{
  "id": 19692954,
  "title": "How to compare a nearshore engineer to a US hire using only public BLS data",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/12/how-to-compare-a-nearshore-engineer-to-a-us-hire-using-only-public",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-11-12T19:17:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dev.to",
    "slug": "dev-to",
    "url": "https://dev.to/bromena/how-to-compare-a-nearshore-engineer-to-a-us-hire-using-only-public-bls-data-349k"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes wage data that can be used to compare the cost of a nearshore engineer to a US hire. While BLS does not have a specific wage category for \"machine learning engineer\" or \"data engineer\", the closest category is \"software developers\". The median annual wage for software developers in May 2025 was $135,980, with the 90th percentile earning more than $214,670.\n\nTo compare this to a US hire's fully loaded cost, the wage must be turned into a fully loaded employer cost. In June 2026, the BLS reported that total compensation averaged $46.89 per hour worked, with wages and salaries accounting for 70% of that total, or $32.82 per hour. By dividing the median wage by 0.70, we get $194,257 as the fully loaded US cost for a software developer.\n\nTo make a fair comparison, the all-in hourly rate for a nearshore engineer should also be priced on an annual basis. This can be done by multiplying the hourly rate by 2,080 hours (the full-time work year used by the BLS). Using ranges Bromena published in October 2026 for AI and data roles, the fully loaded US cost ranges from $135,200 to $306,671, compared to $120,640 to $183,040 for the nearshore engineer. This results in nearshore engineers costing 29-40% less than a fully loaded US hire, based on these published rates.",
  "summary": "US hiring teams often compare a nearshore rate with a US salary and stop there. That comparison is incomplete: a salaried employee also costs benefits, paid leave and the employer's payroll taxes. The US government publishes those pieces. You can rebuild a fully loaded US cost from them, then compare it with an all-in hourly rate, without relying on a vendor's private spreadsheet. This…",
  "key_points": [
    "BLS data used to compare nearshore engineer cost to US hire",
    "Median software developer wage $135,980 in May 2025",
    "Nearshore engineers cost 29-40% less than fully loaded US hire"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}