Hire PHP developers
Laravel and Symfony work, and the unglamorous modernisation of PHP that has been running since 2012.
- Indicative rate
- $20–28/hour
- Shortlist
- 3 CVs in 48 hours
- Overlap
- 4–8 hours daily, contracted
- We accept
- 1 engineer in 12
What this engineer does
A large share of working software is PHP, and a large share of that has no tests, no build and one person who knows it. That work is unfashionable and perfectly staffable: it needs patience, care around deploys, and someone who writes a test before changing behaviour.
We place both Laravel engineers for current work and engineers who are comfortable in older codebases — different temperaments, and worth distinguishing in the brief.
Briefs we see most often
- Laravel feature work and upgrades
- A PHP 7 estate that has to reach a supported version
- Adding tests and CI to a codebase that has neither
- Integrations and APIs on top of an existing application
Rates across markets
What this costs, wherever you are buying from
| Experience | United States | United Kingdom | Australia | United Arab Emirates | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| build2–4 years | $20–28/hour$3,200–4,480/month | £150–210/day£3,000–4,200/month | A$28–38/hourA$4,480–6,080/month | AED 95–135/hourAED 15,200–21,600/month | C$30–40/hourC$4,800–6,400/month |
| senior5–8 years | $28–38/hour$4,480–6,080/month | £210–300/day£4,200–6,000/month | A$38–52/hourA$6,080–8,320/month | AED 135–185/hourAED 21,600–29,600/month | C$40–54/hourC$6,400–8,640/month |
| lead9+ years, or tech lead | $38–52/hour$6,080–8,320/month | £300–450/day£6,000–9,000/month | A$52–70/hourA$8,320–11,200/month | AED 185–250/hourAED 29,600–40,000/month | C$54–72/hourC$8,640–11,520/month |
All-inclusive and indicative, shown so you can compare us against a local hire. Monthly figures assume 160 hours a month and the same for the day-rate markets, so the two always reconcile. Engagements are contracted as a monthly capacity fee or a fixed-scope deliverable, with our own delivery lead accountable for the outcome — see engagement models. There is no setup fee, no recruitment fee and no management surcharge.
Questions
Hiring PHP developers
- How much does it cost to hire PHP developers in India?
- $20–28/hour all-inclusive through Skydream Digital, which is $3,200–4,480/month for a full-time engineer at 160 hours a month. That covers salary, employer costs, equipment, security tooling and management — there is no setup fee, recruitment fee or management surcharge on top. UK buyers pay £150–210/day, Australian buyers A$28–38/hour and UAE buyers AED 95–135/hour.
- Will you touch a codebase with no tests?
- Yes. The first fortnight usually goes on characterisation tests around the area we are about to change. It looks slow and it is the reason the change does not break billing.
- Laravel or Symfony?
- Whichever you run. If the project is new, Laravel staffs faster from India at the same quality bar, so it is the cheaper default.
Brief us on your PHP developer role
One page is enough: the stack, the seniority, the first month of work and the hours you need covered. Three shortlisted CVs come back within 48 hours, with the rate band and notice period attached.