Free tool
Cost to hire a software developer calculator
One US software developer costs about $211,571 a year to employ: the BLS mean wage of $148,100 (May 2025) divided by 0.70, because wages were 70.0% of private-industry employer cost in June 2026. That is about $101.71 an hour. Pick a state or metro, the role, team size and months to see your figure.
Example: 1 software developer, 12 months, US
BLS mean annual wage used: $148,100 ($71.20 an hour) for software developers in the United States. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, checked October 31, 2026. Benefits ratio: BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026.
Recruiting time and fees are not included: we found no primary source for a developer time-to-hire or recruiting cost figure, so we leave it out rather than guess.
Building in the United States? See our app development page for the US →
Written scope and quote after the call. NDA on request. You own the code.
In-house developer vs agency cost
This calculator prices only an employee. It does not price an outside team, because aibrevo quotes software work per project, in writing, after a free 30-minute call, and we publish no rate card. To size a project instead of a payroll, run your app through the app development cost calculator, which turns team hours, weeks and published hourly bands into a cost range. The rates and wages behind both tools are laid out in our app development cost 2026 research.
The fair comparison is hourly. An employee's loaded hourly cost from this tool covers wages and benefits only, and you pay it through every week, busy or quiet. An outside team bills the hours a project needs, and its rate also covers recruiting, equipment, management and the gaps between projects. Clutch's custom software pricing page (updated Sep 21, 2026, checked October 31, 2026) lists $50 to $99 an hour as a common US band.
How the calculator works
Three formulas, all from published BLS figures, so you can check every number on a calculator of your own:
- Salary cost for the period = BLS mean annual wage x developers x months / 12. The wage is the May 2025 mean for the place and role you picked.
- Loaded employer cost = salary cost / 0.70. BLS reports that in June 2026 private-industry employers paid $46.89 per hour worked in total compensation, of which wages were $32.82, or 70.0%, and benefits $14.07, or 30.0% (Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026, released Sep 9, 2026).
- Loaded hourly cost = BLS mean hourly wage / 0.70, per developer. BLS annual figures assume a full-time, year-round schedule of 2,080 hours (OEWS FAQ), so the hourly and annual figures agree.
Example: one software developer in the United States for 12 months is $148,100 in salary and $211,571 loaded, or $101.71 an hour. One web developer nationally is $98,770 in salary and $141,100 loaded. For every state side by side, see our software developer salary by state 2026 research.
Limits of these numbers
- Employees only. The OEWS survey covers wage and salary workers and "does not include the self-employed, owners and partners in unincorporated firms" (BLS OEWS overview). Freelancer and contractor rates are not in these wages.
- Means, not medians. A mean is pulled up by a few high salaries. Nationally the software developer median was $135,980 in May 2025, against a $148,100 mean, so a typical hire can cost less than this tool shows.
- An all-industry benefits ratio. The 70.0% wage share covers all private industry. Tech employers with richer benefits or equity pay more on top; this tool does not model equity.
- Gaps in the data. BLS does not release every wage. When a metro or state has no figure for the role, the calculator uses the state, then the US figure, and says so under the result.
- Not included: recruiting, onboarding time, equipment, software licences, office space and management time.
If you are weighing a hire against a build partner, our custom software development page explains how a scoped project works, and the app development company hub has a page for every state and metro in this calculator.
Developer hiring cost questions
How much does it cost to hire a software developer in the US?
The mean US software developer wage was $148,100 a year in May 2025, per BLS. Add benefits at the June 2026 private-industry ratio, where wages were 70.0% of employer cost, and one developer costs about $211,571 a year, or about $101.71 an hour. Recruiting, equipment and software licences come on top of that.
What is the fully loaded cost of a software developer?
It is the wage plus everything the employer pays on top: paid leave, insurance, retirement contributions and legally required payroll costs. BLS found wages were 70.0% of private-industry compensation in June 2026, so the loaded cost is roughly the wage divided by 0.70, about 1.43 times salary. It is an all-industry ratio, so treat it as an approximation for tech roles.
Which states and cities pay software developers the most?
On BLS May 2025 data, the highest state means are California ($186,770), Washington ($171,040) and New York ($163,820). The lowest is Mississippi at $99,840. Among the 35 metros in this calculator, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara is highest at $221,710, about $316,700 a year once benefits are added at the 70.0% wage share.
Is an in-house developer cheaper than an agency?
Compare hourly figures. A US software developer at the BLS mean costs about $101.71 an hour with benefits, before recruiting, equipment and management time. Clutch's custom software pricing page lists $50 to $99 an hour as a common US agency band. An agency bills only the project hours; an employee is paid through slow weeks too.
Does this calculator include recruiting fees or time to hire?
No. We did not find a primary government source for developer time-to-hire or recruiting cost, so the calculator leaves both out rather than guess. It also leaves out equipment, software licences, office space, management time and the weeks before a new hire is productive. Add your own figures for those if you have them.
Why does the calculator use mean wages instead of medians?
BLS publishes a mean annual wage for every state and metro in this tool, and a mean multiplies cleanly into a budget for several people. The median is usually lower: nationally it was $135,980 for software developers in May 2025, against a $148,100 mean, because a few very high salaries pull the mean up.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: mean annual and hourly wages for software developers and web developers, national, state and metro files. Checked October 31, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026: wages 70.0% of private-industry total compensation. Released Sep 9, 2026, checked October 31, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS overview (survey scope) and OEWS FAQ (2,080-hour year). Checked Nov 1, 2026.
- Clutch, custom software development pricing, updated Sep 21, 2026. Checked October 31, 2026.
Compare the hire with a written project quote
Bring your figure to a free 30-minute call. We scope the first version with you and send a written quote with the team, weeks and rate visible, so you can set it against this payroll number.
Written scope and quote after the call. NDA on request. You own the code.
