intro
With over 350 recruitments in one year, made for pure-players, startups and big groups, we have identified and analyzed the evolutions of tech salaries compared to our study from last year.
What’s new:
We have included the Rhône-Alpes region to our tech salaries study (see
our study for the Rhône-Alpes region).
For a better coherence, we have decided to cut the PHP category in two: on one side CMS, and on the other frameworks.
Regarding mobile developers, we split between Android and iOS.
It also seemed crucial to add System Administrators and DevOps to the study, as they became vital to the structures we work with.
The study was carried based on salary information gathered by the recruitments we made, for pure players, web agencies, software editors, startups and digital departments of big groups. The data collected have been balanced by a qualitative and empirical approach, in order to be as accurate as possible compared to the market it illustrates: Urban Linker’s senior consultants, experts in digital jobs, analyzed the results.
This study is a quantitative and qualitative analysis, based on the recruitments carried out before June 30
st 2016, and only involves the geographic area of Paris and its surroundings. Numbers are given in gross k€/year.
PHP developers: CMS
Salary |
CMS: Wordpress, Joomla, Spip, Prestashop |
CMS: Drupal & Magento |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
30-35 K€ |
32-36 K€ |
Confirmed 2 to 4 years |
32-38 K€ |
35-42 K€ |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
35-40 K€ |
40-47 K€ |
Lead |
- |
48-53 K€ |
Architect |
- |
60K€ and + |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
PHP developers: frameworks
Salary |
Frameworks: Symfony2, Zend2,Laravel and Silex |
Minor frameworks (Yii, Coldelgniter, CakePHP) |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
34-40 K€ |
32-37 K€ |
Confirmé 2 to 4 years |
38-44 K€ |
34-40 K€ |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
43-50 K€ |
40-47 K€ |
Lead |
50 K€ et + |
48-53 K€ |
Architect |
60K€ et + |
60K€ and + |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
PHP remains one of the most used languages. From a general perspective, it can be hard to notice any evolutions between salaries. However a few disparities appear depending on the CMS and the frameworks mastered.
After graduating, junior profiles’ salary varies depending on education and formation (see our
article on the best dev formations).
Today, we can see a real difference of salaries between the most “accessible” CMS (Wordpress, Joomla, Spip, Prestashop) and the ones similar to actual frameworks (Magento, Drupal). Candidates who master the latter ones are usually getting a better salary. This can also be explained by the fact that these two CMS (Drupal and Magento) are quite a “niche”. Many of these profiles turn to freelance, and it tends to increase their salaries.
Regarding frameworks, Symfony2 has clearly stolen the show over Zend. A Symfony2 expertise becomes quite valuable, more than any PHP framework. We can also see that other frameworks like Phalcon, Silex or Laravel are becoming more and more used by candidates and companies: their salaries get close to the ones of Zend and Symfony2 users.
During the first two years after graduation, we can see a real difference of salaries between candidates who have an Engineering degree, and those who don’t. After these two years, the salaries level no matter what level of education was reached.
Front-end developers
Salary |
Integrator (HTML5/CSS3) |
Front JS developer |
Full-stack JS developer |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
28-35 K€-1.5%* |
35-45 K€+5%* |
37-46 K€+2.4%* |
Confirmed 2 to 4 years |
33-40 K€-7% |
44-52 K€+3.2% |
45-54 K€+1% |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
38-42K€-8% |
50-60 K€+3.7% |
53-62 K€+2.7% |
Lead |
- |
55K€ and + |
58K€ and + |
Architect |
- |
65K€ and + |
70K€ and + |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
The integrator job moves to something we already noticed in our last year’s study. Companies no longer just need simple model integration (HTML5 / CSS3) but also dynamic animation via jQuery. Therefore, some profiles add Javascript to their skill set, which they mostly learn from online learning platforms and MOOCs. Responsive design has become the standard, and mastering tools like Twitter and Boostrap is almost mandatory.
Front-end developers are confronted to the decline of some frameworks (such as Backbone.js or Ember.js), while React.js, Angular.js and Angular2 get more and more followers. A front-end developer’s ability to adapt and to quickly develop new skills, along with his/her control of best practices (test tools, optimization, performance) are deciding factors when negotiating salary. Mastering different frameworks will also help getting a better salary.
In any event we notice an increase of salary for this kind of profile, sought by many structures. By adding Node.js to his/her skills, a developer becomes fullstack Javascript and has a bigger scope of intervention (and a higher salary). The gap between front-end and full-stack is visible (and legitimate)!
Java / .net developers
Salary |
. Net |
Java |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
35-42 K€+2.6% |
35-42 K€+2.6% |
Confirmed 2 to 4 years |
43-46 K€+1.1% |
42-50 K€+3.4% |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
47-55 K€= |
47-60 K€+6% |
Lead |
55-70 K€+8.7% |
55-70 K€+4% |
Architect |
60 K€ and + |
55 K€ and + |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
.net developers:
Compared to other languages (PHP, Ruby, JavaScript etc), Microsoft technologies keep being mostly used by big groups and a bit less by startups. .Net developers’ salaries are stable, including for those who know ASP.NET. Obviously, salaries get higher as soon as there are added skills: mastering a Javascript framework (Angular.js, React.js, etc), the Microsoft Azure cloud, etc.
Java developers:
Sometimes labeled as an aging language, Java has known quite a success in the past few years. According to the annual ranking of the most popular languages by Tiobe (source: JDN), Java keeps on integrating modern functionalities and getting bigger on the mobile part. Besides the advance of big data and new frameworks, the java developer job is evolving, just like other back-end positions: the “fulltackisation” is gaining ground, developers are fond of this fullstack aspect. And so are companies!
We notice that developers (especially juniors) tend to build their career on a back-end Java expertise with a complement in front-end (mostly with Angular.js). This type of profile is quite appreciated by companies, as the double competence broadens the scope of the position and prevents companies from hiring a second developer. This is particularly true for startups and small structures with a small technical team.
Naturally, salary ranges tend to evolve consequently. However there is no massive change from last year salaries. Probably because the full-stack trend is happening on all web languages.
Ruby / Python developers
Salary |
Ruby |
Python |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
38-46 K€+5% |
35-40 K€+2.7% |
Confirmed 2 to 4 years |
47-54 K€+2% |
38-45 K€+1.2% |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
52-57 K€= |
45-55 K€= |
Lead |
55-70 K€+1.6% |
50-60 K€= |
Architect |
60K€ and += |
60K€ and += |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
Ruby developers:
Always happy to exchange about their experience in meetups hosted in our office spaces, there are a bit more Ruby developers on the market this year. The number of companies using Ruby has also increased, which explains why salaries also increased. Candidates who get offered slightly higher salaries straight after graduation are usually facing strong technical challenges. The Wagon formation is still a bit more valued than usual school formations, and gets many recommendations, in particular for retraining and junior profiles. This technology has a bright future with startups, because of how easy it is to handle and the numerous options it offers.
Python Developers:
We have noticed this year that there is renewed interest in Python profiles. Last year’s tendency of increase in demand for Python profiles has confirmed. The most sought after frameworks are Django and Flask. Junior Python developers are usually getting slightly higher salary than developers using other frameworks. The starting salary range is 35-40k€. We also noticed that more and more Python developers choose the independent status.
System administrator / devops
Salary |
System administrator |
DevOps |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
33-40 K€ |
37-43 K€ |
Confirmé 2 to 4 years |
38-44 K€ |
42-49 K€ |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
42-50 K€ |
48-60 K€ |
Lead |
45-60 K€ |
55-70 K€ |
Architect |
- |
- |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
No major evolution for system and network administrators’ salaries. For DevOps however, the strategic position of their missions makes them getting more and more sought after. Their salary can vary depending on the missions and the tools mastered, but we should witness an increasing trend for this position.
Of course, one must take into account the academic background, which can lead to an important gap. With the same level of education, personal projects, work experience and tools mastered also lead to a gap between candidates.
Mobile developers
Salary |
Android |
IOS |
Junior 0 to 2 years |
37-45 K€ |
36-45 K€ |
Confirmed 2 to 4 years |
43-52 K€ |
44-52 K€ |
Senior 4 to 6 years |
51-62 K€ |
53-62 K€ |
Lead |
60-70 K€ |
60-70 K€ |
Architect |
70-85 K€ |
>65 K€ |
*K€ gross/year – Source Urban Linker for Paris
The “mobile first” trend leads to an increasing need for recruitment. In the last few months, we have noticed a big increase in mobile development job offers in France. What only started to be true in 2015 becomes obvious in 2016: companies want to master all of their mobile products.
In 2015, we were mentioning the arrival of Swift to compete with Objective-C (which was still the reference on iOS platforms). In 2016, most apps are developed using Swift (or migrating to Swift). Developers are quite fond of Swift syntax and, although people are still arguing over advantages of Swift over Objective-C, Swift seems easier to handle and allows quicker developments.
Almost consistently, especially for B2C apps, the iOS version was developed first, and then came Android. Although there are more Android users, iOS users are more fond of apps and have a bigger proportion of early adopters. However Android remains inevitable, and we noted a real tendency to internalize skills in Android development. We should also note the case of Xamarin, a C# based technology recently bought by Microsoft that allows to develop in native on iOS, Android and Windows phone. Following the buyout, Microsoft made the technology free and integrated it to Visual Studio: Microsoft seems to like open source!
These announcements allowed us to identify another niche on the mobile market around Xamarin, where salaries can be quite superior to other mobile developers! Plus, Xamarin profiles are still quite rare..
Why this study is purely indicative and cannot be used as a basis for a salary negociation:
- This study is based on the job market for tech profiles in the greater Paris area, for permanent contracts.
- This study does not take the type of company into account (startup – pure player – big groups – software editors – agencies).
- This study is adjusted by the analysis of Urban Linker’s senior recruiters.
- This study analyses salaries of profiles recruited between 2015/2016 and do not include profiles currently employed.
- This study takes into account the previous experience on other environments that often add to obtain a salary level like the ones mentioned.