10 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Software Development Company

The selection of the appropriate software development partner might make or break your project. With over 21,500 software development firms all over the world and with an industry expected to reach a value of $403 billion by 2030, finding the perfect match to suit your needs has never been so difficult, yet critical.

The stakes are high: a wrong choice means wasted budgets, missed deadlines, and projects that never see the light of day. However, the right partner becomes a strategic asset that drives innovation, scales your business, and delivers solutions that actually work.

After working with numerous clients and tracking industry trends throughout 2025, we learned it all starts with asking the right questions. This in-depth guide will take you through the top ten things you should know and question prior to signing any contract with a software development company.

Why These Questions Matter Now More Than Ever

It is a fundamentally different development scenario in 2025. AI-powered development tools change team behavior: 62% of developers use an AI coding assistant every day. Remote and hybrid models are now the norm, opening up talent pools around the world while creating new challenges for communications and project management.

This means that companies are becoming choosier as regards whom they hire or partner with from a technical standpoint: specialists, not just 'coders' in general. The demand for skilled developers in emerging technologies like AI, cybersecurity, and cloud-native development has gone through the roof, and finding those who know how to stay ahead of the curve has become very critical.

Due diligence marks the starting point of understanding the differentiators between great development partners and average ones. Let's look into some questions that will help you make an informed decision.

1. Can You Show Me Case Studies or Examples of Similar Projects?

This is where it all begins-and could well be the most important question you will ask. The best predictor of future success is past performance.

What to look for:

Specific projects in your industry or of a similar technical nature
Case studies highlighting the problem, solution, and measurable results
Actual feedback from customers, rather than just general praise.
Portfolio work that demonstrates technical sophistication matching your needs.

Don't accept the explanation of anything in an abstract manner. Always ask for a concrete example: "Have you built a fintech application with real-time transaction processing?" or "Can you show me an e-commerce platform you've scaled to handle 100,000+ daily users?"

The best companies take pride in walking you through their portfolio, explaining the challenges they faced and how they overcame them. They will provide metrics, such as how they improved a client's operational efficiency by 40% or reduced the system load time from 8 seconds to under 2 seconds.

Red flag alert: A company that has no specific examples or only has general, template-based work should raise caution. A refusal to share a portfolio is a pretty standard indicator of something being wrong.

2. What is your development process and methodology?

Understanding how a company operates tells you everything about how your project will actually unfold. A proven, structured methodology is the difference between organized progress and constant chaos.

Key points to discuss:

Their development life cycle: Discovery → Design → Development → Testing → Deployment
Whether using Agile or Scrum, Waterfall, or hybrid approaches
How they handle shifting requirements in the middle of a project
Their quality assurance and testing processes
Code review practices and documentation standards

A mature development organization should be able to clearly articulate their process. They would explain their process for sprint planning, how they handle technical debt, manage bug tracking, and integrate CI/CD pipelines.

Also, ask follow-up questions with specifics: "How would you handle it if we needed to change one of the main features halfway into development?" or "How do you approach automated testing?"

Companies that want to "figure it out as they go" are sending you a message loud and clear: they don't have discipline for professional software development. Run the other direction.

3. What Technologies and Tech Stack Do You Specialize In?

Different projects call for different technological stacks. You require a team that is not only acquainted with the right tools but also deeply experienced in them.

Important considerations:

Programming languages related to your project: Python, JavaScript, Java, etc.
Frameworks and libraries: React, Node.js, Django, Laravel, etc.
Database skills, including SQL, NoSQL, and cloud databases
AWS - Amazon Web Service, Azure, Google Cloud
Mobile development capabilities: iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter
Technical Skills-Emerging Technology: AI/ML, Blockchain, IoT, AR/VR

In 2025, versatility will come into play. The best development partners are those that can show proficiency across a wide array of technologies while having deep knowledge in their focused area. For example, a fintech project requires strong security capabilities, and you would want a team with experience in secure programming languages and encryption technologies.

Ask them, "What experience do you have with the specific technologies our project requires?" and "How do you stay current with rapidly evolving tech stacks?"

Watch out for firms that claim to be experts at everything: find specialists that can solve your problems, not generalists who dabble in dozens of technologies without mastery of any of them.

4. How do you handle communication and project updates?

Communication breakdowns kill more projects than technology issues. Communications must be clear-cut.

Key items to explain:

Who is going to be your point of contact?
How often would you be apprised of details? (Daily standups, weekly reviews, etc.)
Project Management Tools: What do they use? Jira, Asana, Trello, etc.
Will you have direct access to developers or only through a project manager?
How do they handle different time zones if working remotely?
How are urgent or emergency cases handled?

Companies worth your time will have established protocols for keeping in contact. They'll show you exactly what to expect: regular status reports, access to project tracking systems, scheduled check-ins, and clear escalation procedures when problems arise.

Pay attention to how they communicate during the sales process. If they're slow to respond, vague in their answers, or difficult to reach before you're even a client, imagine how frustrating it will be once you've signed the contract.

Pro tip: Ask if they can accommodate your desired communication cadence. The best partners will adjust their style to fit your needs and not make you conform to some strict, unyielding system they have.

5. Do you have a dedicated team or a project manager?

You need to understand precisely who works on your project and how much attention your project actually receives.

Critical questions to ask:

Will developers work on only your project or multitask on several projects?
Has a project manager been assigned to your account?
What is the team composition: senior developers, junior developers, designers, and QA?
How do they handle team member turnover during the project?
What if a key developer leaves mid-project?

Companies that use a dedicated team model, in which the project developers focus on your project alone, generally have better results. Context switching between projects is expensive to productivity, and sometimes it leads to costly mistakes.

Equally important is a dedicated project manager: they keep your project on track, coordinate between teams, manage timelines, and serve as your advocate inside the company. Otherwise, you will have to play project manager yourself, which defeats the purpose of outsourcing.

High turnover or overcommitment is a serious red flag. If developers change constantly or the company has too many projects at once, your project will suffer from delays and low quality.

6. What is your pricing model, and what is included?

After all, money speaks, and you need complete transparency about costs upfront.

Two major pricing models:

Fixed-Price Model:

Set the rate for the entire project.
Suitable for well-defined requirements and limited budgets.
Less flexibility for changes during development
The risk of out-of-scope services billed outside the original agreement

T&M Model:

Pay only for actual work completed.
Greater flexibility in the adjustment of requirements
More accurate and fair compensation
It is more suitable for projects whose requirements are continuously changing.

Everything depends on the project at hand. Time and material allows flexibility, but the client really needs to trust the outsourcing company and have open communication. Fixed price may seem safer, but it usually leads to disputes over inevitable changes.

What to ask:

What does your quote include exactly?
Are there any hidden costs? Hosting, third-party services, maintenance
How do you handle scope changes or additional features?
What is your payment schedule?
What if the project takes longer than estimated?

Get everything in writing. A good company is transparent about its costs and explains trade-offs that come with different pricing approaches. If they avoid detailed cost discussions or give you suspiciously low estimates, proceed with extreme caution.

7. How much time investment do you need from our team?

Software development is a team activity. Knowing what your needed investment is avoids surprises and prepares resources in that direction.

Expect to be involved in:

Initial discovery sessions to define the requirements
Regular review meetings and sprint demos
User acceptance testing - UAT
Feedback sessions on design mockups and prototypes
Access to current systems and data
Feature prioritization

The best companies will outline precisely what they need from you and when. They'll specify which stakeholders need to be involved with discovery, how often you'll need to provide feedback, and what information they'll need access to.

And if a company says they need absolutely nothing from you, that is actually a bad omen. Software that's built without the client stops working in most cases, sometimes missing the mark entirely. Your input and feedback are necessary ingredients in success.

Important consideration: Be sure you have the bandwidth to fulfill your role. Many projects get held up not because the development company failed, but because the client couldn't dedicate the time to provide input or make decisions.

8. What post-launch support and maintenance do you provide?

Software doesn't stop at deployment. It's the post-launch support that determines whether your application will thrive or gradually deteriorate.

Key support themes:

On what basis is the warranty or bug-fix period provided?
Do you offer ongoing maintenance packages?
How soon after launch do you respond to critical issues?
Will you be training our team?
What are your plans concerning further updates and additions of features?
Who owns the intellectual property rights and source code?

No software is perfect at launch. Bugs will be found, users will do things in unexpected ways, and requirements will change. A good partner will stand behind their work with reasonable postlaunch support to fix it.

Some companies charge ongoing fees to maintain access to your own code. That's a huge red flag. You should own the intellectual property, source code, and all development assets from day one. Make that non-negotiable.

Training is important, too. If you're going to keep the software in-house eventually, make sure they provide comprehensive documentation and training to make the transition smooth.

9. How Do You Ensure Quality, Security, and Scalability?

Quality and security have to be built into every layer of development; neither can be an afterthought.

Key security and quality practices:

Automated testing includes unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests.
Code reviews and pair programming practices
Security measures include encryption, secure coding practices, and penetration testing.
Compliance with relevant standards: GDPR, HIPAA, PCI-DSS, etc.
Performance optimization and load testing
Scalability planning for future growth

In 2025, cybersecurity is not optional; it's the foundation. One breach can cost millions and destroy years of consumer trust. Be sure to ask about their security expertise, especially in applications that involve sensitive data or financial transactions.

For scalability, discuss how they architect systems to handle growth. Will your application handle 10x of the expected traffic? Can it scale horizontally as your user base scales? These are not premature optimizations; they are essential planning.

Technical due diligence tip: If you have technical in-house expertise, request a code walkthrough or a review of sample projects. Well-organized and well-documented code with automated tests shows engineering discipline; messy, undocumented code screams future problems.

10. What is your timeline, and how do you handle delays?

Realistic timelines and contingency planning distinguish professional firms from amateurs.

Timeline Discussion Points:

What is the estimated duration of the project, with clear milestones?
What might be some delay factors?
How would you handle setbacks or unexpected obstacles?
What's your track record for delivering projects on time?
Is there a lead time before the team is able to start working?

Be wary of companies promising unrealistically short timelines. If someone says that they can build a complex enterprise application in two months when the industry standard is a year, they are either lying or intend to deliver something incomplete.

Ask about their contingency plans: "What happens if your lead developer gets sick?" or "How do you handle technical challenges that take longer than anticipated?"

The best companies realize that software development deals in uncertainty. They factor in buffer time, backup resources, and proactive communication when things go awry rather than miss a deadline in silence.

Red Flags That Should Make You Walk Away

While asking the right questions is key, recognizing deal-breakers is equally important:

Major warning signs:

LACK OF TRANSPARENCY: Dodging questions, vague responses, or unwillingness to provide detailed information.
No proven track record: Not able to show relevant case studies or provide client references
Poor communication: Slowness in responses, unclear explanations, or inability to schedule meetings
Unrealistic promises: promising impossibly fast delivery or rock-bottom pricing
No established process: Inability to discuss their process or quality assurance procedures
Refusal to sign an NDA: Failure or unwillingness to protect your confidential information.
Ownership issues: Claiming continued ownership of code and forcing ongoing fees for access
High Turnover: Constant shifting within teams; inability to commit dedicated resources
Yes to everything: Agreeing to all requests without a lot of critical thinking or impact analysis

Trust your instincts: if it feels wrong at the vetting process, then it probably is. The sales process demonstrates how they will treat you as a client. Aggressive sales tactics, pushing you to sign quickly, or minimizing your concerns are indicative of future problems.

The 2025 Landscape: What's Different Now

The industry of software development has undergone immense changes, and knowing the trends will allow you to make better judgments about partners:

AI Integration: The best development companies now use AI coding tools to enhance productivity. However, this does not eliminate the need for human know-how. Ask how they can balance AI assistance with human insight and ingenuity.

Remote-First Reality: With 28.2% in hybrid models and 12.7% fully remote, the geographic boundaries have dissolved. It opens up more avenues but simultaneously demands more powerful communication protocols and project management.

Security First: Cybersecurity has moved from nice-to-have to must-have. With increasing cyber threats, partners should show proactive security best practices, not reactive fixes.

Specialized Expertise Premium: Generalist developers are being outcompeted by specialists in AI/ML, cloud-native development, and cybersecurity, with many projects requiring deep experience in a few select domains.

Capability Over Credentials: To us, companies are now prioritizing demonstrated capability over formal credentials. Ask to see actual work and problem-solving approaches rather than just certifications.

Making Your Final Decision

Asking these ten questions from multiple companies will give you a considerable amount of data to compare. Here's how you can synthesize it:

Create a scorecard assessing:

Technical expertise matching your project needs
Quality and relevance of portfolio work
Clarity and professionalism of communication
Price and process transparency
Cultural fit with your organization
Post-launch support and maintenance offerings
Security and quality assurance practices
Client references and testimonials

Don't make price the only factor in your decision. The cheapest quote almost always becomes the most expensive through delays, low quality, and endless revisions. Instead, seek the best value—high-quality work at fair market rates.

Schedule reference calls with past clients, inquiring about communication quality, timeline adherence, how the company handled problems, and whether they'd hire them again. You'll pick up insights from previous clients that you just won't get from sales presentations.

Protecting Your Investment

Before signing anything, make sure these below protections are included.

Legal safeguards:

Non-disclosure agreement to protect your intellectual property
Clear ownership clauses that give you all the rights to code and assets
Detailed scope of work, including acceptance criteria
Well-defined milestone schedule where payment is linked to deliverables
Provisions for termination if performance does not meet set standards
Data Security and Compliance Requirements:
Indemnification and liability provisions

Let your attorney review all agreements. Software development involves huge investments and risks. The right legal coverage will save you from costly disputes down the line.

Conclusion: Partnership, Not Transaction

The companies that are really bringing in great results become far more than service providers; they become invested strategic partners. They constructively question your assumptions, suggest improvements that you may not have thought of, and genuinely take pride in the outcome of your project.

Your relationship with a development partner will span months or even years. Take the time to select someone you trust, who communicates well, and who exhibits technical excellence in addition to business savvy.

The ten questions in this guide give you the framework for evaluating potential partners comprehensively. Take your time, do your due diligence, and don't rush the decision. The right software development company becomes an extension of your team, driving innovation and helping you achieve goals you couldn't reach alone.

Keep in mind that you're not simply buying code-you're investing in expertise and reliability and a partner who can change the game for your company. Take this decision with its due importance, and the rewards will pay off for years to come.

Ready to Start Your Software Project?

Now that you know exactly what to ask, you can approach software development companies with confidence. The right questions will reveal whether a potential partner has the expertise, transparency, and commitment your project requires.

Take these questions with you into every conversation. Be thorough, ask follow-ups, and trust your judgment. A few hours of proper vetting will save you countless headaches and millions of dollars down the road.

Your software project deserves a partner who is as invested in your success as you are. Choose wisely.