A design and development studio designs your product or website and then builds it, so the handoff from designer to engineer happens inside one team. Where the studios below publish a price, an MVP starts at $3,500 (DesignBub) and design subscriptions at $2,200 a month (Wavespace).
Your designer hands over a Figma file. Your engineer says half of it can't be built the way it's drawn. Two weeks later, nobody is sure which version is right. One team doesn't make that argument go away, but it does put both sides in the same room.
We design and build 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:
- design and development are both listed services on its own site
- it works with startups or founders building a first version
- it says how you buy: a package, a subscription or a quote
- it's a studio, not a solo freelancer or a staffing agency
We left out freelancers on marketplaces, staffing and outsourcing firms, and studios that list development only in passing. Prices, ratings and client names come from each studio's own site or Clutch profile.
The eight studios at a glance
Two of the eight publish a price: DesignBub for its MVP packages and Wavespace for design subscriptions, which don't include builds. Bricx, Cieden and CodeTheorem set minimums on Clutch ($25,000+, $10,000+ and $1,000+), and Musemind's form offers budget bands from $5K to $100K+. Hexcode and Phenomenon Studio publish no price.
| Studio | Based | Best for | Price signal (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bricx | New Delhi | Product design plus Next.js builds | Clutch minimum $25,000+, $50 to $99/hr |
| Cieden | Lviv, Warsaw and Wilmington, per its site | Design leadership plus web app development | Clutch minimum $10,000+, $50 to $99/hr |
| CodeTheorem | Ahmedabad, India | SaaS design and build from Ahmedabad | Clutch minimum $1,000+, under $25/hr |
| DesignBub | Not stated on its site | Fixed-price MVP packages | MVP sprint $3,500, startup MVP $6,600, SaaS MVP from $13,210 |
| Hexcode (us) | Indore, India | Design and build in Webflow, Framer or code | Not published |
| Musemind | Not stated, lists offices in six cities | Design and MVP builds, six offices | Not published, form offers $5K to $100K+ bands |
| Phenomenon Studio | Tallinn, Lugano and Dover (USA) | Design first, built by the same studio | Not published |
| Wavespace | Not stated, lists offices in 10 countries | Design subscription, then an MVP build | Design subscriptions from $2,200/mo, Webflow builds not priced |
The numbers behind it
| Studio | Clutch | Named clients |
|---|---|---|
| Bricx | 5.0 (32 reviews) | Writesonic (YC S21), Gigamind (YC S26), Sybill, Camb.ai |
| Cieden | 4.9 (46 reviews) | Apollo.io, Blizzard, Sitenna, Lykon |
| CodeTheorem | 5.0 (9 reviews) | Emroll CRM, Intromagic, Resume Pro, Standard Insights |
| DesignBub | Not checked | Decent Solar, Dentesthetix, Nexcell Energy, Zameenex |
| Hexcode (us) | Profile, no reviews yet | Haven, Jooba, Portless, Riveter, Serval |
| Musemind | 4.9 (48 reviews, per its site) | Boon, Arrive, Trainmate, Konoom |
| Phenomenon Studio | 5.0 (54 reviews) | Wisdom, Nomupay, Ready Player Fit |
| Wavespace | 4.9 (250+ reviews, per its site) | Kodezi, Delve, Recruitly, Cerebra |
Figures from each studio's own site or Clutch profile, checked . "/mo" is a monthly fee. "Clutch minimum" is the minimum project size a studio sets on Clutch, not a quote. 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
Bricx
Calls itself a design studio for venture-backed AI startups, and shows San Francisco and Delhi on its own site, while its Clutch profile says New Delhi. Its engineering service covers Next.js, React and TypeScript builds, CMS integration and front-end work, and it lists Webflow and Framer development too. It names Writesonic (YC S21) and Sybill. It publishes no price, and Clutch shows a $25,000+ minimum project size. Its site quotes 4.9 and 5.0 on Clutch in different places, against 5.0 from 32 reviews on its profile.
Good fit if: you're an AI or SaaS startup and want React or Next.js built by the team that designs it.
Cieden
Offices in Lviv, Warsaw and Wilmington, per its site. Its services page lists development and web app development next to product design, UX consulting, AI prototyping and dedicated design teams with product managers, and says it serves enterprise companies and startups. It publishes no prices on that page. Clutch shows a $10,000+ minimum project size, $50 to $99 an hour and 4.9 from 46 reviews. Named clients include Apollo.io, Blizzard and Sitenna.
Good fit if: you want design leadership and web app development from one team, with product management help.
CodeTheorem
A studio in Ahmedabad, India, whose site says it helps startups and product teams design and build scalable digital products. It lists UX strategy, product design and dashboard design next to web app, mobile app and MVP development, and says it works on fixed scope, in sprints or on ongoing support. It publishes no price. Clutch shows 5.0 from 9 reviews, a $1,000+ minimum project size and an hourly rate under $25. Named clients include Emroll CRM, Intromagic and Resume Pro.
Good fit if: you're a SaaS founder who wants design and a built MVP from one small team.
DesignBub
Sells design and development as three MVP packages with stated prices and timelines: a $3,500 validation sprint (2 to 3 weeks), a $6,600 startup MVP (6 to 8 weeks) and a SaaS MVP from $13,210 (10 to 14 weeks). Add-ons are priced too, such as $150 for an extra UI screen, and hosting and app-store fees are billed separately. It says it hands over all the source code, with 30 or 45 days of bug fixes on its two larger packages. It states no location and no rating, and we haven't checked its Clutch profile. Named clients include Decent Solar, Dentesthetix and Zameenex.
Good fit if: you want a fixed price and timeline for a first version.
Not a fit if: you want a rating you can check before the first call.
Hexcode (us)
A 15-person studio in Indore, founded in 2020, with US overlap until 1pm PT. The same team that designs your site or product builds it in Webflow, Framer or full-stack code. Haven, Jooba, Portless, Riveter and Serval all had development from us. We don't publish a price and have no Clutch reviews yet. See how we build
Good fit if: you want the people who designed the site to build it, without a handoff.
Not a fit if: you need a large engineering team, or a price and a Clutch rating before the first call.
Musemind
Offices in New York, Dubai, Berlin, Riyadh, London and Dhaka, with no headquarters stated. It lists web design and development, Webflow development and MVP development next to branding and UI/UX, and says it works with startups, scaleups and established businesses. It publishes no prices, only budget bands from $5K to $100K+ on its form, and its site shows 4.9 on Clutch from 48 reviews.
Good fit if: you want design and an MVP build from one studio, with a proposal after the first conversation.
Phenomenon Studio
Offices in Tallinn, Lugano and Dover. Its services page lists web, mobile, AI and custom software development next to web and mobile design, and its intro names venture-backed startups. It publishes no price and says cost depends on scope. Clutch shows 5.0 from 54 reviews.
Good fit if: you want to design first and have the same studio build it.
Wavespace
Lists MVP development next to UI/UX, web, mobile and SaaS design on its homepage, and says it offers design and development in one team. It lists offices in 10 countries and no single headquarters. Its pricing page shows design subscriptions from $2,200 a month and doesn't price builds. Its site shows 4.9 from 250+ reviews, and Clutch shows 4.9 from 16.
Good fit if: you want a published monthly design price now and a build later.
Not a fit if: you need a price for the build before you start.
Should one studio do both the design and the build?
Often, yes, when the product is small enough that design choices change the code every week. Two teams make sense when you already have engineers you trust. Either way, ask who owns the handoff.
| Where you are | What fits | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| No engineers yet | One studio for the design and an MVP build | A build you can't hand to your own engineers later |
| Engineers in-house, no designer | Design only, handed over in Figma | Designs that ignore your stack |
| A website, not a product | A studio that builds in Webflow or Framer | A custom build for a site that doesn't need one |
| A product that has to scale | A studio that names its senior engineers | A build team you never meet |
Six questions to ask before you sign
- Who writes the code, and can I meet them before we start?
- What do I own at the end: the code, the repository and the Figma files?
- Which stack do you build in, and why that one for us?
- Who fixes bugs found after launch, and for how long?
- Can my own engineers take over later, and what do you hand over?
- What is priced separately: hosting, app-store fees, third-party APIs?
Questions
How much does an MVP cost with a design and development studio?
Published figures on this list start at $3,500 for DesignBub's validation sprint, with its startup MVP at $6,600 and a SaaS MVP from $13,210. Wavespace sells design subscriptions from $2,200 a month but doesn't price builds. Bricx, Cieden and CodeTheorem set Clutch minimums of $25,000+, $10,000+ and $1,000+.
How long does it take to design and build an MVP?
Published timelines run from 2 to 14 weeks. DesignBub says 2 to 3 weeks for a validation sprint, 6 to 8 weeks for a startup MVP and 10 to 14 weeks for a SaaS MVP. The other studios here don't publish build timelines, so ask for one in writing.
Is it better to hire one studio for design and development, or two?
One studio avoids the handoff, which is why every studio here sells both. Two make sense if you already have engineers. Cieden, Musemind and Hexcode list design and development together, and Phenomenon Studio lists development as its own service.
Which platforms do these studios build in?
Mostly web stacks and no-code. Bricx lists Next.js, React and TypeScript, plus Webflow and Framer. Musemind lists Webflow development, CodeTheorem lists WordPress, Webflow and Shopify, and we build in Webflow, Framer and full-stack code.
Do I own the code at the end?
Ask before you sign. DesignBub says it hands over all the source code, with 30 or 45 days of bug fixes on its two larger packages. For the others, it's a question for the first call.
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.
Tired of the handoff between design and code?
Thirty minutes, no deck. Show us what you're building and we'll tell you whether one team should do both, even if the answer is one of the other seven.
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