I used to be able to source high-quality developers for small front-end projects from Upwork.
Simple things like build a custom page in Shopify that we already have designs for in a Figma file. I would pay above market rates to get the best talent.
The last 5-10 projects I’ve tried hiring freelance developers for have been total failures. I’m talking about “Top Rated Plus” developers unable to build a simple page with no interactive elements within a week, and quitting because they can’t figure out how to finish the project.
Does anyone here have any suggestions for good developer marketplaces? I’ve learned after this current project that I’m done with Upwork, because even filtering for devs who have billed 1,000+ hours, are top rated and based in the US and they’re still totally incompetent. It’s truly strange.
FWIW I would never, ever, consider a job for less than 120/hr. I work with people who get paid around my level, and some of them I consider to be … not very great. Meaning, even a shit developer is making 10G a month right now working from home and taking a few naps a day.
From what I can see as well, remote is the new norm in dev. In my company (I work with a consulting group), they have staffed up with like 50% remote talent – integrated into the team. So I’m sure those folks are making like … lets say even 50/hr. They are not amazing good as well.
So, if someone is slinging front pages on upwork right now … I mean. They will be reaaaal bad. Since remote is now the norm, and you cant steal a persons job that is making 200K a year, by low balling 50K a year lets say, then you are not even 1/4 as good as them.
So those people go work on upwork I guess?