Hire offshore developers who work only on your product

For Australian businesses that want to hire offshore developers: a Philippines-based software developer who builds features, fixes bugs and maintains your web apps and integrations in your own codebase, hired and paid directly by you.

Recruitment fee
$5,000 once, excl. GST
Monthly markup
$0
Shortlist
3–4 in about 2 weeks
Replacement cover
6 months

What they take off your plate

  1. Build and ship features from your tickets and specifications
  2. Fix bugs and handle maintenance on your web apps and websites
  3. Build and maintain integrations and APIs between your systems
  4. Write tests and review pull requests within your team's process
  5. Maintain WordPress, Shopify or custom sites and their plugins
  6. Automate internal workflows and reporting
  7. Document code, setups and deployment steps
  8. Join stand-ups and estimate work in your project tool
An offshore hire working at her own desk, the laptop drawn in lime ink

Typical salary: $2,300 per month, paid by you directly.Source: Tarino’s typical salary for the role, October 2026.

Software we screen for

  • GitHub
  • JavaScript and TypeScript
  • React
  • Node.js
  • PHP and WordPress
  • Python
  • Jira

What an offshore software developer delivers each week

A dedicated developer works your backlog the way an in-house hire would:

  • Feature work: build from tickets and specifications, with pull requests your team reviews.
  • Maintenance: fix bugs, update dependencies and keep sites and apps healthy.
  • Integrations: connect your CRM, accounting, booking and marketing tools, and automate repetitive reporting.
  • Documentation: record setups, deployment steps and decisions so knowledge stays with your business.

Offshore software development with one developer on your codebase

Agencies that sell offshore software development usually rotate developers across clients. Hiring your own developer means one person who learns your product, works in your tools and answers to your team. You keep architecture decisions, code review standards and production access controls.

How we test software developers

Each search typically starts with 1,000+ candidates from job advertising, direct headhunting and referrals through vetted local networks in the Philippines. Of that starting pool, about 40% pass CV and quality screening, 20% the video screen, 10% the practical assessment and 5% the structured interview. Around 2% reach finalist review, and you receive a shortlist of 3–4, usually within about 2 weeks.

The practical assessment is a task in your stack. In interviews, ask a finalist to walk through their solution: look for clear reasoning, sensible tests and honesty about what they would change with more time.

What an agency charges for the same developer

Managed providers charge an ongoing rate per developer. Virtual Coworker, for example, publishes rates from A$20 an hour for a mobile app developer (checked October 2026). With Tarino you pay a one-time fee and your developer keeps their full salary because you pay them directly. See how our pricing works.

Getting a developer productive in the first month

Give them access to a staging environment first, a short list of well-defined tickets, and a named reviewer on your side. Grant production access only once they have shipped reliably. Our offshore staff security checklist covers access, devices and offboarding. Read how the hiring process works.

How we screen for this role

  1. 01

    Candidate pool

    Applicants, headhunted candidates and referrals from vetted local networks build a pool of 1,000+ per role.

    100%1,000+ people
  2. 02

    CV + quality screening

    Experience, stability, written communication, responsiveness and attention to detail.

    40%about 400 of 1,000
  3. 03

    Video screening

    Communication ability, professionalism and personality.

    20%about 200 of 1,000
  4. 04

    Practical assessment

    Role-specific tasks test real capability and quality of work.

    10%about 100 of 1,000
  5. 05

    Structured interview

    Judgement, ownership, communication, problem-solving and independent operation.

    5%about 50 of 1,000
  6. 06

    Finalist review

    The strongest candidates are reviewed across every assessment stage.

    2%about 20 of 1,000

  7. Your shortlist

    3–4 finalists with scorecards, practical-task results and independent reference checks, in about two weeks.

    3–4people you meet

What a software developer really costs, three ways.

Pick a role. We compare the full cost of the same role three ways: a local hire in Australia, an offshore hire through a managed agency, and an offshore hire made directly with Tarino.

Over

Typical salary $2,300 a month, paid to your hire either way.

Total cost over 2 years, excl. GST

Local hire in Australia$324,800

$290,000 typical salary + 12% super

Offshore, managed agency$82,776

$55,200 salary + $27,576 agency fees

Offshore, hired directly with Tarino$60,200

$55,200 salary + $5,000 one-time fee

You keepvs a managed agency

$22,57627%

vs a local hire, you keep $264,600

Sources and method

Agency: Staff Domain's published rate, $1,099/month + $1,200 per hire, split across the month 3 and 4 invoices, checked October 2026. Salaries: Tarino’s typical offshore and Australian salary for each role, plus 12% super on the Australian figure. Excl. GST.

More on how we compare costs

Software developer: common questions

Is it better to hire offshore developers or outsource software development?

Outsourcing software development to an agency suits fixed projects with a clear end. Hiring your own offshore developer suits ongoing product work, because they learn your codebase and stay with it. Through Tarino you hire that developer directly, with a one-time fee instead of an hourly agency margin.

How do you test software developers?

The practical assessment uses a task in the stack you hire for, such as building a small feature or fixing a bug in a sample repository, reviewed for correctness, readability and how they explain trade-offs. Put your stack and the kind of work they will do in the brief, so candidates are tested on work like yours.

Who hires the developer and owns the code?

You hire and pay your developer directly, and the work is done in your repositories under your accounts. Put intellectual property and confidentiality terms in your contract with them, and have it reviewed by a lawyer.

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Let’s find your next superstar.

Book a 30-minute call. No pitch, no pressure, just a straight conversation about your business and whether Tarino is the right fit.

Book a free call