How to Hire a Node.js Developer: Skills, Salary, Experience

The popularity of Node.js entails the question about hiring Node.js developers. In this article, we’ll consider possible pitfalls that appear in this way, and offer you various solutions for them. Thus, if you want to hire a Node.js developer that will perform work on the highest level, read the article to get to know how to choose the best ones.

How to hire a Node.js developer is an extremely popular question nowadays. Node.js has become widely used among IT specialists due to various factors. So let’s name some of them to get a better perception of Node.js development.

The first and probably the most important thing that makes Node.js very common among software engineers is the fact that it is all built around JavaScript. It is, in turn, considered to take the first position in the rating of the most used programming languages, according to GitHub. Therefore, as many developers have already worked with JS, the transition to Node.js will be almost discreet.

The speed of executing codes in Node.js is the second advantage of it because it allows the creation of highly efficient and scalable applications. The reason for it lies in the V8 engine used in the Chrome browser. Thirdly, hosting is never a problem for Node.js. Due to its growing usage, different servers, and providers that are cloud-based support Node.js apps. Completing this list would take a lot of time so let’s stop here, and say only that the popularity of Node.js is totally fair.

Also, if you hire a Node.js developer, you automatically increase the number of projects that can be developed. Hearing about Node.js, people mostly think about web development, forgetting about many other kinds of software successfully built with this technology. Be it compilers, package managers, GUI builders, I/O bound apps, command-line tools, and many more.

Considering the above, it becomes clear why IT companies want to expand their team and hire Node.js developers. It is not very difficult because supplying demands, and the number of Node.js programmers constantly rise. According to the survey, 51% of programmers choose Node.js over other frameworks and tools.

Altogether, Node.js is a popular language now to learn if you want to be in demand among many companies. However, if you want to hire a Node.js developer, you should thoroughly analyze each applicant, as it is not easy to choose from many specialists. In this article, we’ll consider the most important aspects of hiring a Node.js programmer.

List of the Content

• How to choose a Node.js developer?
• Options to hire Node.js engineers
• Where to hire a Node.js developer
• Node.js developer salary
• How to hire a Node.js developer?
• In conclusion

HOW TO HIRE A NODE.JS DEVELOPER

When you know all the advantages, the next reasonable question will be how to hire qualified Node.js developers to build a team that will actually help you to leverage all the strengths of this programming language. We’ll try to list the most important things to know and Node.js developer skills to obtain to be considered an attractive candidate. However, even though Node.js was released back in 2009, it became widely used only about 2014. Hence, for such a short period of time, it couldn’t ensure the specialists a long experience, and that’s why it would be futile to require it from the employees. we should remember that Node.js is relatively new, and it would be futile to require a long-standing experience. Here are the most essential skills to ask for if you want to hire a Node.js developer:

• 3-4 years of experience would be enough
• Being familiar with REST APIs
• Knowledge of Node.js frameworks (Nest.js, Koa.js, Express.js, Feathers.io, etc.)
• At least mid-level skills in front-end development (React or Angular)
• A deep understanding of databases (MySQL, CouchDB, PostgreSQL, MongoDB) 
• Knowing how to use different features that enable good application security
• Being well-versed in the error-handling process

However, if an IT specialist does not possess all the wanted knowledge, it doesn’t mean they cannot learn them. Again, this is a great benefit of Node.js programming – it is easy to gain new Node.js developer skills because it is built on JavaScript, which is well-known by a huge number of programmers. 

Let’s go a bit deeper into the technologies that are essential to know for a good Node.js developer. Frameworks make the development process easier and more convenient that’s why knowing them would be an upside. The most used frameworks of Node.js include Nest.js, Koa.js, Express.js, Feathers.io, Meteor.js, and others. For not an advanced Node.js developer, these competencies would be enough to start working with this technology.

OPTIONS TO HIRE NODE.JS DEVELOPERS

When you’ve decided that you want to hire a Node.js developer, it’s time to think about different engagement models. There are so many options that choosing from regular in-house employment, outsourced dedicated teams, and freelancers become onerous. Therefore, you should weigh the pros and cons of each alternative thoroughly. Let’s look at the advantages of each option. It’ll make it easier to understand which one is the best.

To start with freelancers, nowadays hiring them for some projects is considered a bad idea. They are not as popular now as before when dedicated development teams just started taking the spotlight away from freelance. Despite all the risks, self-employed workers have many benefits over other recruitment models. First of all, the skills that freelancers have can be very unexpected in a good way, and if you want to hire a remote Node.js developer with some rare knowledge and an uncommon area of expertise, it is much easier to find one among freelancers. In addition, needless to say, the cost of choosing a freelancer over the option to hire dedicated Node.js developers can be more attractive if you have some small project with a fixed scope of work. On the contrary, companies that provide dedicated teams offer premium Node.js development services for a higher cost. For example, they help manage the project, professionally validate candidates, hire for you, etc. In case of any issues with the freelancers, you can count only on the support of the gig platforms, such as UpWork, which is known for long response time and lack of the specific domain knowledge to resolve disputes quickly and effectively. 

Speaking about dedicated development teams, another kind of pro comes to mind. The option to hire dedicated Node.js developers is not about reducing costs, but it is about the protection of intellectual property, long-term contracts, and no confusion with time zones. The last one might not seem a big problem at first but working with people from different continents is quite a challenge. If you need just a couple of specialists for your project, you can choose them among freelancers but if the number of programmers needed exceeds 3, then working with such a quantity of people from different time zones becomes extremely inefficient. Freelancers can be located across various time zones while dedicated team members are usually sitting in one office, and you have the set working hours overlap with them hence the work process becomes more predictable and routine in a good manner.  As for IP protection, integrated teams inevitably win at this point. While hiring self-employed programmers, you trust your property to many people who almost don’t contact each other, live and work in different places, and, probably, for many other companies. It means that your IP risks are multiplied since the knowledge is not managed under one roof. With the dedicated development team – all the data is managed by one-third party and not distributed.

Another vital aspect of choosing to hire dedicated Node.js developers is the duration of the contract, which affects the work ethic. Freelancers are self-employed, and they have a right to choose who they want to work for and for who they don’t. It is also up to them to decide how long they want to work on a project, and as the ones with a long duration seem not interesting and boring, the client has to change the working group many times during a year. With dedicated Node.js developers for hire, the customer can be sure that a chosen team won’t refuse to do their job at some point and will devote as much time as possible to make your project succeed.

There are many other nuances about choosing between freelancers and the Node.js development company that offers dedicated developers but naming them all requires a lot of time. Moreover, it is not very objective because different Node.js development companies use different approaches, and their points of view drastically deviate.

WHERE TO HIRE A NODE.JS DEVELOPER

If you have doubts about where to hire a Node.js developer that will satisfy your needs, you should think about outsourcing. It is an extremely beneficial practice for those who want to have their projects done quickly and efficiently and save not only costs but the time that can be spent on core business. The popularity of IT outsourcing grows more and more, especially in those cases when some rare technologies are used, and thus, finding specialists who have proficiency in them is challenging. Regardless of the technologies used, the list of the most popular outsourcing destinations doesn’t change much. It includes countries in Eastern Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

These destinations differ in many aspects, but each of them is a perfect fit for some customers. However, when choosing an outsourcing Node.js development company, it’s better to remember some main points:

• The level of education. It includes the number of students who graduate from technical universities, the presence of such disciplines as computer science at schools, and others.
• Developers’ rankings. However, only credible sources can be trusted.
• English language proficiency. As English is an international language, almost all the work is conducted using it, so its knowledge helps to avoid communication barriers which will inevitably appear while working with someone whose English leaves something to be desired.
• The country’s law and jurisdiction should be considered as well. It affects the way your IP will be treated. It is a controversial topic, but most customers are convinced that Europe is the safest and most secure place to outsource development.
• Cultural peculiarities. It might seem at first that it is not related to the IT industry, but it is extremely important to take this fact into account while choosing an outsourcing destination because if you hire a remote Node.js developer in Ukraine and, for example, in India, you’ll face absolutely different approaches. Knowing the most important disparities will save you time in solving problems and communicating with the developers.

Bearing in mind all these principles, it’ll be easier to choose where it’s best to outsource Node.js development services to.

Let’s also take a glance at such concepts as offshoring and outsourcing. Nowadays, they have almost merged into a coherent whole. That’s why they are rarely looked at separately. However, they are not the same thing, and there still are companies who use them individually. Offshoring means developing a project in another country, while outsourcing means handing jobs to a third party. Among the advantages of offshoring as well as outsourcing are reduced costs and a faster process of development. As for the downsides of offshoring, they cover problematic communication (in case of not knowing the language on the proper level) and geopolitical aspect (ignorance of laws, for example). Meanwhile, the main challenge of outsourcing lies only in the communication with the vendor, as presumably half of the success of the future project lies with him.

NODE.JS DEVELOPER SALARY

If you are firmly determined to hire a Node.js developer, you most likely need the answer to “How do I estimate their job, and what is a Node.js developer salary?” First of all, programmers of different levels and with different Node.js developer 5skills and experience offer their services. That’s why, while setting prices, it’s better to analyze the commercial market thoroughly to understand what the approximate Node.js developer salary is.

For this, only verifiable sources should be used. Enough websites on the Internet enable the opportunity to understand the price level and compare salaries by country, company, or exact skills. We offer you to look at this statistic and compare it with this one. The numbers differ only a little bit. They both show that a Node.js developer salary, on average, is about $90 000 per year. If you choose the job experience, prices will change a little, showing that a junior Node.js web developer earns about $76 000, and an engineer with experience of 7 years makes $96 000. In this table, you can see the correlation between the years of experience and Node.js developer salary. The presented numbers reflect the situation with Node.js specialists in America.

If you want to check the prices for Node.js development services, you can visit different websites like this one to see the rates. Mentioned websites allow you to compare Node.js specialist prices with programmers’ salaries who use other technologies. Thereby, it is obvious that you can hire a Node.js developer for a comparably small price. The reason for it lies in the popularity of Node.js – the number of developers is constantly growing, which reduces the prices and makes it more profitable for customers to hire them. 

HOW TO HIRE A HODE.JS DEVELOPER?

Node.js has become one of the most popular technologies in web development, and it’s no surprise that the demand for Node.js developers is on the rise. Node.js is a JavaScript runtime environment that allows developers to build fast, scalable, and efficient applications that can handle large amounts of data. However, finding the right Node.js developer can be a challenging task for any organization. Combining all the mentioned above aspects, we’ll try to provide a comprehensive guide on how to hire a Node.js developer.

Understanding the Job Requirements

The first step in hiring a Node.js developer is understanding the job requirements. Before starting the hiring process, it is important to have a clear understanding of the specific skills needed for the job. This includes understanding the technologies and frameworks that are required for the project, such as Express.js, MongoDB, and React. Additionally, it is important to understand the scope of the project and the developer’s role in it. This will help you identify the level of experience and expertise that you are looking for in a candidate.

Identifying the right candidates

Once you have a clear understanding of the job requirements, the next step is to identify the right candidates. There are several sources for finding potential candidates, such as job boards, freelancing platforms, and recruitment agencies. Screen resumes and portfolios of potential candidates to ensure that they have the necessary qualifications and experience. Conduct initial interviews to get to know the candidate better and ask relevant questions.

Evaluating technical skills

It becomes crucial to ensure that the candidate has the capability to deliver the project’s requirements. Assess a Node.js developer’s technical skills by administering technical assessments or tests, asking relevant technical questions during interviews, and reviewing code samples. Additionally, evaluate the candidate’s knowledge of Node.js frameworks, databases, and tools, as well as their experience with Agile and Scrum.

Assessing cultural fit

That is another important aspect of hiring a Node.js developer. A good cultural fit is essential for a successful team and will help the new hire to be productive from the start. Determine whether the candidate’s values and work style align with the company’s culture by asking behavioral interview questions and checking references.

Making the Offer

Once you have identified the right candidate, it’s time to make an offer. This includes negotiating salary and benefits, discussing the terms of the employment contract, and conducting a final background check. It is important to have a clear and detailed job description and offer letter to ensure that both the employer and employee are on the same page.

Hiring a Node.js developer is a challenging task that requires a thorough understanding of the job requirements, the right sourcing and screening techniques, and the ability to evaluate technical skills and cultural fit. A thorough hiring process will help you find the right candidate and ensure a successful working relationship in the long term. It’s important to note that a Node.js developer should have not only strong technical skills but also a good understanding of software development principles and methodologies, experience in using Git, debugging, and testing tools, and an understanding of web technologies. To ensure a smooth hiring process, you should work with a team of developers or technical recruiters who understand the nuances of Node.js development and can help you identify the right candidate for the job.

IN CONCLUSION

Now you have all the essential information that helps you make the best choice while employing Node.js web engineers. To summarize, if you want to hire a Node.js developer to receive the best results possible and your project succeeds, it’s necessary to contemplate what country to look for specialists in and there opt for the best companies who outsource Node.js development services. Also, it’s necessary to estimate what amount of money you are ready to spend on your project development, and with that in mind, choose a proper Node.js programmer. The duration of your project raises the choice between various engagement models, e.g., freelancers or dedicated developers. Altogether, due to the popularity of Node.js, finding a developer with all the needed skills is, happily, an achievable task, that requires meticulous consideration and analysis of various factors.