Software Developer Hourly Rate Comparison Across the Globe

Offshoring software development can be an excellent choice for businesses looking to obtain high-quality software development services while reducing costs. However, finding the right offshoring partner with the desired cost-effectiveness can be challenging. 

But do you know that location plays a critical role in deciding hourly rates and can significantly affect them?

Well, yes. Numerous factors affect the cost of offshoring services, and location is one critical factor. In this blog, we will provide you with a breakdown of the global offshore software developer hourly rates by country in 2024, which can help you determine the most viable location for your business.

Read on to know everything about it and make a strategic move for your business today.

How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Software Developer?

Here is an overview of price comparisons in hiring software developers in 2024 across the top outsourcing countries in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Africa.

Read on to learn about the software developer hourly rates, in different countries.

Current State of Global Offshoring Software Development

Since its inception in the early 2000s, the outsourcing industry has revolutionized different sectors. 

As outsourcing continues to grow, a few trends would help you understand the current state of global outsourcing software development:

• The IT Outsourcing Market is increasing at a CAGR of 5.48%. According to Mondor Intelligence research, the current market size is USD 617.69 billion and is expected to grow to USD 806.53 billion by 2029.

• According to Global Market Estimates, the global software development outsourcing market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 11.5% from 2023 to 2028.

• Based on the end industry use, the Global Software Development Outsourcing market is segmented into BFSI, which is expected to be the largest segment during the forecast period 2023 to 2028. 

• The market is fragmented with several players, and the impact is neutral.

• Value over price

As we know, outsourcing has been a growing trend since the early 1980s. However, today’s offshore development scenario differs significantly from the earlier models. 

Organizations moving towards outsourcing software development are focusing heavily on hiring skilled labor to reduce costs, improve core business processes, enhance service quality and drive transformation in addition to various other reasons mentioned below:

 

Change In Software Development Rates Over The Previous Years

Since the last time we published this blog; the market trends have changed drastically, and so have the software development rates over the earlier years. 

Surprisingly, the compensation for app developers for their services will increase by up to 4 percent and will continue to rise for all the technologies. 

Python, React Native, ReactJS, NodeJS, Java, and PHP are among the technologies witnessing a whopping increase in rates. 

Also Read: A Complete Guide on How to Hire Developers For Startups

Software Development Hourly Rate In North America

The highest software developer hourly rates are in the United States, ranging from $38-$63 per hour. The total salary, including taxes and benefits, ranges from $137k to $173k.

Although hiring in the United States is expensive, there are numerous benefits, such as fewer language barriers and reduced miscommunications. 

Software Developer Hourly Rate In the United States

The following table depicts the average hourly wage rate of software developers in various cities in the United States:

Software Developer Hourly Rate In Canada

Like the USA, Canada, too, has a mature IT market and resource pricing. The average software developer's hourly rate in Canada is $36-$52.

Software Developer Hourly Rate in Asian Countries

Asia has the most significant number of software developers, a pioneering software outsourcing destination compared to other countries., with 10 million. The hourly rates of software developers across the continent are shaped by various aspects and differ significantly from country to country.

India, the Philippines, and China are the three major countries offering custom software engineering services.

The Asia-Pacific region is expected to have the largest market share by 2031. Cost factors and a skilled workforce have driven the market in this area. India was the largest contributor to the market in 2023 compared to other countries. Highly skilled and cost-effective IT professionals are abundant in APAC countries such as India, China, and the Philippines.

Let’s drill down the software development services across the top three Asian countries to make things easy for you:

Software Developer Hourly Rate In India

Entrepreneurs who wish to execute their ideas by building top-notch solutions at affordable rates consider hiring Indian developers. India is one of the best countries to outsource software requirements.

Hiring an offshore developer from Asian countries is the most budget-friendly option. Explicitly speaking about India, the range to hire developers starts from $18 for a junior developer and goes up to $40/hr.

 

Recommended Read: Reasons To Hire Software Developers From India

Here are why the country is one of the most preferred outsourcing choices:

• • According to Deloitte's survey 2023, India, Poland, and Mexico are the top three locations with the largest shared services centers, followed by the USA.

  

• There are 100 million English-speaking people worldwide, and by the end of this year, there will be more than 2 billion English speakers in the country.
• Approximately 1.5 million engineering graduates pass out of college every year. 
• More than 200,000 IT graduates join the Indian workforce annually. Besides, the country has the youngest employable population globally. 
• In the upcoming years, 40% of professionals will train themselves according to the latest technology to meet the advanced industry requirements.

Software Development Hourly Rate In the Philippines

The Philippines is another country with the fastest-growing IT industry. With more than 200 offshore software companies and 95000 technical positions. According to the data by Teleport & Best jobs, Software developer hourly rates, the salary in the Philippines for junior software engineers range from $3.5-$7 per hour.

Though the Philippines offer economical pricing, working there may create challenges like - a lack of IT industry maturity, Lack of Infrastructure,  Natural Disasters, etc.

Software Developer Hourly Rate In China

Among other Asian countries, China is considered one of the top destinations for hiring mobile app developers or web developers. In China, the overall revenue in the software development industry is expected to increase by 6.9 percent in the upcoming five years, reaching $1.2 trillion.

Software Developer Hourly Rate in Europe

The hourly rate of developers in Europe varies from country to country. For example, Ukrainian developers charge significantly less than software developers in Poland. But on average, European junior developers cost between $25 and $50/hour.

Europe can be divided into two geographies, ‘Western’ & ‘Eastern’ Europe, to hire dedicated offshore developers.

Western Europe

Western Europe is one of the most expensive regions for software development globally. Due to the high costs of living, taxation systems, and expert developers, the average hourly wage rate of a software engineer is also high. 

The average hourly rate in Western Europe is between $25-$65 per hour, with annual salaries of about $60k.

Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe is known as the hub of start-up culture. The developers are well-versed in software technologies and programming languages such as C/C++, Java, JavaScript, .NET, and Python. 

The hourly rate for software engineering services in Eastern Europe ranges from $20-$45. The average salary of software developers ranges between $40k and $70k, and Poland is the most expensive country.

• According to DataPandas' ranking, Japan, the US, and South Korea are among the most technologically advanced countries.
• The average hourly wage rate for software developer services in Ukraine is $26. The rate for software engineers varies from $25 to $50 per hour, and the time zone is the same as in most Western European countries. 

Software Developer Hourly Rate in Latin America

Top Countries: Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica

In recent years Latin America, too, has emerged as a great outsourcing destination. The average hourly rate of software developers in Latin America varies from $25- $50.

Some of the major destinations in Latin America for IT outsourcing are Argentina, Columbia, Mexico, and Brazil.

According to Statista, the revenue of the IT outsourcing market is projected to reach $9.21 billion in 2024 and grow at a CAGR of 12.40% by 2028.

Costs of Outsourcing Development in Latin America

• Junior Developer: $25 – $34/hour
• Mid-level Developer: $50 – $80/hour
• Senior Developer: $100 – $120/hour

Though the country is a bit expensive for software development, their quality of service is at par. So, let’s get down to the top countries in Latin America to outsource software development.

Argentina

European trends have a strong influence on Argentina’s IT market. Argentina is economically and culturally connected to Europe. It has the most expensive IT development teams in the region. This is because the developers have rich experience working with Western countries.

Colombia

The country gives rise to 13,000 software developers every year, most of which go to offshore companies. Nevertheless, companies are CMMI certified, benefitting from American influence. 

Brazil

Brazil is one of the leading software development destinations for outsourcing. Furthermore, Rio de Janeiro is a global IT center, and the city has 8/10 top technology universities producing 14 thousand alumni each year. For this fact, many US companies prefer recruiting Brazilian talents.

Software Development Hourly Rate in Africa

Africa’s IT industry is still in its emerging phase but has started to depict rapid growth. Moreover, the country has now begun to attract clients from across the globe.

The e-Conomy Africa 2020 report shows that Africa’s IT business promises to reach $180 billion by 2025. It will offer 5.2% GDP. By the end of 2050, it is expected that the industry will demonstrate $712 billion in revenue, with 8.5% of the continent’s GDP.

• North African countries like Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia have quickly become recommended countries with talented offshore developers. Companies hire software engineers from North Africa as they have Python, Ruby, and SQL expertise.
• South Africa is the preferred choice due to its high proficiency in languages like English, German, and Dutch. Also, they have already been featured in the Tholons Digital Nations and Super Cities rankings. The top developers are skilled in C++, PHP, and SQL.
• East African Kenya has the highest number of developers. Likewise, the capital Nairobi is where the city’s infrastructure encourages technical innovation among startups. The development team is well-versed in Java, SQL, and mobile development.

Major destinations in Africa for IT outsourcing are Egypt, Morocco, Kenya & Nigeria.

How to Hire Offshore Developers in 2022 and Beyond?

The recent past has taught us how offshore development can bring flexibility and agility in business operations while keeping your software development projects’ cost low. Besides, the increasing gap between available software engineers & software jobs in western countries has made IT offshoring one of the most practical solutions for businesses.

But how does a company hire developers from an offshore destination for their software development projects? Well, there are four options to choose from

1. Hire Developers as Remote Employees

This is a great option when you are unable to find the right talent in your geography in your budget & wish to hire a developer for a permanent opening in your organization. You can float the requirement on various job portals or hire HR consultants to assist you with remote hiring of the resources.

Access Global Talent Pool- You can choose to hire software engineers from anywhere in the world to power your IT team.

Fill Talent Gap - Hire a software engineer who is the right fit for your organization in terms of experience, knowledge, and budget with ease.

Brings Diversity - For a global business with a client base across the world, having resources from different geography is a boon as it gives them a better understanding of the cultural nuances and requirements of different markets.

2. Hiring Outsourcing Companies

Collaboration with outsourcing companies is the most traditional way of forming an offshore development team. Such companies work with overseas clients and deliver software development services according to the client’s project requirements. If you choose this hiring option, you will get the following benefits:

• Reliability–the employment will be legal, with official agreements, so the developers cannot leave the project spontaneously, as freelancers would do.
• No overhead costs–the outsourcing agency will overtake all of the expenses.
• 100% commitment–the developers will be working only on your project until it is finished.

3. Partnering with an Offshore Software Development Company

Hiring a software engineer from an offshore development company is a great way to ramp up your IT operations quickly. A trusted offshore development service provider offers a large pool of certified and experienced software engineers across technologies.

You also enjoy the freedom to hire quality resources for short-term to long-term duration.

Pre-vetted Resources- Offshore development service providers have a large pool of certified and experienced software engineers across technologies to support all your software development needs

Quick Hiring- Since resources are pre-evaluated, the hiring becomes quick, smooth, and hassle-free with an offshore development partner.

Extensive NDAs- A trusted offshore software development company always creates comprehensive documentation & NDAs to ensure code security at all times.

No Additional Cost- With an offshore service provider, you don’t need to worry about the cost of infrastructure and systems for the hired programmers, as it's all part of the deal.

4. Freelance Portals

Hiring remote developers at freelance portals seems to be quite an attractive option, and here’s why:

• Vast tech talent pool–for example, Upwork features more than tens of thousands of profiles of offshore developers.
• Quick hiring–it may take you less than a week to build an offshore development team of freelancers and sign contracts with them.
• Remote cooperation–you pay only for the development services and do not incur overhead costs.
• Direct communication–you can talk or video chats with your team in the safe space provided by your freelance portal.
• Low rates–to earn a reputation on a freelance portal, a freelancer needs to fill their portfolio with projects. To do that, they often agree to low-budget projects, though their rates “in real life” are typically higher.

How to Choose The Best Pricing Model?

When hiring offshore developers, you may come across multiple hiring model options, leaving you confused as to what is the best way forward. Don’t worry we have you covered. 

The hiring model based on pricing is primarily divided into three categories

• • Fixed Price Hiring Model- Suitable for projects where the scope of work is pre-defined with less than a 5% deviation.
  • Hourly Rate Hiring Model- You can use this model for developing new products. You can hire highly-skilled and qualified developers to work on agile methodology
  • Monthly Rate Hiring Model- When you need a consistent resource to manage, maintain and upgrade your project, this is the model for you.

• Hybrid Hiring Model- This is a combination model suitable for projects with a large scope for development and management requiring resources based on milestones.

Read our blog “Choose The Right Model To Hire Developers” to explore the different models of hiring developers.

Top Criteria For Choosing A Software Developer/Team of Developers

There are various factors that one must consider while choosing a developer or a team of developers likes, Intelligence, Work Flexibility, communication skills, clean coding, etc.

Read our blog, 6 Expert Tips to Recruit the Best Software Developers [+4 Pro Tips] to build your offshore development team successfully.

Choosing The Right Offshore Software Partner

Investing in outsourcing for custom software development can be a game-changing decision for businesses. However, finding the right outsourcing partner can be a strategic challenge as it can significantly impact the quality of the project and its costs. Therefore, it's essential to search for an IT outsourcing partner who can deliver your projects with the desired quality, within your estimated budget, and within the pre-defined timelines.

At YTII, we have a team of software development experts who offer transparent communication, access to global talent, quality work, and flexible engagement models to provide you with the best value for your investment. Connect with our team now and get a free consultation. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What do software developers charge per hour?

Hourly rates of software developers depend on the region and the experience level of the developer/consultant. The price range varies from $18-$60 per hour on average. Here's the list of software development hourly rate according to the region:

1. Eastern Europe: $25 – $50 per hour.

2. Western Europe: $20-$45

3. Latin America: $30 – $50

4. Africa: $20 – $40

5. Asia: $18 – $40

6. North America: $38-$63

Q: What is the top offshore destination for outsourcing?

The top destinations for outsourcing are as follows:

• India
• Ukraine
• Romania
• Bulgaria
• Poland
• China

Q: What is the hourly rate of a Software Developer in India?

In India, the range to hire developers starts from $18 for a junior developer and goes up to $40/hr.

Q: Which Country is the Best to Hire Software Developers?

The 5 Best Countries to hire software developers are:

• India
• Ukraine
• Romania
• Germany
• China

Q: How to choose the right custom software development company for your business?

While most software companies will claim that they are the best in the market for delivering software development projects, this is not necessarily true for all companies. Therefore, it is crucial for business owners, entrepreneurs, and managers to perform a thorough due diligence evaluation before choosing a software-developing company for their project.

Below are the 6 tips for choosing the right custom software development company

1. Get Referrals from People. 
2. Check the Company Portfolio. 
3. Ask for their experience in your domain 
4. Focus on Delivery Time. 
5. Emphasize upon Good Communication Skills. 
6. Pay attention on User Experience.

Q: What is the top offshore destination for outsourcing US projects?

Today, many US-based companies entrust top tech professionals from Latin America with their IT routine. The main assets include high-quality development services, real-time collaboration, and cultural similarity, which are all beneficial for a business. Among Latin American companies, Brazil is the number one software outsourcing destination, followed by Argentina and Panama.

Q: What companies use outsourcing?

Top US companies that outsource their operations.

1. Google
2. Nike
3. Facebook
4. Wells Fargo
5. Unitedhealth group
6. LinkedIn
7. The Coca-Cola Company
8. IBM

Additional Resources

• Hourly Rate Vs Fixed Cost
• Guide on Offshore Software Development Rates by Country
• Cost to Hire an App Developer in India
• Factors Affecting The Cost of Hiring Developers in India