Types of Software Development Companies in Poland

Poland is one of the fastest-growing startup ecosystems in Eastern Europe. With strong developers, a location in the heart of Europe, and a large domestic market of approximately 38 million consumers, Poland serves as an excellent foothold for technology projects to enter the international market. Startup visas, tax preferences, international venture funds, and local solid accelerators in the region make the country attractive for many businesses concerning software development in Poland.

Software development companies in Poland: Startups

According to Startup Blink 2021, Poland ranks 30th in the global startup ecosystem rankings. There are more than 4,000 startups in the country, and 14 Polish cities are in the top 1,000 places for technology business. Their position and number in the ranking are increasing: last year, there were only 11 cities included in the ranking. Four of them are among the top 200 in e-commerce, retail, software, and data innovation.

In terms of the number of venture capital investment rounds in Central and Eastern Europe over the past eight years, Poland is ranked first. Regarding the amount of venture capital invested, it is in second place, rivaled only by Estonia. This is the reason why outsourcing to Poland is so popular.

Most of the startups, up to 30%, are concentrated in Warsaw. Krakow, Wroclaw, and Katowice are not yet ahead of the capital but are included in the fast-growing European technology centers list. With more than 45,000 IT professionals, Krakow is the second largest technology hub for software development in Poland after Warsaw.

There are seven large IT centers in the country, which employ more than 85% of IT specialists in the country, including Tricity, Poznan, and Lodz. You can also find a lot of IT companies in Krakow.

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IT organizations in Poland

There are so many accelerators, incubators, and other organizations for Polish developers in Poland that it is difficult to list them all: At least 30-40 companies of this type are operating in the country, both private and governmental. 

According to Investment Attractiveness of Europe 2019, before the pandemic, Poland ranked 7th in the most attractive locations for foreign investment in Europe, behind France, Germany, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the UK.

During the pandemic, Poland showed a lower drop in GDP than the average across the European Union, so the economy turned out to be stable. Market participants were able to adapt to new conditions relatively quickly. As a result, in the second quarter of the year 2022, the country’s GDP growth exceeded this year’s beginning indicators by 2%. 

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Software development in Poland: Venture funds

There are about 100 local venture funds in the country. More than 150 foreign investment funds operate here, according to Crunchbase. Between 2009 and 2019, these organizations invested in more than 750 companies. The Polish venture capital market accounts for 3% of the European venture investment ecosystem. VC funds in Poland manage €2.6 billion in assets, which translates into an average of €19.6 million per fund.

Software development companies in Poland: Industries

Startups from such sectors as fintech, medicine, agricultural technology, green energy, and waste management (recycling) are attracting the attention of investors. Cryptocurrency and blockchain software development companies in Poland are also popular.

One of the first international corporations with an office in Poland was General Electric. The branch started operating in 1992, and since then, many well-known brands have entered the country, including Intel, Google, Samsung, Oracle, Facebook, and Microsoft.

The attention of technology giants to software development companies in Poland is attributed to the solid technical base of developers and the difference in wages. According to Clutch.co, the average cost per hour for a developer in the US is $150–$199, while Polish developers charge between $50–$99. The HackerRank study, which is dedicated to programmers’ skills and experience across different countries, includes developers from Poland in the top 3.

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Polish developer market

Unlike many European and North American countries, Poland isn’t struggling with an acute shortage of programmers in the local market.

Companies are actively hiring people, starting from the middle / upper-middle level: only the pandemic has slightly slowed down this process. 

There are offices of large companies in Warsaw, including IT giants: Google, Microsoft, and Oracle, as well as many local companies that specialize in outsourcing to Poland. A wide range of companies develop custom software for US and European markets. Therefore, you can easily find a software development company in Poland that deals with outsourcing, from software suites to enterprise software for large companies.

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Peculiarities of Polish software development companies

Schedule. Polish developers tend to value their time and the time of others very much. In most companies, especially the government ones, the official work schedule is 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week. The maximum a person can work per day is 12 hours, but these additional hours are paid 50% more. 

Focus on health and freedom. Software development companies in Poland widely apply the best practices of world-known corporations. The statement that brilliant ideas come to a well-rested person is commonly adopted among Polish startups and companies. To that end, many companies have break rooms, fitness instructors, and other employee perks.

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A variety of opportunities. Poland is a springboard for many exciting projects. The Polish startup ecosystem has shown incredible development dynamics over the past ten years. The pandemic has only spurred the interest of the technology community in software development companies in Poland. Most experts are sure that Poland has not yet revealed its full potential. Startup Blink’s 2021 study says: “If the country remains an open economy that welcomes innovation, it could follow in the footsteps of its western neighbor Germany and rise significantly in the global rankings of efficient startup ecosystems. The country has every chance to become one of the most attractive regions for both entrepreneurs and investors in Europe in the future.”

Contact us to discuss your business needs and how outsourcing to Poland can help you fulfill your goals.