Hire Mobile App Developers for iOS/Android - Best 17 Sites (2024)

Are you planning to hire mobile app developers to build an app to power up your business?

In general, this would be quite a daunting task. You're hiring a team member who is critical to your business, but the quality of software developers out there sometimes leaves much to be desired!

But, we've now found a way to short-circuit the whole process, and still come out on top. All while getting app development or a native app developed by software development companies within your budget.

The key is to hire app developers from vetted sites.

So without further ado, here are the top sites, the price you would expect to pay and the key reasons why you should work (or not) with them.

Top 17 Sites to Hire Mobile App Developers for iPhone and Android (2024)

Before we start describing each site in detail, check out this quick summary on where to get top software development hires.

Let's now have a look at each of these sites that specialise in recruitment for app development in more detail.

We'll list what we consider the top five websites, then add the other 12 after. To be honest, you won't be sorry whichever site you choose to recruit from!

1. Toptal

The name says it all – Top Talent (Toptal).

Here you can find find the Top 3% of Freelance App (iOS / Android) Developers for hire because only the top 3% of all those candidates who apply, get through to become mobile app developers with Toptal.

You get the best level of work in a justified budget within a hard deadline. App developers at Toptal, bring with them unique perspectives and approaches.

They are extremely transparent about their fees and all and have an extremely good customer-centric approach. Web apps and mobile are one of their focus areas.

So there would be a Toptal representative who keeps a continuous track of how your apps project is progressing and what your confidence is about working with Toptal and the end-result.

That takes away much of the project management hours which you would be burdened with yourself if you had to opt for the typically hired app developer.

So how much does it cost to build an app with Toptal? Here is the average Toptal pricing for mobile application development:

• Average Hourly Rate: $65 - $95+ per hour
• Part-Time: $1000 - $1600+ /week
• Full-time: $2000 - $3200+ /week

Given that Toptal only hire the absolute best, Toptal pricing comes at a premium, but the quality is obviously going to match such premium rates.

Hire an App Developer from Toptal Now

2. Gun.io

With Gun.io you can quickly add firepower to your engineering team, whether you need app developers or other resources.

Gun.io is not a typical self-serve marketplace; instead, their primary focus is to help you quickly recruit more resources to your existing engineering team.

If you are hiring mobile app developers on a permanent basis, or are looking to create a dedicated software development team - these are the people you should go to.

For teams looking to scale up quickly, let's say you're setting up an app development team, or parachute in additional expertise, Gun.io is a no-brainer. They help you find awesome mobile app developers for hire in no time at all, typically less than 48 hours!

They do the work of personally sourcing, vetting, and matching candidates for your team, so you can keep your teams energy focused on shipping your software product.

Gun.io is known for its rigorous vetting process, which is a 7-step, 360-degree approach designed to assess engineers as multi-dimensional professionals.

Hundreds of successful client-engineer relationships have helped them understand the nuance of a fantastic match - beyond just skillset expertise.

Gun.io was built by engineers who understand the importance of collaboration, so communication aptitude and integrity are requirements to pass their vetting process. (And they've got raving reviews to boot, check out their score, 4.9 stars out of 5 on G2Crowd).

Plus, 90%+ of their talent community is based in the United States, allowing for close timezone alignment - if you want to hire from the United States.

The team at Gun.io works quickly to help with hiring mobile app developers, and are usually able to do so within 2 days. 

The best part?

Hiring a software engineer and/or finding app developers through Gun.io costs exactly the same as a traditionally-hired, full-time software developers, and without the usual cost of a hiring cycle.

And if retention is on your mind and you're looking for mobile app developers for the long-term - the tenure of a Gun.io engineer is 30% higher than their traditionally-hired peers. 

Gun.io specializes in matching clients with freelance and contract mobile app developers, and clients have the flexibility to choose their hourly commitment - from part-time all the way up to full-time engagement.

The hiring process with Gun.io is expedited: you'll see candidates within 48 hours. From there, you can move as fast as you'd like to get started with hiring mobile app developers. 

How much does it cost to hire an app developer from Gun.io?

Hourly rates: typically between $75 - $150 per hour

Hire additional engineering expertise with Gun.io

Here is what one CTO said about hiring with Gun.io - very impressive result, we think.

And this is one of the reviews on G2Crowd:

4. Hired

This is more of a job marketplace having awesome mobile app developers for hire who, where companies compete to take people on board.

If you hire an app developer from their pool, they guarantee that only the top 5% of people who apply to be a part of their app development community are accepted, so once again, people are strictly vetted.

This means that you can rest assured to only find the best people here - but most importantly, they match talents and skills to the jobs required, trimming down the time spent by both employers and hirees.

Hired have branded themselves to be a bit more inclined towards finding developers, good companies to work with.

Only senior people with a good portfolio of diverse experience are taken in and then they are given a choice of companies who are good matches for them and ready to employ.

You can hire a mobile app developer and desktop application programmers (app programmers for hire) on all models here: fulltime, contract, freelance to build your mobile app.

As app development in such demand these days, Hired also have a good focus on hiring good mobile app development candidates.

The hiring process is quick, generally gets done quite rapidly - most companies save up to 45 sourcing hours per role filled.

And throughout the project or the tenure for which you hire a freelancer, or hire an app developer, you can be sure that you will get quality work, deliver desired outcomes within a set timeline.

How much does it cost to hire app developers with Hired?

Hired do have a specific pricing system in place which depends on the type of contract that you have both with Hired and with the employee, over and above the price of the candidate.

Build your team with Hired Today

5. X-team

Another trustworthy name when it comes to mobile app developement.

X-Team provides motivated and competent iPhone or Android application developers for hire. The company provides you with an account manager who is there to understand your requirements and who will provide you with a list of developers perfect for your project.

When you choose your preferred developer (or team of developers), they will be devoted exclusively to your project.

Those are the top 5 places to recruit mobile app developers for iOS/Android, now let's look at some of the other viable options out there.

6. Wellfound

Wellfound used to be AngelList, a popular website for matching developers with app development jobs. The site has been updated and is very easy to use, making it well worth checking out.

There are thousands of tech jobs on Wellfound, including for app developers and other roles. Some big names hire from here, making it a site worth adding to your favourites list.

You’ll need to create a profile to use it, but once done, you can set yourself up on the site, create your bio and begin applying for jobs in no time.

7. PeoplePerHour

PeoplePerHour has been around forever and is a leading freelancer website to hire mobile app developers. You can hire any type of freelancer there and also be hired.

PeoplePerHour is at the lower end of the scale and has people will all kinds of skills from across the world. Selection is most often on price over perfection, so bear that in mind.

The site is easy to use, just sign up and create a profile. You can add examples, links and testimonials and create that professional persona you need for free before beginning to hire.

8. indeed

indeed is a huge global website that caters to freelancers, full-time employees, contractors and everyone looking for a role. It’s not app or tech-specific but there are lots of tech jobs on there.

You’ll need good search skills to master indeed but it’s very easy to use. You’ll need to pay to create a professional profile or sponsor an ad but you don’t need one to hire. Just sign up for an account and you’re good to go.

The indeed website is great for finding all types of work, your main challenge will be finding good quality applicants for your position!

9. Dice

If you’re based in the US and are looking for app developers, you might try Dice. It’s a recruitment website that specializes in tech, including development, infrastructure and many more roles.

There’s a mix of roles here, freelance, fixed-term contract and permanent. You’ll need to create a profile and set up an account, but otherwise it’s a relatively simple process to get up and running.

Some features cost money such as the TalentSearch database. This may, or may not, put you offer depending on your particular situation.

10. DevTeam.Space

DevTeam.Space is another well-known website to hire app developers. It’s used by many big names and by thousands of developers. It does cost money to use though.

In return, you’ll get to choose a selection of developers from across disciplines. Most will have a track record and be of a sufficient quality to make the investment worth it.

You can check experience, skills, previous work and all the usual features as well as select from a pool of developers.

11. TechFetch

TechFetch is another US-centric tech recruitment website. It says is has over 2 million resumes and over 100k roles. The site is a simple listings website that’s easy to use and to find suitable roles.

Most applicants will be from the US, but there are a few international developers on there. It costs money to list jobs but you get a free trial to see if you want to take things further.

The site is easy to use, there’s a simple dashboard for managing vacancies and some scoring features to help measure applicants depending on criteria you set.

12. Authentic Jobs

Authentic Jobs has a more international flavour, with roles and ads from all over the world. It’s another simple listing website but looks better than TechFetch.

Roles are displayed within a listings format and have an attractive page to explore further. It costs $149 per month to advertise on the site, which may put some off. But in return, you get qualified candidates and access to a dedicated dashboard to monitor your ads.

Authentic Jobs also offers free reposting if you’re not happy with your hire, which is a nice touch.

13. Google for Jobs

Google for Jobs is a jobs aggregator built into the search engine. You can use it for free to find work but won’t be able to use it very effectively for advertising jobs.

You’ll need to use one of these other websites for that and hope it will be picked up by Goole for Jobs.

It is good for working out salaries, expectations, skills and for researching the role though, which is really where it shines.

14. We Work Remotely

We Work Remotely takes advantage of the new way of working. It’s a listings website that specializes in roles that enable you to work remotely.

If your developer role can work like this, WWR is an excellent option. It has a simple layout, good user dashboard and covers the entire breadth of development and apps.

It costs from $59 to post an ad, making it accessible to a wider range of employers. That works as a strength as it also attracts better candidates.

15. UpWork

UpWork is the wild west of recruiting. It’s a freelancer job board where you can place your app developer role and freelancers will bid to complete the work.

While there is some vetting and checking, there’s also a lot of cheating and people applying for jobs who either aren’t qualified or don’t live where they say they do.

There are some good developers on here but it is entirely up to you to find them among the not-so good developers.

16. Gigster

Gigster is a hybrid jobs website, part outsourcing and part managed project. It’s worth checking out for more complex projects but may be overkill for smaller app development tasks.

It’s a paid service of course, but pricing is dependent upon the size and complexity of the project you’re hiring for. It’s probably better for more important tasks or larger companies than startups.

You don’t get to choose the composition of your team but you do get to assess the results before signing it off.

17. Guru

Guru is more a traditional job site where you can hire app developers from whoever applies for your role. It’s similar to UpWork but with higher quality candidates.

Most hiring ads are free and it’s easy to set up the account and begin advertising for developers. The pool is wide and global, so expect to see applicants from all over the world.

Also like UpWork, it’s up to you to assess the quality of who you work with.

Video Version of How To Hire App Developer

The problem with Upwork and other Freelancing Sites 

We've been through it, once, twice ... several times. And we sincerely hope that the headaches we've been through don't happen to you.

Finding a good (let alone a great) mobile app developer for hire and getting them to come onboard your project is in itself, a massive ordeal. We've had plenty of bad experiences: from hiring a mobile app developer who greatly inflated their capabilities, to others who vanished mid-project. Others plagiarised the project almost completely!

We've seen others who rolled out untested features, broken functionality, code glitches, we've seen it all.

All things that you never want when you're just trying to break into a market and you've just started onboarding new clients...this is the last thing you want to experience and have to deal with in the mobile app you dreamt of building your business on.

The key lies in knowing how to properly hire app developers. 

Most platforms like Upwork have one singular problem that is so problematic, it can detract from the very essence of product development – a communication gap.

You are essentially given full responsibility to make sure that you choose the right mobile app developer from these platforms. But in reality, these platforms are more of an introductory meeting between a freelance software developer and their clients.

But you can't really be sure of your developer until you're well into the project, and by that time, you're already in too deep to be able to back out.

After hiring a developer you have to:

• deal with the freelancer of your own accord without any more guidance or help from the platform,
• have the patience to see through multiple development iterations and
• take the burden of extra hours’ of management that the programmer would demand from your project.

There are a lot of monetary and non-monetary costs that you pay over and above the fees of the platform.

In reality, the result is that what seems initially cheap can turn out to be not very cheap at all.

How much does it cost to build an app?

So how much does it cost to get someone to design an iOS or Android app?

Native apps are not easy to develop, so you need to check how much it will cost you approximately before you get a development team on board, so that when you hire software development companies or freelancers you already have a budget.

A simple way to calculate how much it costs to build an app is this. Estimate the number of hours required to develop each feature multiplied by the hourly rate of your developer. Ideally, you add a buffer of about 20% for testing and other issues that might crop up.

If you'd like to read more about how much it costs to develop and app and how much it costs to outsource development, and other details of the cost to hire app developer check our article here.

Why hiring a freelance app developer who has been pre-vetted makes sense

Sometimes, we tend to be a bit short-sighted when we look at the hourly rate associated with hiring awesome mobile app developers. In essence, sometimes, when you're on a budget, it's hard to justify the cost to hire app coder or pay top dollar for freelance developers.

But this is a false economy when looking for app coders for hire.

Let's just go through a few of the reasons why hiring an app developer who has been screened already makes sense.

1. You will have the confidence in their capabilities

Major projests such as native apps require skills that are not as common as other generic development (such as web development). If you want to hire an app developer for your Android app, this is different than generic software development.

Done right, a high-quality Android developer or an app programmer in general will be a worthwhile investment.

If you want to make the app available in both the iOS App Store and the Google Play Store, you'll need somebody who understands the nuances and requirements of both ecosystems and find people who have good experience in the different programming languages required to code on different platforms.

2. Cheap is actually expensive.

Not knowing who you are hiring, you might get lucky and find a good programmer to develop a mobile app. On the other hand, you may have a bitter experience as we did. Once, we had to contract more than 3 freelancers to eventually get a decent result.

This is besides all the hours spent trying to communicate and understand capabilities. This time, especially from project managers, is very costly.

3. Top iOS and Android app developers hired will bring more than just great coding skills.

You don't get to become a great mobile app developer through coding alone.

When you are an excellent app developer, you'll have acquired other skills. These skills will be critical if you want to deploy a successful mobile app.

Business knowledge, User Experience, experiences in understanding and preventing problems before they occur. That's so much time saved that it can't be quantified. We've always found that hiring excellent iOS and Android app freelancers returns so much more than trying to hire mobile app developers from cheap talent pools.

Rather than developers, you need to have people that are well rounded, where you would have what are termed app builders, app creaters, app makers and app designers. So this article could be renamed to app coders for hire, app builders for hire, app creators for hire, app makers for hire and hire mobile app designers.

These are all the types of people you are actually searching for.

4. Missing the boat.

If you hire mobile app developers who are unknown, or cheap app freelancers, this will probably cost you a lot of time until you go to market and your target audience might find a solution elsewhere.

Of course, being the first to go to market and being the first mover, with let's say a new Android app, brings about HUGE advantages which once again, are very difficult to quantify.

Suffice to say, if you delay the release of such an Android app by a few months, you might find that you've missed the boat altogether.

Remember that even getting through the approval and publishing process for the App Store can typically take months in a best-case scenario, let alone if you have to fix any issues that arise! So get on with it and find the top app developers with top talent, whether they are from outsourcing companies or an in house team and get started with your app creation.

Five steps to hire someone to make an app - mobile app developer

If you’re in need of hiring someone, a mobile app developer, you have a few options.

Partner with best app developers, hire a mobile developer to join your development team, or hire a freelancer to fulfill a temporary need. You can even work with a development agency / app development company if you want to avoid all of the hassles. Mobile app development companies are obviously very prolific these days, but finding the good ones which are not too expensive will always be a bit of a challenge.

As this article is all about freelancers, we will concentrate on mobile app development that caters to that third option primarily.

There are estimated to be over 20 million people who class themselves as mobile app developers or hire themselves out as one. That’s a lot of talent to have to sort through to find the diamond in the rough!

Here is what we consider to be the optimum way to hire app developers:

1. Assess your needs

Your first challenge is to identify what it is that you want.

• What are your software development plans?
• What problem do you want to solve?
• What service do you want to offer?
• What need do you want to fulfill?
• What device(s) or platforms do you want to perform them for? iOS developer or Android?

The clearer the app idea you have, the better you will be able to outline your project.

There will be research involved and it should be treated as an investment in time and money.

If you know you want an iOS app, you know that Objective-C and Swift are going to be a key requirement. What about database skills? Security? UI/UX design? Will your app interact with others or require an API?

The better idea you have of your project, the easier you will be able to explain it in the project requirements. This benefits you as you will hire an app developer that is a good fit for the job. It will also benefit the app development team as they will have clear goals, clear requirements and an employer who knows what they want.

2. Outline your project

Successful projects require clear, unambiguous communication. This is key when hiring freelance app developers as part of the development process.

They don’t know you. There might be langauages barriers. You might be using different communication tools or online platforms from them. They don’t know your company or your culture and won’t know the content of the numerous meetings you have while putting this project together. They will only know what you communicate to them in the project outline.

Specifications are crucial during phases of working with a mobile app development company. Both in terms of design and when it comes to testing an eventual prototype.

That project outline also has another key objective. It outlines in plain terms what is expect from app programmers and provide the basis for any action or legalities that may occur if things go wrong.

Putting the effort into outlining a clear, unambiguous project outline is a win, win for everyone.

Ask around how long is reasonable for a project of the scope of the one you want to complete? The last thing you want is to outline a 1-month schedule on a complex app that would take several months for a team to complete let alone a freelance app developer.

Be reasonable and be realistic. If you’re not, you won’t attract the top 1%.

Finally, once you have a good idea of your project outline, look at similar projects on freelance marketplaces to see how they are worded. Don’t be afraid to take useful terms or phrases and use them in your outline. Take ideas but make them your own and integrate them into the specification you publish for your project.

Add your notes, any terms or phrases you see on other marketplaces, add update schedules and meeting request schedules and you’re good to go.

3. Invite proposals/tenders

Once you have your project outline you can publish the job specification on a freelance website to invite proposals from a few mobile app developer candidates. The more background checking you do at this stage on your app development team the easier it will be later.

1. Look at the candidate’s skill list to ensure they match your requirements.
2. Check their reviews and feedback on the marketplace. Don’t be afraid to check with the client who left the review to make sure the review is real!
3. Check their experience to make sure they have done what you need them to do in the real world.
4. Ask them questions if you have them. Collect any questions you have and ask them all at once rather than taking up too much of their time.
5. Google their name. A little underhand we will admit but very effective. Make sure anything published about them matches what they pitch themselves as.

Collect a shortlist of candidates and sift them again. Dig deeper into their skills and experience and perform searches on LinkedIn, GitHub, and other places where mobile app developers might hang out. 

4. Set a test or small project first

Working with an app programmer and the release of a mobile app is not something you can reverse. So making sure you've hired the right person is key.

Depending on the scope or type of project you’re undertaking, you may want to set a sample project first. This won’t always be possible but if you have the time and resources, it’s a relatively low-risk way of finding a mobile app developer you can work with and who can work with you.

The sites we discuss in this piece, Toptal, Gun.io, Hired, X-team, and Fiverr Pro all pre-screen their freelance developers. That may not always include every single skill or programming language on their profile.

So while the hard work has been done for you, it still pays to make sure the mobile app developer can deliver on the project they are being employed for.

We are in favour of starting with a small mobile app development project first.

5. Hire the developer

Most good quality mobile app developers will appreciate a client wanting to be sure before they hire.

However, no outsourcing company wants to jump through numerous hoops or perform dozens of tests or tasks before being hired. Balance is required to get a feel for the developer and hire them in a fast and effective way.

Once you have identified the talent you want to hire, waste no more time in letting them know and scheduling in your project.

Provide any NDA, IP protection or non-compete paperwork for scrutiny, add the project fee to escrow if necessary and give the mobile app developer the information they need to do the job. This is especially important if you are working with outsourcing companies which might pick up your idea and develop it as their own.

Now that the groundwork is set, you can build your app!

FAQs around hiring app developers

How much does it cost to create an app?

How do I go about hiring app developers?

What does a mobile app developer do?

What skills does a mobile app developer need?

How can I stop a freelance app developer from stealing my app idea?

What are the typical roles and responsibilities of the application developer?

What programming languages do different mobile apps use?

How much does it cost to hire an app developer?

The cost to hire an developer by the hour is usually between $18/hr and $60/hr, but these costs may vary depending on which country you source your app developers from. Other factors which influence the cost would be their experience, the programming language they use, whether you hire them for long or short projects (or full-time) and other factors. We don't recommend opting for the cheaper bracket because there are other cost considerations involved that might affect your overall project budget.

Where do I hire an app developer?

You should hire an app developer at vetted marketplaces for developers such as Toptal - this removes a lot of uncertainty from the hiring process for you. There are other vetted hiring companies such as Fiverr Pro and others we mention in this article. If you are ready to do your own vetting you can hire from popular marketplaces such as Upwork, but this entails certain risks, such as the need to ensure the quality of the work submitted by the hiree.

How to hire app developer in USA?

If you want to hire an app developer in USA, this is usually the easiest for you to do, because most of the above companies will specifically have candidates that are based in the USA. Remember that most times, hiring app developers in USA is going to be the most expensive option, but that brings with it some benefits such as understanding of specific tax needs, being in the same time zone, being typically more reliable and also the ability to get them over to your office within a few hours if necessary. Just let the above hiring companies know that you are specifically looking for US candidates and you should be good to go. 

How to find iPad app developers for hire?

Finding iPad app developers for hire is not very different from hiring mobile app developers. Remember that iOS developers will need to ensure that their app works both of iPad apps and iPhone apps, so you would need to have this built into the requirements of the app development. iPad app developers with previous experience can bring with them some more experience into how to make certain UX (usability) upgrades if you want to create a different experience for users using the iPad. When hiring iPad developers, just make sure that your tell the companies above that you specifically need iPad development experience. 

How do I find app developers near me?

To find an app developer near me is not much different that using the above sites. Because most of these sites will ask you for specifications of what you are looking for, you can create filters such that only developers from your own location or near you can apply to your job posting.

How do I hire mobile app designer?

To hire app designer is not very different from hiring a mobile developer in general, but of course, your specifications will have to be more in line with actual design of the app rather than development. Most developers are usually not designer and vice-versa, so you'll need to keep this distinction in mind if you want hire an app designer.

Read More: iPhone Models Released To Date | Android vs iPhone - which is better?

Wrapping Up 

While we have listed only 5 primary ones (and 17 in total), there are MANY more platforms like the above (which is way we added another 12 to the table) where you can find great app developers for hire both for iOS and Android, such as Gigster, and plenty of others, even verging on to web app developers for hire on the above platforms.

What we did is opt for companies who we've actually worked with for our own mobile app development projects and found useful, or have first-hand experience of people working with them, so these have also been vetted by ourselves. We might eventually, add a few more to this list, but we prefer to keep it short and concise, to guarantee that you have a good result in your hiring app developers exercise.

So do head out to any one of the above, have a look at what they offer and get a good incubator of your brilliant ideas and products. It will be worth it when you find exactly the app developers for hire you need.

Hire App Developer from Toptal Now

About the Author

Author: David AttardWebsite: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dattard/Email: david@collectiveray.com

David has been working in or around the online and digital industry for the last 21 years. He has vast experience in the software and web design industries using WordPress, Joomla and niches surrounding them. He has worked with software development agencies, international software companies, local marketing agencies and now is Head of Marketing Operations at Aphex Media - an SEO agency. As a digital consultant, his focus is on helping businesses get a competitive advantage using a combination of their website and digital platforms available today. His blend of technology expertise combined with a strong business acumen brings a competitive edge to his writings.