I hear this question all the time from startup founders: "How much does it actually cost to hire a developer?"
It’s a smart question. Because when you’re building your startup, every penny counts, and hiring the wrong way can burn your budget fast.
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer to this.
Hiring a developer goes far beyond the salary figure.
You’re committing time, money, and momentum to someone who will either become a force multiplier or a costly drag.
The real cost includes recruitment, onboarding, time-to-productivity, culture fit, and how well they align with your speed of execution.
You need someone who can ship fast, communicate clearly, and make decisions that reflect your startup’s stage and priorities.
Get this hire wrong, and you’re not just wasting money, you’re losing precious time and compounding risk.
Get it right, and you gain leverage that pays off across product, team, and investor outcomes.
Location Matters More Than You Think
A mid-level software developer in the US or Canada might cost you $80,000 to $120,000 a year.
In Eastern Europe?
That same developer might come in at $40,000 to $60,000. And in Asia, the range could be $15,000 to $40,000, depending on experience.
That’s a huge spread.
And yet, we’ve seen startups pay US rates for average developers simply because they didn’t know they had better options.
At Remote Crew, we help founders find top-tier developers from underpriced markets.
These are places where talent is high, but the cost is still accessible.
Experience Level Drives The Price
As with any hire, experience drives the price up:
- Junior Developers earn around $50,000 per year in North America.
- Mid-Level Developers earn around $80,000 to $100,000.
- Senior Developers earn around $120,000 to $150,000 or more.
You don’t always need a senior developer.
In fact, overengineering early features is one of the most expensive (and common) mistakes we see.
Sometimes, a smart mid-level developer who understands startup speed and MVP thinking is all you need.
Front-End, Back-End, or Full Stack?
What kind of developer are you hiring? It matters. Here’s how the costs break down:
- Front-End Developers earn around $60,000 to $90,000 per year.
- Back-End Developers command slightly more, at $70,000 to $100,000 per year.
- Full-Stack Developers earn around $80,000 to $120,000 or more.
Full-stack developers command higher rates, but they can also reduce your need for multiple hires.
We often recommend a strong full-stack developer to get you from MVP to first traction.
Freelancers, In-house, Or Outsourced Teams?
In-house Developers
Hiring a full-time developer comes with hidden costs: benefits, payroll tax, equipment, and onboarding. Expect 20 to 30 percent above base salary.
So your $100,000 hire? They’re costing you closer to $120,000 to $130,000 per year.
Freelancers
Great for short-term projects or exploratory work.
Expect to pay $20 to $80 per hour, depending on region and skill.
A solid freelance MVP build might run $5,000 to $30,000.
You’ll find a wide range of options on Upwork or Fiverr, but vetting is key.
This is something we help with at Remote Crew.
Outsourcing
Agency rates can vary wildly. Here’s what we’re seeing right now:
- Offshore agencies charge $20 to $50 per hour
- Western agencies charge $100 to $200 per hour
Outsourcing gives you speed and coverage but often lacks the agility a startup needs. You want a team that feels like an extension of your team. That’s where vetted remote teams come in, our specialty at Remote Crew.
Hidden Costs No One Tells You About
It’s really important to consider the total cost of employing a developer, not just their salary.
Recruitment fees typically cost 10 to 20 percent of the first year’s salary.
On top of this, onboarding and setup can easily cost $1,000 to $5,000.
Time spent hiring is time not spent building or selling.
That’s why we’ve built a hiring model at Remote Crew that cuts through the noise.
We match you with developers who are pre-vetted for startup work, not just technical skills, but communication, autonomy, and product thinking.
So, What Should You Expect To Pay?
If you’re a pre-seed or seed-stage startup looking for your first technical hire, here’s a rough guide:
- Freelancer MVP build costs between $5,000 and $25,000.
- Mid-Level Remote Developer costs $40,000 to $70,000 per year.
- Senior Developer in the US costs $120,000 to $150,000 or more.
- Vetted Remote Full Stack Developer costs $60,000 to $90,000 per year.
We’ve helped startups get MVPs built with $8k and scale products with $80k per year engineers. It all depends on your stage, your goals, and your timeline.
If you want help figuring out what makes sense for your startup, or if you’re tired of sifting through hundreds of profiles that all look the same, give us a shout at Remote Crew.
We’ll help you hire smarter, faster, and with a lot less stress.
We’re founders too. We’ve made the expensive mistakes. We’ve hired too fast, hired too slow, hired the wrong person, and watched it set timelines back by months.
That’s why we started Remote Crew.
We exist to help startup founders avoid these traps and build smarter from day one.
When we match startups with developers, we’re focused on real-world outcomes.
We think about how fast you need to ship. We look at your burn rate. We care about culture fit and how your team actually works.
The best developer for a fast-moving startup isn’t always the one with the longest resume.
It’s the one who gets what you’re building and knows how to move the needle without dragging their feet.
Cut corners on hiring and you’ll pay for it twice. Once in cash, and again in wasted time. Hire right and you accelerate everything: time to market, team culture, and investor confidence.
Let’s talk and get your startup building faster with developers who actually ship.