How to hire software developers in India: Get the top 1% of talent
If you’re here, you’re aware of the amount of talent India has to offer to your organisation. However, you may not know what steps to take to find the professionals you need and build an elite team in tech hubs like Bangalore or Hyderabad.
That’s the reason why we’ve written this article.
We’ve helped companies in multiple industries hire software developers in India who have been pivotal to their long-term success over the past decade. Drawing back from our experience, we’ll guide you through the process of hiring and setting up a dedicated development team in the Asian country.
But first, let’s look at what makes India a prime destination for building tech teams, including its reputation for producing highly skilled developers, hiring costs, and top locations.
Why should you hire software developers in India?
India is an attractive destination for hiring dev talent for three main reasons:
- It has a vast and skilled talent pool. India is the country with the second-highest number of software developers, with 5.8 million professionals. These specialists are skilled in niche programming languages, possess high English proficiency, and have extensive experience collaborating with Western organisations.
- It offers cost-effective operations. The cost of hiring a software developer in India is lower than in the US or Europe. Although the final cost varies depending on the seniority, the hiring and engagement model used, and other factors, Indian engineers are known for offering excellent value for money.
- It boasts an innovative tech ecosystem. Bangalore ranks 8th in the Global Startup Ecosystem Index Report 2024 as one of the world’s leading locations for startup ecosystems. The city is an R&D hub with over 400 centres, including those from Google, Amazon, Meta, and other big industry names.
So, if you hire software developers in India, you can expect access to talent and skill sets you can’t find locally, all while enjoying great value for your investment.
However, you’ve likely heard fellow business and tech leaders’ challenges when hiring Indian engineers via outdated approaches or by trusting unreliable partners. Maybe they just don’t know how to tap into the top 1% of talent…
What does a top 1% developer (really) mean?
Talking about the top 1% of developers is a way of highlighting specialists who truly stand out and can deliver exceptional results, contrary to regular developers who fail to bring that extra value business and tech leaders demand.
A top 1% developer must possess the following hard and soft skills:
- High technical expertise in both widely used programming languages and niche technologies.
- Deep understanding of system architecture and scalability.
- Strong debugging skills and attention to detail to ensure high-quality code.
- Exceptional problem-solving abilities and innovative thinking to tackle complex challenges.
- Excellent communication skills for collaborating across teams and stakeholders.
Another trait of top developers in India is their commitment to sharing knowledge on platforms like GitHub. Their contributions have been notable, and India is set to become the largest developer community in GitHub globally by 2028, surpassing the US.
Real-life example: How can you hire the top 1% of developers?
Most offshoring companies claim to get the best developers. At The Scalers, we have a system to achieve it.
Our approach, designed to nurture elite tech talent, ensures engineers want to be part of a team that values their expertise, not just as another resource in a tech giant or outsourcing firm.
See My Muscle Chef’s example. This Australian food and beverage company couldn’t find highly qualified engineers with other offshoring providers, plus their newly formed tech team was working separately instead of as a unified unit with their in-house team.
Once they partnered with us, they increased their engineering output and got amazing results: a 50% boost in development and a 70% reduction in tech debt.
By instilling My Muscle Chef’s unique values into their offshore team and ensuring cultural alignment, these engineers truly became a part of the organisation, contributing to long-term success.
Later in this guide, we’ll share the step-by-step process you can follow to hire software developers in India in the same way My Muscle Chef did. Now, we’ll focus on two crucial aspects to consider when building your new tech team: costs and location.
Hire niche tech talent and set up a team abroad that feels in-house
DOWNLOAD EBOOKHow much does it cost to hire a software developer in India?
The cost of hiring a senior software developer in India is around $2,513/month, according to salary portal Levels.fyi.
Please note that this number represents the median monthly salary (not including taxes and other Opex) these professionals command in the Asian country and that the total cost may vary depending on the following factors:
- The city where the developer is located.
- The developer’s seniority and tech expertise.
- The quality of the software development partner used to find and hire developers.
If you want to know more about development rates in India and other locations, as well as the factors influencing such salaries, you can check out our guide on offshore development rates.
To give you a grasp of what these numbers look like, we’ve created three tables comparing the average hourly cost of hiring Indian developers with their counterparts worldwide and within India. We’ve extracted the data from specialised portals like the aforementioned Levels.fyi, Glassdoor, Indeed, and PayScale.
India vs Western countries
| Country | Junior Developer | Senior Developer |
| India | $15/hour | $40/hour |
| US | $40/hour | $100/hour |
| UK | $35/hour | $80/hour |
| Australia | $30/hour | $75/hour |
India vs popular offshoring locations
| Country | Junior Developer | Senior Developer |
| India | $15/hour | $40/hour |
| Poland | $18/hour | $60/hour |
| Colombia | $20/hour | $65/hour |
India’s top tech hubs compared
| City | Junior Developer | Senior Developer |
| Bangalore | $15/hour | $38/hour |
| Hyderabad | $14/hour | $35/hour |
| Chennai | $12/hour | $33/hour |
What are India’s top tech talent hubs to hire software engineers?
Like in many countries, India’s leading tech hubs are situated in some of its most populous and developed cities:
- Bangalore. Also known as ‘The Silicon Valley of Asia’, the capital of India’s southern Karnataka state is one of the world’s fastest-growing tech hubs. The city is home to 2 million software developers and produces 90,000 fresh engineers yearly.
- Hyderabad. Besides Bangalore, Hyderabad is the other major tech hub in Southern India. It stands out as the third-highest paying city for top tech roles in the country, attracting talent with advanced skills in AI and Data Science.
- Chennai. Located in the state of Tamil Nadu, Chennai isn’t only known for its booming automotive industry but also for its software development talent pool. The city has become a key data centre hub in India and is set to attract US$ 1.5 billion in investments by 2026.
- Other emerging tech hubs. As the demand for top developers in India keeps growing, the country is building what some call ‘mini Bangalores’. Cities like Ahmedabad, Coimbatore, and Chandigarh are poised to become the next major Indian tech hubs.
How to hire software developers in India step by step
Here’s what you came for.
Now that you know what a top 1% developer is, how much it costs to hire Indian talent, and where to hire it, we’ll unveil the step-by-step process on how to get the specialists you’re looking for.
1. Decide on what you need
It may sound obvious, but many organisations make the mistake of not being clear on the positions, skills, or team size they need. These are doomed from the start, as they risk overhiring, underhiring, or getting unqualified professionals.
To make sure you hire the right Indian developers, consider asking yourself the following questions and plan your next steps accordingly:
- What roles and responsibilities should my new dev team handle?
- Does it make more sense to hire mid-level or senior engineers?
- Is a team of two or three engineers too small? Is five or eight too large?
- What’s the ideal tech stack for your team? Will they be working independently or closely with your local team?
You’d be surprised how many headaches this simple exercise can save you and your organisation in the long run.
2. Choose between outsourcing and offshoring
The most popular models for hiring software developers in India are outsourcing and offshoring, two approaches that tech and business leaders tend to mix up. However, they serve different purposes:
- Outsourcing involves delegating tasks or processes to a third-party provider. It’s ideal for businesses seeking a short-term solution. For example, a European company might outsource software testing by hiring a team of testers in Hyderabad for a specific product release.
- Offshoring refers to relocating operations to another country (India, in this case) to tap into specialised skills and lower costs while still retaining full oversight and control. It’s best suited for companies looking for a long-term partnership. For instance, a US organisation might offshore software development to Bangalore to access niche talent and quickly scale their team and product.
As this guide is about getting the top 1% of developers, it’s important to note that outsourcing will never provide the best engineers to your organisation. Outsourced professionals often juggle multiple clients and work on repetitive tasks. Top-tier engineers seek roles where they can add real value, not just churn out the same work.
So, if you want to build a team with engineers who are 100% focused on your product and working under your name, hiring offshore developers is your best bet.
3. Look for a reliable software development partner
Building an engineering team on your own, thousands of miles from headquarters, without knowing the talent pool and legalities involved, is a recipe for disaster. You must partner with a software development company that has proven experience in the field and can assist you in setting up operations in India.
Here are some green and red flags you should consider when looking for your potential partner:
Green flags
- They are confident and professional and maintain clear communication with you, both in writing and during calls.
- They are transparent about costs.
- They can prove their expertise by showcasing success stories or case studies.
- They have a well-structured recruitment strategy.
- They have a leadership team with extensive experience building technical teams and nurturing long-lasting business relationships.
Red flags
- They lack clear communication and don’t respond promptly.
- They hesitate to discuss final costs, suggesting there may be hidden fees.
- They overpromise without showing a proven track record.
- They have an unclear recruitment process, suggesting onboarding your first engineers may take longer than expected.
- They don’t have a dedicated team on the ground to help you with HR, administrative, legal and other tasks.
We recommend you read our offshore development partner guide, where we include everything you need to know to make the right choice for your organisation.
4. Pick the best offer
At this point, you’ll probably have a few offers waiting for your approval. It’s a tough decision, especially since you’ve narrowed it down to the best possible options.
This is where the details truly matter. Your ideal partner will always provide that extra touch, the icing on the cake.
Let’s say there’s a partner that has a unique process to verify the tech skills of your potential new team members, ensuring you get the best of the best of Indian software development talent. This could be the decisive factor that will make you choose them over others.
Another partner can convince you by providing a dedicated Chief Happiness Officer (CHO) to your team, responsible for the daily engagement of your engineers. If you prioritise having a happy and motivated team, this could tip the scales in their favour.
It all comes down to how well their offer is tailored to your specific needs and requirements.
5. Sign the contract
It’s all set and done, with just one step standing between you and starting to build your team in India: your signature.
Before signing on the dotted line, double-check that all contract clauses and requirements match what was agreed upon in previous meetings. If there’s any discrepancy, don’t hesitate to contact your partner to clarify and make the necessary adjustments.
And that will do it. Once the contract is signed, your partner will kickstart the process and start sourcing the first engineers who could (potentially) join your new team.
How we helped a FinTech scale to a 450+ person R&D Centre in Bangalore
DOWNLOAD CASE STUDYThe Scalers’ unique model for hiring developers in India
At The Scalers, we’ve built over 100 tech teams with world-class Indian talent in the past decade with a unique approach. In this time, we’ve collaborated with our partners to develop the best offshore model for their needs.
Among other industry leaders, we’ve helped manufacturing organisation Johnson Health Tech accelerate delivery with an offshore development centre in Bangalore.
Do you want to know more about how we can help you build a team with the top 1% of Indian developers? Reach out to us by filling out this form, and one of our senior executives will come back to you shortly!
In summary
We hope this guide has helped you understand how to hire the best software developers in India for your company. As you’ve seen, with the right partner, finding the talent and skill set you need to grow isn’t as complicated as it may seem.
If you still want to know more about finding top talent in India, check out how we hire dedicated developers and build amazing teams for our partners.
