This one article was originally published on .sect by means of Mikaella C, Ines Almeida. .cult is a Berlin-based developer community platform. We write about all things career, create original documentaries and share countless other untold stories from developers around the world.
Last year we brought you our first comprehensive breakdown of developer salaries in Germany. We used extensive data collected over the course of five years, breaking down all the variables needed to form that magic number: your salary.
In 2021, we found that while COVID-19 affected developer hiring, it made no noticeable difference in salary. In this year’s report, we found that hiring has bounced back, with a 54% increase in developer hires from 2020 to 2021. Developer salaries have continued to rise, with an annual improvement from 2021 to 2022, which again proves That Germany is indeed a good place to be a developer.
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Developer Salaries Breakdown in Germany
Experience, role, tech stack, gender and even nationality contribute to how much a developer earns. And the city you live in also plays a role. The highest average salaries can be found in Munich, but the best bang for your buck is in Berlinwhich offers generous salaries with a lower cost of living.
If you’re not originally from Berlin, you can still set your sights on the city. Our data showed that being a local does not necessarily guarantee a higher pay grade. In both 2021 and 2022, salaries increased not only for native native speakers of German, but also for local, non-native speakers and for those immigrating to Germany from the EU and the rest of the world.
Depending on the role, non-native speakers can earn up to 4% more than their native-speaking counterparts.
Not from the EU? Do not worry. Developers who moved to Germany from the rest of the world have consistently found higher salaries than those who moved from the EU. Only arrange that visa!
This is how that data starts to look when we consider not only the role, but also years of experience.
The gender pay gap is still a problem
In both 2021 and 2022, male developers were consistently paid more than female developers, sometimes by as much as 5%. Data even show that the pay gap between men and women widening in 2022, with women receiving consistently lower salaries in both junior and senior positions.
Location and nationality do not affect interview and hiring invitations
Along with fairly fair developer fees no matter where you’re from, we’ve analyzed how likely you are to make the interview based on your location.
Here the locals have the advantage, with the lion’s share of the invitations for applications and hired candidates going to candidates who are already in Germany.
However, after a drop in hiring from around the world in 2019 and 2020, rates for 2021 and 2022 are rising again, showing that borders are no barrier to getting the right job.
Expectations are low…too low!
We found one consistent factor across all of our data: developers tend to underestimate the pay they earn. For example, look at the difference between the estimated salary for junior management (€39,200) and the average offered salary for junior management (€67,500): a whopping 41% difference.
Typically, the expected salary and the average offered salary are more similar in senior positions, suggesting that more experienced developers have a more accurate idea of their worth. But even then, they are still consistently underestimated, leading us to the conclusion that many developers don’t have an accurate picture of the true salary landscape out there.
Again, women expect less than their male counterparts. They consistently ask for $2,000+ less, with that number growing as the experience grows.
Methodology
Our main source of data is the salaries provided by recruiting companies during the application process on the Honeypot platform. If an interview invitation was missing important information (such as job title, title, or company location), we removed it from the survey to make sure the data can be compared consistently. We also removed unusually low or high salaries to avoid extreme outliers and used an external library to determine gender based on the individual’s first name. All salaries are based on the company’s initial offer and not on a final negotiated and contractual amount.
The best way to make sure you get the best salary possible is to be informed and talk about it! So share what you’ve learned and sign up for our fantastic newsletter for even more reports, videos, interviews and insights.
Shreya has been with australiabusinessblog.com for 3 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider australiabusinessblog.com, Shreya seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.
