This content was originally written by Bloc and appeared here: bloc.io/web-
We’re more than halfway through 2015, so it’s a good time to revisit the job market for full stack web developers. Job openings continue to vastly outnumber the amount of qualified candidates.
This report intends to answer:
- What salaries can full stack web developers expect?
- How many full stack web development jobs are available, and are they increasing in number?
- Where are these jobs located?
- What skills do these jobs require?
Salary
A potential salary increase is an important consideration, especially if you intend to spend time and money studying for a future career change.
According to Robert Half Technology’s 2015 salary guide, web development pay in the USA ranges from $73,500 to $122,000, while senior web developers make from $104,500 to $144,250. The salary guide also provides adjustment based on location.
The angel.co salary and equity tool validates this range, with most serious job postings offering salaries between $80k and $120k.
The United States Department of Labor: Bureau of Labor Statistics pegs the range at $33,550 (bottom 10%) to $105,200 (top 10%). This range may be a bit lower because it includes part-time workers.
Don’t assume that every coding bootcamp graduate will instantly make six figures. But many bootcamp students who invest time, money, and deliberate practice are able to significantly increase their salaries.
Job Availability
It doesn’t require much analysis to show that there are many open full stack web development jobs. There are entire industries built around filling these jobs, from job boards to recruiting firms to coding bootcamps. Robert Half Technology’s 2015 salary guidesummarizes the issue:
Employers are likely to have difficulty finding skilled talent for a range of technology roles in 2015, according to research by Robert Half Technology. Although 89 percent of technology executives reported being somewhat or very confident about their companies’ growth prospects, 61 percent said they are facing recruiting challenges. […] The supply of highly skilled technology professionals is expected to remain below demand for the foreseeable future.
Statistics indicate that jobs will continue to be available well into the future. For example, Code.org estimates that job growth will continue to outpace the growth of qualified developers through at least 2020, with a forecasted gap of 1.4 million unfilled jobs in the USA. If this is accurate, it’s likely that salaries will continue to increase as demand strains the supply of available workers.
Job Locations
All major cities in the USA have job openings for web developers. Sites like Indeed.com andStack Overflow careers show hundreds of postings at any given time.
Not in a major city? Many companies allow web developers to work from home. In fact, there are sites like We Work Remotely, Remote Jobs, and FlexJobs dedicated entirely to remote job postings. With services like TaskRabbit, GrubHub, and Amazon Prime Now, you won’t ever have to leave your home again… but we recommend you do.
Full Stack Web Development Skills
If you’re planning to study for a job as a full stack web developer, it’s important to consider which programming languages you’ll learn. Ruby on Rails and JavaScript are the top full stack web development languages right now. Over 850,000 websites use the Ruby on Rails framework, a 40% increase from January of this year. This arguably increased the demand for Rails developers. Many great coding bootcamps, including Flatiron School, Dev Bootcamp, and Bloc offer full stack web development courses using Ruby on Rails and JavaScript.