionality (Algolia or custom), email notifications for order flow, shipping integration if needed.
Timeline: 10-14 weeks from discovery to launch.
Best for:
Multi-vendor marketplaces
Service booking platforms with multiple providers
B2B wholesale platforms
Rental or sharing economy platforms
Commission-based product marketplaces
Case Study: Ukrainian Brand Marketplace
We developed a marketplace MVP that enables Ukrainian brands to sell internationally.
Key features:
Brand registration with approval workflow
Individual storefronts with customization
Multi-vendor shopping cart
Payment processing through modern gateway
Commission system tracking earnings
International shipping calculator
Admin panel for vendor management
Bilingual interface (Ukrainian and English)
Results: Development took 10 weeks. The platform processed first transactions within two weeks of launch, validating the marketplace concept before additional investment.
Hidden Costs That Catch Founders Off Guard
The development quote covers building your MVP, but several recurring costs add 20-40% to your first-year budget.
Monthly Operational Costs
Third-party services power modern MVPs. Budget for:
Service Cost Payment processing fees 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction Hosting and infrastructure $100-$400/month Email services $50-$150/month Domain and SSL certificates $50-$100/year Monitoring and error tracking $30-$100/month Database backups and security $20-$50/month
For a marketplace processing $20,000 monthly, expect $500-$800 in operational costs.
Design and Branding
Basic UI/UX comes with development, but comprehensive branding costs extra.
Service Cost Logo design and brand guidelines $500-$1,500 Custom illustrations or icons $800-$2,000 Professional product photography $500-$1,500 Marketing materials for launch $500-$1,000 Total professional branding $2,000-$6,000
Smart approach: Many MVPs launch with basic branding and invest in professional design after validating demand—conserving early capital.
Post-Launch Iterations
No MVP launches perfectly. Users will identify issues and request features.
Budget 20-30% of development costs for first-quarter improvements:
Critical bug fixes and performance optimization
Implementing user feedback
A/B testing for conversion optimization
Additional integrations users request
A $15,000 MVP should have $3,000-$5,000 reserved for immediate improvements.
Marketing and Customer Acquisition
Building the product is half the battle. Budget for launch:
Activity Cost Landing page optimization and copywriting $1,000-$3,000 Initial ad campaigns to test channels $2,000-$5,000 Content creation for launch $1,000-$3,000 PR or outreach efforts $1,000-$5,000
Many technical founders underestimate marketing costs. A great product nobody knows about doesn't validate anything.
Comparing Development Options
Where you build your MVP dramatically affects quality, communication, and long-term success.
Offshore Agencies ($4,000-$10,000)
Agencies in India, Pakistan, or Southeast Asia offer the lowest prices but significant trade-offs.
Common issues:
Communication barriers leading to misunderstood requirements
Time zone differences slowing feedback cycles
Inconsistent code quality requiring expensive refactoring
Limited post-launch support
Intellectual property concerns in some regions
Reality: Many founders who "save" $5,000 upfront spend $15,000 fixing problems later.
Freelancers ($3,000-$12,000)
Individual developers offer flexibility and lower rates but introduce risks:
Single point of failure if they become unavailable
Limited capacity for projects requiring multiple skills
No peer review or quality assurance
Potential abandonment if better opportunities arise
Inconsistent availability affecting timelines
Best for: Simple, well-defined projects when you have technical knowledge to evaluate work.
Eastern European Agencies ($10,000-$25,000)
Development agencies in Ukraine, Poland, and Romania offer the best quality-to-cost ratio.
Advantages:
Strong technical education producing skilled developers
Excellent English proficiency
Convenient time zone overlap with Europe and reasonable hours with US East Coast
Mature tech ecosystem with developers from Google, Amazon, Microsoft
Proven track record with international clients
40-60% savings versus US agencies while maintaining comparable quality
At 5Hz, we've built MVPs for clients across US, UK, and Western Europe, combining senior-level expertise with startup-friendly pricing. Our team has experience with modern stacks (Next.js, React, Node.js, Laravel) and understands both technical requirements and business constraints founders face.
US/Western European Agencies ($30,000-$80,000+)
Domestic agencies in major tech hubs charge premium prices reflecting local costs. While offering native language communication and same time zone collaboration, the 3-4x price premium rarely delivers proportionally better results for straightforward MVP development.
Makes sense for: Enterprise clients with large budgets, complex compliance requirements, or when in-person collaboration is essential.
For bootstrapped startups: The quality difference doesn't justify paying $50,000 when $15,000 produces similar outcomes.
Realistic Timeline Expectations
Development speed affects your burn rate and time to market. Understanding realistic schedules helps plan other business milestones.
Simple MVP: 4-6 Weeks
Phase Duration Discovery and requirements 1 week Design and prototyping 1 week Development 2-3 weeks Testing and refinement 1 week
This aggressive timeline works only with clear, stable requirements. Each significant scope change adds 1-2 weeks.
Standard SaaS MVP: 8-12 Weeks
Phase Duration Discovery and user flow mapping 1-2 weeks Design for key screens 2 weeks Backend API development 3-4 weeks Frontend implementation 2-3 weeks Payment integration and testing 1-2 weeks Bug fixes and polish 1 week
The discovery phase identifies potential issues before coding starts. Skipping discovery to "save time" often causes expensive rework later.
Marketplace MVP: 10-14 Weeks
Phase Duration Discovery and multi-role planning 2 weeks Design for buyer and seller experiences 2-3 weeks Backend architecture for multi-tenancy 3-4 weeks Frontend for multiple user types 2-3 weeks Payment and commission logic 1-2 weeks Testing across user types 1-2 weeks
Marketplace complexity: Coordinating competing interests—buyers want low prices, sellers want high payouts, the platform needs sustainable margins. This requires more planning than single-user-type products.
When to Build vs When to Wait
Not every idea needs a custom MVP immediately. Consider alternatives first to validate assumptions cheaply.
Build Your MVP Now If:
Proceed with development when:
You've validated the problem through customer interviews
Potential users have expressed willingness to pay
No-code tools can't handle your required functionality
You have 6-12 months of runway after launch
You have a clear hypothesis to test (not just "build it and see what happens")
The best MVPs answer specific questions: "Will businesses pay $99/month for this tool?" or "Can we deliver this service profitably at scale?"
Wait and Validate Further If:
Delay development when:
You haven't talked to potential customers yet
You're unsure if the problem is painful enough
You could test the concept with a landing page and manual service delivery
You lack budget for post-launch marketing and iteration
Your business model is completely unproven
Intermediate validation steps (cost hundreds instead of tens of thousands):
Validation Method Cost Landing page with email capture $200-$500 Manual service delivery to test willingness to pay $0-$1,000 Competitive analysis Free-$500 Customer interviews Free-$1,000
These steps dramatically improve your odds when you do build. Many successful companies started with manual processes before automating.
What to Ask Before Signing a Contract
These questions reveal whether an agency has their act together or will create problems.
About Process and Communication
What does your discovery process include?
How do you handle requirement changes during development?
How often will we review progress?
What happens if the timeline extends?
How do you ensure code quality?
Do you provide access to work-in-progress code?
Strong agencies have clear processes. Vague answers or promises of "unlimited revisions" suggest poor project management.
About Post-Launch
What's included in post-launch support?
How quickly do you respond to critical issues?
Can we hire you for ongoing development?
Will we own the source code?
How do you handle handoff and documentation?
Source code ownership is non-negotiable—never accept deals where the agency retains ownership.
About Technology
Why do you recommend this tech stack for our project?
How will the architecture support scaling?
Which third-party services will we depend on?
How do you approach security?
Can we deploy independently?
Be wary of: Proprietary frameworks or platforms that create vendor lock-in.
Red Flags to Avoid
Process Red Flags
Avoid agencies that:
Provide fixed quotes without discovery
Promise unrealistically short timelines
Won't show previous client work or references
Require 100% payment upfront
Avoid written contracts with clear deliverables
Claim "we can build anything" without specialization
Agencies offering $6,000 marketplace MVPs either don't understand complexity or plan to deliver garbage.
Technical Red Flags
Be cautious of:
Agencies pushing proprietary platforms
Inability to explain technical decisions
Portfolios showing only mockups (no live products)
Refusal to use version control
Reluctance to provide code access during development
Getting Maximum Value From Your MVP Budget
Focus on Core Value
Your MVP should nail one thing, not do everything poorly. Identify the single feature solving your users' primary problem and build around that. Everything else is secondary.
Examples:
Marketplace: Great discovery and checkout while manually onboarding vendors initially
SaaS: One powerful automation while skipping nice-to-have reports
Ruthless prioritization enables faster launch and quicker learning.
Build for Learning
The goal isn't perfection—it's validated learning. Build with:
Analytics instrumented from day one
User feedback mechanisms built into the interface
A/B testing capability for key flows
Modular architecture allowing easy additions
MVPs that iterate quickly based on data beat perfect products launched late.
Communicate Clearly
Weekly progress reviews prevent surprises and keep development aligned. Reviews should cover:
What shipped this week
What's planned next week
Blockers or decisions needed
Demonstrations of working features
This cadence catches misunderstandings when corrections are cheap, not after weeks of work in the wrong direction.
ROI and Break-Even Reality
Understanding realistic return timelines helps set proper expectations and plan runway.
Time to First Revenue
Product Type First Revenue Timeline SaaS platforms First paid users 2-8 weeks (beta/early access) Marketplaces First transactions 2-4 months (need supply + demand)
First revenue doesn't mean profitability. Early pricing often includes discounts to attract initial users. Customer acquisition costs typically exceed lifetime value initially until you optimize funnels and reduce churn.
Break-Even Timelines
Recovering your MVP investment requires sustained growth.
Product Type Example Break-Even Timeline SaaS ($50-$100/mo) Need 150-300 paying users to recover $15K MVP 8-18 months with solid growth Marketplace (10-15% commission) Need $100K-$150K in GMV to break even on $20K MVP 12-24 months
These assume effective marketing and product-market fit. Many MVPs never reach break-even—this validates the market isn't big enough or acquisition costs are too high. That's valuable information preventing larger losses.
Budget for Iteration
Plan for ongoing development investment:
Timeline Investment Purpose Months 1-3 post-launch 20-30% of initial costs Critical fixes and obvious missing features Months 4-6 15-25% of initial costs Optimization based on usage data Months 7-12 30-40% of initial costs Scaling infrastructure and growth features
A $15,000 MVP should have $10,000 budgeted for year-one iteration. This separates successful products from abandoned experiments that never evolve.
Conclusion
Building a quality MVP in 2026 costs $8,000-$30,000 depending on complexity, with most startups spending $12,000-$22,000. This investment buys validated learning—answers to critical questions before betting everything on assumptions.
The key isn't finding the cheapest option but maximizing learning per dollar spent.
A well-scoped $15,000 MVP shipping in 10 weeks and teaching you what users want delivers infinitely more value than:
A $5,000 disaster requiring rebuilds
A $40,000 over-engineered product taking six months
About 5Hz
At 5Hz, we specialize in right-sized MVPs balancing quality with speed to market. Our Ukrainian team delivers senior-level technical expertise at rates 40-60% below US agencies while maintaining comparable quality.
Our Track Record:
Launched SaaS platforms and marketplace MVPs for clients worldwide
Focus on rapid iteration and validated learning over unnecessary features
Modern tech stack: Next.js, React, Node.js, Laravel
Average project: 70-80% RPC reduction, 3-4x faster load times
Whether you're building a SaaS tool, marketplace platform, or custom web application, understanding real costs and timelines helps you plan effectively and choose development partners wisely.
The best MVP ships quickly, teaches you what matters, and sets foundations for sustainable growth.
Ready to discuss your MVP? Contact the 5Hz team for a free consultation and detailed estimate tailored to your requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to build an MVP in 2026?
MVP development costs range from $8,000 to $30,000 depending on complexity. Simple MVPs with basic features cost $8,000-12,000, standard SaaS platforms with dashboards and payment processing run $12,000-20,000, and marketplace platforms with multi-vendor capabilities cost $18,000-30,000. These prices reflect professional development with modern technology stacks, proper architecture, quality assurance, and post-launch support. The exact cost depends on feature complexity, number of integrations, design requirements, and timeline constraints.
What is included in MVP development pricing?
Professional MVP development includes product discovery and requirements gathering, UI/UX design with responsive layouts for all devices, frontend development using modern frameworks like Next.js or React, backend API and database development, user authentication and authorization systems, core feature implementation based on scope, third-party integrations (payments, email, analytics), comprehensive testing and quality assurance, deployment and hosting setup, technical documentation, and 2-4 weeks of post-launch bug fix support. Additional costs include ongoing hosting, third-party service fees, and iterative improvements based on user feedback.
How long does it take to build an MVP?
MVP development timelines vary by complexity. Simple MVPs take 4-6 weeks from kickoff to launch, standard SaaS platforms require 8-12 weeks, and marketplace platforms with multiple user roles need 10-14 weeks. Timeline phases include discovery and requirements (1-2 weeks), design and prototyping (1-3 weeks), development (3-8 weeks depending on complexity), testing and refinement (1-2 weeks), and deployment (1 week). Timelines extend when requirements change frequently during development or when waiting for client feedback and content. Clear, stable requirements and responsive client communication enable faster delivery.
What is the difference between a $10,000 MVP and a $25,000 MVP?
A $10,000 MVP typically includes basic functionality with straightforward user flows, simple authentication, 1-2 integrations, basic admin panel, and template-based design. A $25,000 MVP offers multi-role systems with complex permissions, advanced features like real-time updates or marketplace logic, extensive integrations (payments, shipping, CRM, analytics, email automation), custom design and branding, scalable architecture built for growth, comprehensive admin dashboards with detailed analytics, and more extensive testing and documentation. The higher investment buys sophistication, scalability, and polish—critical for competitive markets or complex business models requiring multiple user types.
Should I hire a freelancer or agency for MVP development?
Freelancers cost less ($3,000-12,000) but introduce risks including single points of failure if unavailable, limited capacity for projects requiring multiple specialized skills, no peer code review or quality assurance processes, and potential project abandonment if better opportunities arise. Agencies cost more ($10,000-30,000) but provide team diversity covering frontend, backend, design and DevOps, dedicated project management ensuring timeline and quality, established code review and quality standards, ongoing support and maintenance capabilities, and accountability through contracts and reputation. For simple MVPs with clear requirements and when you have technical expertise to evaluate quality, experienced freelancers work well. For complex projects or when lacking technical knowledge to assess work quality, agencies significantly reduce risk.
What are the hidden costs of building an MVP?
Hidden costs often add 20-40% to development budgets including third-party service fees (payment processing at 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction, email services $50-200/month, SMS notifications $0.01-0.05 per message), hosting beyond free tiers ($100-400/month for production traffic), domain and SSL certificates ($50-100/year), professional design and branding if not included in development ($2,000-6,000), monitoring and error tracking tools ($30-100/month), post-launch iterations and bug fixes (20-30% of development cost in first quarter), and marketing and customer acquisition costs to validate the MVP ($3,000-10,000 for initial campaigns). Budget for these operational expenses when calculating runway requirements.
How much does a marketplace MVP cost to build?
Marketplace MVPs cost $18,000-30,000 for professional development. This includes multi-role authentication for buyers, sellers and administrators, comprehensive product catalog with search and filtering, vendor onboarding and management systems, payment processing with commission splitting logic, order management and fulfillment tracking, vendor dashboards for managing products and sales, admin panel with vendor approval and analytics, notification systems for orders and updates, mobile-responsive design optimized for conversion, and optional multi-language support for international markets. Development typically takes 10-14 weeks. Real example: a marketplace in this range enabling brands to sell internationally included brand registration workflows, individual storefronts, multi-vendor checkout, international shipping integration, commission system, and bilingual interface, processing transactions within two weeks of launch.
Is offshore development cheaper for building an MVP?
Offshore development from India or Southeast Asia costs $4,000-10,000 for MVPs but carries significant risks including communication barriers causing misunderstood requirements and wasted development time, time zone differences slowing feedback cycles and iteration speed, inconsistent code quality requiring expensive refactoring later, limited post-launch support when issues arise, and intellectual property concerns in some regions. Eastern European agencies ($10,000-25,000) offer better balance with strong technical education, excellent English proficiency, convenient time zones with Europe and workable hours with US, and competitive pricing without quality sacrifices. While offshore appears cheaper initially, rework and technical debt costs often exceed savings. Consider offshore only with technical expertise to review code quality closely and manage projects hands-on.
What technology stack should I use for my MVP?
Modern MVP tech stacks typically include Next.js or React for frontend (fast performance, SEO-friendly, large ecosystem and community support), Node.js or Laravel for backend (flexible, mature, excellent for building APIs), PostgreSQL or MongoDB for database (reliable, proven scalability, good tooling), and cloud hosting on Vercel, AWS or DigitalOcean (straightforward deployment, infrastructure that scales with growth). For payments, Stripe or PayPal provide reliable integration and compliance. For authentication, NextAuth or Auth0 handle security professionally. Choose proven technologies with strong community support rather than bleeding-edge frameworks with limited resources. The optimal stack depends on your specific requirements—marketplace platforms may prioritize different tools than SaaS applications based on transaction complexity and scaling needs.
When should I build a custom MVP versus using no-code tools?
Use no-code tools (Webflow, Bubble, Airtable) when validating basic concepts quickly with budget under $3,000-5,000, building simple workflows without complex business logic, creating landing pages or content sites for initial validation, and when comfortable with platform limitations and potential vendor lock-in. Build custom MVP when requiring complex business logic or multi-step workflows, specific integrations not supported by no-code platforms, scalability beyond no-code platform technical limits (typically around 10,000 users or complex data structures), full control over user experience and performance optimization, or planning to raise funding (investors strongly prefer owned technology stack over no-code dependencies). No-code works effectively for initial concept validation; custom development becomes necessary when proving business model viability and preparing to scale operations.
How do I choose the right MVP development agency?
Evaluate agencies on proven portfolio with completed projects similar in complexity to yours, clear development process with defined milestone deliverables and review points, transparent pricing and realistic timeline estimates without lowball quotes, strong communication skills and English proficiency for effective collaboration, technical expertise in your required technology stack, positive client references you can directly contact, ownership of source code and intellectual property guaranteed in contract, post-launch support terms clearly defined including response times and coverage period, and realistic expectations without promises of unrealistically fast timelines. Ask about their discovery process, how they handle requirement changes mid-project, testing and quality assurance approaches, and what happens if project duration exceeds estimates. Red flags include fixed quotes without discovery phase, 100% payment required upfront, refusal to show references or previous work, or inability to clearly explain technical decisions and trade-offs.
What is a realistic ROI timeline for an MVP?
Most MVPs generate first revenue within 1-3 months post-launch but reaching break-even takes significantly longer. SaaS platforms charging $50-100 monthly subscriptions need 150-300 paying users to recover a $15,000 investment, typically achievable in 8-18 months with strong growth and effective marketing. Marketplaces taking 10-15% commission need $100,000-150,000 in gross merchandise volume to break even on a $20,000 MVP, usually requiring 12-24 months to build both vendor supply and buyer demand. These timelines assume effective marketing execution, achieving product-market fit, continuous optimization based on user data, and managing customer acquisition costs below lifetime value. Many MVPs never reach break-even—this validates the market isn't sufficiently large or acquisition costs are prohibitively high, providing valuable information that prevents much larger losses from full product investment.
Should I build all features in my initial MVP?
No, successful MVPs focus ruthlessly on core value proposition rather than comprehensive features. Identify the single feature solving your users' primary problem and build around that—everything else is secondary and can wait for post-launch validation. For marketplaces, this might mean excellent discovery and checkout while manually onboarding vendors initially rather than building complex vendor dashboards. For SaaS, implement one powerful automation while skipping nice-to-have reporting features that users may not need. This ruthless prioritization enables faster launch (8-10 weeks instead of 16-20 weeks), lower initial investment ($12,000 instead of $30,000), quicker learning from real users, and validation before building features nobody wants. Add features iteratively based on actual user requests and usage data rather than assumptions about what users might want.
What questions should I ask before hiring an MVP development agency?
Critical questions include: What does your discovery process include and how long does it take? How do you handle requirement changes during development and what's the impact on timeline and budget? How often will we review progress and in what format? What happens if the timeline extends beyond initial estimates? How do you ensure code quality through testing and review? Do you provide access to work-in-progress code in a repository? What's included in post-launch support and for how long? How quickly do you respond to critical issues after launch? Can we hire you for ongoing development work? Will we own the source code and all intellectual property? How do you handle project handoff and what documentation will we receive? Why do you recommend this specific technology stack for our project? How will the architecture support future scaling? Which third-party services will we depend on and what are monthly costs?
What are red flags when evaluating MVP development agencies?
Major red flags include agencies providing fixed quotes without discovery phase to understand requirements, promising unrealistically short timelines (marketplace in 3 weeks or complex SaaS in 4 weeks), unwilling to show previous client work or provide references you can contact, requiring 100% payment upfront before any work begins, avoiding written contracts with clear deliverables and milestone payments, claiming they can build anything without specialization or focus areas, pushing proprietary platforms or frameworks creating vendor lock-in, unable to clearly explain technical decisions and trade-offs, showing portfolios with only design mockups rather than live functioning products, refusing to use version control or provide code access during development, and having no established process for requirements gathering, change management or quality assurance. Professional agencies understand accurate estimates require discovery, have proven processes, maintain transparency, and provide references demonstrating successful project delivery.