ReactJS has become one of the most popular JavaScript libraries for building user interfaces. Originally created by Facebook, React allows developers to build reusable UI components and manage complex state changes across large applications. Many major companies like Netflix, Airbnb, and Dropbox use React extensively in their tech stacks.

With the rising popularity of ReactJS, there is also a growing demand for hiring React developers. Companies now have the option to hire for these roles either locally or from a remote talent pool. Both hiring approaches have their own costs and other factors to consider.

In this blog, we'll break down a cost comparison between local and remote ReactJS hiring. 

Local Hiring Costs

Hiring cost of React developers locally means restricting your candidate search to those in your city or metro area. Some costs associated with local hiring include:

Salary and Benefits: As of 2022, the average salary for a React developer in the United States is $110,000. When you factor in health insurance contributions, payroll taxes, retirement benefits and other perks, the total compensation cost likely ranges from $130,000-$150,000. Location will impact salary, with tech hub cities like San Francisco requiring higher pay.

Office Space: If hiring locally, you need office space to house your new developers. Average yearly rent per employee in the US ranges from $10,000-$20,000 depending on location. Don't forget to account for associated utility and facility costs.

Recruitment: Hiring through local recruiters or staffing agencies comes with placement fees. These average 15-20% of the employee's annual salary

Training: Even experienced React developers need ramp-up time to learn your tech stack and internal processes. Local new hires may require several weeks of training, reducing initial productivity. The cost here relates to the trainers' time.

Remote Hiring Costs

By contrast, remote hiring opens up a global pool of React talent. Cost considerations include:

Salary and Benefits: Average salaries for remote US-based React developers are comparable to local figures. But you can access talent in lower cost-of-living areas and regions. Eastern Europe, certain parts of Asia, and South America offer abundant talent pools with salary expectations 20-50% lower than major US metros.

Remote Work Tools: Instead of office space, remote teams require collaboration software and tools like Zoom, Slack, Miro and Asana. These have monthly per user costs but pale in comparison to real estate overhead.

Communication: With remote employees, expect higher phone and internet costs. But many companies cover at least a portion of these expenses.

So in pure cost terms, remote hiring clearly offers potential savings, especially if you source talent globally. But direct salary and operations costs don't tell the whole story. Let's move beyond the balance sheet to explore some of the other factors you should consider.

Beyond Cost: Factors to Consider

Talent Pool

Hiring locally gives you access to React developers in your city or metro region. This could be a great fit if your goal is to hire graduates from target schools and universities. However, you're limited to the quantity and diversity of talent within daily commuting distance.

Opening up remote hiring means you can source candidates across the country or globe. The enhanced reach is a major benefit - instead of drawing from a local pool of a few thousand mid-to-senior level React experts, you have access to a much larger group.

Remote hiring widens the funnel, giving you more choice to find developers with the right skills, culture fit and salary expectations. It also allows you to create distributed teams with diverse perspectives.

Team Culture and Collaboration

Will remote developers mesh well with your current local team? This concern may hold some companies back from remote hiring, but culture can be nurtured remotely with intention and the right practices.

  • Scheduling regular video calls for socializing and team building activities helps remote workers feel connected and engaged.
  • Be thoughtful about documentation and knowledge sharing practices on tools like Confluence and Notion so that distributed team members have equal access to information.
  • If some of your staff work from the same office, take care not to leave remote folks out of chats and conversations.
  • Annual or semi-annual offsites can foster in-person team bonding.

There's no doubt that colocated teams often collaborate most seamlessly. For companies used to having everyone in the same space, distributed teams require new processes and communication norms. But with the right effort and inclusion practices, you can develop a cohesive cross-functional team that incorporates both local and remote members.

Productivity and Performance

Will remote employees exhibit the same level of productivity as your current local team? Studies show that most knowledge workers are equally or more productive in remote or hybrid arrangements. GitHub's recent Global Productivity Report found that over 65% of developers were more productive working remotely.

With no lengthy commutes or office distractions, your remote React developers can focus deeply during their working hours. But to reap these productivity gains, you need to provide the right structure and support:

  • Have a clearly documented onboarding process so new hires ramp up smoothly.
  • Set expectations for working hours and availability. Be as flexible as your project timelines allow.
  • Implement performance tracking and objectives tailored for remote work.
  • Maintain open communication channels and provide feedback frequently.
  • Don't micromanage. Empower your remote developers to deliver results.

Approaching performance management deliberately and transparently will ensure your remote ReactJS hires work productively.

Making the Right Choice: Local vs. Remote

Let's summarize the key points from our React developers hiring costs comparison and evaluation of additional factors:

  • Costs: Remote hiring has potential savings, especially if you access talent in lower salary regions. No office space overhead.
  • Talent Pool: Increased choice and access to specialized React skills. More diversity.
  • Culture: Remote culture needs intention but can supplement local teams.
  • Productivity: Remote developers can deliver equal or higher productivity with right support.

Weighing all of these considerations will point you towards the right decision for your particular company's needs:

  • Early stage startups may benefit most from local hiring to build core culture fast.
  • Companies with existing distributed teams can easily integrate additional remote React devs.
  • Large enterprises with specialized needs may value accessing global talent over cost savings.
  • Teams building bleeding-edge React apps need world-class expertise that remote enables.

There is no universal best choice between local and remote hiring. Depending on your priorities—cost, talent, productivity or culture fit—either can be a winning strategy.

Often a blended approach works well. Having a mix of local and remote developers combines the perks of in-person collaboration and expanded talent access.

The key is aligning your hiring approach with clear business goals and being thoughtful about optimizing for remote success if you do decide to source ReactJS roles remotely.

Conclusion

Hiring both locally and remotely have their merits when it comes to filling React developer roles. There is no straight cost winner—while remote salaries may be lower, reduced productivity could erase those gains. The more strategic decision depends on your company's unique priorities and circumstances.

With the right practices, remote teams can deliver amazing results on par with co-located colleagues. But cultivating an inclusive culture takes effort. Before embarking on remote-first hiring, be honest about which modes of work and collaboration your leadership and existing employees will embrace.

Striking the ideal local versus remote balance hinges on self-awareness and implementing remote best practices. With some careful forethought, companies can build high-performing distributed or hybrid teams to take advantage of ReactJS's incredible power.