When digital projects need to be moved fast, business owners are on the lookout for new ways to find a skilled workforce. Out of all available talent sourcing models, outsourcing software development seems to be the most convenient and durable software development approach.
Hiring a dedicated team allows team leaders to kill multiple birds with one stone — fight talent shortage, cut development costs, and speed up product development.
In this post, we will take a look at outsourcing trends and offer a guide with a review of the most popular outsourcing markets, trying to explain the benefits of each region for sourcing dedicated development teams.
Why businesses outsource software development
Outsourcing is a flexible and scalable strategy that is currently implemented both by SME owners and corporations with billions in annual revenue. Most companies that choose to outsource software development are North American and Western European — and they find themselves looking for dedicated teams in Eastern Europe, Africa, Latin America, and Asia.
Why are businesses willing to share in-house knowledge and practices with dedicated teams? According to Deloitte’s Global Outsourcing Survey, business owners outsource for the following reasons including to:
- Cut or optimize development costs
- Help the in-house team focus on the core tasks of the company
- Improve the company’s capacity as well as project delivery speed
- Increase the quality of tech operations
- Access new practices and knowledge
- Solve talent shortage issues
- Benefit from disruptive software development practices
Where businesses outsource software development
As the value of the global outsourcing market increases — it is currently worth over $90 billion — new offshore markets and outsourcing software development countries emerge. The number of countries that outsource software development as a way to supply people with jobs and improve citizens’ well-being increases as a result.
Today, there are dozens of locations that business owners can choose from when it comes to IT outsourcing. Depending on the region you choose, developers’ hourly rates may vary from $5 to $90. Pricing, however, is not the only factor to consider. The skill sets of the local workforce, collaboration efficiency, and cultural compatibility are important variables that come into play.
To choose the right outsourcing market, take a look at this detailed review of the top IT destinations to outsource software development today.
Western Europe
Top destinations: UK, Norway, France, Belgium
Average hourly rate: $60
Top tech skills: Web and software development, mobile app design, game development
Average English proficiency score*: 57 out of 100
Readiness as a market for outsourced software development: High
Big companies that outsource to this region: Google, Facebook, Amazon
* — according to the EF Index. All numbers are rounded.
Western European firms are a safe bet for business owners. Most outsourcing destinations in the region have a robust tech education infrastructure, including those in emerging fields like AI and Data Science.
| Country | Hourly rate | English proficiency | Time zone | Tech talent education | Technological advancements |
| UK | $50-99 | 100/100 | GMT | High | High |
| Norway | $50-65 | 68/100 | GMT+1 | High | High |
| France | $70-80 | 57/100 | GMT+1 | High | High |
| Belgium | $60-80 | 63/100 | GMT+1 | High | High |
Eastern Europe
Top destinations: Estonia, Romania, Ukraine, Poland
Average hourly rate: $40
Top tech skills: Web and software development, mobile app design, testing, support
Average English proficiency score: 57 out of 100
Readiness as a market for outsourced software development: High
Big companies that outsource to this region: Microsoft, Samsung, Oracle
Eastern Europe is one of the leading outsourcing regions in terms of development cost and software development skills. In contrast to other destinations, the people here have a cultural affinity to Western values. Since cultural similarity exists, the collaboration process is smooth and effortless, with more affordable development price tags.
As shown above, there are several Eastern European regions that business owners should consider outsourcing. They look for a workforce in Baltic software development countries — Latvia, Lithuania, and, of course, Estonia. Balkan countries, such as Romania, Slovenia, Bosnia, and Serbia, are other popular destinations.
Strong outsourcing communities emerge in the far eastern countries — Moldova, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and Armenia, as well as central Eastern Europe — Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia.
Depending on which Eastern European region a developer chooses, average hourly rates and talent skills may vary, as can be seen in the table below.
| Country | Hourly rate | English proficiency | Time zone | Tech talent education | Technological advancements |
| Estonia | $25-50 | 58/100 | GMT+2 | High | High |
| Romania | $35-45 | 61/100 | GMT+2 | Low | Low |
| Ukraine | $25-40 | 52/100 | GMT+2 | High | High |
| Poland | $60-70 | 64/100 | GMT+1 | High | High |
Eastern Europe is undoubtedly a promising destination. Development hubs like Ukraine do an excellent job at offering affordable software developer rates and combining Eastern and Western technological know-how in order to build reliable, revenue-driving solutions.
Asia
Top destinations: India, China, Philippines, Singapore
Average hourly rate: $30
Top tech skills: Tech support, software development, testing
Average English proficiency score: 53 out of 100
Outsourced software development market readiness: High
Big companies that outsource to this region: IBM, Microsoft, Dell
Emerging Asian economies have a strong presence in the IT sector. While Japan, China, and India remain established outsourcing players, new regions – like Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines – are also making an appearance.
| Country | Hourly rate | English proficiency | Time zone | Tech talent education | Technological advancements |
| India | $30-40 | 55/100 | GMT+5 | Medium | Medium |
| China | $25-40 | 53/100 | GMT+8 | High | High |
| Philippines | $25-35 | 60/100 | GMT+8 | Medium | Low |
| Singapore | $30-40 | 67/100 | GMT+8 | High | High |
Latin America
Top destinations: Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica, Colombia
Average hourly rate: $35
Top tech skills: Web development, QA testing, tech support
Average English proficiency score: 50 out of 100
Outsourced software development market readiness: Medium
Big companies that outsource to this region: Amazon, Alibaba, Toptal
Latin America has been one of the leading outsourcing powers since the 1980s. The relative proximity of the region to the US facilitates the collaboration process and offers Latin American developers a steady stream of projects to work with.
Aside from the most popular outsourcing software development countries — Mexico, Chile, and Colombia – markets like Panama and Ecuador have also started to make a noticeable mark on the global IT outsourcing map.
| Country | Hourly rate | English proficiency | Time zone | Tech talent education | Technological advancements |
| Mexico | $25-50 | 49/100 | GMT-6 | Low | Low |
| Chile | $20-50 | 53/100 | GMT-3 | Medium | Low |
| Costa Rica | $25-50 | 57/100 | GMT-6 | Medium | Medium |
| Colombia | $30-50 | 49/100 | GMT-5 | Low | Low |
Africa
Top destinations: South Africa, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Ethiopia
Average hourly rate: $30
Top tech skills: Web and software development, QA testing
Average English proficiency score: 50 out of 100
Outsourced software development market readiness: Low
Big companies that outsource to the region: Accenture, HP, IBM
Africa accounts for some of the world’s fastest-growing economies — such as Nigeria and Ethiopia. The region offers an affordable workforce and has started to adapt to globalization, adopting the latest tech practices and innovations.
A growing number of large-scale corporations have Africa-based vendors — Atlassian, HP, IBM, and many more. Take a look at the comparative table for Africa’s leading outsourcing destinations to clarify the full potential of the region.
| Country | Hourly rate | English proficiency | Time zone | Tech talent education | Technological advancements |
| South Africa | $40-50 | 65/100 | GMT+2 | Medium | Medium |
| Nigeria | $20-40 | 58/100 | GMT+1 | Low | Low |
| Ethiopia | $25-30 | 49/100 | GMT+3 | Medium | Low |
Outsource software development to Eastern Europe
As you choose your next outsourcing destination, there are a lot of details to account for. Business owners need to choose a region with skilled and affordable tech talent, as well as a high level of English proficiency and cultural compatibility.
Out of all outsourcing destinations, Eastern Europe seems to be the most well-balanced regarding affordability and skill, all things considered. To hire a skilled development team for your project, consider reaching out to ELITEX — an experienced outsourcer based in Ukraine. We offer software development and testing services to SMEs as well as large-scale corporations from all over the world.
In case you have any questions regarding software development or want to know how we can be of assistance for your digital project, please contact us, and a representative will reach out to you in no time!
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