Where and How to Find Software Developers for Remote Work on US Projects in 2024

Why do US companies look for remote software developers?

For the last year, most businesses worldwide went remote—that is not a unique working model anymore, but a new normal. After a period of accustoming, companies noticed significant benefits of working with remote teams and talent from different countries.

Moreover, the shortage of tech talent in the United States is increasing. For example, according to government reports, up to one million IT security jobs are left unfilled each year. Surprisingly though, the unemployment rate in the US tech industry is also lower than any other industry—at just 2.8%. As a result, it’s more challenging and takes more time to find new local qualified tech employees.

Outsourcing software development to other countries looks like the best option for US companies with open tech projects. And hiring remote developers provides many great advantages:

• Top tech talent worldwide – when hiring remote software developers, employers are not limited to candidates in their immediate area but can choose from among the world’s most qualified engineers.
• Flexible team – when outsourcing developers, employers have a flexible team to fulfill their needs. If and when needed, they can expand the team and hire software engineers for a short period, avoiding long hiring processes and terminating in-house employees once they’re no longer needed.
• Less time –  hiring an outsourced tech team takes less time than hiring an in-house team. Moreover, when expanding an outsourced team to meet project requirements, companies can complete tasks and launch products much faster.
• Lower costs – as employers have access to a worldwide IT market, they can outsource developers with the same skillsets for lower rates, as US developers are more expensive.

Remote software developers: what’s the benchmark?

The demand for tech professionals across the US is consistently very high. Unfortunately, it is getting harder for employers to source skilled full-time programmers. That is partly because the number of professionals is not growing fast enough to keep up with demand.

Another contributing factor is the constant and rapid shift towards using newer technologies. As a result, it’s very difficult for software developers to keep up with the pace of change.

The Northwest, the biggest tech hub in the US, now faces the most significant skill shortage. The most severe skill shortages are in emerging in:

• Cybersecurity
• Data analysis
• Cloud computing
• Machine learning

As well as more traditional tech roles such as:

• Software engineering
• Web development

Knowledge of Salesforce is among the most demanded complementary skills.

As in-demand roles are becoming increasingly technical, it is challenging for HR managers and recruiters to identify talented software developers. Moreover, in these times of high tech-talent demand, it is more difficult to interest software engineers in accepting an offer.

To ease the process and find a software developer that meets your needs, list the job’s requirements and prepare an informational packet outlining the project’s advantages and perks.

An interesting trend to note is that 74% of the companies in the IT sector plan to shift employees to fully-remote work in the US. Presumably, this is a way for companies to provide talented software developers with even better working conditions. Sky-high salaries and amazing office environments no longer attract the best talent in the domestic market.

In the USA, 74% of the companies in the IT sector plan to shift employees to fully-remote work.

Where to find remote software developers

As these skill shortages and HR challenges become more pronounced, product and software developer companies face the need to look for remote workers from offshore and nearshore destinations and should consider alternative hiring options. Before choosing the option of hiring remote software engineers, employers should learn more about the best countries for outsourcing tech talent and software developers’ rates for 2024. For example, here you can see the average developers’ hourly rates in popular outsourcing destinations:

After learning more about the IT market, choose the best hiring model for your project:

Option 1. Traditional outsourcing

One of the most prominent options that come to mind for most hiring managers is the traditional outsourcing model.

Many outsourcing and software development companies have partners and sales offices onshore in the US. They can meet with clients in person before outsourcing services or if projects run into issues. That is the case for several Ukrainian software development companies like TechMagic, Rademade, and DevCom. Most outsourcing software development agencies can offer a team of backend and frontend developers with a dedicated project manager.

Option 2. Sourcing high-quality freelancers

Aside from outsourcing, the next obvious option to find software developers is to search freelance networks such as UpWork, and TopTal, which offer a wide selection of freelancers.

However, those who have experience with hiring freelancers are aware that there is a range of risks and disadvantages.

• The likelihood that freelancers will be working on multiple projects at once.
• The difficulty of managing them, particularly when you are trying to form a remote team from scratch.
• The communication skills of freelancers might not be high enough for a remote job.
• Quality of work.
• Meeting deadlines.

Combining these factors sometimes adds up to an unacceptable level of risk.

Option 3. Remote contracting sites

Over the last few years, the number of sites or so-called job boards where developers can apply for remote work has increased dramatically.

These sites often provide:

• Access to developer CVs who are searching for remote work.
• Clients with the ability to post jobs that are suitable for remote work.

Here are some of the most well-known sites and their respective offers:

1. Cybercoders has 41 remote developer roles listed this week.
2. RemoteOK offers contract job opportunities to those who want to work remotely.
3. Indeed allows employers to tap straight various local markets in offshore locations.

Option 3 is thought of as an improved version of Option 2. That is because contractors will limit the number of clients they service to 1 or 2 during the contract period. This means that these developers can provide a degree of focus that freelancers often cannot.

Reflecting on the above three options

A word of caution, all of the above three options can be a bit hit and miss in terms of:

• The time it takes to recruit and hire talent through these channels
• The quality of the talent
• The service level these individuals can provide remotely

Important to mention

Options 2 & 3 don’t allow employers to scale the team because they are essentially engaging with developers individually.

Option 4: Platforms for hiring individuals and teams of developers

Hiring platforms such as YouTeam offer thoroughly vetted software engineers. It can be a great way to find a software developer or an entire software development team that works remotely.

Companies and developers are subject to a comprehensive vetting process, ensuring that only top performers make the list. 

YouTeam also assesses a developer’s soft skills during the vetting process. It allows clients to find a software developer based on certain soft skills, knowledge of programming languages, and experience.

Price comparison between platforms for hiring and remote software developers in the US

In terms of salary, software engineers working remotely in the US receive the same salaries as on-site developers. However, in reality, the company reduces its expenses because they no longer need to rent office space or pay for other on-site-related overhead costs.

The average annual salary of a software engineer in the US is between $104,000 and $235,000. That is 30% more expensive than hiring through platforms such as YouTeam, where employers can hire software developers for an average of $56 per hour. As an example, here are the JavaScript programmer salary rates in Ukraine, based on our data:

Furthermore, the work quality is the same as in the United States.

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Hiring remote software developers for US Project: FAQ

We’ll put things mentioned above briefly here, plus add a few new valuable sources.

How to find remote software developers?

You have four options: traditional hiring (offshore), freelancing, contracting, and staff augmentation. iring software developers through the traditional outsourcing model is partnering with local development shops; turn to freelance portals and remote contracting sites is sourcing high-quality IT specialists. Hiring developers through tech talent marketplaces bia staff augmentation with platforms like YouTeam.

How to vet software engineers?

Before hiring a remote software developer, employers should evaluate their tech skills and discuss the developer’s soft skills to see if they would be a good candidate for remote collaboration.

With our guide for vetting remote software engineers, employers can check the developer’s tech skills and experience. Also, we have prepared a checklist to evaluate outsourcing companies.

Use our guides when conducting tech interviews with viable candidates for Vue.js, JavaScript, Node.js, React Native, and Python engineers.

How to manage remote software developers?

Effective collaboration with remote teams requires rethinking the traditional in-person work environment. For example, use online collaboration tools to ensure that the company and remote team are always on the same page. Additionally, you can read about the essential leadership skills required for managers running a remote company or team here.