Although few developers are able or willing to work remotely and many will be forced to work from home due to the coronavirus, some new data shows how developer salaries vary across countries.
Developer training platform CodinGame asked 20,000 developers in 125 countries about their annual salary and created a ranking of the 10 countries in which developers are paid the most.
According to the data, the U.S. is the country where programmers are most likely to earn the highest salary, with a software engineer earning an average of $95,744 per year. Seattle stands out as the U.S. city where programmers are paid the most, with an average salary of $105,735. The city is home to several large employers, including Microsoft.
Germany follows on the list, but with a significant drop according to the data – with an average of $61,000, followed by UK programmers who receive a salary of $59,326.
This is followed by Canada ($57,000), France ($47,000), Poland ($40,000), Spain ($37,000), Brazil ($32,000), Ukraine ($31,000) and Russia ($30,000).
Money isn't everything though. The happiest developers are found in the UK, Canada and the US, followed by those in Brazil and Germany.
The survey also found that company, industry, and experience have a big impact on programmer salaries, with software in the insurance industry, followed by the media and healthcare industries, being the highest-paid specialists. CodinGame reported that there is a 25% difference between the salaries of software engineers in these industries and those working in sectors such as government.
About 28% of respondents have a master's degree. 26% have a bachelor's degree. 21% said they had no formal qualifications and 2% said they held a PhD. Most programmers said their qualifications were in computer science. Python, JavaScript, Java, C# and C++ were cited as their favorite programming languages.
While wages in some countries – such as the U.S. – may be higher, purchasing power can vary significantly. As a result, those with lower wages in locations with a cheaper cost of living can do just as well.
Also, with remote work and freelancing growing in popularity among developers, real earnings can actually increase. This is because they can secure high salaries while working for companies based in high-cost cities like Paris, Seattle, San Francisco, or Berlin.
The coronavirus may have some impact as organizations become accustomed to working remotely, it may be much more difficult in the future for employers to reject requests from staff who want to work from home.
It’s worth noting that, when asked what matters when considering a job offer, developer respondents in CodinGame’s survey ranked salary in third place, behind “technical challenges” and “flexible working hours.” Money is important, but for developers it’s not the top priority.
