US vs Ukrainian Software Development – why Outsource?

We have already covered the many benefits of outsource software development. And we indicated the reasons that push business owners and startup founders to look for software development overseas. The trend to outsource work is not limited by software development. Statistics indicate a very general tendency to cut costs by hiring gig workers or even full-time employees from abroad. 

It happens primarily because the internet allows fluent 24/7 communication which diversifies the choice when it comes to searching for people that can get the job done. Why look in your city when you can hire all across the country? Why look in your country only if you can look in the whole world?

In the following article we will compare software development in the US with outsourcing software development to Ukraine. We aimed to point out that it is quite possible to cut costs and receive not only the same product but perhaps even a much better one. 

That is because, while US companies simply cannot afford doing it any less expensive, software development companies in Ukraine have gained the experience and proved to be among the >Top European Software Development Firms. 

Read on to find out why, based on our personal knowledge of a range of US and Ukrainian companies, working on the same project, the latter will bring much more value for a dollar than the former.    

Price Differs More Than Quality

Eastern Europe and Ukraine in particular have made significant progress in software development sector. Specialists from Ukraine, Poland and Belarus are in demand because they show thirst for work and have used the last decade to gain necessary knowledge and experience. 

Not only IT sector is on the rise in Ukraine but many other spheres of economy as well. Speaking of the quality of work, you are more likely to overpay, working with developers in US or UK than getting bad quality from the software development companies in Ukraine.

We say that because some of our clients come to us after they’ve tried to work with their local teams. And while software developers in India generally deliver bad quality software, products build by Ukrainian software development companies (consider Grammarly) are known to be equally great compared with that of Western software development companies. 

Here is the table with average rates for software development with Altamira. The cost may vary depending on the features, complexity and specialists involved.

The price difference doesn’t indicate that the software is “cheaper” in regard to its quality. It is less expensive only because everything in Eastern Europe is less expensive. Yet thanks to many IT courses online developers in Ukraine have no lesser knowledge base than their somewhat “spoiled” American counterparts. 

2021 Software Outsourcing Report

People Still Have Problems Paying for Something Virtual

I remember the first time I ordered a subscription to a magazine online. This decision was predestined to happen earlier or later. Same can be applied to Netflix subscriptions or buying music albums on Spotify. Nevertheless, even though consumers got used to paying for virtual assets (data in any form), business owners tend to yet develop full understanding of what it means to “rewrite just this part of code” or “add another picture here”. Even though it appears as immaterial, it doesn’t mean that it is not real work. 

As Ukrainian software development companies are less picky and give a client more freedom, IT outsourcing companies in Ukraine allow business owners to better understand what they’re paying for. Frequent communication and prompt feedback shows a client what is happening every step of the way. And because you pay less for the services of Ukrainian software development company, it is less risky and stressful to pay for a nuanced software engineering work done in Ukraine than that done in US. It is especially relevant if you don’t understand and can’t comprehend why it is critical to use a certain programming language or why it takes so long to integrate this API, etc. 

Get to know more about the IT market in Ukraine:

As you can see, paying less is especially good not just by itself but because you pay for software development services which often makes the customers cognitively unable to understand what they’re paying for and why.

The Emerging Market is Better Than the One that Reached Plateau Effect

It is one of the economic standpoints that the emerging market has far more potential than the one that reached its plateau effect in US first. Whereas in Eastern Europe and China it continues to grow and expand. This trend mimics the overall economy trend or a cycle with more work being outsourced to Eastern Europe and Asia. IT makes developers in these countries more experienced which leads to better quality and more work. 

It also mimics global economy trend with economy becoming stronger in Eastern Europe and Asia while it gets near to recession in US. Many companies simply wouldn’t afford software development at all if not for outsource. And, although in the majority cases the decision is driven by the need to cut costs, the outcomes make it obvious that more and more clients abroad are fulfilled by outsourcing software development in Ukraine because of great results.

Conclusion

As you can understand, a US-based firm will make you pay more because it simply can’t do it for less as their economy doesn’t allow it. But many business owners exhibit wishful thinking when they think a US company will do a better job only because it is 4 times more expensive, though it is tempting to believe so. 

At the same time media companies outsource journalism to non-native English-speaking reporters and editors in Philippines with millions of readers unable to tell the difference. Commercial projects do well when they outsource software development to Ukraine and other countries in Eastern Europe, since they undergo rapid development while US software sector is on decline just as American economy goes towards recession.  

FAQ