How to Hire a Shopify App Developer: Freelancer, Agency or In-House

Hiring someone to build a Shopify app is not the same as hiring a web developer. A good general developer can still get Shopify-specific details wrong: plan rules, API versions, webhooks that arrive twice, app credentials created in the wrong account. Those mistakes rarely show up on launch day. They show up months later, when the app quietly stops working or you try to change developers.

This guide covers who to hire, how to judge them, what to ask, and what to put in writing. It assumes you already know what the app should do. If not, start with how to brief a developer, and check whether a custom app is the right answer at all.

Freelancer, agency or in-house

Each option fits a different situation. None is better in general.

	Freelancer	Agency or studio	In-house developer
Fits best	One focused tool, clear scope	Several parts (app, integration, design), or ongoing work	Software is core to the business, constant changes
Strengths	Direct contact with the person writing the code	Several skills, cover when someone is away	Knows your business, always available
Watch for	Single point of failure if they disappear	You may talk to a manager, not the developer	Hiring takes time; one person may not cover everything
Ask about	Backup if they are unavailable, handover documents	Who actually builds it, who maintains it	Shopify-specific experience, code review

A few practical points:

One small app rarely justifies a full-time hire. A freelancer or studio is usually the better fit.
Several connected systems, such as an ERP, a 3PL and Shopify, benefit from a team that has done that kind of work. See ERP and 3PL integration for what that work involves.
In-house makes sense when you will change the software every week. Even then, an outside review of the first build can catch Shopify-specific mistakes.

Whichever you pick, the app will need upkeep after launch. Plan who does it now, not later. Our guide to maintaining a custom Shopify app explains what that work covers.

Where to find candidates

Shopify runs the Partner Directory, where you can browse Shopify Partners by service (including custom apps and integrations), location and Partner tier. Shopify’s guide to hiring a Partner suggests preparing first: learn the key terms, gather examples from similar businesses, and define your budget, timeline and expected outcomes so the Partner can quote accurately.

Some details from that guide worth knowing:

You contact a Partner through the Contact button on their profile, while logged in to your Shopify account.
Contacting a Partner does not oblige you to hire them.
The Partner bills you directly; these charges do not appear on your Shopify bill.
Reviews on a Partner’s profile come from merchants who added the Partner as a collaborator, with access active for at least a week.

The directory is one source, not the only one. Referrals from other merchants and the developers of apps you already use are worth asking too. Whoever you find, judge them the same way.

How to judge Shopify-specific experience

Ask for examples, then listen for how they talk about the details. Experienced Shopify developers raise these topics on their own.

APIs and versions

New public apps must be built only with the GraphQL Admin API, according to Shopify’s App Store requirements. A custom app is not bound by that rule, but a developer starting a new app today should be working with GraphQL. They should also know that Shopify releases a new API version every three months and supports each for at least 12 months, and say how they keep your app current.

Functions and plan rules

If the job touches discounts, payment or delivery options, or checkout validation, it may need Shopify Functions. A good developer will ask your plan early, because only Shopify Plus stores can use custom apps that contain Function APIs. If you are on Plus and used Shopify Scripts, ask whether they have done a Scripts to Functions migration.

Webhooks and reliability

Ask what happens when a webhook is missed or arrives twice. Shopify’s webhook best practices recommend handling duplicates and running periodic reconciliation. A good answer mentions both. Our checklist for integrations that don’t break covers the rest.

Security and data

Shopify’s API terms require developers to run their app on systems configured to industry standards, to correct security problems, and to delete merchant data within 30 days after the merchant uninstalls the app. They also forbid using merchant data to train AI or machine-learning systems without consent. Ask how the developer meets each of these.

Where the app is created

Since January 1, 2026, new custom apps are created in the Dev Dashboard or with Shopify CLI, as Shopify’s custom apps page explains. Ask in whose account the app will be created and who will hold the app’s credentials. This decides how easily you can change developers later. Note that collaborator accounts cannot open the Dev Dashboard, so plan who creates the app before work starts.

Questions to ask before you hire

Use this list in your first call or email. You do not need every answer to be perfect, but every answer should be specific.

Which Shopify apps or integrations similar to ours have you built?
Where would you put the logic: Flow, a Function, a custom app, an outside service? Why?
Does our Shopify plan block anything you would want to use?
Which API version will you use, and how will you keep it current?
What happens when a webhook is missed, delayed or duplicated?
Which actions will need a person’s approval, and how will changes be logged?
What store access do you need, and which sections exactly?
Where will the app run, in whose account, and who pays for it?
In whose account will the app and its credentials be created?
Who owns the code, and how do we get it?
What happens after launch: bug fixes, API updates, changes? How are they charged?
What do we receive at handover?
How do you test before anything touches our live store?
Who else works on it, and who covers when you are unavailable?

Red flags

Asks for your owner login or a staff password. Shopify’s collaborator accounts exist so Partners can work on your store with only the sections you choose.
Quotes without questions. A fixed price on a vague brief means scope was guessed.
No mention of your plan when the job touches checkout, discounts or payments.
“We’ll host it, don’t worry about it” without saying where, in whose name, and what happens if you part ways.
Code stays with them and you only get the running app.
No plan for upkeep. “It won’t need changes” is not true for any Shopify app.
Offers to reuse one custom app across several merchants. Shopify’s API terms say a custom app may not be made available to more than one merchant. See custom app vs public app for what that means.
Tests on your live store instead of a development store.
Sends credentials by email or chat in plain text.

Contract essentials

Put these in writing before work starts. A short document is fine; a missing one is the problem.

Scope

What is included, what is not, and what “done” means. Use your brief and the developer’s reply as the base.

Intellectual property

Who owns the code, and when ownership passes to you (for example, on final payment). If the developer reuses their own libraries, say whether you get a licence to use them.

Access

Which store sections the developer gets through a collaborator account, which outside systems they can access, and when that access ends.

Accounts and credentials

In whose account the app is created, where the server runs, and who owns the hosting and third-party accounts. Secrets should be stored in a password manager or the hosting platform, never in email.

Data

What data the app stores, where, and how it is deleted after uninstall, in line with Shopify’s API terms.

Handover

What you receive at the end: the code repository, a short document on what the app does and where it runs, how to deploy it, how to turn it off, and the list of accounts involved.

After launch

A warranty period for bugs, how upkeep is handled and charged, and how quickly urgent problems get a response.

Ending the relationship

What happens if either side stops: transfer of code, accounts and hosting, and the notice period.

Run a small first step

If you are unsure between two candidates, pay for a small, separate piece of work first: a short technical review of the job, or the smallest useful version of the app. You see how they communicate, how they test and how they hand over, before you commit to the whole build. Our guide to what drives the cost of a custom Shopify app shows how to keep that first step small.

FAQ

Should I hire a freelancer or an agency for a Shopify app?

A freelancer suits one focused tool with clear scope. An agency suits work with several parts or ongoing changes. In both cases, check Shopify-specific experience and agree on upkeep and handover before you start.

Where can I find Shopify app developers?

Shopify’s Partner Directory lists Partners by service, location and tier, including custom apps and integrations. Referrals from other merchants and from developers of apps you use are good sources too.

No. Add them as a collaborator, choose only the sections they need, and remove access when the work ends.

Who should own the code of a custom app?

Usually you, once the work is paid for. Write it into the contract, along with the accounts the app and its hosting are created under, so you can change developers without rebuilding.

What should a Shopify app development contract include?

Scope, code ownership, store access, accounts and credentials, data handling, handover, support after launch, and what happens if either side ends the relationship.

Talk to us

Our custom solutions page describes the Shopify work the team behind Storefleet Store Ops takes on. Send a short brief and we will reply with how we would approach it, so you can judge it against the questions above.