I'm ordering a website
10 questions for a website contract before signing
A studio or freelancer sent a contract and an invoice. Put the contract and the brief (the list of what they will build) side by side. Each question needs an answer there. No answer — ask in writing.
Download the extended version (PDF)This is not legal advice. Check rights and liability with a lawyer in your country.
Work and money
What they build, how it's accepted, what you pay
Mark each question: «there, as it should be», «there, but with a warning sign» or «missing». The brief is the list of what the studio commits to build.
1. Where is it written what exactly they will build?
Check it yourself- Why
- If promises are scattered across messages, you will argue about the result with words only.
- How to check
- Find a reference to the brief in the contract, or an annex listing pages and features. If there is no brief at all, that is your answer.
- Fine if
- The brief is signed as an annex to the contract. It lists pages, features, where requests go, and which phones and browsers the site works on.
- Warning sign
- «Site per the agreed mockup», «as agreed by the parties», a reference to chat messages.
- What to ask
- «Which document describes what you will build? Shall we sign the brief together with the contract?»
2. How will you accept the work?
Check it yourself- Why
- The acceptance act is your «I agree, it's all done». How many days you have to check and what happens to remarks must be written down in advance.
- How to check
- Section «Delivery and acceptance» or «Acceptance of work».
- Fine if
- The checking period starts on the day you receive the finished site and access. The act can be signed with a list of remarks.
- Warning sign
- «Work is accepted if the client doesn't reply within 3 days». «Launching the site counts as acceptance».
- What to ask
- «How many days do I have to check, and from which day? How many rounds of fixes are included?»
3. What do you pay for, and when?
Check it yourself- Why
- While payment is tied to finished work, you have leverage. If everything is paid upfront, you don't.
- How to check
- Section «Price and payment terms» and the stage schedule.
- Fine if
- Prepayment covers the first stage. Pay for each next stage after accepting it. The last payment comes after remarks are fixed. Stage deadlines are dates.
- Warning sign
- 100% upfront. The studio can move deadlines on its own. Your delays shift the deadline, the studio's don't.
- What to ask
- «What exactly does this prepayment cover? What happens to payment if a stage isn't accepted?»
4. How do you tell a bug from extra work?
Check it yourself- Why
- Without this rule, any remark can be called «extra work, paid separately».
- How to check
- Sections «Changes», «Additional work», «Warranty».
- Fine if
- New work is agreed in writing, with price and deadline, and only after your consent. Fixing a bug doesn't count as new work.
- Warning sign
- The studio alone decides what counts as extra work. No hourly rate for extra work.
- What to ask
- «How do we tell a bug from extra work? What is your hourly rate for extra work?»
5. How long is the warranty, and from which date?
Check it yourself- Why
- Bugs are most often found in the first weeks after launch. The warranty should still be running then.
- How to check
- Section «Warranty» or «Warranty obligations».
- Fine if
- Term in months, counted from signing the act or from fixing the remarks. It says how fast a bug that blocks requests gets fixed.
- Warning sign
- Warranty «from the launch date». «Fixed within a reasonable time» with no numbers. No warranty at all.
- What to ask
- «From which date does the warranty run, and how many days do you take to fix a bug that blocks requests?»
Site and independence
Whose site will it be, and can you leave?
These questions decide whether another team can take over the site if this one doesn't work out.
6. Who gets the rights to the site — and when?
A question for a lawyer- Why
- In Moldova and Romania, without a separate clause the rights to a commissioned site don't pass to the client by default. Details — with a lawyer.
- How to check
- Section «Intellectual property» or «Rights to the work result».
- Fine if
- It says plainly that the rights to the site pass to you, and exactly when.
- Warning sign
- «Rights pass after full payment», and the last payment is «after launch» with no date. A permission to use (licence) instead of a transfer.
- What to ask
- «Do the rights to the site pass to me, or do you give me permission to use it? From which day?»
7. What will they hand over with the site?
Check it yourself- Why
- Without the site files and access, you can neither move the site nor give it to another developer.
- How to check
- Look for an annex «List of materials handed over». Often there is none — then ask to add it.
- Fine if
- As a list: site files (code), design files, all logins and passwords, instructions on changing texts and prices.
- Warning sign
- «Access provided on request». Site files are kept only by the studio.
- What to ask
- «Can we attach to the contract a list of what you hand over at delivery?»
8. In whose name will the site address and server be?
Check it yourself- Why
- The site address (domain) is printed on your business cards. If it is in the studio's name, you can't renew or move it without them.
- How to check
- Sections on the domain and hosting (the server where the site runs) or «Contractor's obligations».
- Fine if
- The site address owner is you or your company. The server is paid from your account; the studio has its own access.
- Warning sign
- The studio registers the address «for convenience». The studio's server on auto-renewal, tied to the contract.
- What to ask
- «In whose name will the site address be? Whose account will the server be on?»
9. Can you move to another developer?
A question for a lawyer- Why
- Some studios build sites on their own system that can't be taken away. Then leaving may mean a new site.
- How to check
- Ask what the site is built on. Find the clauses on ending the contract.
- Fine if
- A system like WordPress or a builder on your account. If the contract ends, you pay for what you accepted and get all the work, mockups included.
- Warning sign
- The studio's own system with no right to move. If the contract ends, all the work stays with the studio.
- What to ask
- «If needed, can we move to another developer without rebuilding the site?»
10. Who is responsible for site backups and customer data?
A question for a lawyer- Why
- Requests and orders are your customers' personal data. And without a site backup, a breakdown can cost everything in it.
- How to check
- Sections on the server, support, confidentiality and personal data.
- Fine if
- It says who makes site backups, how often and where they are kept. If the studio has access to requests, there is a separate data agreement.
- Warning sign
- «The contractor is not responsible for data safety» — and nothing says who is.
- What to ask
- «Who makes site backups, how often, and have you checked that the site can be restored from one?»
What next
What to do with the answers
Put all the «missing» items and warning signs into one letter to the studio. Write about clauses, not people: «I suggest clarifying clause 4.2». Show the «lawyer» questions to a lawyer before signing. Ask for agreements from chat to go into the contract or an annex.
Contract changes · examplesample layout
cl. 4.2 The contractor registers the site addressSuggest a changeThe address is registered to the client; the contractor gets access
cl. 6.1 Work accepted if no reply within 3 daysAsk the studioSuggest 10 working days from receiving the site and access
cl. 8.3 Rights pass after full paymentShow a lawyerWhen is the last payment and what does the client have until then
Frequently asked questions
If I have to see a lawyer anyway, why do I need you?
A lawyer looks at rights, liability and disputes. I look at what they build, how they deliver and what they hand over: questions 1–5, 7 and 8. Show the payment (3) and site address (8) questions to a lawyer too.
50% prepayment. Is that normal?
Partial prepayment is common. What matters is what it covers: the first stage or everything at once. Ask what you get for this money and when you pay the rest.
Won't the studio be offended by these questions?
These are normal contract questions. Ask in writing, calmly, point by point. How a studio answers before the contract tells a lot about how it will work.
Contract in Romanian or English. Will the checklist work?
Yes. The questions are the same in any language: look for the sections on acceptance, payment, warranty and rights.
Want me to read your contract?
From €150 · 2 working days. A list of changes, questions for the studio and notes on what to show a lawyer.