Web development
Freelance web developer
I have been building for the web since 2010 and worked on more than 400 projects. Most of the time I get brought in because something has stalled, not because someone needs an extra pair of hands on a greenfield build.
- Same-day reply
- Fixed price
- No lock-in
- 16 years of experience
- 400+ projects
- Based in Copenhagen
- Same-day reply
Service
Freelance web developer
What I get hired for
Three kinds of work make up most of it. The first is urgent: something is broken and nobody in-house knows why. The second is technical debt — a site patched for five years that now needs to become maintainable again. The third is straight expansion, building something new on top of a system that already runs.
I take short jobs of a few days as well as longer engagements where I sit in as part of a team. Agencies often hire me as extra capacity when they have said yes to more than they can deliver.
How it works
- We talk for twenty minutes, and I say so if the job is not a fit.
- You get a written estimate with a defined scope before we start. Not a three-month range.
- I work inside your git workflow and open pull requests that can be reviewed, not zip files.
- Everything I touch gets documented in the repo, so it does not live only in my head.
What I do not do
I do not do graphic design from scratch. I work well from Figma and have an eye for detail, but if a visual identity needs to be created from nothing, you need a designer.
I also do not run ads. I will happily set up the measurement so an ads specialist can do their job properly, but I do not touch budgets.
Deliverables
What you get
Concrete deliverables, not a report of recommendations someone else has to find time for.
- A written estimate
With scope: what is included, what is not, and when it is done. Not a three-month range.
- Reviewable pull requests
The work in your own git repository, in chunks small enough to read through. No zip files.
- Documentation in the repo
So what I built does not live only in my head. The next person to open the project should find their way.
- A handover
A short video walkthrough at the end. Most people watch it twice and need nothing more.
Process
How it works
Four steps. You know what happens when, and you can stop after any of them.
- 01
Get on a call
Twenty minutes where you explain what is going wrong and I ask the questions that decide the scope. I say so immediately if the job is not a fit.
- 02
I read the code
Before quoting I spend half a day to a day reading the project. You get an honest assessment of the state of things, including when it is worse than you hoped.
- 03
Fixed price and scope
You get a written quote with what is included, what is not, and when it is done. Not a three-month range you cannot plan around.
- 04
Delivery in your workflow
I work in your git repository and open pull requests that can be reviewed. Everything I touch is documented, so knowledge does not walk out the door with me.
Who does the work
I am the person you will be working with
My name is Mikkel and I have been building for the web since 2010. There is no project manager in between, and you will not get a junior on the job because the senior was busy. What you agree is what gets built, and I am the one building it.
Day to day I am a partner at Bigum&Co, and I have worked on more than 400 projects across ecommerce, pharma, construction and the public sector. Call or write — I usually reply the same day, and I will say straight away if the job is not a fit.
- Experience
- 16 yrs
- Projects
- 400+
- Rating
- 5.0
- Reply time
- Same day
In depth
Freelance web developer
When hiring freelance makes sense
There are three situations where I most often get a call. The first is urgent: something is broken and nobody in-house knows why. Those jobs are rarely large, but they are pressing, and they need someone who has seen the problem before.
The second is technical debt. A site patched for five years by changing vendors, where every new change takes longer than the last. The work here is figuring out what can be saved and what has to be rewritten — and that requires someone reading the code properly first.
The third is capacity. Agencies hire me regularly when they have said yes to more than they can deliver. Then I sit inside their workflow, do reviews and write documentation, so knowledge stays with their team rather than leaving with me.
There are also situations where freelance is the wrong answer. If a large system has to be built and run over several years across parallel tracks, a team is right. I say so when that is the case, because it is not a job I can carry alone.
What I look at before quoting
I do not quote on a project I have not seen. That sounds obvious and is not — a large share of the proposals given in this industry are guessed from a description in a meeting.
So I spend half a day to a day reading the project before we agree anything larger. I look at where the code is handwritten and where it is generated, how many dependencies there are and how old they are. Whether there are tests. Whether there is a way to run the project locally without losing a day to it.
Out of that comes an honest assessment. Sometimes it is that the code is worse than you hoped and rebuilding is cheapest. Sometimes it is that it looks ugly but works, and you can safely build on it. Both answers happen, and I have no stake in one over the other.
Reviews
What people say about me
He is simply a pro. Highly competent and precise, brings good input, and is a huge support.
Carsten Johan Thessen(translated from Danish) I have never come across a developer as dedicated and capable as Mikkel.
Jonas Krogslund(translated from Danish) Mikkel is seriously good, helpful, lightning fast to reply — and on top of that he is a nice person.
Trine Handskemager(translated from Danish)
Services
Why me
- 16 years of experience
I have built for the web since 2010 and seen most of the ways a project can come off the rails. It makes the estimates more honest.
- 400+ projects
Across ecommerce, pharma, construction and the public sector. Chances are I have seen something close to your job before.
- You talk to the person coding
No project manager in between, and no junior on the job because the senior was busy. What you agree is what gets built.
Brands I have worked with
A selection. Some freelance, some through agencies, some across several years.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
- Do you only work in Copenhagen?
- No. I live in the Copenhagen area and am happy to come by when it makes sense, but most of the work is remote. I have clients across Denmark and a few abroad.
- Can you take over a project from another developer?
- Yes, and it is a large part of what I do. I usually spend half a day to a day reading the code first, so you get an honest assessment of the state of things before we agree to anything bigger.
- How quickly can you start?
- It varies. Smaller jobs I can usually fit in within a week or two. Longer engagements typically need more planning. Write to me and I will tell you how it looks right now.
- Can you work on a fixed price?
- On scoped jobs, yes, and I prefer it. On longer engagements where scope shifts along the way, working by the hour is more honest for both sides.
- Can we start small?
- Please do. A small scoped job first is a cheap way to find out whether we work well together, and I often suggest it myself.
- What if we want to move on to someone else afterwards?
- Then you should be able to without trouble. The code sits in your own repository, there are no licences on what I build, and the documentation is written for whoever is next. Any lock-in should come from wanting to stay, not from being unable to leave.