// white-label vs in-house
White-label vs in-house web development
Your agency keeps getting asked for websites. You can hire a developer, use an offshore freelancer, or partner with a white-label team. Here's the honest version of that choice, including when hiring is the right call and we're not.
$ diff in-house white-label
The core difference
An in-house developer is a fixed cost you pay every month, project or no project. A white-label partner is a variable cost that only appears when you have a build to bill. The right answer is not about which is cheaper per site; it's about whether your web work is steady enough to keep a salary busy.
Rule of thumb
steady heavy volume → hire · variable project flow → partner
See also
// the three routes
Three ways to deliver web work
Most agencies pick one of these when a client asks for a site. None is wrong; they fit different amounts of volume and different appetites for risk.
Hire in-house
Best when web volume is steady and heavy. Full control and no per-project fee, paid for with a salary every month and the time it takes to manage a hire, whether or not the projects show up.
Offshore freelancer
Cheapest per hour, priced somewhere else. Overnight replies while your client waits, templates instead of custom code, and communication that quietly becomes your project-management job.
White-label partner
Best when project flow comes and goes. A fixed price per build, a deadline you can quote a client, and no salary to carry in a slow month. You resell it under your brand.
// the honest math
The question isn't cost per site. It's fixed vs variable.
A developer's salary lands every month, in the busy ones and the quiet ones. That's fine when the pipeline is full and painful when it isn't. A white-label build only costs you when you have a client paying for it, which is why it fits an agency whose web work is not yet a steady stream.
- In-house is a bet on volume You're wagering that enough web projects arrive each month to justify the salary. When they do, in-house is hard to beat. When they don't, you're paying for downtime.
- White-label is pay-as-you-sell No cost until you close a project, then a fixed fee you already know your margin on. The price doesn't move with volume, so a slow month costs you nothing.
- You can switch as you grow Partner while the pipeline is uneven, hire once it's steady. There's no retainer to unwind, so the decision isn't permanent.
// where we fit
What our partnership looks like
If your web work comes and goes, here's what using us instead of a hire actually means, in the same terms as our other pages: fixed price, published deadline, your brand on the work.
- A price and a date on the same page Agency buying prices in CAD, before applicable tax: one-page starter 500 fixed; basic Shopify from 750; premium Shopify from 1,750; WordPress (up to five pages) from 1,500; Elementor from 1,250 for one page or 2,000 for up to five; Webflow from 1,500 for one page or 2,500 for up to five; Scroll Story from 2,500. Additional work needs a written quote.
- Custom code, same timezone Built in Montréal on North American hours, in French or English. You talk to the people writing the code, not a ticket queue.
- Invisible to your client NDA on request, no credits in the code, and we never contact your client. The build is yours the moment it ships.
// faq
The questions behind the decision
Is white-label or in-house web development cheaper?
It depends on how much web work you have. An in-house developer is a fixed cost every month whether or not projects come in. A white-label partner is a per-project cost that only appears when you have a project to bill. If your web work is steady and heavy, in-house can win. If it comes and goes, per-project keeps you from paying a salary in the quiet months.
When does hiring an in-house developer make more sense?
When you have constant, high web volume that keeps a developer busy, when you want a long-term product rather than one-off client sites, or when tight in-house control matters more than flexibility. We will tell you when that is your situation instead of selling you a partnership you do not need.
What about hiring an offshore freelancer instead?
Offshore freelancers are cheap per hour, and the cost usually shows up somewhere else: overnight replies while your client waits, a template instead of custom code, and communication that eats your project-management time. A white-label partner in your timezone trades a lower hourly rate for a fixed price and a deadline you can put in front of a client.
Can I use a white-label partner now and hire later?
That is the common path. Agencies use a partner to sell web projects before the volume justifies a salary, then hire once the pipeline is steady. There is no retainer to unwind, so you can scale the partnership up or down as the work moves.
Do you lock agencies into a retainer?
No. It is per project, with no monthly minimum and no hour bundle to burn down. You buy a build when you sell one, at a fixed price that does not change with volume.
Are prices in Canadian or US dollars?
Agency buying prices in CAD, before applicable tax: one-page starter 500 fixed; basic Shopify from 750; premium Shopify from 1,750; WordPress (up to five pages) from 1,500; Elementor from 1,250 for one page or 2,000 for up to five; Webflow from 1,500 for one page or 2,500 for up to five; Scroll Story from 2,500. Additional work needs a written quote.
// next step
Not sure which way to go? Ask us.
A 15-minute call to talk through your web volume honestly. If hiring is the better move for you, we'll say so. Prefer async? Email us instead.