Important things to consider when hiring a freelance app developer in Singapore

It’s no doubt that Singapore is the leader in the South East Asian startup market. All the biggest names in technology have at least some presence in Singapore. It’s also one of the most progressive places on Earth when it comes to digital innovation. Every brand is looking for a way to take advantage of digitising some part of their business. Whether that’s to increase revenue, attract new customers, optimise internal processes, or to improve brand loyalty.

This creates many opportunities for people to build innovative solutions for these companies and then provide it as a service. Once places started to open up after a long period of lockdowns, people were afraid of germs and didn’t want to touch things in public spaces. This created an issue in places like restaurants where menus were passed on from table to table. So someone decided to digitise the traditional menu and build an app that let’s restaurants share their menus digitally. So people would simply scan a QR code on the table and then they could view the menu from their phones. This solved the problem and also created a realisation that this is better than traditional menus and many restaurants have decided that they will continue to use QR code menus in the future. This is just one example, but there is a case in almost every industry where doing something digitally is just so much better.

Having realised this, people are all trying to build new apps that solve these kinds of problems. The only problem is not everyone can code, and it’s not that simple to just learn how to do it overnight. So if you are in a similar boat, you will probably try to connect with a freelance app developer in Singapore. But this in itself is a daunting task as you will need to know where to look and how to vet candidates. So let’s dive into how you can do just that.

Where to find a freelance app developer in Singapore

The first step in hiring a freelance app developer for your project is to find one. Now there are a few places you can look. The 2 most obvious places are Upwork and Fiverr.

On Fiverr you can search for app developers who have predefined projects. They will list exactly what they will do for you with a set price. These developers can be located anywhere in the world, and won’t necessarily be in Singapore. The good thing is that you can see some reviews from past projects and Fiverr also has a pro section where they only list the vetting developers.

Now Upwork is a bit more interesting because you can find preset projects just like Fiverr, but you can also look for freelance app developers in Singapore, see their hourly rates, portfolio projects, and reviews. You will be able to contact them and discuss your exact project requirements and get a more personalised experience. You are also free to create a project by listing your requirements and budget and then developers will send you proposals so you can review and hire the best suited one for your app.

And lastly, the other option is to connect with a developer directly. The best way to do this is probably through Linkedin. You can simply set the location to Singapore and search for terms such as “app developer” or “freelance app developer”, then connect some candidates and chat to them about your project.

Working with a freelance app developer

Now if you’re working as a freelance app developer you hired through a platform such as Fiverr or Upwork, you will be projected and have customer support should any issues arise. The issue with these platforms is that the developers are generally providing low quality apps or have some issues with communications as they are based in countries where English is not the first language. The quality is also generally lower than apps made by Singapore based developers, as the standard in Singapore is much higher.

So it’s going to be much better to work with a developer directly. If you are working directly you will not have any customer support and will need to take extra precautions. Here are some things you should consider before hiring the developer.

What does their portfolio of past projects look like

The first thing you need to do is ask the developer to see their portfolio. They should have a website where they list some of their past projects. You can get a feel for the developers’ quality just by looking at their own site. You should see if the pages load quickly and if the website has been well designed. If they can’t even take care of their own website, they definitely won’t be taking care of your app. Then you should take a look at their past projects and see the types of clients they work with and how they have built their projects. You can definitely find some great developers, but it’s rare to find one that can develop and design well and that is an essential combination when creating an app.

Do they communicate well and in a professional manner

You might be able to find a developer who has managed to build a good app, but communicating is not always easy. The common problem is language. This can be solved by hiring a local developer in Singapore so you can easily understand each other. You could also hire a developer from a place like the United States, United Kingdom or Australia, and can expect good communication, but the cost will be significantly higher.

Then the other issue is that developers are typically very technical people and don’t always know how to emphasise with clients regarding the actual service the app provides. While you might see it as a solution to a business problem, they will see it as a set of features. This easily creates situations where you get lost in communication. People often choose to work with app development companies instead because of just that. Sometimes when you with with a technology partner you want to run some ideas through them to see what is actually possible. An app development company will have someone who works between the developers and you, so they can communicate at a high level to you and a low level to the develers. This is what makes a project truly successful.

Do they have a well defined process and support system

When you work with a freelance app developer, you will typically be working 1 person, who spends their time working from home or maybe even a cafe or coworking space. A person who enjoys this kind of lifestyle usually doesn’t have a process in place. They will just work on something, see if it works and then send it through to you. This might be okay if you are building an app for fun, but if your app needs to support thousands to millions of users you will need to ensure the project was well engineered from start to finish. This is usually why people instead decide to work with an app development company in Singapore if they want to build a mobile application.

An app development company has a process in which they develop apps. They do everything from strategy and planning to design and development and then have quality assurance added on top before delivering the project. Instead of just working with a single developer you are assigned a team. A team will consist of a project manager, software engineers and designers. By having a well rounded team develop your app, you can be sure that when it’s released it will check all the required boxes and keep your users happy.