Python is a highly in-demand programming language that commands a large market share in web design, software, AI and other applications. Powerful and easy to use, it is the most in-demand programming language in the world, as ranked by several indexes.
Today we’ll discuss how you and your company can gain the benefits of working with this dynamic programming language. We’ll address what Python is, why it is relevant to software development and how to get the best value for money when hiring Python developers.
Today we’ll discuss how you and your company can gain the benefits of working with this dynamic programming language. We’ll address what Python is, why it is relevant to software development and how to get the best value for money when hiring Python developers.
- 1. What Is Python?
- 2. Who Is a Python Developer?
- 3. What Is the Demand for Python
- 4. Python Developer Skills
- 5. Python Developer Responsibilities
- 6. Python Developer Qualifications
- 7. Python Developer Job Roles
- 8. Things to Consider When Hiring Python Developers
- 9. Interview Questions
- Submit Your Project With JayDevs
What Is Python?
Python is a high-level, general-purpose programming language. Uses for the language include web development, data science, data analysis, teaching programming, machine learning, software development, e-commerce systems and numerous other purposes.
The language is open source, making it freely usable and distributable even for commercial purposes. This includes the Python interpreter and extensive standard library, which are available for use without charge on all major platforms.
Python was launched in 1991 by Dutch developer Guido van Rossum and the license is administered by the Python Software Foundation. It’s high-level data structures, dynamic typing and dynamic binding make it attractive for rapid application development, as well as for use as a scripting or glue language to integrate components together.
As the Python Software Foundation explains, reasons for using the language include that it is “powerful, fast, plays well with others, runs everywhere and is friendly and easy to learn.”
It’s easy to learn due to its simple syntax, which emphasizes readability and reduces program maintenance costs.
Who Is a Python Developer?
A Python developer is someone who codes, deploys, debugs and maintains programs using the Python programming language.
Typically, these developers work on back-end development, although the language can be also used for front-end and full-stack development.
A Python programmer can create code for a wide variety of purposes due to the versatility of the language.
What Is the Demand for Python
Python is in very high demand. It’s the number one language on the TIOBE Programming Community Index as of November 2022, with a rating score of 17.18%. The TIOBE ratings are based on the number of skilled engineers, courses, third party vendors and search engine figures.
At the time of writing Python is also the number one language on the PYPL Popularity of Programming Language Index with a share of 28.44%. This index is based on analysis of Google searches for language tutorials.
If Python is so great, then it must be used by some big name companies and projects right? It certainly is. Here’s what a few developers at household name companies had to say about the language:
Python has been an important part of Google since the beginning, and remains so as the system grows and evolves. Today dozens of Google engineers use Python, and we’re looking for more people with skills in this language.” — Google Inc Director of Search Quality Peter Norvig.
Python is fast enough for our site and allows us to produce maintainable features in record times, with a minimum of developers.” — YouTube software architect Cuong Do.
Python Developer Skills
The skills companies seek when they hire a Python programmer can vary a great deal due to how versatile the language is. Below we’ll go into detail about five key skill sets for these developers.
- Front-end technologies
- AI and machine learning
- Version control
- Test automation framework
- Data structures and algorithms
To get more specific, the top skills listed in job descriptions for Python programmers include AWS, Django, APIs, Docker, Linux, cloud computing, machine learning, JavaScript, Java, Git, continuous integration, SQL, React, Flask, REST, PostgreSQL, DevOps, microservices, Go and Kubernetes.
Front-end technologies
It goes without saying that knowledge of back-end development is important to consider when you hire a Python programmer. Top Python software developers will also have experience with front-end technologies though.
This is because it gives the developer the technical and conceptual knowledge to see the big picture in a project and create coordination between the front-end and back-end.
As a result, knowledge of client-side technology such as HTML, CSS and JavaScript are worth considering when hiring developers.
AI and Machine Learning
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are growing exponentially. The global AI market value was $93.5 billion in 2021. Furthermore, it is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 38.1% from 2022 to 2030.
The advantages we mentioned above that make Python an in-demand general-purpose programming language also help make it a great language for AI and machine learning.
Naturally there’s benefits if a Python software engineer has AI and machine learning experience if your projects involve these areas, but it can also assist in understanding bigger picture issues when dealing with stakeholders and problem-solving.
Version control
When considering Python coders for hire, it’s worth looking at their experience with version control.
This is because like any development process, working with this language will involve dealing with various versions to keep track of.
Knowledge of version control systems such as Git will help a developer work together with server-side and client-side developers to bring a project to completion.
Test automation framework
It’s beneficial for Python developers for hire to have an understanding of test automation frameworks. Experience with using a framework for automated testing will help increase efficiency and speed as well as the associated costs.
Data structures and algorithms
Data structures and algorithms are important to accurate, rapid and cost-effective programming. This is because storing and processing data efficiently reduces coding costs and increases data accuracy.
Therefore, a Python programmer for hire—and developers more generally—can demonstrate greater value to companies if they have knowledge of data structures and algorithms.
Python Developer Responsibilities
When hiring developers, the first step is to lay out the responsibilities associated with the position. Naturally the role involves writing efficient and scalable code. There’s also a range of other responsibilities though, which vary based on the employer’s requirements.
Potential responsibilities include testing and debugging code, developing server-side elements that increase responsiveness and performance, the integration of user-friendly client-side components, improving the performance of existing elements, ensuring security and data protection as well as coordinating with development teams and other staff to solve problems.
The responsibilities and expected experience level of developers will also vary according to their seniority in the organization. Below we’ll explore how this varies between junior, mid-level and senior developers.
A. Requirements for a junior / entry-level Python developer
- Preferably one to two years of experience.
- Knowledge of Python syntax
- Working basics of SQL and CVS
- Introductory knowledge of data structures
- Experience with creating web applications
- Previous experience using the language to complete a project
B. Requirements for a mid-level Python developer
- Three to five years of experience
- Knowledge of cloud computing services
- Skill with object-oriented design
- Experience with big data and e-commerce solutions
- Able to write and build system components independently
- Broad experience with maintaining code and fixing bugs
C. Requirements for a senior Python developer
- Five or more years of experience
- Extensive knowledge of JavaScript and HTML
- Highly experienced with big data solutions
- Skilled with data visualization tools
- Extensive knowledge of Python frameworks such as Django, Flask, Bottle
- Efficient ability and extensive knowledge of how to test and fix bugs
- Leadership skills
Qualifications Required for Python Developer
Qualifications relevant for Python coders include a Bachelor’s degree, or for senior positions, Masters degree in computer science, engineering or a related field. Note that if the developer can demonstrate the relevant abilities and an appropriate portfolio of work with the language, then you may wish to bypass these as requirements.
Python Developer Job Roles
There’s a number of possible job roles for Python programmers. We’ll discuss the details of three common roles below.
- Data scientist
- Machine learning engineer
- Entry-level software developer
Data scientist
Data scientists collect, analyze and interpret data, and Python is a flexible tool for data science applications. There are also various open-source libraries for the language for tasks such as data manipulation and visualization, statistics and natural language processing.
Machine Learning engineer
A machine learning engineer is someone who researches, builds and designs artificial intelligence systems. This role is related to data science. It’s possible to create complex machine learning operations and build systems quickly in Python due to the simplicity and consistency of the language. Therefore, the language is highly valued for machine learning among experienced Python coders.
Entry-level software developer
An entry-level software developer works within a team including more senior engineers to create, test and maintain software. Python is an excellent language for entry-level software developers to expand their skills because it is simple to learn, while it can also be scaled to efficiency complete more complex tasks.
Two Important Things to Consider When Hiring Top Python Developers
There’s two key factors to get a handle on before you hire Python developers. We’ll discuss how to approach these issues in detail below. The two factors are:
- Work arrangements
- Python developer salary
A. Work arrangements—what type of Python developer should you choose?
There are three main solutions for hiring Python developers, and each one has pros and cons. We’ll discuss them each in detail below.
- In-house Python developers
- Freelance Python developers
- Python dedicated software development company
i. In-house Python developers
If you choose to go the in-house route when you hire a Python software development team, there’s some significant pros, but they come at quite a cost.
You have to ask, how much does it cost to keep a salaried team in-house? It’s the most expensive way to build a development team, as salaried / full-time workers can demand a high annual wage in addition to other costs such as benefits and infrastructure to house your team.
It’s also quite time consuming to go through a traditional hiring process and to manage an in-house team. If you need to scale a project, then this can be quite inefficient and time-consuming as you have to go through a full traditional recruitment process every time you need a bit of extra help with something.
The benefits you gain from this arrangement include more consistency in your staffing arrangements and the most direct control over the development process.
With greater consistency and the extensive vetting involved with hiring in-house staff, then you have time to build a tight-knit team that understands the company processes and values very well, which helps produce an orderly workflow.
One way to gain the benefits of employing Python coders in-house while reducing costs is to have a core in-house software development team and then augment them when necessary with freelance or dedicated programmers.
ii. Freelance Python developers
The benefit of choosing to hire freelance Python developers is that it is often the lowest cost solution.
The cost to hire freelancers can be quite low as there’s a large pool of freelance talent available looking for remote work on jobs platforms. You can find freelance developers on sites such as Upwork, Fiverr and Freelancer.
This talent can be sourced from around the world so naturally the bidding process can result in some quite cheap rates. This is also aided by the fact that freelancers have less business overheads than companies.
However, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. When you work with freelance candidates, you have very little direct control over the work been done. Furthermore, if there’s issues with their work or their communication, then there’s little recourse available to you as they don’t work within an organizational framework that keeps them accountable.
Another disadvantage of using freelancers is that they have very little firm commitments to your company. You may sign an agreement with them, perhaps on the platform you hired them on, but if they suddenly decide to go dark, then there’s limited recourse available.
There’s also security concerns with engaging freelancers, particularly if you use them in large numbers and for long periods. The turnover is usually high for such a low-commitment hiring process, which lacks any formal organization that binds the staff together, so having people coming in and out of your projects with access to company data becomes more of a concern.
iii. Python dedicated software development company
The final choice is to hire remote Python developers through a software development company that specializes in Python. Using company hires is a great middle-ground between the costs of hiring in-house and the risks of hiring freelance developers.
One of the main benefits of choosing to hire Python developers through a company is lower costs. You are able to reduce wage costs by engaging a company in locations such as Eastern Europe or Northern Europe, where wages are significantly cheaper than Western Europe or North America.
Furthermore, with remote company workers, you don’t have to worry about paying for benefits, infrastructure or other costs associated with using in-house developers.
Scaling up a project is also fast and easy when engaging a software development company. A good company will have a broad pool of experienced development talent on hand which they can leverage to scale a project quickly and with a minimum of fuss.
High quality software development companies also offer comprehensive planning, communication and support to help bring your project to completion. If you have any issues along the way, such as needing to replace or hire additional staff, then they’re right there to help you.
The disadvantages of using a software development company are that they will likely be more expensive than hiring freelance developers and that you have less direct control compared to an in-house team.
Trusted sources to find the ideal Python developers
When you augment or hire a Python development team, naturally you want to go to a trusted source. The best option is a software development company that has access to experienced Python developers and which has a good track record to bringing development projects to completion.
In which case, your first stop shop should be Lithuanian software development company JayDevs. JayDevs deals only with senior developers and solution architects with more than five years’ experience and who speak fluent English.
One of the areas JayDevs specializes in is back-end development with Python, although they also have highly qualified staff who are experienced with front-end and full-stack development.
When you hire Python developers with JayDevs, the developers will start work within seven days of contacting the company, due to JayDevs’ five-step process to get staff on the job fast. To gain these benefits, get in touch with JayDevs via our website, where you can click the Hire Developers button and outline your staffing requirements.
B. Python developer salary: pay less, gain more?
As discussed earlier, paying the highest wages by engaging North American or Western European software developers is not necessary to gain the benefits of a highly qualified and skilled workforce.
These attributes can also be gained by working with software development professionals in locations with lower wage costs such as Eastern Europe.
Python developer salary based on experience
The salary a Python coder can command varies significantly based on experience. The average Python coder in the United States earns an annual salary of $108,184.
The most experienced Python programmers working at the top companies can earn as much as $220,000+ annually in the United States. The previous figure is at the highest level, but experienced engineers earning as much as $150,000 annually can be found at a number of companies.
At the lower end of the scale, an entry-level Python coder may earn as little as $60,000 annually.
As you can see the most experienced programmers can earn more than double the average annual salary for the role, but entry-level workers can earn as little as 3/5ths of the average salary.
Python developer salary based on location
The cost to hire Python developers varies significantly according to location. In the United States, the average hourly base salary for Python programmers is $51.58. Note that this can vary between an average of $40 and $70 depending on the state, with tech hubs such California or New York attracting the highest rates.
The cost to hire Python developers in Europe can be significantly lower though, with average rates varying between $25 and $95 an hour.
Whether the cost is closer to $25 or $95 depends on level of experience and where you hire in Europe, with IT service costs being typically much higher in Western Europe and Scandinavia than in Eastern European markets such as Lithuania.
The ideal price-quality solution for you
To hire the best without breaking the bank, the ideal price-quality solution is to hire in a region with highly qualified and highly skilled developers who are available to work at reasonable rates.
To find this combination look no further than Eastern Europe. In Lithuania, 57% of the population aged 25-34 possess tertiary qualifications, compared to an average 47% across OECD countries.
In addition, Lithuania is ranked as High Proficiency in the EF English Proficiency Index, and is ranked 19th in the world out of 111 countries in the index.
This means when you engage a Lithuanian software development company like JayDevs, you get a highly qualified, extensively experienced workforce that speaks English fluently. Furthermore, JayDevs has senior software developers and solution architects available for hourly rates ranging from $29 to $62 an hour.
To get this level of experience, qualifications and English fluency in the United States just isn’t possible, where even the cheapest states start out with an average rate of $40 an hour, while some states reach as much as $70 an hour.
Interview the Shortlisted Candidates to Find Top Python Developers
After you’ve selected the work arrangements and budget for your Python programmers, it’s time to shortlist and interview the candidates.
You’ll need to brainstorm the requirements of your project and ensure the developers have the skills you require. If you need some ideas on what to ask, we’re going to include six questions below to help you gauge their level of experience.
Examples of Python developer interview questions and answers
1. What projects have you completed with Python?
For an entry-level or junior programmer position, preferably they would have completed at least a simple Python project before. For mid-level and senior positions, the developers should be able to display a more extensive portfolio of projects.
2. What are the applications of Python?
Applications for the language include websites, web apps, game development, scientific computing, mathematics, language development, machine learning, graphic design, e-commerce systems, operating systems and desktop applications.
3. What is PEP 8?
PEP 8 outlines best practices and guidelines for how to write in Python. Its aim is to increase the readability and consistency of code with the language. It was created by the inventor of the language Guido van Rossum himself, alongside Barry Warsaw and Nick Coghlan.
4. What are the differences between a tuple and a list?
Tuples are immutable data structures while lists are mutable. A mutable object is able to change its values, while immutable objects cannot. Tuples are read-only and therefore offer faster performance. They also prevent accidentally writing data if you don’t want anything changed.
5. What are some of the advantages of programming with Python?
It’s free and open-source, is an interpreted language so it doesn’t require compilation of code, it’s simple to learn, readable, flexible, cross-platform and enables a short time-to-market.
6. What are keywords with regard to Python?
Keywords are reserved words that are used exclusively for a specific purpose. There’s 33 keywords in the language and they cannot be used as function names, variable names or other identifiers.
Submit Your Project With JayDevs
If you want to cut down the cost, time and fuss of hiring Python coders, talk to JayDevs today. JayDevs has a five-step process which gets staff working on your project within seven days.
When you contact JayDevs with your project requirements via the Hire Developers button, we will get back to you within 24 hours with the CVs of appropriate developers.
On the third day of the process, JayDevs will arrange interviews with your chosen developers, then on the sixth day we will arrange the signing of an agreement with your developers of choice.
Finally, on the seventh day your developers will get down to work!
