How much does it cost to hire software developers in Europe in 2024?

Europe region is exactly the right place when it comes to hiring engineers. It’s not a surprise at all, considering that about $13 billion worth of IT was exported from these countries overall. Europe includes Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Moldova, and Hungary. In general, there are roughly 1 million developers in this area.

Software development rates by European countries are really varied but there are some things that unite them: from convenient time zones to experienced developers. 

Let’s take a deep look at how much does it cost to hire a programmer from a specific European country, and why Devler can be your true option to find a such one efficiently. 

Ukraine

Customers hire Ukrainian developers for a variety of reasons, starting with the country's large talent pool and ending affordable prices. Overall, the Ukrainian talent pool counts 250K+ of engineers and, thanks to the Ukrainian education system, its number is increasing regularly.  

80% of Ukrainian developers, according to the EF English Proficiency Index, have intermediate or above English proficiency, which is required for participation in software development roles.

According to DOU research, the most popular programming languages and frameworks are Python, NodeJS, Flutter, JavaScript, ReactJS, AngularJS, Ruby, and Ruby on Rails.

Software Development Cost in Ukraine

The average junior developer (1 - 3 years experience) in Ukraine earns $17,528/year, a typical mid-level developer earns $31,200/year, while a senior developer (8+ years of experience) earns $56,400 during the same time period. So, in general, hourly rates range from $25 to ~$100. 

Poland 

Poland has a large talent pool of highly qualified IT professionals - it's about 295K engineers and its number is growing rapidly due to fast-learning skills of developers and Polish universities. 

Polish programmers are regarded as having a high EF EPI index, ranking them 16th globally, which is one the best results across Europe. Here, the top technologies are JS, Java, Python, PHP and .Net. 

Software Development Cost in Poland

A software engineer's annual salary in Poland is $25,800, and approximately $65,703  for the senior developer This is nearly three times less than the same salary in the United States, according to PayScale. The quality of software development services, on the other hand, remains the same as in the United States or Western Europe. So, the average hourly rates for a developer in Poland are from $25-100.

Lithuania

Lithuania's IT sector is consistently flourishing, with significant growth milestones in FinTech, mobile application development, and cryptocurrency domains. Country has thriving talents and now their pool counts about 40K engineers and, for sure, this number is also growing. 

The most used technologies in Lithuania are PHP, .Net, Ruby and its Ruby on Rails, Node.js, Java and Python.  According to the EF English Proficiency Index, Lithuania ranks 24th out of 100 countries and regions in terms of English proficiency. 

Software Development Cost in Lithuania

Let’s see: a middle developer with PHP skills can earn $3,500 per month in Vilnius. $2,500 for a middle-level .Net developer. A JavaScript developer in Vilnius can also earn up to $2,500 per month. So what about hourly rates? In general, it can vary from $25 to $49 per hour. 

Bulgaria

Bulgaria has a well-developed infrastructure, a favorable geographical location, and competitive pricing. Their talent pool counts almost 70K engineers. 

Most using software development technologies are Ruby, React, C++, Flutter, Java and Python. 

Fortunately, English is the working language of more than 71% of Bulgarian software companies.

Software Development Cost in Bulgaria

The average software developer in Sofia, the country's tech hub, earns approximately $27,769/year. So, it’s less expensive then other leading countries such as the US and the UK, and, moreover, it’s even less expensive then in other European countries. 

It can be said that hourly rates here range from $35 to $50. 

Croatia

Croatia's IT industry is regarded as one of the most promising in Europe. Many startups and SMEs provide excellent services while covering a wide range of technologies. There are approximately 35K specialists, with nearly one-quarter having senior-level proficiency.

Croatian developers are proficient in technologies such as  JavaScript and Python.

Country ranked tenth on the list of English proficiency, indicating that the average level of English in the country is around C1. 

Software Development Cost in Croatia

Here are the salary indicators for Zagreb developers for hire based on their skills: 

a middle JavaScript developer earns $2,400 per month; a middle PHP developer earns $2,300 per month; and a middle .Net developer earns $1,200.

Hungary

Software development is one of Hungary's most dynamic industries, accounting for approximately 6% of the Hungarian economy, which is why it’s so attractive for outsourcing. IT area represented by 80.1K software engineers. 

Hungary follows global trends in terms of the most popular software languages and technologies. Hungarian developers are mostly proficient in JavaScript, HTML/CSS, Python, Java, PHP, SQL, and React.

The bigger part of the population in Hungary is fluent in English so developers' communication skills will not be a significant disadvantage - the country is 17th on the list of English proficiency. 

Software Development Cost in Hungary

The hourly rate for a decent IT engineer in a software company in Hungary is at least $39. 

According to Payscale.com, the average monthly salary rates for middle-level programming specialists in Hungary are roughly equal: 

Web developer - $1,600; Mobile developer - $1,500; PHP - $1,300; C++ - $2,100 and Ruby - $2,700.

Czech Republic

With a 4% annual growth rate, the local software industry reached $1.33 billion by 2021. Overall for 2022 year this number is estimated to be even bigger. Their talent pool is really huge - over 105K+ professional developers work in the Czech Republic.

Python, C#, SQL, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS are the most popular technical stacks. Czech developers also excel at DevOps practices, which leads to increased productivity.

The Czech Republic is ranked 27th in Europe for English proficiency. It means you can discuss the project with developers and avoid misunderstandings.

Software Development Cost in Czech Republic

Hiring a software engineer from the Czech Republic significantly reduces project costs. A typical developer in this city earns around $2,200 per month. That's roughly three times less than the average developer's salary in the United States ($7,500) or the United Kingdom ($6,500).

Romania

Romania offers a large pool of technical talent for all types of software projects, with over 116K developers and an outstanding education system that produces plenty of new talent year after year. 

Software engineers in this country are masters in JavaScript, .Net. ReactJS, PHP and NodeJS technologies.  

Because an increasing number of businesses are outsourcing software projects to Romania, the developers there are well-versed in communicating with international clients. Moreover, Romanians are 15th on the English Proficiency list. 

Software Development Cost in Romania

The average hourly rate for software development in Romania is around $25 to $45, which is significantly lower than rates in the United States (it can be up to $200), most Western European countries (for example, $38 in the UK, as mentioned before). 

Slovenia

The IT market in Slovenia is already earning €558.3M in the current year. It’s really massive, according to a number of IT workers - it’s about 20K. 

Ruby and Ruby on Rails, Python and Elixir are most popular technologies in leading sub-sectors such as planning and implementation of communicating networks, broadband infrastructure, security systems, E-banking and CMS software. 

The vast majority of Slovenians speak multiple languages. They speak English with near-native proficiency. 

Software Development Cost in Slovenia

In Slovenia, the average annual salary for a remote Software Developer is $45,468. This is the starting salary, excluding benefits. Remote software engineers in Slovenia typically earn higher average salaries than non-remote, local engineers because they work in a global job market.

Let’s compare the cost of software development in one table, from the expensive one to the lowest, to make things easier. Pay attention that this info is actual for the current 2022 year. 

As you can see, Poland is the most expensive country to hire a software engineer but still less expensive then the US, Canada,the UK etc. Of course, cost of services should not be the one priority for decision making. Make sure you gathered all the needed information before shortlisted staff augmentation companies or freelance developers. 

You notice that in this article not only the price mentioned for development services but also a little useful description. Yes, it can be helpful to understand what level of English in a required country (we all know - communication is a key to understanding), which technologies are used by engineers and in which they are professionals. 

Curious about how to find a software engineer by specific requirements but definitely from Europe? 

Devler.io can give you a hand with this! 

Devler.io platform is based on experienced developers from Europe so clients match only with vetted professionals from this region. As a result, the search will be expedited. In other words, you won't spend money on recruiting, onboarding, and training new employees because Devler.io allows you to pay only for the developer’s time spent on your project. 

Choose Cost-Effective Hiring with Devler.io:

• You only pay for the developer's time.
• You only pay them when you have work for them to do.
• If there is no work, there will be no charges.
• There are no hidden costs: you pay the agreed-upon amount including a fair fee (7-12%).
• There are no holidays or days off.
• You and the developers are having an open discussion.

Experienced developers are ready to work with you on your project - just fill the form and we will be in touch with you shortly.