Hiring Software Developers in Latin America
Companies are increasingly considering hiring nearshore software developers from Latin America (LATAM) to augment traditional onshore and offshore software engineering models of ramping up software engineering capacity.
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Contact Us Today!Customers today demand innovative product features that require an ability to rapidly deliver high-quality software while maintaining a focus on margins. As such, three macro trends are pressuring companies to turn to IT outsourcing in Latin America to support traditional IT functions and new product development: 1) challenges accessing onshore talent, 2) domestic cost pressures, and 3) accelerated customer demands for new digital experiences.
Next Idea Tech has been approached by clients across industries—including technology, financial services, entertainment, retail and consumer goods—asking how they can extend their software development teams beyond U.S. borders and grow the footprint of their tech talent pool.
Discover why Latin America is emerging as a favorable location for nearshore software development—and gain actionable insights on how to successfully hire and collaborate with top LATAM tech talent.
For years, U.S. companies have faced persistent challenges in sourcing cloud-native tech talent. As IT leaders aim to grow modern software engineering teams and cloud infrastructure, many are struggling to bridge internal skill gaps. We have most recently seen clients dedicate international digital hubs to specialized functions for improved automation and efficiency.
This trend is driven by LATAM’s strong and growing base of well-educated software engineers experienced in cloud-native technologies. The region is currently home to more than 2 million software developers and it is graduating more than 100,000 new software engineering students every year, with numbers growing yearly as tech education expands in countries like Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia. We have seen major international employers—including global technology, retail and consumer goods, banking, manufacturing, and automotive companies—take action to establish an engineering presence in LATAM markets. These employers are seeking cloud-native talent ranging from full-stack developers to more niche skill sets such as machine learning engineering.
A good example is Amazon Web Services (AWS), who earlier in 2025 announced a $5bn investment in Mexico, aimed at creating a digital hub in Querétaro—an initiative that promises to generate over 7,000 jobs annually and train hundreds of thousands of workers. Similarly, US tech giant IBM operates its “Cognitive Transformation Center” in Bogotá, Colombia—a hub for AI and advanced technologies that serves global clients in banking, telecom, energy, and other sectors.
In addition to the growing base of talent in Latin America, nearshoring has additional benefits relative to other operating models. As opposed to teams distributed between the United States and more traditional offshore locations in Asia, nearshoring lends itself to real-time collaboration. Our clients have intentionally identified scope that benefits from real-time interaction between onshore teams and nearshore teams, such as front-end development, real-time data pipeline work, and interactions between machine learning engineers and data scientists.
Most LATAM countries are located in time zones that are either the same as or only a few hours different from those in the U.S. From our experience, a nearshore model can help eliminate the time-zone fatigue inherent in coordinating handovers during daily endpoints. These overlapping time zones allow your distributed teams to connect throughout the workday, addressing issues immediately and speeding up project timelines without the delays often encountered when working with teams in distant time zones like those in Asia or Eastern Europe. No waiting eight to twelve hours for your remote development team to wake up, start their work day, and start answering messages! LATAM developers can actually participate in scrum sessions, ask pertinent questions, and contribute in real time.
Software engineering talent in the United States has been expensive and in high demand for a long time. The current median salary of a U.S. software developer is twice as expensive as the global median salary for the same position. Cost pressures and an uncertain economic outlook are causing leaders to tighten business and IT operations budgets.
Nearshore developers in LATAM offer top-tier services at prices that are often 2–3x less than their North American counterparts. This cost-effectiveness is primarily due to the lower living costs in Latin American countries. It also means that nearshore developers actually earn a higher salary relative to their peer groups in their respective countries. This cost efficiency also does not come at the expense of quality making it an attractive option for businesses looking to optimize their budgets while maintaining quality output.
Software Developer Estimated Yearly Salary Range, USD
| Country | Junior Developer | Mid-Level Developer | Senior Developer |
| United States | 60,000 – 90,000 | 90,000 – 130,000 | 130,000 – 180,000+ |
| Canada | 45,000 – 70,000 | 70,000 – 100,000 | 100,000 – 140,000+ |
| Mexico | 15,000 – 25,000 | 25,000 – 40,000 | 40,000 – 70,000 |
| Colombia | 12,000 – 20,000 | 20,000 – 35,000 | 35,000 – 55,000 |
| Chile | 18,000 – 28,000 | 28,000 – 45,000 | 45,000 – 70,000 |
| Brazil | 14,000 – 22,000 | 22,000 – 40,000 | 40,000 – 65,000 |
| Argentina | 10,000 – 18,000 | 18,000 – 30,000 | 30,000 – 50,000 |
Senior developers in LATAM often earn 2–3x less than U.S. counterparts for similar roles, making the region cost-efficient for nearshoring. However, Remote-friendly companies may pay above local averages (e.g., $50k–$80k for senior LATAM devs in global roles).
Overheads are lower too. Expenses such as office space, corporate taxes, employment contributions, and other business-related costs are significantly lower compared to North American rates. As a result, companies can reinvest savings into innovation, talent development, or scaling operations—all while maintaining quality standards.
A potential concern when hiring internationally is the language barrier. However, Latin American developers often dispel this concern with their extensive English language immersion. In addition to being a required second language in most Latin American classrooms, English is widely spoken throughout the LATAM region.
The EF English Proficiency Index categorizes most Latin American countries as having moderate proficiency. Among the most outstanding achievers in the 2024 rankings, Argentina and Costa Rica stand out, both classified as having high English proficiency.
English proficiency is especially strong among professionals engaging with customers and clients, such as those in Customer Success, Project Management, Engineers, Architects, and Tech Leads. Technical writers, Data Scientists and Security Specialists also show a high level of English proficiency. Such a high level of English proficiency among LATAM developers allows you to build effective communication with your in-house team and a crystal-clear understanding of your tasks and feedback.
Moreover, their bilingual skills in Spanish and Portuguese can be a strategic asset for businesses looking to expand into the Latin American market.
Cultural alignment can significantly impact the progress of your project. While cultures do vary between the United States and Latin America, you will see many expressions of Western values with LATAM tech professionals than you might get with, say, someone from the Eastern Hemisphere, especially regarding corporate culture, business practices, and communication styles. Nearshore software developers from LATAM often share similar cultural values with North American companies, such as a strong work ethic, attention to detail, ability to perform assignments independently, a strong focus on teamwork, and transparency in task discussion and delivery.
These cultural affinities between Latin America and North America ease integration challenges that can arise from outsourcing. With similar business practices and a high level of English proficiency, nearshore developers are more likely to understand the business culture and work processes of your organization, making collaboration and the management of remote work more straightforward.
Not all long-distance partnerships are created equally. Working with a software development team on the other side of the world is not the same as working with a team just a short hour flight from the home offices.
For this reason, the advantages of geographical proximity cannot be overstated.
While most collaboration happens remotely, proximity allows for occasional in-person meetings without the high costs or long travel times associated with distant outsourcing hubs like India or the Philippines. For example, a U.S. company working with a team in Guadalajara, Mexico, can easily fly in for critical meetings, fostering stronger relationships and alignment—all while keeping travel expenses and downtime to a minimum. This balance of remote efficiency and accessible in-person interaction ensures smoother project execution and cost control.
Most LATAM regions have highly developed IT ecosystems with many established tech companies and startups already in place. A strategic combination of private-sector investments and government initiatives (like tax breaks, investment in IT infrastructure, et al.) have led to the emergence of several tech hubs, such as São Paulo, Medellín, Buenos Aires, and Mexico City, which are quickly becoming hotspots for innovation and technology. These cities are nurturing advanced tech ecosystems that contribute significantly to global tech developments, including in areas like fintech, biotech, and renewable energy solutions.
As your company grows and scales globally, building a multinational software development team becomes a strategic advantage. By hiring nearshore developers from Latin America, you infuse your team with fresh perspectives, innovative ideas, and cultural insights that can significantly enhance your products and services. This diversity not only fosters creativity and problem-solving but also ensures your offerings resonate with a broader, global audience. Embracing inclusion through a geographically dispersed team positions your brand as forward-thinking and adaptable, ready to thrive in an interconnected world.
| Factors | Nearshore | Onshore |
| Talent Pool | Slightly broader access to professionals in nearby countries. | Limited to professionals within the same country. |
| Time Zone Alignment | Minimal time zone difference. Between 1 – 2 hours, facilitating real-time communication. | No time zone difference, enabling immediate communication. |
| Cost Efficiency | Cost efficient, but cost savings dwindle further when hiring the upper spectrum of the talent pool (e.g. in-demand skills such as data scientists and machine learning). | More expensive due to uniform market conditions within the same country. |
| English Proficiency | Minimal language barriers, as nearshore teams often share or are fluent in the client’s language. | Virtually nonexistent, as both parties speak the same primary language. |
| Cultural Alignment | Some similarities due to geographical proximity, shared language, and cultural norms. | Very high similarity due to shared language and cultural context. |
| Geographical Proximity | Nearby or neighboring countries, typically in the same region. | Within the same country or geographic region. |
| Tech Ecosystem | Slightly less mature. | Advanced tech ecosystem. |
| Diversity | Broader perspectives due to cross-cultural collaboration and knowledge transfer. | Convergence of ideas and practices within a shared cultural framework. |
Hiring nearshore developers in Latin America can be a daunting task with distinct complexities compared to other global markets. Making an intelligent expansion play involves knowing how to select the right location, attract the right local tech talent, and choose the right operating model.
Multiple factors are contributing to US companies’ desire to move beyond long-used, low-cost Asian markets. Increased focus on work/life balance and wellness in today’s post-COVID-19 pandemic environment has magnified the demand for time-zone-aligned resources that enable increased collaboration and avoid fatigue from morning and evening handovers between agile teams.
Latin America has been a significant beneficiary of this trend. The region long has had strong technology capabilities—Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, and Chile all boast of having large pools of nearshore software developers—but recently Latin America has seen a rapid acceleration in interest as businesses seek to expand their global footprint. Couple this with finite availability of candidates with strong English language skills, and the immediate opportunity to capitalize on this opportunity is clear.
Location matters, but not all locations are created equal. When strategizing where to nearshore your software development project in LATAM, companies should consider the following components: English language capabilities, tech talent supply, strength and supply of the graduate pipeline, tech infrastructure, business climate, operating cost, physical proximity to the U.S., and risk (security and economic).
After selecting from among target markets, the next step in creating a nearshore development team is developing a strategy to attract, recruit, develop, and retain top-tier nearshore developers. The following insights may aid local talent recruitment and retention efforts:
In addition to location selection and talent acquisition strategies, it is also important that a company considers what type of engagement model it should use to manage its nearshore software development operations. There are three main models:
To determine the right model for your use case, ask: Who will interact daily with the nearshore development center in the United States, and how?
For example, at a US-based online retail company, we identified that cross-functional teams (e.g., merchandising, inventory management, checkout/payment optimization, and customer experience) would only engage with the nearshore development center under a working model that supports tight alignment with fast-paced business cycles.
Because this client’s nearshoring strategy required continuous, iterative collaboration to adapt to shifting consumer demands (e.g., seasonal campaign launches, dynamic pricing integrations, or third-party API updates for shipping/payment gateways), we recommended the Extended Nearshore Software Development Team model. In this setup, the team is led by a US-based product manager, with development tasks distributed between the U.S. headquarters and the LATAM development center. Overlapping work hours ensured real-time coordination for critical tasks like resolving checkout flow bottlenecks, scaling server capacity ahead of peak sales periods, or deploying A/B tests for personalized product recommendations.
In contrast, an Autonomous Nearshore Software Development Team model directed by LATAM-based product managers would face challenges. Online retail requires deep familiarity with region-specific buyer behaviors (e.g., holiday shopping trends, local payment preferences, or compliance with state-level data privacy laws). Product managers without daily exposure to the U.S. market might misprioritize features—for instance, underestimating the urgency of integrating a new “buy now, pay later” payment method popular with U.S. shoppers or misaligning inventory sync tools with regional warehouse workflows. This could delay time-sensitive launches or create friction in omnichannel customer experiences.
The journey of recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and successfully scaling a LATAM software development team can be lengthy and difficult. However, given the accelerated pace of digital adoption across all industries and the ongoing need to find high-quality tech talent, we anticipate that companies will continue to consider nearshore expansion.
At Next Idea Tech, we are distinctively positioned to help simplify the hiring process. We work with you at every step of your journey, taking charge of the entire process—from scouting and vetting to developing next-gen software products. Our expertise ensures:
Source and retain top LATAM developers to elevate your team’s performance.
Expedite product development to meet the most pressing customer needs and deliver innovative new features more frequently.
Build scalable platforms using microservices, APIs, and DevOps best practices.
Securely aggregate and analyze data to power intelligent AI/ML solutions.
Implement shift-left strategies to identify risks early and safeguard your systems.
Schedule a consultation with our team to learn how our services can help you assemble a top-tier nearshore software development team that meets your unique challenges and goals.
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