Parvessh Agarwal
Founder & CEO
An entrepreneur at heart. He links business analysis, strategy, clear goals and ROI to practical technology.
LinkedIn →Hire Drupal developers
who set up your content and permissions properly.
A dedicated Drupal developer, or a team, who treats your content structure and user permissions as the real job. That is the problem Drupal exists to solve. They do more than put a new look on a CMS and move on. Each developer is vetted on real Drupal builds before they touch yours. They work inside your codebase and your access rules, and you can scale monthly without a hiring cycle. You interview the actual developer about your content structure before anything is signed.
Interview before signing · Scale monthly
14-day trial
Try before you commit
Start Your 14-Day Risk-Free Trial
Work together on a real brief for up to 14 days, then decide whether to scale.
What you get
Hiring a Drupal developer through PixelCrayons gets you a vetted engineer who sets up content and permissions properly. They work in your code on content types and taxonomy, Views and Layout Builder, and custom modules. They also handle multisite and detailed permission setups. A named coordinator backs them. You interview the actual developer first and scale monthly.
- Vetted on live Drupal buildsEvery developer has shipped live Drupal work to our standards, with code reviewed weekly.
- Cover that knows your access rulesA named coordinator, an escalation contact and a second developer who knows your access rules.
- Working inside your teamThey work in your code, environments, Slack and stand-ups, through your own settings sync and releases.
Our work
See what we've built
and the results it brought.
Real projects for real clients, with results we can show.
2004
Established
500+
Agencies served
4,500+
Projects delivered
340%
Revenue growth · 7 months
eCommerce
+127%
Organic traffic · 5 months
SaaS
85%
Faster delivery · backlog cleared
via agency partner
Where the work happens
Monthly rate for this hire
From $2,400per month, 160 hoursSenior specialists from $4,000, quoted per person.
Direct prices for brands and companies buying for themselves.
What they cover
Drupal skills
for large sites with strict access rules.
This is not a general CMS developer who once opened Drupal. Their job is your content structure and permissions. That means what they cost to maintain and what breaks when they are rushed. It also means records that prove both are under control.
Core Drupal development
- Content types and fields designed for how your editors really work, not how a demo looks
- Taxonomy and structured content that stay tidy as the site grows
- Views for the listings, filters and reports your content needs
- Layout Builder so editors can build pages without a developer for every change
- Custom modules in PHP, built with Drupal's own APIs rather than around them
Multisite, permissions and moves
- Multisite setups for a group of related sites sharing one codebase
- Detailed role-based permissions: a key reason many organisations choose Drupal over a simpler CMS
- Migrate API work to move an old Drupal site, or another CMS, onto a current build
- Headless Drupal through JSON:API or GraphQL for a separate front end
- Configuration management: settings kept in sync across dev, staging and live
Access rules, updates and notes
- Working inside your existing access rules without quietly stripping them back
- Security updates applied on a schedule that follows Drupal's security notices, not when something breaks
- Notes written for content editors, not just the next developer
- Content and migration audits before an old site moves onto a new build
- Clear reports you can share, tied to what shipped
In practice
What a Drupal developer
really looks after.
On a mature Drupal site the code is only half of it. Settings, permissions and how editors work are the other half.
A realistic week on a live site
Expect a mix. They apply a security release from Drupal's notices, tested on staging first. They add a field to a content type and check every View and template that reads it. They export that settings change so it reaches the live site the same way. They help an editor who cannot see a draft because their role lacks a permission. There may be a custom module fix, or a script to move the next batch of old content. Visitors see very little of this. That is exactly why someone needs to own it. Major version upgrades are planned as their own work, not squeezed into a normal week.
Questions that show real skill
Ask how they would add a new content type without breaking existing listings. Ask how that change reaches the live site. You want to hear about exporting settings, a staging site and a release step. Clicking through the admin on the live site is a bad sign. Ask when they would write a custom module rather than install a shared one. Strong candidates first check whether the shared module is kept up to date and covered for security. Then ask them to walk through a permission bug they fixed. Vague answers usually mean they have only worked on small sites with one user role.
What to hand over on day one
Give them access to your code and a working local setup, or the steps to build one. Add a staging site that closely matches the live one. List the shared and custom modules, and note any that someone once patched by hand. List the current roles and who holds them, especially admin accounts. Share your update policy: how fast security releases must go on and who signs off. If any of this does not exist yet, say so up front. Writing it down becomes the first piece of work, and that is time well spent.
Handovers with editors and designers
A Drupal developer works between the people who write content and the people who design how it looks. Bring your lead editor into early talks about content types. A field that makes sense to a developer can confuse an editor. Agree with design which layouts editors may change in Layout Builder and which stay locked. Without that, editors either lack the freedom they were promised or break pages they should not touch. Both cost time the developer then spends on repairs. Put both decisions in writing.
How it works
How hiring works,
from brief to first day.
Start
Brief and a call
We sign an NDA and you talk us through your site, its content structure and the gap.
Once the brief is complete
Proposal and interview
We confirm when your proposal will arrive and name the developer whose Drupal record fits. You interview them before anything is signed. If the fit is wrong, we propose someone else.
Your decision
You sign off
You confirm the scope, the payment and the access we need. Nothing starts before this.
Typically 2 to 3 business days later
The developer starts
With code access in place, they review your content types, taxonomy and permissions and join your stand-ups.
Every month
Scale up or down
Add a second developer before a migration or a multisite launch. Step down once it ships. You resize month by month, so a busy migration never forces a hiring decision.
You make requests, give approvals and see the weekly review in your Prism workspace. Each decision is written down with the result it was meant to bring. See how Prism runs the work →
Get a Proposal
Meet the people who will do the work before you sign
Why through us
Why hire through us:
the developer and the review checks behind them.
Hiring a dedicated Drupal developer on your own gets you their code. Hiring through a company that delivers this work every day adds written records. Your content structure and permissions stay documented, even when the person who built them is out.
Vetted on live Drupal builds
Every developer in our team has shipped live Drupal work before yours. Those builds met our own delivery standards before the developer joined any client site. Code is reviewed weekly and held to the same settings checks you will see. An interview cannot show how someone sets up a taxonomy for a large site. A settings export they have shipped can, so that is what we ask to see.
Cover that knows your access rules
Each Drupal hire comes with a named coordinator, an escalation contact and a second developer you know by name. The second developer is briefed on your site from day one. They follow the content and role notes the first developer keeps. If the first developer is on leave or moves on, the second steps in fast, already knowing your access rules. A solo freelancer has nobody to pass that knowledge to. A first in-house hire needs a whole team around them before there is any cover. You get a developer and the checks behind them.
Working inside your team
Your code, your environments, your Slack, your stand-ups. Dedicated means working through your own settings sync and release routine. Tickets never get dropped into a stranger's backlog.
Quality checks you can see
You get a weekly written review in Prism, tied to what shipped. Pull requests are reviewed before merge. Your permissions are written down, not kept in one person's head. If you ever wonder what changed in your content structure and why, the records answer before we do.
Side by side
Hiring on your own,
compared with hiring through us.
An in-house hire is still right when your content platform is a permanent, full-time, central job. We will say so when it is. This page covers every other case.
| Hiring it yourself | Through PixelCrayons | |
|---|---|---|
| Time to a productive developer | A full recruiting cycle: sourcing, interviews and notice periods, then weeks spent reading an unfamiliar content structure | Eligible work can typically start two to three business days after scope, payment and required access are confirmed. The content audit comes first |
| Vetting | CV checks and interviews: claimed Drupal experience gets tested on your live site | A track record on real Drupal builds and migrations, held to our own standards and reviewed weekly |
| Management work | All yours: goals, reviews, career growth and cover | A named PM and escalation path are included; you set content priorities, not the admin |
| Scaling | A new hiring cycle each way: months to hire, severance to let go | Resize monthly: add a developer for a migration, step down once it ships |
| Risk when it doesn't work | A poor hire takes over your permissions and content structure unchecked, until something breaks on the live site | If the fit is wrong, we propose someone else; the new developer gets the content notes, not just the login |
Who is accountable
The people responsible
for your work.
Saundaraya Gupta
Technical Manager
Brings technical work, client updates and project management together, so work moves smoothly from brief to launch.
LinkedIn →Every engagement
A named coordinator and escalation contact
Know who coordinates your engagement, who owns the work and how to escalate an issue.
All engagements. Roles may be combined and vary with your engagement.
Before you sign
Our commitments
Each one says where it applies and links to its full terms.
14-Day Risk-Free Trial
For eligible managed specialists. Up to 14 calendar days or 80 logged working hours, whichever comes first. End within the trial and pay nothing for eligible trial hours. Continue beyond it and those hours are billed at the agreed rate. Unpaid trial work remains ours if you stop.
Eligible managed-specialist roles only, one trial per customer. Not offered for AI, chatbot, prompt, automation, API-integration or QA work. Brand and graphic designers, brand strategists, video editors, content writers, copywriters and content marketers start with a paid pilot.
Full termsTime-zone overlap
At least four hours a day inside your core working hours. Two hours plus a daily written handover for the US West Coast.
Managed specialists only; not a staffing promise for project teams.
Full termsClear IP & Ownership Terms
Your materials remain yours. Bespoke deliverable rights, licences and handover are agreed before work starts.
All engagements.
Full termsClear Delivery & Escalation Ownership
Know who coordinates your engagement, who owns the work and how to escalate an issue.
All engagements. Roles may be combined and vary with your engagement.
Full termsWhy not just hire a freelancer?
A freelancer can be the right choice for a single, well-defined task. We are set up for work that needs an accountable team: a named coordinator, delivery reviewed by QA and a senior lead before release, and continuity arrangements written into the engagement. Confidentiality, ownership and escalation terms are agreed in writing before work starts.
How does time-zone overlap work?
Your engineers work at least four hours a day inside your core working hours. We set the window with you before the engagement starts and hold it for as long as the engagement runs. For the US West Coast the live overlap is two hours each morning, with a written handover at the end of every Indian day. We do not run night shifts: engineers who work nights leave quickly, and keeping the same people on your team matters more to us than a longer overlap.
Can we try you before we commit?
For eligible managed specialists, yes: up to 14 calendar days or 80 logged working hours, whichever comes first. Stop within it and eligible trial hours are free; continue and they're billed at the agreed rate. Unpaid trial work stays ours. Project work and other roles get a paid pilot with scope, acceptance criteria, duration and fee agreed first.
What if we want to stop?
Cancellation, notice and any renewal terms are written into your proposal or statement of work before you accept it. If an engagement ends early, we hand over completed, paid-for work and list any unfinished work separately. For an eligible specialist trial, you can stop within the trial window and pay nothing for eligible trial hours.
How we handle claims, credentials and your data: group credentials, dated ratings, how case figures are signed off, client permissions and data handling.
How we vet
How we vet a Drupal developer
on content structure and permissions.
Without vetting, claimed Drupal experience gets tested on your live site. Our vetting checks settings habits, module choices and permission work before that can happen.
- 01Shortlist on real builds and migrationsWe put forward the developer whose record on real Drupal builds and migrations fits your site and gap. Their work met our standards and was reviewed weekly. Real module code they have shipped is available under NDA on request.
- 02Ask how they add a content typeAsk how they would add one without breaking existing listings, and how that change reaches the live site. You want a settings export, a staging site and a release step. Clicking through the admin on the live site is a bad sign.
- 03Test module choices and a permission bugAsk when they would write a custom module rather than install a shared one. Strong candidates first check upkeep and security cover. Then ask them to walk through a permission bug they fixed. Vague answers usually mean small sites with one role.
- 04The trial: the content auditIf you take the trial, it runs on a scope agreed before it starts. Expect your content types, taxonomy and permissions to be reviewed and written up before anything changes. Settings changes are written down.
Questions
Frequently
asked.
Once we have a complete brief, we confirm when your proposal will arrive. You interview the developer before signing. Real module code they have shipped is available under NDA. Eligible work can typically start two to three business days after scope, payment and required access are confirmed. If your content structure has no notes, that audit comes first.
An NDA comes first, then access to your code and environments. They review your content types, taxonomy and permissions and write up what they found. They agree the first month's priorities with you before anything changes. They join your stand-ups from the first week. So they learn your release and settings routine by using it.
The two platforms solve different problems. WordPress is built for a large plugin choice and fast publishing. Drupal is built for structured content, detailed user permissions and many sites run under one set of rules. For a marketing site that needs to move fast, ask about the WordPress role. For content with strict access rules, this is the role.
Reporting is weekly and written: what shipped, what is in review and what is next. Pull requests are checked against your existing code style before merge. Settings changes, such as new content types, permission edits or new modules, are written down each month. They are never applied blind. Agencies placing a Drupal developer on client sites get that write-up in their own templates.
Tell us early and we will propose another Drupal developer. The new developer gets the content notes, permissions and migration decisions the first developer wrote down. So a switch costs days, not a restart. The proposal names the second Drupal developer. It also says whether their cover is in the monthly rate or priced separately.
Interview your Drupal developer
before you sign anything.
Tell us about your site and its content structure, and meet the actual developer before anything is signed. If you really need a fixed-scope migration rather than a person, we will say so on the first call.
Interview before signing · Scale monthly
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