Available for new projects

Your project deserves a senior engineer.

I've shipped products used by millions — from day one at startups to enterprise infrastructure teams. Now I take on focused freelance work for clients who care about the outcome.

15+Years of professional experienceNo junior mistakes on your dime.
1M+Users on a product I joined as an early engineerI know how to build from zero and scale.
4M+Users reached at a unicorn startupI've worked at every company size.
< 24hTypical first response timeYou won't be left wondering.

What I can build for you

Not sure what you actually need from a web developer? Here’s a plain-language breakdown of what I do and why it might matter to you.

Build something new

Custom Web Application

A purpose-built product — a SaaS tool, client portal, internal dashboard, or anything that needs more than a website template.

When off-the-shelf software doesn't fit your business exactly the way you need it to.

Startup MVP

Full product from zero. I handle the frontend completely and connect to backend APIs or third-party services to get you to launch.

When you need to validate your idea quickly and can't afford to get it wrong.

Marketing & Landing Pages

Fast, high-quality pages built to convert — not a template, built to your brand.

When your current site isn't doing the selling it should be.

E-commerce

Online stores that work — Shopify, WooCommerce, or a fully custom checkout flow.

When you need a storefront that's fast, reliable, and actually drives revenue.

Fix or improve what you have

Performance Audit & Optimization

If your site is slow, I find out exactly why and fix it.

Faster sites rank better and convert more — this often pays for itself.

Codebase Refactor & Migration

If your existing site or app is hard to maintain or falling apart, I can rebuild it properly.

Technical debt compounds — earlier is cheaper.

Figma-to-Code

You have designs from a designer and need them built precisely — I do that.

When pixel-perfect implementation matters and you can't afford drift between design and production.

Design System & Component Library

Consistent, reusable UI components your team can build on.

When your product team wastes time recreating the same UI patterns over and over.

Code Review & Tech Lead Consulting

A senior eye on your team's work, architecture decisions, or codebase.

When you have developers but need someone who's seen this problem before.

Ongoing Maintenance & Support

A reliable developer in your corner month-to-month.

When you need someone you can call, not a one-and-done engagement.

How we work together

A straightforward process designed to protect your time and money — not mine.

01

Discovery Call

Free 30-min call. We talk through what you need, what success looks like, and whether we're a good fit. No pressure, no pitch.

02

Project Intake

For projects beyond a simple page, I send a structured questionnaire. This isn't busywork — it's how I make sure I understand exactly what you need before writing a single line of code. Clients who fill it out thoroughly get better results, faster.

03

Proposal & Agreement

A clear quote — fixed-price or time-based — with scope, timeline, and deliverables spelled out. No surprises.

04

Build

Weekly updates, async Loom walkthroughs, and a shared workspace so you always know where things stand. You're never in the dark.

05

Ship & Hand Off

Deployed, documented, and yours. If you want ongoing support, we can arrange that too.

The tools I work with

Chosen for reliability, not trend-chasing — the same stack I’ve shipped production products with.

Frontend

ReactTypeScriptNext.jsTailwindMaterial UIFramer Motion

State & Data

GraphQLReduxZustandREST APIs

Testing

VitestPlaywrightJest

Infrastructure

DockerAWSGoogle CloudRailwayVercel

AI/ML

LLMsRAGEmbeddingsPrompt Engineering

Other

Node.jsMySQLStripeSendGridClerkCloudflare R2

Is this a good fit?

Good fit

  • Small businesses and founders who want senior engineering depth without hiring full-time
  • Startups that need founding-level ownership, not a ticket-taker
  • Clients with a clear goal who are willing to participate in the scoping process

Not a fit

  • Projects requiring native iOS or Android apps (Swift/Kotlin) — I work in web
  • Work that is purely backend or database with no frontend component
  • Clients who aren't open to defining what they want — vague projects produce vague results

Communication

  • ·Based in Las Vegas (Pacific Time), remote-friendly, async-first
  • ·I use Slack, Figma, GitHub, Linear, and Loom — you don't need all of them
  • ·I respond within 24 hours, usually much faster
Available for new projects now.

Engagement options

Project-based

Preferred for defined work with clear scope

Hourly

Available for audits, consulting, and short engagements

Monthly retainer

Available for ongoing support and maintenance

Rates discussed on the discovery call. You'll have a number in the first conversation, not after weeks of back-and-forth.

Track record

Not a resume — just three moments that tell you what kind of engineer you’re hiring.

Toucan

Early engineer. Architected the web platform.

Took over a scrappy extension prototype and built the Next.js site from scratch in year one. The company grew to 30 employees and over a million users.

Dave.com

First Senior Frontend Engineer. 200K → 4M+ users.

Joined during hypergrowth and helped scale a fintech app to unicorn status. I've built under real pressure with real consequences.

Aerospike

Architected the provisioning wizard on a revenue-critical enterprise product.

Planned the wizard flow architecture and built many of its pages; other Cloud frontend engineers shipped additional wizard and console work following those patterns. High stakes during a live ACMS migration.

What colleagues say

9 selected highlights from 28 LinkedIn recommendations — managers, peers, and cross-functional partners from 2010–2023.

Chris's word is his bond. One of the hardest working engineers I've had the privilege of working with. He leads by example and is always striving for more knowledge. If you see his resume land on your desk, just hire him. He'll be one of the kindest and most dedicated engineers on your team.

David Cutherell

Engineering Leader · Toucan

Here are a few of the things that happen when you start working with Chris: 1) Your projects get done on time or ahead of schedule. 2) Your team rises to more challenges because of his mentorship, mindset, and work ethic. 3) Issues that you didn't even know of start getting handled before they become a major concern.

Shaun Merritt

Co-Founder & CTO · Toucan

Have a project in mind?

Let's talk through it. First call is free, no commitment.