How Long Does It Take to Hire Software Developers? In-House Timeline vs Staff Augmentation
In-house hiring takes a median of 39 calendar days to fill a nonexecutive role and 63.5 days on average, before notice periods of one to four weeks. Here is how that timeline compares with staff augmentation, what the wait costs, and how to test any vendor's speed claim.
How Long Does It Take to Hire a Software Developer In-House?
Longer than most roadmaps assume. SHRM's recruiting benchmarking data puts the median time to fill a nonexecutive position at 39 calendar days. The Employ hiring benchmarks, reported by HR Dive, put the average time to fill across its customers at 63.5 days in 2025, down from 67.7 days in 2024. Neither figure is specific to software engineering, so use them as reference points and compare them with your own applicant tracking data.
The gap between 39 and 63.5 days is worth understanding. A median describes the middle of a wide spread, while an average is pulled upward by roles that stay open for months. Definitions also differ between surveys, so check whether a figure stops at the accepted offer or runs to the first day of work before you plan a launch around it.
Engineering searches add their own friction: technical interview loops, take-home assignments and competing offers. We covered how that part of the process has changed in our piece on why technical hiring is broken in the AI era.
Key Takeaways
- Median time to fill a nonexecutive role: 39 calendar days (SHRM)
- Average time to fill across Employ customers: 63.5 days in 2025, 67.7 days in 2024
- Neither figure is specific to software engineering, so compare with your own data
What Does Notice Add After the Offer Is Accepted?
A candidate who is currently employed rarely starts the day after saying yes. In Germany, section 622 of the civil code sets a basic notice period of four weeks to the 15th or the end of a calendar month, and a contract can set a longer one. In the UK, GOV.UK states that an employee who has worked for a month must give at least one week of notice, and that the contract may require more.
Those are legal floors, not predictions. The number that matters is the notice clause in the contracts your likely candidates are leaving, and it is added on top of the time to fill.
How Long Does Staff Augmentation Take Instead?
Engineers can typically start within one to two weeks of first contact; a full team usually takes two to four weeks. These are two separate clocks: when the first engineers are working on your code, and when the whole team is in place. Buyers who need one or two senior engineers to unblock a roadmap have a different problem from buyers who need a team of five, so we quote the two numbers separately.
The commitments on your side are contractual. StepTo's staff augmentation starts from $4,500 per developer per month, with a 3-month minimum and weekly billing, and you scale down with 30 days notice. A two-week paid trial and free replacement within 30 days cover the case where the first match is not the right one. The full terms are on the staff augmentation page and the pricing page.
For what happens between the contract and the first sprint, see our guide to the nearshore ramp-up timeline and the first 30 days onboarding playbook.
In-House Hire vs Staff Augmentation: The Timeline Side by Side
The table below sets the sourced in-house benchmarks next to StepTo's own timings. The in-house column uses cross-industry figures, so the real comparison for your role depends on your market and your process.
| Stage | In-house hire | Staff augmentation with StepTo |
|---|---|---|
| Time to first person working on your code | Time to fill: 39 days median (SHRM) to 63.5 days average (Employ), plus notice | Typically within one to two weeks of first contact |
| Time to a full team | Repeat the search for each role | Usually two to four weeks |
| Notice before starting | Four weeks basic statutory notice in Germany, at least one week in the UK, longer if the contract says so | Not applicable on your side |
| Commitment | Permanent employment | 3-month minimum, weekly billing, 30 days notice |
| If the fit is wrong | Restart the search, often after a probation period | Two-week paid trial, free replacement within 30 days |
What Does Waiting Cost You?
An empty seat has a price even before the roadmap slips. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports median pay of $135,980 for software developers (May 2025). Spread over 365 days, that is about $373 of salary per calendar day. At the 39-day median fill time, that is about $14,500 of salary-equivalent capacity not yet working for you. At 63.5 days it is about $23,700.
These are illustrative, salary-only figures. Stack Overflow's guide to the cost of vacancy divides salary by 260 working days; we use calendar days here because the time-to-fill figures above are calendar days. The calculation leaves out benefits, recruiter fees, delayed delivery and the extra load on the people who stay, so treat it as the price of the capacity you are waiting for, not the full cost of the delay.
For comparison, a staff augmentation engagement from $4,500 per developer per month with a 3-month minimum is a minimum commitment of $13,500 per developer over the first three months. The salary figure above is a US benchmark, so the point of the comparison is timing, not a like-for-like price. For a cost comparison, see dedicated team vs in-house.
When Is Hiring In-House Still the Right Call?
When you expect to need the person for years and the role owns part of your architecture or product direction. Staff augmentation is a capacity decision, and it does not replace the people who carry your long-term knowledge.
Many teams do both: external engineers start on the roadmap now, while the in-house search for the core role runs in parallel. That keeps the delivery date from depending on how long a single hire takes. If you are weighing the models, our in-house developer vs software agency comparison covers the cost side.
How Do You Test Any Vendor's Speed Claim?
Every outsourcing vendor claims to be fast, so ask five questions and get the answers in writing.
First, what does the clock start and stop on? A claim measured from signed contract to first day is not the same as one measured from first contact. Second, is the figure for one engineer or a full team? Third, what is the minimum commitment, the billing cadence and the notice period? Fourth, is there a paid trial on real work? Fifth, what happens if the first person is not the right fit, and who pays for the replacement?
Our own answers: Engineers can typically start within one to two weeks of first contact; a full team usually takes two to four weeks. Staff augmentation has a 3-month minimum, weekly billing and 30 days notice. There is a two-week paid trial, and replacement within 30 days is free. If any vendor cannot answer the five questions as plainly, treat the speed claim as marketing.
Key Takeaways
- Ask what the clock starts and stops on
- Ask whether the figure is for one engineer or a full team
- Get the minimum commitment, billing cadence and notice period in writing
- Ask for a paid trial on real work
- Ask who pays for a replacement if the fit is wrong
Which Clock Matters for Your Open Role?
Hiring in-house and adding capacity through a partner answer different questions. If the question is who should own your product for the next five years, take the time the search needs. If it is who can start on the roadmap this month, compare the two clocks above and ask every vendor to commit to theirs in writing. Tell us the role and the stack on our contact page and we will say how quickly engineers can start.
Building a team in Eastern Europe?
StepTo builds dedicated nearshore engineering teams in Belgrade, Serbia. Engineers start in 2-4 weeks, with a two-week paid trial and from $4,500 per developer per month.
