The Short Answer

Hire a Three.js developer when you already have a finished design and web-ready 3D models, and need someone to build the scene. Hire a 3D web studio when you need the models, the page design and the build together. Most first 3D projects are the second kind, because the hard part is not the code but the handoffs between modelling, design and development.

What a 3D Website Actually Needs

A production 3D site usually needs four skills: 3D modelling and materials, WebGL development, web design and front-end build, and performance tuning for real devices. Few individuals are strong in all four, which is why the hiring decision matters.

  • Modelling: building or converting the product in Blender or similar, with clean geometry and web-ready materials.
  • WebGL development: lighting, cameras, interaction and animation in Three.js or React Three Fiber.
  • Web design and build: the page, copy and layout around the 3D, and the HTML that search engines read.
  • Performance: compression, loading strategy and fallbacks, covered in our GLB optimisation guide.

When a Freelance Three.js Developer Is the Right Hire

A freelancer is the efficient choice when you have an in-house designer, the models already exist, and you need one specialist to build and optimise the scene. You pay only for the skill you are missing, and a good specialist moves quickly.

Experienced freelance Three.js developers in the US and UK commonly charge around $75 to $175 an hour. Expect to manage the project yourself and to coordinate the designer, the modeller and the developer.

When a Studio Is the Better Choice

A studio makes sense when you are starting from a product and an idea rather than a design and models. One team decides what the 3D should explain, models it, designs the page and builds it, so nothing is lost between specialists and there is one person accountable for the result.

Per day, a studio costs more than a freelancer. Per finished project, the difference is often smaller than it looks, because the coordination work and the rework caused by handoffs are included. Our broader comparison of freelancer, agency and in-house applies here too.

Questions That Reveal Real 3D Experience

Ask to open three live projects on your own phone, then ask what they personally did on each, how large the models are, and what low-end devices see. Specific answers about file sizes, draw calls and fallbacks separate real experience from a good showreel.

  • How big was the largest model on this site, and how did you get it there?
  • What does a visitor on an older Android phone see?
  • Where does the text live, and how does Google read this page?
  • Who made the models, and can we edit them later?

Contracts and Ownership

Make sure you own the 3D source files as well as the exported models, and the code. 3D assets are expensive to recreate, and they are often reused later for renders, ads and AR. Our web design contract checklist covers the clauses to check.

Working With Kalex

Kalex is a studio that models in Blender, designs the page and builds in Three.js and GSAP in one team, for clients in the US, UK and India. See our 3D website service, 3D website costs, or book a call.