Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Web Designer

Hiring the wrong web designer costs you twice: once on the invoice, once on the redo. The fastest way to avoid both is knowing the right questions to ask a web designer before you sign anything, not after the deposit clears. I’m Jude Panotes, and I build websites and brand work for individuals, small businesses and B2B teams for a living, so I’ve sat across the table for this conversation more times than I can count. Here are the questions worth asking, what a solid answer sounds like, and where the vague ones hide.

What’s included in the price (and what isn’t)

Two quotes can look close on paper and mean different projects. Before you compare numbers, get specific about what’s inside them.

Ask directly:

• Does this cover design, development, or both?
• Is hosting, a domain, or stock photography included, or billed separately?
• How many pages, and what happens if I need more later?
• What’s excluded, and what triggers an extra invoice?

A designer who quotes every project individually, rather than working off a fixed menu, should walk you through the scope line by line. If the answer is vague, something like “it depends, we’ll figure it out,” press for a written breakdown before you sign anything. My services page breaks down what’s typically included at each stage, so you have something to compare a quote against.

What does the process look like, start to finish

A designer who’s done this before can describe their process in one breath, in order. If they stumble on that, pay attention.

A solid process runs: a conversation about your goals and audience, a quote and timeline based on that conversation, design work done in rounds with your feedback built in, and a handoff of final files once everything’s approved. Ask where you fit into each step and how much input you get before things are locked in. If a designer skips straight from “sure, I can do that” to a price, ask them to slow down and walk you through the steps.

How many revision rounds do I get

Revisions are where budgets and timelines blow past their limits, so pin this down early.

Ask how many rounds of feedback the price includes, what counts as a revision versus a new request, and what an extra round costs if you need one. Two to three rounds is typical for most design and web projects, enough to refine the work without turning it into an open-ended back-and-forth. If a designer can’t tell you the number without checking, ask again before you sign. Payments, timelines, and ownership come up often too; I’ve answered the common versions of these on my FAQ page if you want to compare notes before that first call.

Who owns the site once it’s done

This one gets skipped often, and it’s the one that causes real problems later: a business that can’t update its own homepage, or can’t leave a designer, because no one owns the account.

Ask who holds the domain, the hosting account, and the login to the site itself. Ask whether the final files and full rights transfer to you once the project is paid in full, or whether the designer keeps some claim on the work. The site should be yours outright once the invoice is settled.

What happens after launch

Launch day is when the site starts needing upkeep: security patches, plugin updates, the occasional broken link nobody notices until a customer does.

Ask whether ongoing maintenance is available, what it covers, and how fast you can expect a fix if something breaks. Even if you don’t sign up for a maintenance plan right away, knowing the option exists, and what it costs, tells you whether this designer plans to disappear after the invoice clears or stay reachable if something breaks later.

Can I see work like mine

A portfolio full of beautiful sites doesn’t tell you much on its own. The thinking behind a project matters more than the finished look.

Ask to see work in a similar space, or ask them to walk through a project: why they built a layout a certain way, what problem a specific page solved. You’re listening for whether they treat a website as a business tool or a visual exercise, not for an exact match to your industry.

Answers that should make you pause

A few responses are worth treating as a signal to slow down:

• No written scope, timeline, or quote, only a verbal agreement
• Can’t explain their process without stalling
• Vague or evasive about who owns the site and files after launch
• The cheapest bid by a wide margin, with no clear reason why
• No mention of revisions, maintenance, or what happens if something goes wrong post-launch

None of these are automatic disqualifiers on their own. Together, or paired with a shrug when you ask, they’re worth a second question before a deposit.

The short list to bring to your first call

• What exactly is included in this quote, and what isn’t?
• What does the process look like from here to launch?
• How many revision rounds are included, and what happens after that?
• Who owns the domain, hosting, and final files when we’re done?
• Is maintenance available after launch, and what does it cover?
• Can you show me a project and explain the thinking behind it?
• What’s the realistic timeline, and what could push it back?

Bring this list to the first call and you’ll know within twenty minutes whether you’re talking to someone who’s done this a hundred times or someone learning on your project. If you’d rather start with these questions, get in touch and we can go through them together.

Fill out the form with a few details about your project, and I'll get back to you with the next steps.