Top 10 Countries for Hiring Tech Talent in 2023

The globalization of hiring has significantly accelerated over the past three years, propelled by the pandemic and the resulting shift in work practices. With talent spread out in remote locations worldwide, companies quickly adopted new methods to seek and hire the best talent before their competitors did, irrespective of where this talent was located.

This article provides an overview of the top 10 countries to hire tech talent.

Poland

Country overview

Sometimes referred to as The Land of Fields (the country's Polish name, Polska, translates as such), Poland, due to its peculiar geographical situation, has historically been a country of western and eastern influences. Poland is strategically located and within effortless reach of most major European capitals. It's a place where business booms, and it shows. With over 430,000 well-educated, English-speaking IT specialists available, Poland routinely ranks in the top 3 countries with the best programmers.

Poland offers additional advantages that support its privileged offshoring position. A favorable taxation framework incentivizes businesses and a relatively stable economy and political system. Because of this positive environment, many international companies have chosen Poland as their offshoring location. Amazon, IBM, Nokia, and Cisco, to name but a few, have established R&D centers in the country.

Quick facts

• Poland features at least 697 outsourcing companies.
• There are just over 450,000 software developers (1.4 people out of every 100!).
• A junior developer can earn about $2,000 monthly, while senior developers can command up to $8,000 monthly.
• The country is home to at least 400 R&D centers. These include big industry names like Microsoft, Oracle, Google, and Cisco.
• 25% of offshore programmer staff in Eastern and Central Europe is located in Poland.
• Poland features in Gartner's top 30 countries for offshore services.

We recently published a?full article?listing the benefits of hiring in Poland.

Bulgaria

Country overview

Over the last decade, Bulgaria has invested heavily in developing its IT industry. This has led to the country becoming a prime outsourcing destination. There are many reasons for this rise in the outsourcing market: emphasis on tech education, taxation, rapid development, excellent English language proficiency, great geographical location, affordable costs, and many others.

Quick facts

• Member of the European Union since 2007.
• Around 66,000 software developers working in the outsourcing business.
• Over 300 companies provide outsourcing services.
• IT outsourcing represents 8.9% of the national economy as of 2022.
• Three main IT hubs: Sofia, Varna, and Burgas.
• The IT outsourcing industry is expanding at a Compound Annual Growth rate (CAGR) of 15.6%.
• Bulgaria is the EU country with the highest gender diversity rate.
• As of 2021, Bulgaria ranked 12 out of 50 in the Global Skills Report.

We recently published a?full article?listing the benefits of hiring in Bulgaria.

Romania

Country overview

Vampire lore has long been one of Romania's tourist attractions. The region of Transylvania, in central Romania, will forever be associated with the legend of Count Dracula, that timeless character born out of the mind of Irish writer Bram Stoker.

Software teams care little about such myths, however. Today's Romania is a sought-after outsourcing location for several reasons. It has one of the lowest cost bases in Europe, for example. But more importantly, Romania just happens to be located in an ideal geographical spot, just a couple of hours’ flight away from most places on the continent. Romania's capital, Bucharest, has emerged as a major technological hub. Global corporations like Gameloft, Hewlett-Packard, Ericsson, and Huawei have established outsourcing locations in the country.

Quick facts

• There currently are over 90,000 software developers.
• Romania features among the 20 countries with the most skilled developers.
• The country has 49 public and eight private universities, producing over 7,000 IT graduates yearly.?
• In 2019, Romania's economy was one of the fastest-growing in the European Union.?
• Also, in 2019, the combined turnover of the IT sector surpassed three bn euros.
• The IT sector grows by about 14.3% annually and contributes around 6% to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Market analysts forecast these numbers to double by 2025.
• Romania features at least 697 outsourcing companies.
• On average, a junior developer can earn about $19,000 a year, while senior developers can command up to $33,000.

We recently published a?full article?listing the benefits of hiring in Romania.?

Czech Republic

Country overview

The Czech Republic has a thriving tech industry and has been ranked as one of the most advanced CEE countries in technology development. The country boasts a highly skilled workforce, a favorable business environment, and strong government support for innovation. The tech sector is primarily concentrated in the capital city of Prague, with many startups and established companies choosing to base themselves there.

The Czech Republic's tech industry is growing rapidly and shows no signs of slowing down. With a skilled workforce, supportive government policies, and a favorable business environment, the country is well-positioned to continue its success in the tech sector.

Quick facts

• The country's time zone is GMT+2.
• The Czech Republic is the 27th European country with the highest English proficiency.
• The country's software industry reached $1.33bn in 2021.
• There are over 7,700 software and IT companies in the Czech Republic.
• The country features four major IT hubs: Prague, Olomouc, Brno, and Saarbrücken.
• The Czech Republic is home to over 104,500 software developers.
• A senior software engineer usually has between 7-9 years of experience.
• About 20,000 people graduated with a degree in computer science in 2022.
• The most preferred languages by software developers are Java, PHP, C, C++, C#, Python, Ruby on Rails, and Swift.

Portugal

Country overview

Portugal has made strides in tech development, with a thriving startup ecosystem and government support for innovation. Fintech and e-commerce are powerful areas, with companies like Farfetch, Outsystems, and Talkdesk gaining international recognition. Portugal's tech industry is still small but has significant potential for growth with continued government support and a focus on entrepreneurship.

Quick facts

• According to the?2021 Global Peace Index, Portugal ranks 4th among 163 countries. This index measures the 'peacefulness' of a nation.
• Portugal's capital, Lisbon, ranked 4th in the Quality of Urban Living Index in 2020.
• There are approximately 131,000 Portuguese developers for hire in Portugal at any time.
• Around 50,000 people graduate in IT fields every year.
• Portugal's education system ranks 35th in the world.
• The country's timezone is almost at parity with many European capitals. (Portugal timezone is UTC+0).
• Google, Zalando, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Bosch, Siemens, and Amazon are among the international corporations in Portugal.
• English proficiency among Portuguese people ranks 7th out of 100 countries polled.
• As of 2022, Portugal's software development industry was worth just over €914m.
• 2021's GDP growth was 2,2%.

We recently published a?full article?listing the benefits of hiring in Portugal.?

Ukraine

Country overview

Many countries in eastern Europe boast strong academic policies, ideal time zones, and affordable costs. All this has been noticed, and a great deal of corporations in western Europe and the United States have software development hubs in the region.

Though a relatively late arrival to the IT industry, Ukraine has established itself as a prime location for software development outsourcing. While other economic sectors took a massive hit after the pandemic, the IT industry bucked the trend. For example, exports rose over 20% in 2020 to beyond $5bn.

The reasons are clear. Ukraine offers more than 200k skilled programmers from various universities featuring many technical courses. Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, and Dnipro cities stand out as educational, cultural, and business hubs. Overall, 39 technical universities produce an average of 30,000 specialists per year. And the international market has taken heed. Software giants like Oracle and Google have set up outsourcing bases in Ukraine.

Quick facts

• As of 2021, around 220,000 people worked in the IT industry. Growth estimates put this figure at 250,000 by 2025.
• Kyiv, Kharkiv, Lviv, Dnipro, and Odesa accommodate the majority of development hubs, with a combined 158,000 IT professionals.
• Kyiv features the largest percentage of software developers (41%, or about 78,000.)?
• Ukraine's IT exports have risen to $5.4bn over the past few years.
• Big-name players in the industry, including Boeing, Siemens, Oracle, Cisco, Apple, Microsoft, and many others, operate research and development centers in the country.
• Ukraine's timezone is GMT+2.

We recently published a?full article?listing the benefits of hiring in Ukraine.

India?

Country overview

India earned itself a bad reputation in the early years of outsourcing. The expression 'jobs have been Bangalored' entered the popular lexicon in the 90s. Back then, this expression had rather negative -almost pejorative- connotations. It meant that a company was outsourcing its IT jobs to a low-cost country, often India (hence, Bangalore).

The city of Bangalore is two things: it is the capital of India's southern Karnataka state and the epicenter of India's high-tech industry. Microsoft, Google, IBM, and many startups have found a home in this city of about 8.5m people.

Bangalore (and India as a whole) offer a seemingly endless supply of skilled talent for all aspects of the IT industry. This, together with a high level of English proficiency and a well-established outsourcing infrastructure, puts India firmly on the global outsourcing map.

Quick facts

• India ranks first among the top countries to outsource a software development company.
• By the year 2024, India is expected to feature the most prominent developer population in the world.
• India is the second-largest English-speaking country in the world.
• Around 800,000 people enroll in Computer Science Engineering courses every year.
• From 2017 to 2022, India's tech industry has grown at a rate of approximately 7.5%.
• India's IT-generated revenue will likely surpass $300bn by 2025.

We recently published a?full article?listing the benefits of hiring in India.?

Israel

Country overview

Israel has a thriving tech ecosystem, with companies operating in various fields such as cybersecurity, fintech, biotech, and artificial intelligence. Many of these companies have gained global recognition for their innovative solutions, and major tech companies have acquired several.

Israel's tech industry has received significant investment from international companies, and the country has also developed close partnerships with other tech hubs, such as Silicon Valley in the United States. With its innovative spirit and strong government support, Israel's tech industry will likely continue to thrive in the coming years.

Quick facts

• The country's GDP grew by 8.1% in 2022.
• Israel's software developers ranked 35th in HackerRank's Programming Olympics event in 2019.
• Israel's time zone is GMT+2.
• The country is known as 'The Startup Nation', with over 6,000 startups. These startups raised $25.6bn in 2021.?
• Israel is home to around 321,000 IT specialists, about 8.7% of the workforce.

Brazil

Country overview

Soccer, coffee, and Christ the Redeemer are three of the best-known aspects of Brazil. The largest country in South America by far, Brazil's sheer size makes it an ideal location to serve international business partners. For example, the country is a perfect onshoring destination for the United States, as the time difference between the US's east coast and Brazil is just one hour.

Brazil's IT market is expected to grow by 11% this year, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC Brazil) and the Brazilian Association of Software Companies (ABES). A relatively low-cost base also plays a major role in attracting international business, which maximizes operating costs. But the low cost would mean nothing without a strong and well-educated workforce. The University of Sao Paulo ranks first among the Best Global Universities in Latin America and 122nd globally.

Quick facts

• Brazil's IT industry was worth $1.28bn in 2020.
• The University of Sao Paulo ranked 1st in the Best Global Universities in Latin America and 122nd globally in 2021.
• The IT market in Brazil is expected to grow by 11%.
• Brazil featured over 90 technology parks and over 35 business accelerators across the country in 2021.
• Campinas, a region near Sao Paulo, is often referred to as the Silicon Valley of Brazil.
• Campinas State University (Unicamp) is listed among the top 150.engineering and technology schools in the world.
• There are about 500,000 software engineers in Brazil.
• Most preferred programming languages among developers are Java, C#, Python, SQL, and Ruby.

We recently published a?full article?about outsourcing in Latin America vs Eastern Europe markets.

Colombia

Country overview

Much like Brazil, Colombia is well known for its coffee exports. (Arabica beans grow exclusively in Colombian soil.) But apart from being a coffee lovers' paradise, Colombia is also a prime location for nearshoring. For example, the country's timezone is close to many areas in the United States, so working hours are similar. (Medellin is just a four-hour flight away from Miami.)

Colombia boasts around 64,000 software developers, and the country is, in fact, home to Latin America's largest JavaScript community. Also, Colombian software development teams have a very high English proficiency, which makes these teams the perfect companion for English-speaking countries. (Colombia's target is to become fully bilingual by 2025.)

Because of this high proficiency in English, Colombia is perfectly positioned as a location to open customer tech support centers. These facilities can offer support as stand-alone facilities or as part of a network of strategically positioned sites worldwide so the client can enjoy round-the-clock support.

AllSTARSIT recently opened its LATAM HQ in Bogotá, Colombia.

Quick facts

• Colombia is often referred to as Latin America’s Silicon Valley, with over 5,000 tech companies.
• There are an estimated 65,000+ developers.
• About 600,000 people work in call/tech support centers.
• Colombia has the third-largest labor force in Latin America, after Brazil and Mexico.
• The country features 287 universities, with over 3.8m students enrolled. 30 of these institutions are award-winning.
• About 4.5m people speak a second language, mainly English or French.
• Colombia's time zone is similar to the United States.
• Colombia spends 4.4% of its GDP on education.

AllSTARSIT has a long and proven track of finding the right software developers or other skilled IT specialists for various clients across different industries. Our approach is customized to your project's needs, requirements, specifications, and business goals.?

Learn more?about how AllSTARSIT can help you hire a software development team in all top locations worldwide.