The Ukrainian IT market is a constantly growing industry in the global tech arena. It has become a powerful technology hub capable of implementing projects of any complexity and geography. Despite the fact that the war has changed everything in Ukraine, the IT industry continues its work. Ukrainian developers and vendors are doing their bests to provide clients from all over the world with the best software and service without any obstacles.
This article deals with statistical data of the Ukrainian IT market as well as answers the main question of why Ukraine is a desirable outsourcing partner to Western Europe and the USA even after the beginning of war.
Stats
The Ukrainian IT market occupies a significant position in the global IT market and annually shows a stable increase of 20-30%. Around 200 thousand Ukrainian software developers are currently engaged in the IT industry. All of these make Ukraine a popular IT outsourcing partner. What’s more, Ukraine is the 4th largest supplier of tech talent to the world along with the USA, Germany and Britain. The Stats of the Ukrainian IT sector is below.
According to the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine:
- the 1st position in Europe by the volume of IT services;
- the 1st position in CEE by the number of engineers;
- in the top 10 countries in software development and IT outsourcing;
- software outsourcing export reached $4.5B and continue increasing every year;
- around 200 thousand IT specialists, more than 4 thousand IT companies and the number is constantly growing;
- more than 400 institutions with IT specialities;
- more than 25 thousand IT graduates annually.
Ukraine Is a Good Strategic Choice for Long-Term IT Outsourcing
There are a lot of countries with a developed IT industry, therefore, you may wonder why it is worth choosing Ukraine. We have our answer to this question.
Ukrainian IT Talent Pool
There’s a huge pool of Ukrainian software development engineers and local IT companies. The number of Ukrainian developers is more than 200 thousand. With the growing popularity of the IT industry among young people, extensive growth is expected in 3-5 years. Ukrainian developers are highly qualified in different languages.
Many Ukrainian software development engineers work with multiple programming languages to fit this competitive industry.
Strong Technical Education
Graduates of Ukrainian universities of technology are highly qualified. The World Economic Forum named Ukraine one of the top 10 countries for engineering graduates. According to QS World University Rankings, Ukrainian universities of technology are among the top universities around the world. In 2020-2021, the number of applications for IT specialities is 20% more than 2 years ago. On average, the demand for IT specialities at universities is growing by almost 10% annually. It substantiates that Ukraine is home to educated tech talents.
Say “NO” to Language Barriers
In Ukraine, everybody has the opportunity to learn English. People start learning languages at school or even pre-school and continue during their uni-level education. Thus, about 50% of software development engineers have an intermediate level of English, while 40% speak English fluently as our statistics say.
Infinity Technologies gives its employees the opportunity to improve their level of English by inviting native speakers and conducting speaking clubs on a daily basis for our software development engineers.
Ukrainian VS Indian Developers for Outsourcing
Ukrainian IT companies aim to establish long-term relationships with their partners in Western Europe and the US. We share a similar work ethic, focus on integrity, high quality, self-initiative, and team spirit. Thus, it is easier to cooperate and avoid misunderstandings. Here we highlight some advantages of hiring Ukrainian software development engineers in comparison with Indian developers:
- Ukrainian developers work in the IT industry because they are interested in technology and tend to show higher involvement and commitment to their jobs, while Indian programmers join IT for the material incentives.
- Being interested in technology, Ukrainians are loyal to their employers and end clients, so overall employee turnover within the IT industry is quite low.
- Ukrainian developers are highly motivated to advance as professionals, while Indian developers simply perform their tasks without eagerness for professional advancement.
- Ukrainian developers are very responsible when it comes to their work. They often express opinion to different problems and offer solutions, while Indian developers show a comparative lack of initiative and commitment.
- To follow best practices and solutions, Ukrainian developers often have roles of team leads and architects within multinational development teams.
- Ukrainian labour laws are similar to most European countries and the timezone of cooperation is more convenient compared to India.
Cost-Effectiveness of IT Outsourcing
Ukrainian software development engineers are more affordable than western ones. It does not mean that professionals in Ukraine are less competent, it only refers to the cost of living VS salary expectations. Let’s compare the cost of living and salary in Ukraine to other countries.
| Country | Restaurants
(mid-range restaurant for 2 people) |
Transportation (monthly for 1 person) | Utilities
(monthly for 1 person) |
Rent (monthly, 1 bedroom apartment) | Total |
| Ukraine | $22.83 | $12.18 | $105.70 | $386.00 | $526.71 |
| The USA | $60.00 | $65.00 | $165.75 | $1331.38 | $1622.13 |
| Germany | $48.50 | $76.30 | $204.00 | $660.00 | $988.80 |
Comparing the cost of living in Ukraine with the two other countries, we establish that the cost of living in Ukraine is 67,5% lower than the USA and 46,7% lower than Germany.
Comparing the salaries of tech engineers, the rate of Ukrainian senior-level engineers may be equivalent to a mid-level West European developer. If you want a better estimation for your project and fewer hours to complete particular sprint tasks, senior developers will be the right choice. Infinity Technologies can provide you with information about the rates and offer free estimates.
Summing Up
Ukraine is one of the leaders in number and quality of East European software development engineers for hire. With stable growth of 20-30%, the Ukrainian IT industry attracts more and more young professionals who are ready to join this competitive sphere every year. There are a lot of benefits that make the Ukrainian IT market a good strategic choice for long-term IT outsourcing, such as the extensive IT talent pool, strong technical education of developers, absence of language barriers, cost-effectiveness, and similarity in work ethics with Western Europe and the US. Despite the war, Ukrainian IT vendors develop and implement business continuity plans to save the industry and economy of the whole country.
Infinity Technologies is a software development company, which delivers software solutions for SMEs and startups. Our core team of engineers has gained expertise in solving business needs for FinTech, Insurance, Logistics, E-commerce, Civil Safety, and EdTech industries. If you would like to learn more about software development in Ukraine and are interested in a long-term cooperative opportunity, contact our consultants.