Compare · A freelancer
A freelance designer, or a team on a plan?
A senior freelance product designer typically bills $75 to $150 an hour, or $4,000 to $8,000 a month for about half their time, and is one person with other clients. Recast is $3,900 a month for a team working five tasks at once, seven days a week, with a lead designer accountable for the work and the front-end build included. Choose a freelancer for a defined piece of work you can direct yourself; choose Recast when the work is continuous and nobody in-house can review it.
Checked · by Daniel Makhamreh, lead designer at Recast
- Recast
- $3,900 a month, flat, for five tasks worked at once.
- A freelancer
- $75 to $150 an hour, or $4,000 to $8,000 a month for about half their time. A typical 2026 range.
- Availability
- Recast: every day of the week. A freelancer: when they are free.
- Review
- Recast: a lead designer answers for every choice. A freelancer: you review it.
- Crossover
- $3,900 buys 26 hours at $150 an hour, or 52 hours at $75.
- Small jobs
- Below those hours, a freelancer is the lower bill. The $490 pilot is the plan's small option.
The short version
What is the difference between a freelancer and a design subscription?
A freelancer is one person selling part of their week, and a subscription is a team selling a fixed amount of capacity. With a freelancer you get that person's taste and hands directly, for the hours they have. With Recast you get five tasks worked at once, every day of the week, with one lead designer as your contact.
The other differences follow from the first. One person cannot review their own work, so with a freelancer the review falls to you. One person has other clients, a holiday and, sooner or later, a full-time offer. And one person has one skill set: a product designer who also writes production front end and sets Arabic type is rare.
None of that is a criticism. Good freelancers are excellent value and usually booked. It is a description of what one person can carry.
Side by side
How does a freelancer compare with the plan, line by line?
A freelancer is more direct, can be cheaper for a small job, and can sit in your office. The plan works more tasks at once, is there every day, and comes with someone accountable for the result.
The right-hand column describes a typical senior freelance product designer. The one you have in mind may be the exception on any row.
| What is compared | Recast | A senior freelance designer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3,900 a month, flat. | $75 to $150 an hour, or $4,000 to $8,000 a month for about half their time. |
| Time to start | First concepts 48 hours after the first task is filed. | Days to weeks, depending on their bookings. |
| Tasks worked at once | Five. | One person's attention, shared with their other clients. |
| Working week | Seven days. | When they are free. |
| Who reviews the work | One lead designer, accountable for every design choice. | You. |
| Revisions | Unlimited, on every task. | Billed by the hour, or capped in the agreement. |
| Handoff to developers | Developer-ready Figma: components, tokens, spec frames. | As agreed. Spec frames and tokens are extra hours if nobody asks for them. |
| A quiet month | Pause. The unused days are banked. | Nothing owed and nothing held: they take another client. |
| If the designer moves on | The lead designer and the design system carry the context. | The next freelancer starts again. |
| Front-end build | Build hours included. | Rarely. |
| Arabic and right-to-left | Included. Designed natively. | Rarely. |
| Who owns the work | You, on delivery. | Check the contract. |
Price
- Recast
- $3,900 a month, flat.
- A senior freelance designer
- $75 to $150 an hour, or $4,000 to $8,000 a month for about half their time.
Time to start
- Recast
- First concepts 48 hours after the first task is filed.
- A senior freelance designer
- Days to weeks, depending on their bookings.
Tasks worked at once
- Recast
- Five.
- A senior freelance designer
- One person's attention, shared with their other clients.
Working week
- Recast
- Seven days.
- A senior freelance designer
- When they are free.
Who reviews the work
- Recast
- One lead designer, accountable for every design choice.
- A senior freelance designer
- You.
Revisions
- Recast
- Unlimited, on every task.
- A senior freelance designer
- Billed by the hour, or capped in the agreement.
Handoff to developers
- Recast
- Developer-ready Figma: components, tokens, spec frames.
- A senior freelance designer
- As agreed. Spec frames and tokens are extra hours if nobody asks for them.
A quiet month
- Recast
- Pause. The unused days are banked.
- A senior freelance designer
- Nothing owed and nothing held: they take another client.
If the designer moves on
- Recast
- The lead designer and the design system carry the context.
- A senior freelance designer
- The next freelancer starts again.
Front-end build
- Recast
- Build hours included.
- A senior freelance designer
- Rarely.
Arabic and right-to-left
- Recast
- Included. Designed natively.
- A senior freelance designer
- Rarely.
Who owns the work
- Recast
- You, on delivery.
- A senior freelance designer
- Check the contract.
The freelancer column describes typical 2026 rates and terms for senior product designers in the US, UK and Gulf markets. They are ranges, not quotes.
The honest part
When is a freelancer the better choice?
A freelancer is the better choice for a defined piece of work a few weeks long, when someone in-house can direct it, or when the job is too small for a monthly plan.
A defined job
A pitch deck, one landing page, a single flow. If it has a clear start and end and you can brief and review it yourself, a freelancer is the simplest way to buy it.
You have found the right person
If there is a particular designer whose work you want, with experience in your exact field, hire that person. A plan cannot give you someone else's hand.
A few hours a month
Ten hours at $75 to $150 is $750 to $1,500. For that much work, hourly billing costs far less than $3,900.
You have a design lead
With a lead in-house to review the work, a freelancer's main gap is covered.
You want them in the office
A freelancer can sit with your team and join your stand-ups. Recast works remotely from Amman.
The other side
When is Recast the better choice?
Recast is the better choice when the work is continuous, when more than one thing must move at once, and when nobody on your side has time to be the design lead.
Nobody in-house can review design
The lead designer is accountable for every design choice, so you approve outcomes instead of checking spacing.
More than one task a week
Five tasks are worked at once. One person, part-time, works one.
It cannot wait for a free slot
The team works every day of the week, and first concepts arrive within 48 hours.
The decisions should outlast the designer
The design system is built and maintained, so what was decided in month one is still written down in month ten.
Design, build and Arabic from one team
Front-end build hours and native Arabic design are in the plan. With freelancers that is usually three people.
The numbers
What does each cost over three and twelve months?
For steady work, a senior freelancer at half time typically costs $4,000 to $8,000 a month: $12,000 to $24,000 over three months and $48,000 to $96,000 over twelve. Recast is $11,700 and $46,800.
The sums: $4,000 × 3 = $12,000 and $8,000 × 3 = $24,000. $4,000 × 12 = $48,000 and $8,000 × 12 = $96,000. $3,900 × 3 = $11,700 and $3,900 × 12 = $46,800.
By the hour, the crossover is easy to find. At $150 an hour, $3,900 buys 26 hours; at $75 an hour it buys 52. If you need fewer hours than that in a month, a freelancer is the lower bill. If you need more, or need them every week, the flat fee is.
Two costs sit outside the freelancer's rate. One is your own time reviewing the work. The other is the restart when they move on, which typically costs two to four weeks of context.
| What is compared | Recast | A senior freelancer, half time |
|---|---|---|
| One month | $3,900 | $4,000 to $8,000 |
| Three months | $11,700 | $12,000 to $24,000 |
| Twelve months | $46,800 | $48,000 to $96,000 |
| What $3,900 buys | A month of five tasks worked at once. | 26 hours at $150 an hour; 52 hours at $75. |
One month
- Recast
- $3,900
- A senior freelancer, half time
- $4,000 to $8,000
Three months
- Recast
- $11,700
- A senior freelancer, half time
- $12,000 to $24,000
Twelve months
- Recast
- $46,800
- A senior freelancer, half time
- $48,000 to $96,000
What $3,900 buys
- Recast
- A month of five tasks worked at once.
- A senior freelancer, half time
- 26 hours at $150 an hour; 52 hours at $75.
Typical 2026 ranges for the US, UK and Gulf markets, not quotes.
The work
Case studies behind this page.
Questions
Asked before the call.
Is a design subscription better than a freelancer?
- It depends on volume, and on who reviews the work. For a small, defined job with someone in-house to direct it, a freelancer is the better buy. For continuous product work with no design lead, a plan with five tasks at once and an accountable lead designer is the safer one.
How much does a senior freelance product designer cost in 2026?
- Typically $75 to $150 an hour, or $4,000 to $8,000 a month for roughly half their time, in the US, UK and Gulf markets. These are typical ranges, not quotes; junior and offshore rates are lower.
At how many hours a month does the plan cost less than a freelancer?
- Between 26 and 52 hours, depending on the rate. $3,900 is 26 hours at $150 an hour and 52 hours at $75. Above that, the flat fee is the lower figure, and it also covers revisions and build hours.
Can I keep my freelancer and add Recast?
- Yes. Everything is delivered as Figma files you own, so a freelancer can work in the same library. One workable split is the freelancer on brand and illustration, and the plan on product screens, the design system and the build.
Is there a way to test Recast for the price of a small freelance job?
- The pilot is $490, paid once: one week, up to three active tasks, delivered by the week's end by the same team and to the same standard as the plan. The $490 is credited against the first month if the plan starts within ninety days, and the files are yours either way.
Twenty minutes. Your product on the screen.
The pilot call is with the lead designer who would run your work. Show the screens that bother you most, pick up to 3 tasks for a one-week pilot, and leave knowing the price and the scope. The call is free; the pilot is $490 once, credited against your first month.