Freelance Software Development: Is It For You?

Are you tired of a normal 9-5 office development job?

You might be tempted to throw in the towel and become a freelance software developer. For many, freelancing conjures the allure of working when you want to, where you want to, on what you want to, and all for more than you might make in a regular job.

But what would you really be getting yourself into? Would the advantages of going on your own outweigh the many disadvantages that come with it?

In this article, you’ll get some straight talk from developers with freelancing experience, all of them Tutorial Team members or readers like yourself. We’ll share what we consider the benefits and drawbacks of freelance software development, to help you decide if it’s for you.

Although in some cases, the terms freelancer and consultant are used interchangeably, in this article we are making a distinction:

While consulting can be a great way to earn a living as a developer, this article focuses exclusively on freelancing.

• Consulting: long-term, contract-based work for a single company that is usually, but not always, performed on-site.
• Freelancing: short-to-medium-term work for one or more companies that is usually, but not necessarily, performed from home or some other location of the freelancer’s choosing, such as a coworking space—or the beach!

The Benefits of Freelancing

I asked our pool of freelancers what they considered the main benefits of freelancing, and they mentioned the following:

Earning more money: Personally, I earn about two to three times more than I would as an employee here in Poland, and I am pretty sure proportions would be not much different in a few other European countries. But such difference can be lower in other countries, where salaries are much higher, such as the UK and US.

However it’s not always about absolute numbers. For example, Richard Hancock noticed that he earns as much as some of his friends, but whereas they spend on average 40-60 hours per week, he works 20-30 hours. Jean-Philippe Cyr says that the real profitability lies on the fact the freelancer has more time (no commuting, no office hours, etc.), and he’s the real owner and master of it.

Choosing projects: For Andy Donnelly and Ignacio Nieto, one big benefit is the the ability to choose what projects to work on.

When Ignacio finishes a project, he usually finds himself with several other offers to choose from. He considers himself lucky for being able then to choose the project he likes more, and/or the one having the higher challenge factor.

Choosing what technologies to learn and work with: Since you can choose your projects, you’re also free to switch to different technologies at any time. Kuba Suder was a Ruby on Rails developer, but he wanted to learn Mac and iOS development, so he took a freelancing job to develop a Bitcoin wallet app for the Mac and learned, while getting paid. As a freelancer you can also have more time for learning new things, because you don’t necessarily have to work all week.

I took advantage of that ability several times: when I wanted to learn, say JEE (but also C#, Python, and more). I simply started searching for projects requiring that technology, and strategically chose the next project to work on based on what I wanted to learn next.

Choosing clients: For Spencer Muller Diniz, another big benefit is having no formal attachment to an employer. Jake Gundersen agrees: “I can fire a client if I feel like the deal isn’t working for me.” This can be important because there’s a huge difference between clients that are easy to work with, and clients from hell.

Can you spot the parallel? As an employee, you can be fired. As a freelancer, you can fire a client. :]

Choosing schedule: To Pierre Rochon, one big benefit is having lots of flexibility in his schedule, such that he can escape from “the office” at virtually any time. Combined with being able to work from home, this means he gets to spend more time with his family.

This can also be helpful because you can decide to take off one day or work on a weekend if you’d like – it doesn’t matter as long as you get your work done.

Choose work environment: Finally, Edward Gilmore relishes his freedom from the cubicle, which he considers a soul-sucking, creative wasteland. He says, “If you want to inspire someone to become an entrepreneur, put him in a cube.” :]

I usually work in a dedicated office room in my house, but I often spend a few hours in the living room-not to mention that I can virtually work anywhere (coffee house, train, airport, beach, you name it), provided that I have my macbook and an internet connection.

You can also travel to exciting locations while you work! Andy Donnelly, primarily based in the UK, managed to work on projects while in Australia and the Netherlands. Digital nomads take that to the next level, by combining freelancing with nomadic lifestyle-a great way to explore the world, while still being able to work.

Be your own boss: Paul Jones likes the fact that he gets to be his own boss—though I have to warn you, as a freelancer, your spouse can become your boss! :]

• Earning more money: Personally, I earn about two to three times more than I would as an employee here in Poland, and I am pretty sure proportions would be not much different in a few other European countries. But such difference can be lower in other countries, where salaries are much higher, such as the UK and US.

  However it’s not always about absolute numbers. For example, Richard Hancock noticed that he earns as much as some of his friends, but whereas they spend on average 40-60 hours per week, he works 20-30 hours. Jean-Philippe Cyr says that the real profitability lies on the fact the freelancer has more time (no commuting, no office hours, etc.), and he’s the real owner and master of it.

• Choosing projects: For Andy Donnelly and Ignacio Nieto, one big benefit is the the ability to choose what projects to work on.

  When Ignacio finishes a project, he usually finds himself with several other offers to choose from. He considers himself lucky for being able then to choose the project he likes more, and/or the one having the higher challenge factor.

• Choosing what technologies to learn and work with: Since you can choose your projects, you’re also free to switch to different technologies at any time. Kuba Suder was a Ruby on Rails developer, but he wanted to learn Mac and iOS development, so he took a freelancing job to develop a Bitcoin wallet app for the Mac and learned, while getting paid. As a freelancer you can also have more time for learning new things, because you don’t necessarily have to work all week.

  I took advantage of that ability several times: when I wanted to learn, say JEE (but also C#, Python, and more). I simply started searching for projects requiring that technology, and strategically chose the next project to work on based on what I wanted to learn next.

• Choosing clients: For Spencer Muller Diniz, another big benefit is having no formal attachment to an employer. Jake Gundersen agrees: “I can fire a client if I feel like the deal isn’t working for me.” This can be important because there’s a huge difference between clients that are easy to work with, and clients from hell.

  Can you spot the parallel? As an employee, you can be fired. As a freelancer, you can fire a client. :]

• Choosing schedule: To Pierre Rochon, one big benefit is having lots of flexibility in his schedule, such that he can escape from “the office” at virtually any time. Combined with being able to work from home, this means he gets to spend more time with his family.

  This can also be helpful because you can decide to take off one day or work on a weekend if you’d like – it doesn’t matter as long as you get your work done.

• Choose work environment: Finally, Edward Gilmore relishes his freedom from the cubicle, which he considers a soul-sucking, creative wasteland. He says, “If you want to inspire someone to become an entrepreneur, put him in a cube.” :]

  I usually work in a dedicated office room in my house, but I often spend a few hours in the living room-not to mention that I can virtually work anywhere (coffee house, train, airport, beach, you name it), provided that I have my macbook and an internet connection.

  You can also travel to exciting locations while you work! Andy Donnelly, primarily based in the UK, managed to work on projects while in Australia and the Netherlands. Digital nomads take that to the next level, by combining freelancing with nomadic lifestyle-a great way to explore the world, while still being able to work.

• Be your own boss: Paul Jones likes the fact that he gets to be his own boss—though I have to warn you, as a freelancer, your spouse can become your boss! :]