Hiring app developers in India: where to begin
“App developer” can mean someone who builds for iPhone, someone who builds for Android or someone who ships both from one codebase. India has a large pool of all three, and many of them have built apps for companies in other countries. The hard part is picking the right type for your product and checking the person behind the profile. This guide walks through that choice, then the practical points that come with a developer who works from India: hours, English, notice periods, store accounts and the first month.
Choose the kind of app developer first
Your product decides the profile. Use the short list below to find your starting point.
- Only iPhone and iPad: a native iOS developer who writes Swift. See our page for iOS developers in India.
- Only Android phones and tablets: a native Android developer who writes Kotlin.
- Both platforms with one team: a cross-platform developer who works with a toolkit such as Flutter or React Native.
- An app that leans on phone features: a native developer, or a cross-platform one who can also write a little native code.
If you are unsure, describe the app on a call. Many founders start cross-platform to reach both stores sooner, and switch parts to native later when the product needs it.
Write a one page brief
List what the app is for, who uses it, which platforms you target, what it talks to (your own server, a payment service, maps) and what you want built first. A page like this lets a developer in another time zone start without a long call. It also gives you a fair way to compare candidates, because each one answers the same questions.
Agree the hours in writing
India keeps a single time, UTC+5:30, all year. Your own country may change its clocks, so the gap with your team can move by an hour twice a year. UK and European teams share a good part of the morning. Teams in the Americas have less overlap, so one fixed daily call, written updates and test builds shared overnight are the usual pattern. Put the core hours and the expected reply time into the agreement before the first day.
Look at released apps
The strongest sign is an app that real people can download. Ask each candidate to name the apps they worked on and what they personally built. Install one and use it on your own phone. Look at how smooth the scrolling feels, what happens with a weak connection and whether the update history shows steady care.
Set a small paid task
Choose a job that looks like your product. A screen that loads a list from a server and copes with errors is a good example, or a sign-in form with input checks, or a fix to a short sample project. Ask for the code in Git, an installable test build and a few lines on what was done and what is left. Read the result for clear names, small pieces and sensible handling of slow networks.
Interview questions to try
- Show us an app you helped release. Which parts were yours?
- How did you handle an App Store or Google Play rejection?
- A screen is slow on an older phone. Where do you look first?
- How do you keep user data safe on the device and on the way to the server?
- How do you explain a delay to someone who does not write code?
Check written English
Daily work is mostly text: tickets, review notes and status updates. Ask for a short note about a past project and a paragraph that explains a code change to a non-technical reader. Then talk on video and see how easily questions and answers flow. Skill with English differs between people in any country, so test it instead of guessing.
Keep the store accounts and keys in your name
Publish under your own Apple and Google developer accounts. Keep the repository, signing keys, push notification setup and cloud accounts in your company name, and give the developer their own logins with only the access the job needs. Write down that the code and designs made for you are yours. This protects the app if the developer changes.
Notice periods and public holidays
A developer leaving a full-time post in India may have a notice period, so raise it early and agree a start date to match. India also has a busy calendar of public holidays, and Diwali is one of them. Ask for the dates at the start and plan releases around them.
Choosing a hiring route
An app agency prices a project and delivers it, which suits a fixed scope. The people working on your app can change, and you rarely choose them. A marketplace freelancer works for one task but leaves testing, international payment and cover to you. A dedicated developer works inside your repository and your sprints. With DigiWorks you interview the shortlist and decide, and we prepare the agreement and the monthly pay.
Mistakes that slow an app down
- Hiring a web developer for an app that needs real mobile experience.
- Picking a platform before the product is clear.
- Giving the developer the only login to the store account.
- Testing on one phone, or only on a simulator.
- Judging the result against a brief that was never written.
Looking at the wider field? Read about our mobile app developers in general, or our Android developers if the app is Android only.