Ten tools that pay for themselves before you sign anything.
Hiring a dev agency in 2026 is mostly a leverage problem. These tools tilt the table back toward you — quietly, before money moves.
- 01 / Tech Scanner
Find out what's actually under the hood
Paste any agency portfolio or product URL. We'll detect the framework, hosting, analytics, and 50+ other signals — so you know if their pitch matches what they ship.
Scan a site Use before a sales call - 02 / Cost Estimator
What this build should actually cost
Pick your project type, complexity, and feature set — get a realistic range based on hundreds of actual marketplace projects, not vendor wishful thinking.
Estimate cost Use before requesting quotes - 03 / Quote Checker
Is this number aggressive, fair, or a trap?
Drop in the number an agency gave you. We compare it against market ranges for your project shape and flag what's missing, padded, or out of band.
Check a quote Use after a proposal lands - 04 / Contract Scanner
The clauses founders miss until it's too late
Upload a contract draft and we'll surface change-order leverage, IP traps, vague acceptance terms, and the language that costs you real money post-signature.
Scan a contract Use before signing anything - 05 / Code Quality Analyzer
What their GitHub really says about them
Point us at a public repo. We'll grade test coverage, commit hygiene, dependency freshness, and the quiet signals of an agency that ships well versus one that ships fast.
Analyze a repo Use during vetting - 06 / Stack Cost Forecaster
What your infrastructure will cost at scale
Select your hosting, database, auth, email, storage, AI APIs, and monitoring tiers. Get a realistic monthly cost before you commit to an architecture.
Forecast stack cost Use before you architect - 07 / AI Feature Cost Estimator
What will your AI feature cost at scale?
Model token usage across GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet, Gemini, and more. Input your feature type and MAU — see your monthly AI burn before a single line ships.
Estimate AI cost Use before choosing a model - 08 / Agency Red-Flag Check
Is this agency safe to hire?
15 flags across proposal, contract, process, and communication. Check every one that applies — get a severity score and know what to address before you sign.
Check an agency Use before signing a contract - 09 / Brief in 5
Write a brief that actually gets accurate quotes
Five questions. Five sharp answers. Takes under five minutes and produces a brief clear enough that agencies quote on scope — not guesses.
Write my brief Use before outreach - 10 / Idea Sanity Check
Is your idea ready to build?
Five questions across demand, clarity, positioning, financial readiness, and timing. Get a 0–100 score and an honest diagnosis before you write a line of code — or a line of contract.
Check my idea Use before you brief anyone
The most expensive part of hiring a dev agency is everything you didn’t check before signing.
— IconDevs founding principle
Ready for the next step?
Tools tell you what to ask. The brief builder turns your project into a vendor-ready spec — and matches you with vetted agencies in our network.