Common Issues general

I Paid Someone to Build My App and Now It's Broken

You hired a freelancer on Fiverr, Upwork, or another platform to build your app or website. It worked for a while, but now something is broken. Maybe the developer disappeared, isn't responding, or wants more money to fix what should have worked in the first place.

This is one of the most frustrating situations — you already spent money, you have a product that half-works, and you don't know enough about the code to understand what went wrong. The original developer might have cut corners, left messy code, or built something that was never meant to last.

You need someone new to look at the code, figure out what's broken, and actually fix it — without starting from scratch and losing everything you already paid for.

Error Messages You Might See

502 Bad Gateway 500 Internal Server Error This site can't be reached Application error Database connection failed
502 Bad Gateway500 Internal Server ErrorThis site can't be reachedApplication errorDatabase connection failed

Common Causes

  • Developer used shortcuts — Many budget freelancers copy-paste code from templates or use AI without testing properly, leaving hidden problems
  • No documentation — The developer didn't leave any notes about how the app works, making it nearly impossible to maintain
  • Hosting or server expired — The developer set up hosting under their own account, and the subscription ran out
  • Hardcoded credentials — Passwords and API keys were written directly into the code instead of being stored securely, and they've since changed or expired
  • No version control — There's no history of changes, so there's no way to undo what broke

How to Fix It

  1. Get access to everything — Make sure you have the code, hosting login, domain registrar login, and any database passwords before doing anything else
  2. Don't let the original developer make more changes — If they already broke it, more changes from them could make things worse
  3. Get a second opinion — Have a different developer review the code and give you an honest assessment of what it'll take to fix
  4. Check if the hosting is still active — Log into your hosting provider and make sure the subscription hasn't lapsed
  5. Document what's broken — Write down exactly what works, what doesn't, and any error messages you see so the next developer can start quickly

Real developers can help you.

Omar Faruk Omar Faruk As a Product Engineer at Klasio, I contributed to end-to-end product development, focusing on scalability, performance, and user experience. My work spanned building and refining core features, developing dynamic website templates, integrating secure and reliable payment gateways, and optimizing the overall system architecture. I played a key role in creating a scalable and maintainable platform to support educators and learners globally. I'm enthusiastic about embracing new challenges and making meaningful contributions. Jacek Rozanski Jacek Rozanski Senior PHP/Symfony developer and DevOps engineer with 20+ years of professional experience, running opcode.pl (web development agency, est. 2004). Day job: I'm the sole backend developer at merketing company where I own and maintain 11 PHP/Symfony microservices on AWS (ECS Fargate, RDS, S3, CloudFront), handle the full CI/CD pipeline (Bitbucket Pipelines, Docker), and manage monitoring with Sentry and CloudWatch. These services handle high request volumes in production every month. What I bring to AI-built apps: - I audit and fix security issues (OWASP methodology), performance bottlenecks, and architectural problems in codebases generated by Cursor, Claude Code, Lovable, Bolt, and v0 - I refactor AI-generated prototypes into production-grade applications with proper error handling, testing, and clean architecture (SOLID, DDD, hexagonal architecture) - I set up the infrastructure AI tools don't touch: AWS hosting, CI/CD pipelines, automated deployments, database optimization, monitoring, and alerting - I integrate external services: payment providers, email systems, partner APIs, SSO/auth Tech stack: PHP 8.x, Symfony, React, Next.js, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Docker, AWS (ECS, RDS, S3, SQS/SNS, CloudFront), Terraform, Supabase. I also use AI tools daily (Claude Code, Cursor) in my own workflow, so I understand both the strengths and the gaps in AI-generated code. Based in Poland (CET timezone). Available for async work and calls during EU/US business hours. Caio Rodrigues Caio Rodrigues I'm a full-stack developer focused on building practical and scalable web applications. My main experience is with **React, TypeScript, and modern frontend architectures**, where I prioritize clean code, component reusability, and maintainable project structures. I have strong experience working with **dynamic forms, state management (Redux / React Hook Form), and complex data-driven interfaces**. I enjoy solving real-world problems by turning ideas into reliable software that companies can actually use in their daily operations. Beyond coding, I care about **software quality and architecture**, following best practices for componentization, code organization, and performance optimization. I'm also comfortable working across the stack when needed, integrating APIs, handling business logic, and helping transform prototypes into production-ready systems. My goal is always to deliver solutions that are **simple, efficient, and genuinely useful for the people using them.** Richard McSorley Richard McSorley Full-Stack Software Engineer with 8+ years building high-performance applications for enterprise clients. Shipped production systems at Walmart (4,000+ stores), Cigna (20M+ users), and Arkansas Blue Cross. 5 patents in retail/supply chain tech. Currently focused on AI integrations, automation tools, and TypeScript-first architectures. Jen Jacobsen Jen Jacobsen I’m a Full-Stack Developer with over 10 years of experience building modern web and mobile applications. I enjoy working across the full product lifecycle — turning ideas into real, well-built products that are intuitive for users and scalable for businesses. I particularly enjoy building mobile apps, modern web platforms, and solving complex technical problems in a way that keeps systems clean, reliable, and easy to maintain. Antriksh Narang Antriksh Narang 5 years+ Experienced Dev (Specially in Web Development), can help in python, javascript, react, next.js and full stack web dev technologies. Stanislav Prigodich Stanislav Prigodich 15+ years building iOS and web apps at startups and enterprise companies. I want to use that experience to help builders ship real products - when something breaks, I'm here to fix it. Jaime Orts-Caroff Jaime Orts-Caroff I'm a Senior Android developer, open to work in various fields Tejas Chokhawala Tejas Chokhawala Full-stack engineer with 5 years experience building production web apps using React, Next.js and TypeScript. Focused on performance, clean architecture and shipping fast. Experienced with Supabase/Postgres backends, Stripe billing, and building AI-assisted developer tools. Taufan Taufan I’m a product-focused engineer and tech leader who builds scalable systems and turns ideas into production-ready platforms. Over the past years, I’ve worked across startups and fast-moving teams, leading backend architecture, improving system reliability, and shipping products used by thousands of users. My strength is not just writing code — but connecting product vision, technical execution, and business impact.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Should I ask the original developer to fix it?

If they're still responsive and the project is under warranty or guarantee, you can try. But if they've disappeared or are asking for more money for basic fixes, it's usually better to find someone new who can properly assess the code.

Do I need to start over from scratch?

Usually not. A good developer can review the existing code and fix what's broken. Starting over is only necessary if the original code is so messy that fixing it would cost more than rebuilding.

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