--- title: "How to Compare Web Design Agencies and Studios Before Hiring — Dardo" description: "Compare web design studios fairly: check their live client sites, who does the work, ownership, pricing and SEO promises, plus a scoring sheet." url: "https://dardo.studio/en/blog/compare-design-studios/" language: "en" translation: "https://dardo.studio/es/blog/comparar-agencias-de-diseno-web/" updated: "2026-10-09T20:37:18.734Z" --- [Blog](https://dardo.studio/en/blog/) # How to compare web design studios before you hire one: criteria, questions and red flags A fair way to tell the studios on your shortlist apart: what to check on their live client sites, what to ask, and the red flags to watch for. By [Nicolás Cerón](https://dardo.studio/en/studio/) ·October 9, 2026 · [Leer en español](https://dardo.studio/es/blog/comparar-agencias-de-diseno-web/) ![Five small white architectural models of houses in a row on an architect's worktable at night, one of them marked with a crimson pin.](https://dardo.studio/_astro/01M4GYBZ90DZJ2XRXT9M3KTRGV_Z25LEiK.webp) ## The short answer Compare studios on evidence you can check, not on reputation or a polished pitch. Give every studio the same brief, test their live client sites yourself, find out who will actually do the work, and get scope, pricing and ownership in writing. Then score each one on the same sheet. There is no single best studio, only the one whose work, team and process fit your project, budget and deadline. ## What to compare ### Relevant work that is still live A strong portfolio in another category tells you less than a modest one close to yours. Look for projects with a similar job: a bilingual services site, an online store, a booking flow, a site a non-technical team updates. Then open the live sites, not just the case-study images. Check that they still exist and match the screenshots, and that the case study says what the studio delivered. "Design" and "design, build and launch" are different jobs. ### Who actually does the work Ask for the names and roles of the people who will design, build and manage your project, and whether any of it is subcontracted. The person on the sales call may not be the one who opens the design file. Seniority matters most on decisions that are hard to reverse, like structure and platform. ### Process and deliverables A good process is one you can see: named stages, a review at the end of each, and a written list of deliverables, such as a sitemap, mobile and desktop designs, reusable components, a content management system your team can use, launch checks and documentation. Ask how each stage is approved. ### Technical quality you can check yourself - **Speed.** Paste a client site into [PageSpeed Insights](https://pagespeed.web.dev/). Its [documentation](https://developers.google.com/speed/docs/insights/v5/about) explains that it runs a simulated lab test with Lighthouse and, when the site has enough real visitors, also shows field data from the Chrome User Experience Report for the previous 28 days. Google's [Core Web Vitals guidance](https://web.dev/articles/vitals) treats as good a Largest Contentful Paint of 2.5 seconds or less, an Interaction to Next Paint of 200 milliseconds or less and a Cumulative Layout Shift of 0.1 or less, measured at the 75th percentile of page loads. - **Accessibility basics.** The W3C's [Easy Checks](https://www.w3.org/WAI/test-evaluate/preliminary/) walk you through a first look: page titles, image alt text, headings, color contrast, text resizing, and whether you can reach everything with the Tab key and see where the focus is. The W3C is clear that these quick checks are not a full evaluation. - **Standards.** Ask which version and level of [WCAG](https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/) the studio designs to. WCAG 2.2 is the current version, its success criteria are grouped into levels A, AA and AAA, and the W3C encourages using the latest version. Treat the results as questions, not verdicts. A client may have added heavy scripts after launch, and small sites often lack field data. A studio that knows its work can explain a weak score. ### Ownership after launch Ask whose name each of these will be in on launch day: domain, hosting, code repository, design files, content management system, analytics, Search Console and paid third-party tools. The safest answer is yours, from the start. ICANN's page on [registrant responsibilities](https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/benefits-2013-09-16-en) puts the responsibility for a domain on whoever registers it, including keeping its contact details accurate. If the studio registers yours under its own account, you depend on it to renew or move it. Also ask what you get, and in what form, if you part ways. ### SEO approach and promises to be wary of Google's guide to [hiring an SEO](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/do-i-need-seo) is direct: "No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google." It suggests asking whether a provider follows Google Search Essentials, what results they expect and on what timeline, and whether they will explain every change they make. For an audit, it recommends granting only read access to Search Console. In a web design project, technical foundations (clean URLs, unique titles and descriptions, crawlable pages, fast templates) belong in the build. Keyword research, content planning and [ongoing SEO](https://dardo.studio/en/blog/choose-seo-agency-colombia/) are usually separate work. Be wary of guaranteed rankings, vague "SEO packages" and anyone who won't say what they'll change. ### How pricing is structured Prices vary too much to quote here, but you can compare structure. A clear proposal itemizes: - design, development and content (writing, translation, photography) as separate lines; - the number of unique page templates and languages; - integrations such as forms, CRM, booking or payments; - third-party software and licenses; - recurring costs: domain, hosting, maintenance and support; - revision rounds, what's out of scope and how change requests are priced; - the payment schedule and what triggers each payment. If two proposals are far apart, check that they cover the same scope before comparing totals. ### Timeline and communication A realistic timeline names its dependencies, especially yours: content, approvals and account access. Ask who your day-to-day contact is, how often you'll meet, how decisions are recorded and how many working hours you share across time zones. ### References Ask to speak with one or two past clients with similar projects. Did the project finish on the agreed scope and date? What went wrong, and how was it handled? Would they hire the studio again? ## Comparison table | Criterion | What to ask | A good answer | Red flag | | ------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- | | Relevant work | Which of your projects is closest to ours? | Live, similar sites and a clear account of what the studio did | Only mockups or concept work | | Team | Who will design, build and manage our project? | Named people and roles in the proposal | "Our team" with no names; undisclosed subcontracting | | Process | What are the stages, and how is each approved? | Written stages, reviews and acceptance criteria | "We'll iterate until you're happy" with no limits | | Performance | How do your client sites do in PageSpeed Insights? | Results they can explain page by page | No idea, or blaming the tool | | Accessibility | Which WCAG version and level do you design to? | A specific version and level, and how they test it | "Our sites are accessible", no standard named | | Ownership | Whose name will the domain, hosting, code and accounts be in? | Yours, from the start, in writing | The studio keeps the domain or the code | | SEO | What SEO is included, and what isn't? | Technical foundations included; content and ongoing SEO scoped separately | Guaranteed rankings or first place | | Pricing | What does each line of the proposal cover? | Design, build, content, third parties and recurring costs itemized | One total with no breakdown | | Timeline | What do you need from us, and when? | A schedule that lists your dependencies | A fixed date before they've seen your content | | References | Can we speak with a past client? | Yes, one with a similar project | No references, or only testimonials | ## How to run a fair comparison 1. **Write one brief.** Goals, audience, expected pages, languages, existing content, integrations, deadline and a budget range. Send the same brief to every studio. 2. **Ask the same questions.** Use the list below on every first call and record the answers in one document. 3. **Check the work yourself.** Run two or three live client sites from each studio through PageSpeed Insights and the Easy Checks. 4. **Score on one sheet.** Rate each criterion from 1 to 5 and weight what matters most to you. 5. **Compare scope before price.** Line up the proposals item by item and ask about anything one includes and another doesn't. A simple scoring sheet: | Criterion | Weight (1–3) | Studio A | Studio B | Studio C | | -------------------------- | ------------ | -------- | -------- | -------- | | Relevant, live work | | | | | | Team and seniority | | | | | | Process and deliverables | | | | | | Technical quality | | | | | | Ownership terms | | | | | | SEO approach | | | | | | Proposal clarity | | | | | | Timeline and communication | | | | | | References | | | | | Multiply each score by its weight and add them up. If the totals are close, the references and the first call usually decide it. ## Questions for the first call - What do you need from us to give a firm proposal? - Which of your live projects is closest to ours, and what exactly did you do on it? - Who will work on our project day to day? - What are the stages, and what do we approve at the end of each? - Which platform would you use, and can our team update content without you? - Whose name will the domain, hosting, code and accounts be in? - What SEO is included, and what would be extra? - What isn't in your proposal that we might assume is? - What happens after launch if something breaks? ## When a studio is not the right choice - **A freelancer** fits when the site is small, the design direction is clear and one person can cover design, build and launch. - **An in-house hire** fits when the work never stops, such as a product that ships every week. - **A template or site builder** fits when your needs are standard, the budget is tight and you want to manage the site yourself. - **A larger agency** fits when you need many specialists at once, or when a long client list matters to your procurement process. A studio makes sense when brand, content, design, development and search are decided together, with one team accountable. ## How Dardo works Dardo is [a founder-led studio of three people in Bogotá](https://dardo.studio/en/studio/), led by Nicolás Cerón, working in English and Spanish with clients anywhere. Bogotá is on UTC−5 all year. Each proposal names the people on the project and their roles, and you talk directly with the people designing and building your site. Handover names the owner of the domain, hosting, source code, design files, content system and every third-party account, and we prefer those accounts in your name from the start where the platform allows it. Every site includes technical SEO foundations, without ranking guarantees. Dardo was founded in 2026, so judge us on [work you can open and inspect](https://dardo.studio/en/work/). If it fits, see what [web design](https://dardo.studio/en/services/web-design/) includes, or [send us your brief](https://dardo.studio/en/contact/). [Nicolás Cerón](https://dardo.studio/en/studio/) Nicolás Cerón is the founder of Dardo, a brand, web design and development studio in Bogotá, Colombia. ## Keep exploring. - [Service · **Custom web design studio in Bogotá, Colombia**](https://dardo.studio/en/services/web-design/) - [Your project · **Start a conversation**](https://dardo.studio/en/contact/)