The Best Countries for Outsourcing Software Development

Outsourcing is a process that companies can undergo in order to transfer some of their workload and project tasks to third-party contractors. Doing this can help companies save money, focus on certain project objectives, and reap the financial benefits.

Considered by many to be a proven way to optimize the cost of projects, outsourcing is no longer a trend; instead, it is common-place and popular all over the world. When a company creates a team for your project, the employees are carefully chosen, and each brings a unique talent to the table. The best part about these talents is that, thanks to outsourcing, they can come from countries all around the world, since the process of outsourcing is done online.

So, you might be wondering what countries provide the best employees and, if you are, you’re in luck. In this article, we’re going to cover a few of the best countries for outsourcing.

What Makes A Country Ideal for Software Outsourcing?

When it comes to the best countries for outsourcing, the key points you want to focus on are the country’s IT market, their costs, and the ability of the country’s employees to communicate with you in your preferred language.

One of the most important criteria that companies use to choose an outsourcing company for your tasks is the investment that has gone into corporate education. In other words, companies choose employees for you with a high emphasis on a good education, choosing those who have gone through both high school and higher education. According to a range of analytics, both Eastern Europe and Asia are two areas that focus on education.

On the other hand, in offshore outsourcing companies, prices tend to be a lot lower. In general, India is the most affordable outsourcing country, with Argentina being one of the most expensive.

Most countries that offer software outsourcing have a good handle on the English language. The employees will likely speak English at an Intermediate level if not higher. For project roles such as manager, your employee will need to be very advanced in their grasp of the language.

The Top Reasons for Using Overseas Outsourcing

A few of the top reasons why you might want to consider outsourcing your program development from other countries include:

• Ability to work with global IT markets and their services
• Risk management enhancements
• Control over service and cash flow
• Projects completed by professionals

The Best Countries for Outsourcing Software Development

Serbia

Clients who trust their development outsourcing to companies in Serbia benefit from low prices.

Despite these low prices, the quality of work is comparable to that of the USA and Western Europe.

The time zone in Serbia, as it is located in Europe, is Central EST, which means that workers have no issues working in real-time with managers in Western Europe or North America.

Serbia offers free higher education and modern electrotechnical engineering facilities, so it’s easy to see why the country has such a large talent pool and some of the best software developers in Europe.

In addition, English is an obligatory second language and is taught in all elementary and high schools in the country. Serbia ranks number 15 of 100 countries/regions on the EF English Proficiency Index. Since Serbs learn English at a young age, many can speak it without an accent and have excellent communication skills.

If you’d like to outsource your web development in Serbia, a good company to work with is TMS. Check us out and see how we can help you.

Now let’s move on with the best countries for outsourcing software development. 

Ukraine

In Ukraine, English isn’t a very popular language among the general population. However, roughly 80% of the IT employees within the country speak the language, which means that language is a barrier that you’re unlikely to have to deal with when outsourcing here.

Another benefit is that Ukraine has a time zone that overlaps with both UK and US time zones, as well as a similarly structured working culture complete with healthy competition.

Ukraine is a great outsourcing option for those who prioritize working with companies that have a good quality to price ratio.

Belarus

In total, Belarus is home to more than 30,000 IT specialists and 1,000 skilled software development companies. There are numerous developers in Belarus who are known globally and, in general, outsourcing here provides clients with a good cost to quality ratio.

IT services and computers fall into the spot of 3^rd largest sector within the country and has a large, unwavering amount of government support. Many of the developers from Belarus are specialized in complex areas such as IoT, fintech, cloud computing, AR/VR, machine learning, big data, and high-load systems.

One of the concerns surrounding outsourcing to Belarus is that the attrition rate in the country is higher than that of other countries. It is roughly 24% according to Ernst & Young, which implies that there are risks regarding consistency with the work provided by dedicated teams.

Thailand

Another of the top outsourcing countries is Thailand. The country, according to a survey conducted in 2016, holds the number 6 position among the ASEAN countries with anefficient offshore labor market. There is a booming higher education system and excellent infrastructure, which boosts the IT outsourcing labor force a little higher every year.

Thailand has been working to improve its understanding of the English language; this has increased its popularity within the world of outsourcing. Many clients who outsource to Thailand are looking for web design, digital marketing, IT consulting, app development, testing, and software quality assurance services.

India

The competitively low prices of software development in India make the country stand out as a top contender for the title of “best countries for tech jobs”. As a whole, the nation has been making great strides in its tech and software development for more than two decades and as a result, programming outsourcing has become a full-blown industry.

Although India has a relatively low literacy rate, the government pays careful attention to how mathematical research and technology are developed. India is also in the beginning phase of introducing a Westernized approach to education, churning out up to 2.6 million STEM specialists from Indian universities each year.

Argentina

Outsourcing companies based in Argentina tend to have a skilled background in software and mobile development, DevOps engineering, and data migration to the cloud. Argentina offers its programmers free computer technology education and individual programs. 70% of Argentinian university students combine their studies with computer and/or tech-related work.

It wasn’t until the 90s that the IT industry within the country began to develop. The main advantage of this is that it now has an incredibly robust telecom network, which makes it ideal for internet startups.

One minor downside to outsourcing here, however, is that there have been claims of cultural differences making negotiation a difficult task.

China 

In China, both primary and secondary education is focused on high tech and mathematics. The market for outsourcing services in the country has been seeing a growth rate of 30% annually and is known for its Shell and Python software products.

It’s estimated that there are over 30,000 software development professionals that rank in tier 1 and 2 according to the esteemed HackerRank Programming Olympics. This ranking gives us a glimpse into the emphasis that China puts into training and education.

The disadvantage of working with Chinese outsourcers is that there have been instances of specialists not complying with intellectual property laws. In order to reduce the risks related to this issue, it’s recommended that clients work with high-rated outsourcing teams and that rules are established early on.

Poland

Poland has a very diverse IT labor force and a healthy background in software development. Of the Eastern European nations with high-tech technologies, Poland ranks as one of the first countries on the list thanks to their affordable programming services.

PHP is the most widespread programming language used in Poland, but the country is also known for its use of Java and .NET. As reported by various clients, engineers in Poland are proficient with a good work ethic and very few cultural differences.

Since Poland is a member of the EU, it follows inclusive data protection laws and regulations. This is one of the major benefits of outsourcing within the country – especially when your project involves web development. Commonly, Polish workers are tasked with UI-related jobs, as well as front and back-end development.

Taiwan 

According to recent evidence, the Taiwanese government has a set goal of turning the nation into the Asian version of California’s Silicon Valley. Last year, in 2020, the country was focused on STEM education. It has also been working on improving its innovation and technology, which has allowed it to become one of the leading technologically advanced countries on the planet.

Outsourcing coding and other web-related tasks to Taiwan is a great idea. Here, the IT professionals have a reputation for having hard-working spirits, good work ethics, and a high quality of work compared to many other Asian countries.

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic boasts a high-ranking IT sector that is known for its proficient outsourcing. This sector is filled with professionals who offer affordable software development solutions and are always available.

The country is among the top 20 that pride themselves on investing in the tech sector. As such, total funds make up 2% of the country’s overall GDP, which means that the Czech Republic surpasses both the UK and Canada.

Many international companies like IBM, Honeywell, Google, and NetSuite have offices in the country. There is a large number of small companies who have offices there, as well, taking advantage of the country’s language proficiency and policies regarding product quality.

Each year the Czech Republic’s tech sector grows as it adds 7K tech graduates and rapidly expands.

Philippines 

Over the past few years, the Philippines has undergone a silent revolution; it has shaped the outsourcing sector for software development in order to meet the new demands. Culturally the country is similar to Western countries and holds ranks as the third-largest English-speaking country in the world.

Contractors from the Philippines are praised for their quick work, while the university education system is given special attention due to its high rate of tech graduates. The work provided by these IT and tech experts is of high quality and comes at an affordable cost that foreign companies are eager to take advantage of.

Brazil

There is a seemingly never-ending number of reliable software providers and developers that hail from Brazil. Known as one of the most in-demand outsourcing countries, Brazil is popular because of its affordable prices and rich talent. Outsourced employees from Brazil are great at adjusting to clients’ needs and meeting deadlines.

In addition, Brazilian outsourcing companies are highly proficient in the English language, which makes it easy to write up contracts and get work done. Many workers also speak French or Spanish and almost all works are bi-lingual if not multi-lingual.

Vietnam

Vietnam is best known for its quality services. However, it’s also known for the low cost at which these services are offered. With labor costs costing 90% less than they do in the US, clients are guaranteed to see savings when they outsource to the country’s professionals.

Another thing that makes Vietnam one of the best countries for outsourcing is that it has varying and numerous talents within the software development trade. The Vietnamese government recognizes the importance of education and training, meaning that the locals are well-educated and have high chances of being hired for overseas jobs.

Despite the success here, the IT industry is young compared to that of other countries. As a result, there are sometimes problems when it comes to the supply and demand aspect of IT specialists. Communication can be a weak spot when outsourcing to Vietnam, as well.

Romania

Romania has roughly 60,000 citizens who work in the outsourcing sector. This number contributes to nearly 20% of all the outsourced software development that takes place in Central and East Europe.

Romania is home to a number of important international offices for companies like Dell, Oracle, Microsoft, and IBM. It also has a few Ubisoft offices. The country is ideal for those who seek fintech software but may not be the best option for anyone who needs software development in other areas.

Ending thoughts on the best countries for outsourcing

The first step in developing a strong outsourcing relationship is choosing the best countries for outsourcing. However, you’ll also need to outline clear communication and collaboration in order to make an outsourcing relationship work.

If you’re looking to find an employee team extension in Europe, one of your best bets is Serbia. Serbia is a popular outsourcing destination for many companies within the US and Europe.

If you enjoyed reading this article on the best countries for outsourcing, you should check out this one about nearshoring.

We also wrote about a few related subjects like outsourcing failures, Outstaffing, outsourcing to Serbia, in-house development vs outsourcing and outsourcing to India.