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Website Design & Development Agreement

Hire a web developer. Define specifications, acceptance timing, source files, ownership, and optional maintenance.

Drafted by a Harvard Law entertainment attorney.

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Is this the right contract for your website project?

Use this agreement when hiring someone to build a website. Agree on the features, deadlines, payment, and how the client will review the work. Specify any ongoing support separately.

Good fit for

Businesses hiring a developer for a defined website
Web professionals setting milestones and acceptance criteria
Parties agreeing who controls domains, hosting, and production accounts

You may also need

Graphic Design Agreement - for separate graphic design work
Photography Services Agreement - for commissioned site photography
Non-Disclosure Agreement - before sharing credentials or confidential business information

What's Inside This Contract

Website work

Describes what will be built, when it is due, and the included revisions.

Review and corrections

Gives the client time to report significant differences from the agreed requirements. Not replying does not count as approval.

Ownership and software

Sets ownership under the chosen terms. Other companies' software retains its own license terms and fees.

Accounts and support

Keeps the client's domain and hosting accounts under their control. Ongoing hosting and maintenance must be separately agreed.

Not sure what a section means? Every contract you create includes a built-in "Explain Sections" view with a plain-English note for each part of the document.

Before you start

It helps to have these details on hand before you create your contract:

Pages, features, and deadlines
Who supplies text, images, approvals, and account access
Time allowed to review the site and report problems
Any ongoing support to include
Who controls the domain and hosting accounts

Points Worth Negotiating

Completion: list the pages and features so both sides can tell when the site meets the agreement.
Review: agree how long the client has to report problems and how the developer will correct work that does not meet the requirements.
Support: decide whether updates, monitoring, or future changes are included, for how long, and at what price.
Accounts and costs: identify who pays hosting and software bills and ensure the client can access their own accounts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the agreement include ongoing hosting or maintenance?

Only if the parties select and describe maintenance. Hosting, ongoing maintenance, security monitoring, and future feature work are otherwise excluded unless separately agreed.

Does silence mean the website is accepted?

No. The client has time to report significant differences from the agreed requirements in writing. Not replying does not count as approval.

Who should control domain and production accounts?

The client owns or controls the domain, hosting, and accounts used to run the site. Other companies' software keeps its own license terms and fees.

What are common warning signs in a website design & development agreement?

These are common issues to watch for in any website design & development agreement:

The scope makes completion impossible to assess
Silence is treated as acceptance
Ongoing hosting or security work is assumed but not included
Control of domain or production accounts is unclear

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