“The world of crypto is full of technical jargon that can confuse even the savviest technology ninja. Bitcoin introduced the concept of crypto economics and paved the way for the creation of many blockchain platforms.”
Blockchain technology has been gaining momentum in recent years due to its potential to revolutionize various industries. As a result, the demand for skilled blockchain developers has increased significantly. Many companies are turning to freelance blockchain developers to tap into this talent pool and harness the benefits of blockchain technology.
In this article, we will explain you how to hire a blockchain developer and discuss the benefits of hiring freelance experts, the skills to look for when hiring them, and the challenges that may arise during the hiring process. We will also provide a list of top talent platforms to hire from as well as tips on how to effectively manage freelance blockchain developers and ensure a successful collaboration.
| Freelance Platform | Trustpilot score | Key point | Vetting | Guarantee | Talent status | Rate & Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toptal | 4.8 | High-profile clients | Top 3% Talent. Rigorous Vetting | Pay only if satisfied | Freelancers | Yes |
| 2 | X-Team | 4.8 | High-performing, on-demand teams of developers | Yes | N/A | Freelancers | Yes |
| 3 | Arc.dev | 4.0 | All-in-One Remote Hiring Solution | Yes | Risk-free Guarantee | Freelancers | Yes |
What is blockchain development?
Simply explained, a blockchain is like a decentralized digital ledger that saves transactions on thousands of computers around the world. These are registered in a way that inhibits their subsequent modification.
A key advantage of Blockchain technology is that it increases security and speeds up the exchange of information in a way that is cost-effective and more transparent for both the buyer and seller. Blockchain also dispenses with third parties whose main role was to provide a trust and certification element in transactions (such as notaries and banks).
The Blockchain market size is projected to grow from USD 4.9 billion in 2021 to USD 67.4 billion by 2026, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 68.4% during the forecast period.
Some of the major driving factors contributing to the high growth rate of the blockchain market include:
- Increasing venture capital fundings and investment in blockchain technology
- Extensive use of blockchain solutions in banking and cybersecurity
- High adoption of blockchain solutions for payment, smart contracts, and digital identities
- Rising government initiatives
Benefits of adopting blockchain for your business:
- It is an immutable public digital ledger. What this means is when a transaction is recorded, it cannot be modified.
- The encryption feature ensures that Blockchain is always secure.
- The transactions are done instantly and transparently, as the ledger is updated automatically.
- As it is a decentralized system, no intermediary fee is required.
- The authenticity of a transaction is verified and confirmed by participants.
Companies that use blockchain
As of today, 81 of the world’s top 100 public companies by market capitalization use blockchain technology, with 27 of them having a fully functioning live product, according to blockchain research firm Blockdata.
Of the 81 companies, 65 are actively developing blockchain solutions, while 16 are still in the research phase. A few companies with live blockchain operations include:
- Microsoft
- Amazon
- Tencent
- Nvidia
- J.P. Morgan
- Walmart
- Alibaba
- PayPal
- Samsung
- The Bank of China
Advantages and challenges of blockchain development for businesses
Here are some advantages of blockchain development for businesses.
- Blockchain helps build trust between different entities where trust is either nonexistent or unproven.
- Blockchain makes it easy to share data within an ecosystem of businesses where no one entity is exclusively in charge.
- The high security of blockchain-enabled systems is one of the leading benefits of this upcoming technology.
- Blockchain's nature creates efficiencies in processing transactions and can also cut costs for organizations.
Here are some challenges of blockchain development for businesses.
- The capacity to handle a large number of users at a single time is still a challenge for the blockchain industry.
- Blockchain also lacks a set of regulatory oversight making it a flammable environment and an easy target for market manipulation.
- Blockchain technology and the complexities it involves often make it hard for a layperson to understand its benefits.
- Blockchain is an open ledger that is visible for everyone to view. While that is a boon in many cases, it can also become a liability if used in a sensitive environment.
What does a blockchain developer do?
A blockchain developer is someone who builds applications based on blockchain architecture and protocol. Their apps run on the blockchain too. For a better understanding, you can compare them with web developers, who use the systems and products of a web developer (protocol and design) to develop strong web applications.
Are blockchain developers in high demand?
Today, Blockchain is one of the fastest-growing skill sets with jobs in this domain growing at a mind-blowing rate of 2,000-6,000% and the salaries of Blockchain Developers being 50-100% higher than conventional developer jobs. While the employment opportunities in Blockchain are many, there aren’t as many blockchain developers which increases their demand.
How do you hire a blockchain developer?
When thinking about hiring, the safest option is to go to the best sites to hire blockchain developers. These sites select the best candidates and this gives you a solid foundation to start your hiring process. If you're looking to launch a successful ICO, IDO, IEO for example, you will need to hire an experienced programmer that will also understand your project specific needs and help you identify the correct platform you need in order to achieve your goals.
Hire the best freelance blockchain developers and programmers
Here, you have to think about what kind of hire you are looking for. Some of the most common types are full-time, part-time or freelance. Freelance is a really interesting option because it gives you the flexibility to test a candidate and move quickly if there isn’t a good fit.
Why hire a blockchain developer?
Here are some benefits of hiring a freelance blockchain developer:
- You can hire them for a specific project and then decide if you want to keep them for longer or not.
- The best sites to hire blockchain developers only have candidates that are thoroughly vetted and have a strong portfolio.
- You can hire someone who has a portfolio that’s close to what your business offers. This can help you gain their expertise along with skills.
| What is blockchain development used for? | Creation of decentralized applications (dApps) and platforms using distributed ledger technology. |
| Advantages | Increased transparency, speed and efficiency Reduce risk of fraud, costs |
| Disadvantages | Decentralization, Scalability, Security |
| Related programming languages | Solidity, JavaScript, Python, Go, C++, and Java. |
| Average hourly rate | $30 to $200 per hour, depending on factors such as skill lever, experience, location and complexity of the project. |
| Where to hire? | To hire blockchain developers, explore options such as freelance marketplaces, job boards, online communities and forums focused on blockchain technology, professional networking sites, and industry-specific job portals dedicated to the tech sector. |
Blockchain developer salary. How much does it cost to hire a blockchain developer?
The average blockchain developer salary in the USA is $145,000 per year or $74.36 per hour. Entry-level positions start at $121,875 per year while most experienced workers make up to $185,250 per year.
What skills/requirements to look for when hiring a blockchain developer
Some of the key skills/requirements to look for before hiring a blockchain developer include:
- Strong knowledge of blockchain technologies.
- Previous experience dealing with large codebases.
- Thorough understanding of P2P networks and basic cryptography.
- Strong involvement in the global blockchain community.
- Thorough knowledge of the Qt Widgets module.
Where to hire blockchain developers?
When it comes time to hire a blockchain developer, there are a few things you should understand before plunging into the search. To start, blockchain technology is fairly new, and has only recently risen to mainstream popularity. Thus, developers experienced in blockchain development may be few and far between.
However, many software developers with backgrounds in other programming languages are investigating careers as blockchain engineers.
Popular technologies used in blockchain applications that will provide a solid foundation for blockchain development:
- Distributed ledger technology (DLT)
- Solidity
- Javascript (foundation of Ethereum)
- C++
- Ruby
- Python
If you want to attract high-quality blockchain developers with years of experience, you'll need to offer a suitably lucrative position. That doesn't just mean paying them a lot, though you should expect working with experienced blockchain developers to be more expensive than usual.Blockchain developers are usually passionate about what they do, and may be strong believers in decentralization. A tightly structured, corporate development team may not be what they're looking for. Businesses with transparent, goal-oriented, passion-driven development processes, who seek to revolutionize the industry rather than go with the flow, are more likely to pique a blockchain engineer's interest. If your work presents little challenge, you're not going to generate much interest from the experts.
Due to its novelty, it's extremely difficult to find blockchain devs with traditional recruitment methods. Be prepared to go outside your comfort zone and use websites that aren't entirely professional, such as forums and message boards.
Reddit, Github, and Gitter, while they come with no quality guarantee and aren't populated strictly by job-searchers, are nonetheless good places to find talented blockchain freelancers. However, it's important not to come off like a faceless solicitor. Don't copy and paste your job description into their messages. Make it personal; explain what you do, why you want them to work for your company, and why you think they might be a good fit.
Blockchain-specific job posting boards, such as Blocktribe, DREAM, and Bounty One, are also great places to begin. And it's certainly possible to find senior developers on websites like Toptal, CodementorX, and We Work Remotely. Though few currently have blockchain developers in their roster, the ones that do are worth trying.
Blockchain is a unique invention, surrounded by very much a unique culture. If you're ready to bring blockchain to your company, you should be flexible, willing to try new things, and tackle big challenges.
Ultimately, which sites you employ depends on a multitude of factors, such as:
- How quickly you need to hire a blockchain developer (i.e. your timeline)
- How much experience you have hiring front-end, back-end, and full-stack developers
- Whether or not you're equipped to test technical skills and programming capabilities
- How many coders you need to bring onto your development team
- How many years of experience those developers need
- Whether or not you're open to remote workers
- What your budget constraints are
- What types of projects your project manager can handle
Hiring Blockchain developers - FAQ
- What happens if a blockchain is hacked?
- A blockchain is pretty ironclad. However, only one crucial exception exists to a blockchain network’s security failure, and it's called the 51% attack. Malicious actors and attackers will need to get control of at least 51% of the blockchain's ownership to ‘hack’ it. Simply put, the party that owns 51% of the blockchain is the majority owner, so what they say goes. Having said that, the reality is that it is extremely difficult to execute a 51% attack. To begin with, owning 51% of any major blockchain assets is supremely expensive. The threat of a Sybil attack can also be ruled out, as this would need people to create numerous fraudulent identities and accounts. But since 51% of the ownership cannot be divided, this attack strategy will not work.
- What are the limits of blockchain?
- The biggest downside to a blockchain is the fact not many people know the true value of blockchain and its versatility to implement it in different situations. The other downside is that we cannot make any changes or modifications to any of the records in smart contracts. Lastly, the difficulty of finding experienced developers is a hindrance to developing anything on the blockchain.
- What applications use blockchain?
- While blockchain has primarily found applications in the domain of cryptocurrency, it has swiftly since grown to be widely touted for its potential to transform entire industries. Recent applications include Banco Santander’s blockchain-based money transfer service known as “Santander One Pay FX”. Smart Contracts is one of the greatest blockchain applications in the field of insurance with networks like openIDL, which are built on the IBM Blockchain Platform with the American Association of Insurance Services. Similarly, blockchain has several applications in the field of Supply Chain Management, Healthcare, Real Estate, Media, and Energy.