FPGA Outsourcing Guide
Whether you are a startup or an established company, choosing the right FPGA design partner is one of the most consequential decisions in your project. This checklist covers 10 critical areas to evaluate before you sign any contract — covering technical depth, communication, IP protection, and long-term support.
Ready to find your FPGA design partner?
Submit your project and get matched with 3 verified FPGA design companies — free.
Get 3 Free Quotes →
1
How experienced are they in developing FPGAs?
Review the company's overall experience alongside the specific background of the FPGA engineers. Look for hands-on skills in hardware description languages, FPGA toolchains, and device families relevant to your project. The ideal scenario is a company that has delivered similar designs in your industry before — not a team applying generic experience to your platform for the first time.
2
Is the budget suitable and aligned with your targets?
Look for an FPGA design partner that can deliver quality work within your budget. FPGA design pricing varies significantly based on project complexity, programming scope, integration requirements, and testing needs. Smaller teams often have lower overhead. Make sure you understand what is and is not included in any quote before committing.
3
How well do they understand your industry and business needs?
An FPGA design company with demonstrated experience in your industry is a significant advantage. To serve you well, they need to understand sector-specific requirements, constraints, and standards — not just general FPGA theory. Industry context helps them anticipate problems and make better design decisions from day one.
Looking for Zynq or UltraScale expertise? Browse verified FPGA design companies on HardwareBee and find the right platform specialist for your project.
Browse Vendors4
Do they have a quality system to ensure bug-free designs?
Testing and verifying FPGA code on the target PCB is critical throughout the design lifecycle. Ask about their verification and testing processes — including simulation environments, testbenches, and hardware validation workflows. A strong FPGA design partner should have structured processes for catching bugs before they reach your hardware.
5
Is it easy to communicate with the FPGA design company?
Communication quality is often underestimated and very difficult to assess before the project starts. Both technical and commercial messages flow back and forth constantly — do you genuinely understand each other? Are they responsive and transparent? Communication issues become critical problems at the worst possible moments. This is especially important for teams working across time zones — nearshore vs offshore considerations matter here.
6
What do you receive at the end of the project?
Receiving clean, functional FPGA code is your primary goal — but it is not the only deliverable. You should expect full source code, documentation, schematics, and test code. Depending on your roadmap, you may also want to negotiate receiving test boards or anything that helps your team modify and support future revisions. Be explicit about deliverables upfront, not at project close.
7
Ask for reference customers early in the process.
Reference checks are one of the most reliable ways to validate a vendor. Once you have a shortlist, ask each company for reference customers and talk to them directly about their experience. What went well? What was difficult? Would they hire them again? You may be surprised by what you learn — both positive and negative.
Not sure which FPGA vendor is right for your project? Submit your requirements and get 3 matched quotes from verified FPGA design companies — no obligation.
Get Matched Now8
Are they willing to provide long-term support for bug fixes and updates?
One of the genuine strengths of FPGA technology is that it can be updated after the product ships. Some vendors offer bug-free guarantees, fixing issues at their own cost. Others propose a maintenance fee arrangement. Either model can work — what matters is that expectations are clearly agreed before the contract is signed, so there are no surprises when a field issue appears.
9
How well do they protect your intellectual property?
If your competitive advantage lives inside an FPGA, you are entrusting that IP to an outside company. Make sure they have clear policies on IP ownership, NDA enforcement, access controls, and secure code handling. Ask specifically how they prevent IP leakage from their development environments. This is not a standard question — push for specific answers.
10
Start the search early — this takes more time than you expect.
Finding and selecting the right FPGA design company is not a quick process. Allow 2–3 months before your project kick-off date so you have time to evaluate properly without timeline pressure. The HardwareBee FPGA vendor directory is a good starting point for identifying qualified companies across regions and specialisations.
Ready to find your FPGA design partner?
Submit your project requirements and get matched with 3 verified FPGA design companies. No commitment required.
Get 3 Free Quotes →Used by 40,000+ engineers · hardwarebee.com
Partner with us