Nearshore vs Offshore

Acquiring professional, innovative software developers can be a daunting task. Whenever a company or individual starts developing software or an online product, they might investigate various hiring methods for competent talent. Both Microsoft and Google participate heavily in outsourcing their developer needs, but they are far from the only ones.

In fact, according to Business Insider, most US companies will be outsourcing their remote jobs in the next 3 years as a way to access a large pool of workers or cut costs.

When it comes to outsourcing software development, companies decide between nearshore vs offshore options, considering factors such as cost and time zone differences. According to Forbes, 83% of IT services seek to outsource their cyber tech solutions to freelance software developers due to the many benefits of outsourcing.

Although there are many outsourcing methods, the most common are nearshore and offshore destinations for outsourcing. Before you make a decision, you'll need to understand the definitions for each.

What is Offshore Outsourcing?

Offshore development typically refers to a system where the development group is far enough away such that their work day does not overlap much with the headquarters where the project originated. So an example would be a tech team in San Francisco working with a team of developers in India or Poland.

What is Nearshore Outsourcing?

Nearshore development typically refers to using a team outside of a company's headquartered country, but one that is close enough geographically so that there is significant working hour overlap with the HQ team. For example, a team in London working with a team in Poland could be considered nearshore. Similarly, a team in San Francisco working with a team in Argentina to improve their DevOps monitoring could also be considered a form of nearshore outsourcing. However, a team in London working with a team in Argentina would not be considered nearshore because the time zones have too little overlap.

In this article, we'll delve deeper into offshore vs nearshore outsourcing options, why most companies prefer developer outsourcing, and the pros and cons. Ultimately, you'll be well informed to make the right decision for yourself or your company.