A design agency for pre-seed startups designs the first brand, website or product for a company that has little money and one clear thing to prove. Where the studios below publish a price, it starts at $2,500 for a project and runs to $35,000 for DesignMe's largest fixed package.
You've got a prototype, a few conversations with investors and a site that still says "coming soon". Money is thin and every week counts. You don't need a brand book. You need something that makes the next conversation easier.
We work with early-stage startups too, so this list isn't ranked. Studios are in alphabetical order, us included, and nobody paid to be on it.
How we picked
A studio made the list if:
- its own site names pre-seed startups or founders as who it serves
- it designs a product, a website or a brand for startups
- it says how you buy: a project, a sprint, a package or a monthly plan
- it's a studio, not a solo freelancer
We left out freelancers, template shops and studios that say "startups" without naming a stage. Figura names the stage in its page title, not in the page text. Prices, ratings and client names come from each studio's own site or Clutch profile.
The six studios at a glance
Four of the six publish a price or a starting budget. Figura and Hexcode publish none.
| Studio | Based | Best for | Price signal (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 925Studios | Remote, registered in India | Product, site and brand from one pod | Starting budget $7,000 (its own site) |
| CodeVix | Los Angeles, Skopje and Plovdiv, per its about page | Web design priced by project type | Starter website $3,000 to $6,000, MVP approach available |
| DesignMe | GdaĆsk, with partners in London | Fixed packages for brand, site and MVP | Packages $15,000 to $35,000, retainer from $5,400/mo |
| Figura | Not stated on its site | MVP design for founders | Not published |
| Hexcode (us) | Indore, India | Brand, site and product, sprint by sprint | Not published |
| Synced | Not stated on its site | Fixed-price sprints from pre-seed | Projects from $2,500, Brand Sprint $4,000, subscription $5,990/mo |
The numbers behind it
| Studio | Clutch | Named clients |
|---|---|---|
| 925Studios | 4.8 (32 reviews, per its site) | MARA, Solana, Jupiter |
| CodeVix | Not checked | |
| DesignMe | 5.0 (12 reviews, per its site) | |
| Figura | Not checked | Pickup, Streamlyne, Letly, Vitra |
| Hexcode (us) | Profile, no reviews yet | Freebean, Pinpoint, ScalixAI, Riveter |
| Synced | Not checked | Cluely, drae.ai, Interview Coder, Carlinker |
Figures from each studio's own site or Clutch profile, checked . Where a studio says "Not checked" for Clutch, we haven't looked at its Clutch profile. Where a rating says "per its site", the studio states it and we haven't checked it on Clutch. Named clients are ones the studio names on its own site.
Notes on each studio
925Studios
A remote studio registered in India. A post on its site says that for a pre-seed or seed team, the product screens, the marketing site and the brand assets come out of the same four-person pod, and that it offers a risk-free 7-day trial. Its pages give two starting points, $7,000 on one and $4,000 on another, so confirm before you scope. The $7,000 and the 4.8 rating come from its own blog, since we found no Clutch profile.
Good fit if: you want product, site and brand from one pod, with a trial before you commit.
CodeVix
Says it works with startups at every stage, and for a pre-seed team describes a landing page that communicates the vision. Its pricing page lists a starter website at $3,000 to $6,000 in 3 to 4 weeks and says an MVP approach is available. It lists offices in Los Angeles, Skopje and Plovdiv and says it was founded in 2016. It builds as well as designs, names no clients on the pages we checked, and we haven't checked its Clutch profile.
Good fit if: you want a landing page or site at a stated price from a team that can also build it.
Not a fit if: you want named startup clients before you commit.
DesignMe
A senior design and build team headquartered in GdaĆsk, with partners in London. Its startups page covers funded teams from pre-seed to Series B and sells three fixed-scope packages: Brand + Landing Page at $15,000 (2 to 4 weeks), Brand + Website + Launch Video at $25,000 (2 to 8 weeks) and Brand + Website + MVP at $35,000 (4 to 8 weeks). It also offers a retainer from $5,400 a month that you can pause or cancel anytime, and says it's a Framer Enterprise and Webflow Premium partner. Clutch shows 12 reviews and a $10,000+ minimum project size.
Good fit if: you've raised or are about to, and want a brand, site and first product on a fixed price.
Not a fit if: you want a price below $10,000, which is its Clutch minimum.
Figura
A design studio whose page title says it's for pre-seed and seed founders, with a team of designers named on its site. It lists mobile app, product design, brand identity and motion work, and names Pickup, Streamlyne, Letly and Vitra. It says it doesn't bill hours. It publishes no price or location on the page we checked, and we haven't checked its Clutch profile.
Good fit if: you want an MVP-focused design team and are happy to ask for a quote.
Not a fit if: you want a published price or a stated location before the first call.
Hexcode (us)
A 15-person studio in Indore, founded in 2020, with US overlap until 1pm PT. We run brand, website and product design in two-week sprints with a demo each Friday. We don't tag our clients by funding stage, so ask us for pre-seed references. We don't publish a price and have no Clutch reviews yet. See our website design work
Good fit if: you want one team for brand, site and product, bought a sprint at a time.
Not a fit if: you need a price and a Clutch rating before the first call.
Consumer goodsThe website that makes free coffee feel believable
Synced
Describes itself as for pre-seed tech startups and above, and says founders from pre-seed buy projects while Series A to C teams take the subscription. Its FAQ says projects start at $2,500: a Brand Sprint is $4,000 over two weeks, Website Launch is from $4,500, and the design subscription is $5,990 a month, which you can pause or cancel any month. It states no location. Named clients include Cluely, drae.ai and Interview Coder.
Good fit if: you want a fixed-price sprint for a brand or a site, and may add a subscription later.
What should a pre-seed startup design first?
Design what investors and first customers see, usually a landing page or one product flow, and leave the rest until you have usage. Compare what each price covers, not only the number.
| Your situation | Design this first | Leave for later |
|---|---|---|
| Raising your pre-seed round | A site and short deck that match the product | A full brand system |
| Building the first version | The core flow, in a clickable prototype | Settings and edge cases |
| Looking for first customers | A clear landing page with one call to action | A multi-page site |
| Hiring your first designer | A short sprint to set direction | A long retainer |
Six questions to ask before you sign
- Which pre-seed clients can I speak to, and what did they spend?
- What do the first two weeks produce, and what do I own at the end?
- Can I stop after one sprint or one month?
- Who does the work, and are they online for part of my day?
- What happens if my product direction changes halfway?
- What's not included, and what would it cost to add?
Questions
How much does design cost for a pre-seed startup?
The lowest published starting prices on this list are $2,500 for a project (Synced) and $3,000 for a starter website (CodeVix). 925Studios gives a $7,000 starting budget, and DesignMe's fixed packages run from $15,000 to $35,000.
What should a pre-seed startup design first?
A landing page or the core product flow. CodeVix describes a landing page for pre-seed teams, and DesignMe's smallest package pairs a brand with a landing page at $15,000.
Can I try a studio before committing?
Some offer a way in. 925Studios offers a risk-free 7-day trial, Synced lets you pause or cancel its subscription any month, and DesignMe offers a 5 to 7 day UX audit that it credits to a package if you continue.
How long does design take for a pre-seed startup?
Published timelines run from about two weeks to eight weeks. Synced's Brand Sprint takes two weeks, CodeVix's starter website 3 to 4 weeks and DesignMe's packages 2 to 8 weeks.
Can one studio do product, website and brand?
Yes. 925Studios says product, site and brand come out of the same pod, DesignMe sells brand, site and MVP design in one package, and we do all three.
Why isn't this list ranked?
Because we're on it. Ranking a list we compete in would tell you more about us than about the studios. So it's alphabetical, with the facts we could check.
Related
Spotted something wrong? Email shabbir@hexcode.design with a link and we'll fix it.
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