Even though role and title might be the same, your life at work (and outside of it) can change greatly, depending on the kind of employer you have(if any). The level of flexibility, the salary, the benefits, the perks can change greatly from working in an agency or for a big tech company.

It goes without saying that this can be different from company to company, not all the agencies have the same crazy hours, not all the startups offer the same amount of perks, etc. Another factor is also the country you work in, I’ve been working in Italy and the USA (California to be precise, and of course differences also occur on a State basis).

But based on my (almost 13 years long) personal experience in different environments, as well as colleagues and peers’ I talked with, we can identify a list of most common pros and cons for each of these possible employment situations. Take these with half a grain of salt.

Agency

Agencies can be of many different kinds: advertising, branding, consulting, design… What they have in common though is that they work B2B (business-to-business), meaning they offer their services to other companies, not single private individuals. This means that normally, in an agency, you don’t make your own projects to sell directly to users, but you make work that has been commissioned by another company.

Pros

• You can work with many different clients in different industries. Depending on the kind of agency and project you might change project weekly or go on on the same one for a few months, but most probably you’ll get to work on several different projects during the year
• The consequence of the point above: more experience in different industries can boost your portfolio and make you more versatile
• You learn to work under pressure (lots of deadlines)
• You learn to juggle more projects at the same time
• Multinational agencies could offer you to work on projects abroad

Cons

• Easily high-stress levels because of many deadlines and when you work on someone else’s project, deadlines are a serious matter
• Often not enough time/budget to make the work as good as would like
• Overtime can be quite common (often unpaid)
• Salaries are often lower than startups or big companies

Startup

Startups are often a gamble, they can offer a lot, but they can disappear almost overnight. If you catch the right one you could end up with the chance of a lifetime, but unfortunately, that’s not the most common scenario.

Pros

• Can pay big money
• Work on your own product. Deadlines can shift
• Often offer awesome perks, like free food and drinks, amazing office spaces with ping pong and stuff, laundry, gym, teambuilding outings and who knows what else
• Flexible schedule and time off
• Remote work is quite common
• Overtime can happen, but just in particular situations (product releases, major incidents …)
• A small team where you can work closely with all the people making the product
• Flat hierarchy, easy access to CEO and top management
• Easier to grow into a bigger role
• More direct contact with end-users

Cons

• Projects can pivot at a crazy pace, throwing weeks or months of work into the bin
• Unicorns are a very tiny fraction of all the startups. Many barely stay afloat, a lot disappear in a blink
• Team turnover can be crazy in some companies. You might start the year with a team and end it with a different set of team members
• Instead of the awesome workspace, you might end up in a coworking (for some people this might be a pro. No, thanks, too old)

Big company

Working in a big company might be the right compromise for some people. Harder to emerge from the crowd compared to a startup, but a more stable situation. Usually a more relaxed pace.

Pros

• Work on your own products. If the company is big you might have more than one to work at during your time there (while startups often have just one product)
• The pace is usually more relaxed. Things move slower than in a startup, teams are bigger and projects have to be planned accordingly. Less prone to crazy pivoting, deadlines are normally longer-term, can move if necessary, but harder to do compared to small agile teams in startups.
• You usually have time and resources to be in the condition of doing good work
• Salaries can be high
• A more stable situation, harder to go bankrupt
• Career: the sky’s the limit
• Tech companies can offer the same amazing perks startups do (other industries not so much)
• Overtime shouldn’t be the norm. If it happens is most probably paid (unlike many agencies)
• In multinational companies can happen to travel
• Big names can look good in your resume

Cons

• Can be harder to emerge from the crowd and get promoted, compared to a startup
• Less agile, project management can be intricate
• Harder to work side by side with all the people involved in a project. Sometimes they can even be in another continent.

Freelance

The biggest variable here is the country where you live, in some places freelancing is easier and affordable tax-wise, while in other is much harder (in Italy for example). Leaving aside these considerations, there are some pros and cons that are still valid regardless of where you work.

Pros

• Freedom in time management. You pretty much decide your own vacation, time-off, etc…
• You can work on many different projects and work for different kind of companies in many different industries
• Learn more about project management and business
• Can work from anywhere in the world
• No bosses

Cons

• Being sick=not getting paid. Or require an insurance
• Need to hunt for clients (at least in the beginning)
• Manage invoicing and other boring stuff
• Business can be a rollercoaster. Sometimes you might work too much, sometimes you’ll question if it was better to accept the offer from that company. Less stability can be stressful for some people.
• You’re not part of a team, often work alone (can be a pro for some)
• Requires a lot of self-discipline

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There is no better solution, it all comes to what one thinks is best for themself. I feel startups might be better early in your career when you’re younger and you have fewer responsibilities (like a mortgage, a child…) and less to lose, but again this is a personal opinion.