This is really a dilemma for many people who have some time to code but not enough to do it full time themselves.
I think the answer that I'd give you is; depends on who you hire as a contractor.
Just think about the following; you have an idea for a feature.
You may code it in 30 hours and the contractor can do it in 10. Sounds like a no brainer right? You will happily go with the contractor. You may be surprised at the end to find out that:
- You spent 4 hours creating a document that explains your vision and how the feature should work
- 2 hours on Skype
- 3 iteration of checking if everything worked and creating detailed clarification at 3 hours each
- 3 hours of QA testing the code and reporting back bugs.
So at the end the entire process will take 28 hours for the coder + a reasonable rate of $900 and with the wait time (assuming you have a day job) in between interactions, a total of 3 weeks.
What I tried to illustrate here is that if you have the coding skills and an MVP, publish your app to see the traction. If you get traction, think if you can do this by yourself. If not, get a partner who can work on it full time and who shares your vision. Contracting it out should be your last resort.
