Last Updated on March 15, 2025 by Henry James

Eastern Europe has earned a reputation as a prime outsourcing oasis. The driving power of software development in Eastern Europe is its developers. As in traditional tech centers like the United States or Western Europe, the talent shortage is becoming more pronounced, it drives the expansion of the talent search. Having participated in a global team since the 1990s, Eastern European developers have become known for reliability and trustworthiness in the IT sector. For instance, N-iX has proven itself as a reliable IT partner in this region. Now, let’s look into all the puzzles contributing to the region’s IT successes.

Why Eastern Europe is a key player in the global software development industry

One of the primary advantages is the geographical location of Eastern Europe (CEE). While referring to this region, we are specifically talking about Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova. These countries are located at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, offering equal accessibility to Western European countries. Besides, the time zone is aligned with Western Europe, enabling seamless communication and collaboration. There is a wide range of airports that facilitate access to the live meeting with the team, with 2–3 hours spent on the trip.

The Eastern European region is recognized as a rich source of elite tech specialists with mastery in their field, proven abilities, and the potential for long-lasting accomplishments. More than one million developers live in this region. The educational system for software development in Eastern European countries has a long tradition of excellence in math and science.

In addition, CEE offers a good correlation between the quality of the workforce and the living-cost expenses. Eastern European software engineers show high capabilities in English skills and programming language efficiency, earning $25-65 per hour.

Moreover, as neighboring countries with shared historical roots, European nations have a common understanding of business and human values, allowing them to respond effectively to each other’s needs and perspectives.

The Top Software Development Countries in Eastern Europe

1. Poland

This country is considered the leader in the region. Located at the heart of Europe, this country holds №1 on the IT competitiveness index, excelling in areas such as employment, business environment, and IT industry exports. Poland, with over 500,000 IT professionals, is home to the largest IT talent pool in Eastern Europe.

2. Lithuania

Over the last few decades, Lithuania has experienced a sudden shift in the IT sector. Statista states it is expected to receive US$511.71m by the end of 2025. IT services in Lithuania are flourishing at high speed and with a wide range of innovations. To assist and evolve the IT sector, Lithuania’s government implies initiatives like offering start-up visas, developing cutting-edge infrastructure, and facilitating bureaucratic procedures.

3. Czech Republic

The tech sector in the Czech Republic keeps growing, and the rate is expected to reach 7.83% from 2023 to 2028. There are about 6500 IT companies with 126k professionals in the Czech Republic. The biggest IT hubs are located in Prague, Brno, Ostrava, Pilsen, and Olomouc.

4. Ukraine

Despite the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, Ukraine is developing its tech hub. With the top IT spots in Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipro, Odesa, and Kharkiv, there are 285,000 developers. Overall, 43 out of the 50 biggest IT companies in Ukraine have development centers in Kyiv. Before the full-scale war started, more than 70,000 IT developers worked in Kyiv.

5. Romania

The Romanian IT industry is experiencing fascinating growth. The latest statistic shows that the value of tech exports has risen to 8.40%. Over 7,000 IT companies are flourishing in the country, with about 100,000 IT professionals involved. The government encourages the expansion of the IT sector by implying favorable tax policies, supporting innovation and R&D, investing in education and skill development, and collaborating with the private sector.

6.   Moldova

 The IT industry in Moldova is oriented toward exports due to the free economic zone implemented by the government. In 2023, the Republic of Moldova had the highest rates of IT exports among Eastern European countries. In 2016, the Innovation Technology Park (MIPT) was established in Moldova, which became one of the cornerstones of the country’s IT sector’s success. While the IT industry’s profit in Moldova was 19 million euros in 2017, it increased to 68 million in 2023.

7. Estonia

Estonia has earned the reputation of the “Silicon Valley of Europe” due to its flourishing pool of startups. The country is home to 400 startups, including Bolt, Estateguru, and more. The simplicity of business registration, state initiatives like e-residency, and business-friendly tax rates make Estonia an attractive tech environment.

8. Hungary

In recent years, Hungary has attracted investors from Western Europe. The market’s revenue is projected to hit US$15.06bn by 2025. The nation has climbed to the 4th rate on the scale of the quality of software development talent. Famous international corporations such as Microsoft, Nokia, and Deloitte hired more than 175,000 specialists in Hungary. To enhance the knowledge of IT industry specialists, the government often organizes international conferences and supports start-up development.

9. Latvia

Latvia offers a low cost of living, business-friendly conditions of work, low, result-oriented tech universities, and a flourishing startup arena –  the whole spectrum of benefits that attract IT companies from all over the planet. While the population of this country is 1.9 million, about 35,000 specialists are engaged in the software development sector.

10. Bulgaria

In 2015, the United Kingdom’s National Outsourcing Association marked Bulgaria as the “Offshoring Destination of the Year,  which contributed to its reputation as one of the key IT hubs of Eastern Europe. International corporations like Oracle, CISCO, and ATOS have their research and development offices in this country. This pattern of cooperation between companies and the outsourcing destination is similar to one in Poland.

11. Slovakia

The IT sector in Slovakia is experiencing a significant rise. Its main characteristics are quick growth and ongoing demand for innovations. The talent pool of the country’s educated experts counts over 114,000, which is 5% of the national labor market. Slovakia has a robust educational system, a multilingual and highly proficient workforce, and a beneficial economic environment.

Summing up

The Eastern European region offers a lot of opportunities for IT developers to enhance their business profit with no compromise on quality. When choosing an offshoring destination in CEE, it is advisable to contact the well-established IT leader in this region. Such assistance may be provided by N-iX, recognized by GSA UK, IAOP’s Global Outsourcing 100 company.