Hiring Software Developers
Employers across the 92 metro areas we have BLS OEWS wage data for pay software developers a median of $101,040 to $213,110 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A search through recruitlocalpros runs Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340, set by seniority, never by location or salary. Our vetted recruiting partner handles sourcing, screening and placement end to end.
What do software developers do?
- Analyze information to determine, recommend, and plan installation of a new system or modification of an existing system.
- Analyze user needs and software requirements to determine feasibility of design within time and cost constraints.
- Confer with data processing or project managers to obtain information on limitations or capabilities for data processing projects.
- Confer with systems analysts, engineers, programmers and others to design systems and to obtain information on project limitations and capabilities, performance requirements and interfaces.
- Consult with customers or other departments on project status, proposals, or technical issues, such as software system design or maintenance.
- Coordinate installation of software system.
Core tasks, O*NET OnLine, 15-1252.00.
What does it take to become one?
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
O*NET Job Zone 4, SVP (7.0 to < 8.0). O*NET OnLine.
Employers commonly list experience with Amazon Web Services AWS software, Atlassian JIRA, C, C#, C++, Cascading style sheets CSS for this role.
What do software developers get paid?
BLS OEWS, May 2025 publishes a wage for software developers in 92 of the metro areas in this build. The median ranges from $101,040 to $213,110 a year depending on the metro, with a midpoint of $127,850. This is what employers pay, place of work, not a single national figure and not what any one person takes home.
BLS OEWS, BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 15-1252.
What does hiring one cost?
The same as any role: tier, not location or salary, sets the fee. Across all six tiers the published range is $6,240 to $54,340 per search. For scale, the highest published median for software developers in this build is $213,110. A contingency firm hiring at that level would bill roughly $42,622 to $63,933 on the first year salary alone, 20 to 30%.
Frequently asked
- How fast can a software developers search fill?
- 23 to 35 days, 2 to 3x faster than a typical contingency search, per the recruiting provider's published figures.
- What if the hire does not work out?
- A 45-day replacement guarantee, at 50% off a repeat search for the same role.
Price a software developers search
Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen, with the contingency comparison if you are paying one now.