Top 7 Facts To Know About IT Outsourcing to Romania

Updated – 5 January, 2023

Romania is often referred to as the Silicon Valley of Transylvania, and there are many reasons for that.

IT outsourcing Romania offers an array of benefits, from a large pool of vetted software developers to affordable software development rates. Local programmers are experienced in current tech trends, including mobile and web development, alongside specialized frameworks. Apart from cost-effectiveness, outsourcing Romania can help your company come up with solutions that meet modern customers’ demands and leverage first to the market advantage. 

The IT sector in the country has rapidly advanced during the last 20 years, making software development outsourcing in Romania one of the most popular choices for Western companies in the Eastern European region (you can also consider Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia, Ukraine, Poland), Asia (India VS Ukraine, Turkey, Philippines, Asia VS Eastern Europe) Latin America (Mexico, Costa Rica). Romania is considered one of the most mature outsourcing markets and demonstrates solid growth in technology and economic spheres.   

In this article, Qubit Labs explores the reasons for an increased demand for outsourcing Romania to understand why so many global companies and SMBs from the West consider it their outsourcing destination. 

Large Talent Pool

Romania is the second-largest country n Eastern Europe, right after Ukraine. It has around 120,000 IT specialists who work at the best software development companies in Romania and boast impressive professional backgrounds. Romanian programmers work on a variety of projects and understand the importance of delivering high-quality products. 

One of the main benefits of outsourcing Romania is the flexibility of the country’s programmers. They can seamlessly integrate into your existing team, strengthening its capacity and allowing it to achieve better results.  

Also, almost any Romanian outsourcing company shares Western approaches to work and is a perfect culture fit for Northern American businesses. Romanian IT specialists are educated, creative, and responsible people with good knowledge of English and advanced communication skills.

Many developers have experience working with global companies or organizations from DACH or other Nordic and Western countries. Due to this, they quickly adapt to the new requirements and easily find a common language both with the clients and their employees.

Advanced Technical Expertise

IT outsourcing Romania implies working with specialists who boast impressive educational backgrounds because local high schools and universities emphasize studying mathematics and computer science. This fact isn’t left without society’s attention because Romania has the biggest number of Informatics and Math Olympiad medals in Europe.

Every year, the country has 6,750+ tech graduates that are engaged in engineering and computer science. Romania has 41 Technical Universities, 3 of which are included in the global rankings. 

Besides, such attention to the computer science institutions boosts the development of the software development industry in the country and makes outsourcing in Romania more attractive for foreign businesses. Many students are offered internships while they’re still studying, so they get hands-on experience of working at the best software development companies in Romania. 

Additionally, around 90% of Romanian software developers have an advanced English level, and many of them also easily communicate in Dutch, German, Spanish, and other languages. Also, nobody’s canceled soft skills, and Romanian developers stress the need to sharpen them and boast excellent leadership and organizational skills. 

High Cost-Quality Rate of IT Outsourcing in Romania

Another distinctive feature of software development Romania is the affordable rates and high-quality services. Although some people think that they can’t receive good services for low costs, they’re mistaken because economic levels differ in each country and directly impact the salaries. Since Romania has lower financial stability, the local wages are lower, but they don’t imply poor-quality products.

Let’s take a look at Romania software development rates compared with the average programmer salaries in the region:

• A mid-level JavaScript developer in Romania earns $20,256 per year
• The average HTML/CSS programmer in Romania is paid $19,848 per annum
• In Romania, the average SQL developer salary is $21,956 yearly
• A Python programmer in Romania earns $20,196 annually
• A mid-level Java specialist in Romania makes $22,303 per year

As you can see, Romanian software development is several times more affordable than in the US, and you get services of the same quality level for lower costs. However, the mentioned salaries are average, so you should take into account the additional factors that affect them. In general, the number might be higher or lower, depending on the project complexity, developers’ experience, and the city.  

Well-Developed IT Infrastructure

In 2021, Global Services Location Index recognized it as the 48th (out of 60) most attractive country for offshore outsourcing. Romania boasts advanced digital skills, legal adaptability, and corporate activity. Global tech companies recognize Romanian software development, bringing the highest revenues to the local IT sector. 

Oracle Romania is the largest tech company in the country, with over EUR 200 mln turnover. It is followed by IBM Romania, which brings EUR 197 mln in revenues, Ericsson Telecommunications Romania — EUR 161 mln, Bitdefender — EUR 140 mln, and Endava Romania EUR 135 mln.  

Almost any Romanian outsourcing risk is eliminated because local specialists often partake in international IT conferences and events, like DevTalks Reimagined (the Biggest Tech Conference in Romania) or DevHacks (the local hackathon). 

The country has around 1000 meetups per year, 40 startup conferences, and 51 co-working spaces and hubs.

Also, Liberty Technology Park Cluj stands out for being the first tech park in the country that is considered a business accelerator for innovative businesses. 

Rapidly-Growing Tech Industry

The Romanian government is running several long-term incentive programs that facilitate and support the development of the local IT sector. As a result, the turnover of the software industry is growing in leaps. For example, in 2019, the industry turnover represented an increase of EUR 2,5 billion compared to 2014. 

Besides, any Romanian outsourcing company has governmental support because the country is an EU member, which means it has established a stable and secure business environment. 

Outsourcing Romania attracts a lot of foreign investments that help facilitate the tech industry growth and encourage global organizations to open new IT hubs and support innovations. 

5 Major Tech Hubs for IT Outsourcing Romania

IT outsourcing Romania implies working with the developers from 5 major tech hubs, which include:

• Cluj-Napoca — being the fourth-most popular city in Romania, it’s home to around 1,300 IT businesses and has 15,000 specialists working in the tech sector. In Cluj-Napoca, there’s a Transylvania Industries Cluster, which aims to strengthen innovation and facilitate the development of new products.  

• Iasi — this city is referred to as the “hidden gem with huge potential” because it provides education and skills and is one of Romania’s most prominent education and research centers. Iasi is known for its affordable infrastructure and a steadily developing IT hub with numerous startups.

• Bucharest — Romania’s capital, offers many advantages in terms of taxes and legal aspects. Such companies as Adobe, Intel, Microsoft, Amazon, and Electronic Arts have their offices in the city.

• Timișoara — the city is home to a highly developed IT community and offers an emerging startup ecosystem. Timișoara hosts various tech events, both regular and yearly, and is home to several incubators and accelerators. 

• Brasov — being one of the most important centers for outsourcing in Romania, Brasov accounts for 3% of revenues of the overall IT services industry in the country.

R&D Centers of Global Tech Giants in Romania

Software development Romania confidently holds its place in the global IT market, attracting more and more international organizations. Apart from the global tech giants mentioned above, the country attracts SMBs as well. For example, recently, an American software product engineering company, which has a business of over $76 mln, has decided to open an R&D center in Bucharest.

Since the best software development companies in Romania offer cooperating with vetted programmers, several US-based tech groups have also considered opening their R&D centers in Bucharest in partnership with Romanian organizations. 

IT Outsourcing Romania: Pros and Cons

Having researched Romania software development, we came up with a comparison table where you can see the advantages of doing business in the country and the Romanian outsourcing risk exposure:

Overall, Romanian software development has more strengths than weaknesses, and it’s easy to do business in the country, and cooperation with local programmers helps to reach the desired outcomes.

Besides, you can easily get to Romania due to the regular flights. For example, it takes only three hours to get to Timisoara from London or Barcelona. So it is a good decision to opt for nearshore Romania outsourcing.

Also, you don’t have to worry about the communication barriers because Romanian IT companies are globally known for their customer support services.

List of IT Outsourcing Companies Romania 

• Qubit Labs

The main benefit of cooperating with Qubit Labs is getting highly-skillful software engineers for the best price. We provide you with the best tech talent with a perfect price-to-quality ratio. As a result, it is easier to accomplish your goals without breaking your budget. 

• Better QA

BetterQA is a Romanian “software testing only” company established in 2018 in Cluj-Napoca. They have provided every customer with exceptional experience and service. They believe in cultivating long-term relationships with their partners, customers, and team members. They can confidently assist you with your software testing requirements and stand by our high-quality software QA services.

• Crafting Software

Crafting Software is a small but steadily growing team in the heart of Transylvania, Cluj-Napoca. It is a beautiful city with excellent universities and a tech community that is rapidly expanding. They formed a highly competitive team driven by curiosity and eagerness to solve the most complex technological issues. Engineers on their team typically have more than eight years of experience.

• MoldoWEB

It is one of the IT outsourcing companies in Romania focusing on creating quick, scalable, and practical applications, making it possible to digitally transform your products and processes. Their IT expertise meets your business concepts, building a team that strives for excellence and mutual growth.

• IT Teams

IT Teams is a business with 16 years of software outsourcing and remote staffing experience. The goal of IT Teams is to bring together enthusiastic experts to assist startups and enterprises in succeeding. They convey the ideal blend of specialized abilities, procedures, and fast conveyance methods to help new companies and laid-out organizations expand their advancement groups.

• BusyMachines

Innovative software development firm BusyMachines creates comprehensive software products for digital economy businesses. They have the technical know-how to manage all phases of software development and provide scalable solutions based solely on open-source technologies.

• Lateral Inc.

Lateral Inc business value through full-service technology solutions. They deliver a broad range of services from design, concept, implementation, and consulting to A-Z full-service solutions. Their clients vary from blue-chip companies (large-scale enterprises), to midsize businesses and start-ups. They stay away from the fancy power-points and lengthy meetings.

• Software Mind

Software Mind is one of the IT outsourcing companies Romania with research and development centers in Central Europe and South America. Since 1999, they  have provided skilled software developers to assist our partners in achieving their objectives. The company helps digitize your business’s operations, accelerate IT development processes and build a new solution from scratch.

• Valoris Center

Valoris Center is a business that sells BPO services owned entirely by Romanians. They work with clients worldwide and provide the best support possible based on their requirements, timetable, and spoken multiple languages. They have the expertise and experience of top clients in more than ten different fields.

• Coherent Solutions

Coherent Solutions is a software product engineering and consulting firm with more than 2,000 employees across six locations worldwide. Coherent Solutions, specializing in digital engineering solutions and software development, uses distributed, high-performing teams, to deliver results to customers worldwide.

Wrapping Up

Outsourcing Romania is growing in leaps, becoming one of the most popular destinations for outsourcing in Eastern Europe. Due to the healthy competition in the region, Romania puts efforts into staying on the same page with the current tech industry trends and facilitates the advancement of the local IT environment.

In case you need a consultation about software development Romania or want to discuss other outsourcing opportunities in Eastern Europe, like Ukraine, Qubit Labs will be glad to help you out. Just contact us to schedule a consultation.