Hire a developer or hire developers? Monthly cost compared
Your own developer, hired developers or an outside development team on a monthly partnership: monthly cost compared with Croatian salary data and €40-60/h.
When a company needs software that keeps growing, the question is who builds it: your own employee, developers you hire by the hour, or an outside development team that takes on the whole job. The answer depends on one number most companies never work out - how many hours of development you really need each month.
Quick answer
- Your own developer pays off when there is full-time work, permanently, and someone in the company knows how to lead development.
- Hired developers fit when you have your own team or lead but lack hands for a deadline, a project or a skill you do not need full time.
- A monthly partnership with an outside team fits companies without developers: the team takes over maintenance and development, and you set priorities.
- The average gross salary in Croatia’s computer programming sector costs the employer about €3,573 a month (Croatian Bureau of Statistics, Q1 2026), before equipment, hiring and management.
- Our development rate is €40-60 per hour excluding VAT, so that amount equals roughly 60-90 hours of outside work a month.
The three models at a glance
| Own developer | Hired developers | Monthly partnership | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who leads the work | You | You | The outside team, on your priorities |
| How you pay | Salary, every month | Hourly or a full month | A fixed monthly amount for an agreed scope |
| When it fits | Permanent full-time need | Deadline, replacement, special skill | The software runs and needs ongoing upkeep and development |
| Risk | The only person who knows the system leaves | You need someone to assign and review work | You depend on the partner, so secure code handover in the contract |
How our developers work inside your team is described on the hire developers page; the model in which we lead development is on the software maintenance and development page.
What your own developer costs per month
The Croatian Bureau of Statistics (DZS) publishes average salaries by sector. In Q1 2026 the average monthly gross salary in “Telecommunications, computer programming, consultancy, computing infrastructure and other information service activities” was €3,067, and the net salary €2,094 (DZS, RAD-2026-1-5/1).
On top of gross salary the employer pays a 16.5 % health insurance contribution (Croatian Tax Administration). An average employee in that sector therefore costs the company about €3,573 a month, or about €42,900 a year - and that is salary only. Add a computer and licences, time to hire and onboard, holidays and sick leave, and the time of whoever assigns and reviews the work. Experienced developers usually earn more than the sector average, and one developer does not cover every role: design, testing, servers and security.
Monthly comparison: a worked example
Your own employee costs the same whether there is work or not. Outside work is paid by actual hours. At our rate of €40-60 the numbers look like this:
| Development hours needed per month | Outside work (€40-60/h) | Own developer (sector average, salary only) |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | €800 - €1,200 | about €3,573 |
| 40 | €1,600 - €2,400 | about €3,573 |
| 80 | €3,200 - €4,800 | about €3,573 |
| 160 (full time) | €6,400 - €9,600 | about €3,573 |
To be honest: if you permanently need a full-time developer and know how to lead one, hiring is cheaper. Below roughly 60-90 hours a month outside work is cheaper, and you do not carry the risk of a month with no work or of the only person who knows the system leaving.
When each model pays off
- Occasional changes and small jobs: hourly work. You pay only for what was done.
- Software the business depends on, and no developers: a monthly partnership. Someone watches the system, updates it and keeps developing it, with response times in the contract.
- You have a lead or team but not enough people: hired developers, hourly or for a full month.
- Software is your product and there is work for a whole team: build your own team. An outside partner can still cover niche skills or bridge the months until you hire.
A mix is common too: one in-house developer or lead who knows the business, plus an outside team for larger work. Agree in writing who decides on architecture, or the system drifts quickly.
Common mistakes
Hiring juniors without a more experienced lead builds technical debt faster than results. Choosing on hourly rate alone often ends in rework - one of the classic digitalization mistakes. Without documentation and code in your own repository, every change of supplier or employee becomes painful. How to prevent that is covered in who owns the custom software you paid for.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to hire a developer in Croatia? The average gross salary in computer programming and related services in Q1 2026 was €3,067 (DZS). With the 16.5 % health insurance contribution the employer pays about €3,573 a month, before equipment, hiring and management. Experienced developers are usually above the average.
What does hiring developers from an agency mean? An outside developer works in your team, in your tools and on your priorities, paid hourly or for a full month. You lead the work; the supplier stands behind quality and replacement. Our rate is €40-60 per hour excluding VAT, depending on experience and the kind of work.
What is the difference between hired developers and an outside development team? With hired developers you lead development and the developer is an extra person in your team. In a monthly partnership the outside team leads development, maintains the system and is accountable for response times, while you set priorities. The second model suits companies with nobody to lead developers.
What if the outside partner leaves? Code, data, accounts and documentation should be yours from day one, with a contractual obligation to hand over in an orderly way. The 12 questions for choosing a development agency help you check this before signing.
Can we move to our own team later? Yes. A common path is that the outside team builds and maintains the system, and once there is full-time work you hire your own people, who take it over with a knowledge handover.
Related Articles
- How to choose a development agency - the 12 questions that reveal a real partner.
- Freelancer vs small team for custom software - when one person is enough and when you need a team.
- Custom software cost in Croatia - price ranges and hourly rates.
Deciding who will build your software?
In a free first call we estimate how many development hours you really need and tell you honestly whether to hire, bring in developers or leave development to us. All ways of working together and the hourly rate are on the engagement models page; reach us at info@tsunami-digital.com or via the form on our homepage.