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The Temptation of Low Prices
You need HubSpot development work done. You post the project on Upwork or Fiverr. Within hours, you have proposals ranging from £15/hour to £100/hour. The scope is the same, but the prices vary wildly.
The choice seems obvious: why pay £80/hour when someone will do it for £20? You're getting the same deliverable—a landing page, a custom module, an email template—so why not save the money?
This logic is tempting and common. It's also expensive in ways that aren't immediately obvious. The cheap developer delivers the project, you pay the invoice, and everything seems fine. The problems emerge later—sometimes weeks later, sometimes months later—and by then, the cheap developer is long gone.
This article explains why cheap HubSpot development almost always costs more in the long run, what those hidden costs look like, and how to identify quality development that's actually worth paying for.
The Cheap Developer Trap
Let's start with a real scenario that plays out constantly:
You hire a developer at £25/hour to build a custom HubSpot module. They deliver it in 10 hours for £250. It looks right in the editor. You approve it, pay the invoice, and launch the page.
Three months later, you want to update the module. You discover the code is a mess—no comments, inconsistent naming, hardcoded values everywhere. The original developer is unavailable or unresponsive. You hire someone else to make the update.
The new developer quotes 5 hours at £80/hour—£400—just to understand and update the existing module. They explain the original code is so poorly structured that it's faster to rebuild from scratch than to modify it. Rebuilding takes 8 hours: £640.
Your "cheap" £250 module actually cost £890 once you factor in the rebuild. You would have been better off paying £80/hour from the start for 8 hours (£640) and getting maintainable code.
This pattern repeats across projects: cheap upfront costs lead to expensive long-term consequences.
The Real Costs of Cheap Development
When you hire cheap developers, you're not just getting lower quality—you're inheriting specific problems that create ongoing costs:
1. Technical Debt That Compounds
Cheap developers take shortcuts. They copy-paste code without understanding it. They use inline styles instead of proper CSS. They hardcode values instead of making things flexible. They skip documentation entirely.
Each shortcut is a small problem. But problems compound. The next developer who touches the code has to work around the shortcuts. They add their own shortcuts because the foundation is already messy. Over time, your HubSpot site becomes a house of cards—fragile, confusing, and expensive to maintain.
Eventually, the technical debt becomes so severe that the only solution is a complete rebuild. You throw away everything and start over, losing all the money you invested in the original development.
2. Performance Problems
Cheap developers don't optimize for performance. They load entire CSS frameworks for one button style. They include multiple copies of jQuery. They don't compress images or implement lazy loading. They write inefficient code that works but runs slowly.
The result is slow pages. Slow pages hurt SEO rankings. They hurt conversion rates—studies show that even a one-second delay in page load time can reduce conversions by 7%. They create poor user experiences that damage your brand.
Fixing performance problems after the fact is expensive. You're paying someone to audit the code, identify bottlenecks, and rewrite sections. It's always cheaper to build it right the first time.
3. Broken Responsiveness
Cheap developers test on one screen size—usually desktop. They don't check tablets or mobile devices. They don't test different browsers. The page looks fine on their laptop, so they call it done.
You discover the problems later: buttons that don't work on mobile, text that overflows containers on tablets, layouts that break on small screens. Mobile traffic is often 50-60% of total traffic, so these problems affect most of your visitors.
Fixing responsive issues retroactively is tedious and expensive. Every breakpoint needs testing. Every fix might break something else. What should have been built mobile-first from the start becomes a debugging nightmare.
4. Security and Compliance Issues
Cheap developers don't think about security. They might embed API keys in client-side code. They might not sanitize form inputs properly. They might use outdated libraries with known vulnerabilities.
They also don't think about compliance. GDPR requires specific cookie consent handling. Accessibility standards require proper semantic HTML and ARIA labels. Cheap developers skip these considerations because they're not explicitly in the brief.
When you discover these issues—often during an audit or after a complaint—fixing them is expensive and urgent. You're paying premium rates for rush work to address problems that should never have existed.
5. Lack of Documentation
Cheap developers don't document their work. No comments in the code. No README files. No explanation of how things work or why decisions were made.
This creates knowledge lock-in. Only the original developer understands the code. If they're unavailable, anyone else has to reverse-engineer everything before they can make changes. This reverse-engineering time is pure waste—you're paying someone to understand work you already paid for.
6. Poor Communication and Support
Cheap developers often work across many small projects simultaneously. They're not invested in any single client. Communication is slow. Revisions take days. Questions go unanswered.
After delivery, they disappear. If something breaks or you need adjustments, they're unresponsive or unavailable. You have to find and onboard a new developer, losing time and continuity.
The lack of ongoing relationship means no knowledge transfer, no proactive suggestions, no partnership. You're constantly starting over with new people who don't know your setup.
Why Cheap Developers Are Cheap
Understanding why some developers charge £20/hour while others charge £80/hour helps clarify what you're actually paying for:
Experience level. Junior developers or those just learning HubSpot charge less because they're building their portfolio. They're slower, make more mistakes, and don't know best practices. You're paying less per hour but getting more hours of trial-and-error.
Geographic arbitrage. Developers in countries with lower costs of living can charge less and still earn well locally. This isn't inherently bad, but it often comes with communication challenges, timezone differences, and varying quality standards.
Volume strategy. Some developers charge low rates and compensate with high volume. They juggle dozens of small projects simultaneously. Your project gets minimal attention and rushed execution.
Lack of specialization. Generalist developers who do "everything" often don't do anything particularly well. They charge less because they can't command specialist rates. HubSpot development has specific quirks and best practices that generalists miss.
No business overhead. Cheap developers often work informally—no contracts, no insurance, no formal business structure. This reduces their costs but increases your risk. If something goes wrong, you have limited recourse.
What Quality Development Actually Looks Like
Quality HubSpot development isn't just about avoiding problems—it's about positive outcomes that justify the higher cost:
Clean, Maintainable Code
Quality developers write code that other developers can understand and modify. They use consistent naming conventions, proper indentation, and clear structure. They add comments explaining complex logic. They follow HubSpot best practices and industry standards.
This maintainability means future changes are fast and cheap. Any competent developer can pick up the work and continue it without extensive reverse-engineering.
Performance Optimization
Quality developers optimize from the start. They compress and lazy-load images. They minimize CSS and JavaScript. They avoid loading unnecessary libraries. They test page speed and fix bottlenecks before delivery.
The result is fast pages that rank better, convert better, and create better user experiences.
Responsive and Tested
Quality developers test across devices and browsers. They use mobile-first design principles. They check edge cases—very long content, very short content, missing images, unusual screen sizes.
You get work that functions correctly for all users, not just the developer's laptop.
Secure and Compliant
Quality developers think about security and compliance. They follow GDPR requirements. They implement proper accessibility. They use secure coding practices. They stay current with platform updates and best practices.
You avoid the risk and cost of compliance issues or security vulnerabilities.
Documented and Explained
Quality developers document their work. They explain how modules work, what fields do, and how to use them. They provide changelogs for updates. They create README files for complex implementations.
This documentation makes future work easier and reduces dependency on any single developer.
Proactive Communication
Quality developers communicate clearly and proactively. They ask clarifying questions upfront. They provide progress updates. They flag potential issues before they become problems. They suggest improvements based on their expertise.
You get partnership, not just execution. The developer becomes a trusted advisor who helps you make better decisions.
The True Cost Comparison
Let's compare the total cost of ownership over two years for a typical HubSpot project:
Cheap Developer Scenario:
Initial development: 20 hours at £25/hour = £500. First round of fixes (3 months later): 8 hours at £80/hour = £640. Performance optimization (6 months later): 6 hours at £80/hour = £480. Responsive fixes (9 months later): 5 hours at £80/hour = £400. Complete rebuild (18 months later): 20 hours at £80/hour = £1,600.
Total over 2 years: £3,620
Quality Developer Scenario:
Initial development: 16 hours at £80/hour = £1,280. Minor updates (6 months later): 2 hours at £80/hour = £160. Feature additions (12 months later): 4 hours at £80/hour = £320. Routine maintenance (18 months later): 2 hours at £80/hour = £160.
Total over 2 years: £1,920
The quality developer costs 47% less over two years despite charging more than 3x per hour. The difference is that quality work doesn't need constant fixing and eventual rebuilding.
Questions to Ask Before Hiring
How do you identify quality developers and avoid cheap ones? Ask these questions:
"Can you show me examples of HubSpot modules you've built?" Look at the code, not just the visual result. Is it clean and organized? Is it documented? Does it follow best practices?
"How do you handle responsive design?" Quality developers should talk about mobile-first approaches, breakpoint testing, and cross-device verification.
"What's your process for performance optimization?" They should mention image compression, lazy loading, CSS/JS minimization, and speed testing.
"How do you document your work?" They should provide code comments, README files, and usage instructions as standard practice.
"What happens if something breaks after delivery?" Quality developers stand behind their work and provide reasonable post-delivery support.
"Can you explain your pricing?" They should articulate the value they provide, not just defend a low rate.
"Do you have ongoing clients or mostly one-off projects?" Ongoing relationships indicate quality and reliability. Constant new clients might indicate problems.
When Lower Prices Make Sense
There are scenarios where lower-cost developers are appropriate:
Simple, isolated tasks. If you need a truly simple task with no long-term implications—like updating text in an existing module—a junior developer might be fine.
Throwaway projects. If you're building a temporary landing page for a one-time campaign that will be deleted afterward, quality matters less.
Learning and experimentation. If you're exploring HubSpot's capabilities and don't need production-ready work, a cheaper developer can help you learn.
But for anything that will be used long-term, maintained, or built upon, quality development is worth the investment.
How to Find Quality Developers
Look for specialization. Developers who focus specifically on HubSpot are more likely to know best practices and deliver quality work than generalists.
Check portfolios and references. Ask for examples of past work. Contact previous clients and ask about code quality, communication, and long-term satisfaction.
Value communication skills. A developer who communicates clearly is more likely to understand requirements correctly and deliver what you actually need.
Start small. Test the relationship with a small project before committing to larger work. Evaluate not just the deliverable but the process, communication, and code quality.
Pay attention to questions. Quality developers ask lots of questions upfront to understand requirements fully. Cheap developers often just say "yes" to everything and figure it out later.
The Bottom Line
Cheap HubSpot development is expensive. Not immediately, but inevitably. The savings you capture upfront get consumed by fixes, rebuilds, and lost opportunities down the line.
Quality development costs more per hour but less overall. You pay for expertise, best practices, maintainable code, and long-term value. The work lasts, performs well, and adapts to future needs without constant intervention.
The question isn't "Can I afford quality development?" It's "Can I afford the long-term cost of cheap development?"
Most businesses discover the answer the hard way. You can learn from their experience instead.
Get Quality HubSpot Development Without the Agency Premium
At SpiderHub, we provide quality HubSpot development at rates that make sense for businesses who can't afford agency premiums but understand the cost of cheap work.
What you get:
Specialized expertise. We focus exclusively on HubSpot front-end development—modules, themes, and templates. We know the platform deeply and follow best practices consistently.
Clean, maintainable code. Everything we build is documented, organized, and built to last. Future developers (including us) can work with it efficiently.
Performance-optimized. We optimize for speed from the start. Your pages load fast, rank well, and convert better.
Transparent pricing. £72-80/hour with no hidden fees. You know exactly what you're paying and what you're getting.
Flexible engagement. Start with a 20-hour bundle to test our work. Scale up if it meets your standards. No long-term commitment required.
We're not the cheapest option. We're the option that costs less in the long run because the work doesn't need constant fixing.
Ready for HubSpot development that's actually worth paying for?