How to Outsource React Development? Complete Guide

Created by Jordan Walke, an engineer at Facebook (now Meta) in 2011, React is one of the most popular frameworks used for mobile and web applications.

Since its launch in 2013, React has seen a steady rise in adoption, and these days both React Native & React JS are the preferred choice for developers globally.

It was initially developed for FaceBook's News Feed and then continuously improved for performance, scalability, user-friendliness & speed allowing front-end developers to build rich applications with an outstanding UI.

React's Popularity

Alongside Vue.Js, React has been one of the most preferred frameworks by front-end developers, and this has been growing steadily till 2020 before tapering off recently.

Vue.Js and React are highly debated among developers as to which is the best framework for front-end development.

Vue.Js and React are highly debated among developers as to which is the best framework for front-end development.

React boasts several advantages when it comes to versatility, performance, and simplicity.

One such feature is the design pattern called infinite scroll. The combination of React with infinite scroll can help you design and implement the most suitable UI element to sufficiently load data with no hassle.

React also boasts a wide number of content and component libraries available; check out our piece on rich text editors for React to know more about them.

Among all types of web and mobile application frameworks, React is second only to Node.Js

A survey of JavaScript developers done by Statista showed that around 40% of Javascript developers preferred working with React for their development projects.

The Cost & Global Trends

Initially, only a handful of developers at Meta were accustomed to this new framework before Meta made it open-source for the developer community.

Naturally, this led to widespread adoption of the framework globally, and the development communities in countries with a high depth and volume of developer expertise were quick to adopt this framework that was built on top of Java, which was already quite popular.

The supply-demand disparity in several nations and general cost of living gaps between countries inevitably gave way to outsourcing react development services, and countries like Ukraine, India, Brazil, Pakistan, and several Eastern European countries became a hotbed for offshoring these requirements.

Check out our deep dive into the best countries when outsourcing software development if you want to learn more about what the best choice for react development is.

If you want to learn more about costs in software development, you can read more about:

• The cost of building an application in Python
• How much do Flutter apps cost to develop?
• How much will it cost to build a trading app?

Why Outsource React Development?

It's now easy to understand how a React development offshoring industry came to be, but if you think cost is the only reason for this, you'd be mistaken.

Depth of Expertise

• Since its launch, developer communities for React have begun springing up all over the globe, and some countries have a robust foundation for this.
• This invariably led to pockets of react developer expertise in some countries, which directly translates to high-quality work and a better speed of delivery.
• It's common for reputed React development companies to charge higher than some of the lesser-known companies in the West.

Breadth of Expertise

• Being a front-end framework, React JS's application is fairly limited; however, companies generally also wish to complement this expertise with back-end, DevOps, Design, and Mar-tech expertise, and well-known full-service development companies are generally stacked with resources that can manage these as well.

Unavailability of Expertise

Most developed countries do have a large pool of skilled react developers; unfortunately, demand far outweighs the supply, and some organizations have no choice but to outsource the work.

Scalability

• As is often the case with most development work, the scope of the project always changes, and new requests keep piling on.
• Even though the project was initially viable to be undertaken domestically, it's wiser for organizations to outsource in the first place to prevent unreasonable cost-overruns due to changes in scope later on

Time to market

• For the same reasons mentioned in #1 and #2, the speed of development is generally much faster when projects are outsourced since multiple resources can be mapped to any given project to ensure timely delivery
• That being said, not all react development projects are alike, and in some cases, they should probably not be outsourced, or, at least, one should consider developing this expertise in-house.

1. Security-Sensitive Projects

These can include React projects for state-run companies that carry a national security risk, defense projects, company projects that include customer databases and sensitive information like government identification numbers, etc.

That being said, with the recent advancements in development processes, it is entirely possible to independently code for these projects and merge codes and branches only with internal approvals without any actual access to the codebase or the database in question.

So one should assess the risks adequately before outsourcing a team for such projects, especially abroad.

2. Small & Fixed Scope Projects

As mentioned earlier, the real benefits of outsourcing any React project come through when the most beneficial aspects of seizing the cost advantages, accessing deep technical talent, and improving delivery times are seized.

For smaller projects that are either a small portion of the entire development cycle or simple react front-end tasks, the initial costs and efforts may not justify the realized savings.

3. Company's Core Services

This is particularly pertinent for SaaS companies, data-management companies, FinTech firms, or companies wherein any piece of technology is at the center of the business, like the application for a taxi booking company or a website for an e-commerce store.

Organizations must be weary of data theft, revealing business secrets, and exposing critical infrastructure to the outsourced company and avoid outsourcing key elements as far as possible.

Adding layers of compliance, like non-disclosure agreements, that can be enforced in line with domestic law is a great way to safeguard one's vulnerabilities but is generally not enough and should only act as a last line of defense.

For example, a data intelligence company like Apollo.io should avoid outsourcing critical elements related to its data warehouse;

A CRM service provider should avoid exposing its CRM codebase and

A Taxi booking platform should only outsource the more granular aspects of mobile application development.

What Can You Outsource in React Development?

React is a versatile JavaScript framework and thus enjoys the advantages of JavaScript, meaning that almost all React application types can be outsourced.

React also has a sister framework of sorts for mobile app development called React Native; you can understand the correlation and differences between React and React Native here.

This framework allows you to also outsource the development of mobile apps that are made in React Native.

React is also a good front-end framework when it comes to building custom microservices using Node.js for the back-end.

Learn more about microservices with Node.js and React here, apart from this many other software development types utilize React, and the availability of React developers worldwide allows you to outsource it anywhere in the globe.

If you are interested in hiring an offshore firm to build custom software and applications in React for your business, then check out our:

• React Development Services
• React Native App Development Services

Types of Outsourcing Models to Consider for React Development

Outsourcing has popularly been associated with fixed price models wherein a company outsources almost all of its requirements at a predetermined fixed price or an hourly model.

In recent times, however, especially with an increase in global software outsourcing solutions, the number of models has adapted and evolved to represent the market requirements a lot more accurately.

Offshore React Development

In almost 70% of the cases, we recommend companies to go offshore, simply due to the benefits it offers. In this article below, we will discuss a bit more on how exactly should one evaluate offshore countries to outsource to.

Staff Augmentation

This is a fairly new model and is a fairly common outsourcing model wherein the internal staff is supplemented (or accentuated) by an offshore team that can intervene to supply additional development expertise or replace internal talent in the event of a planned absence or unplanned emergencies.

A fairly common model, especially among react development companies that medium to large companies can stand to benefit from.

Dedicated React Resource

Also a popular model, but mostly for smaller and mid-size companies. A junior or senior react JS or react native developer will be assigned to you/your team for taking up projects and this resource will either be wholly dedicated towards this requirement or will work a certain number of fixed hours a day on a specific project.

Since the resource is outsourced, the organization need not worry about payroll expenses and other people management overheads that come with hiring a full-time resource. Another great benefit is that the outsourcing company can always intervene on particularly complicated projects and fix issues that cannot be handled by the dedicated resource.

Nearshore React Development

In simple terms, Nearshoring refers to outsourcing react development out of one's national borders but only within reasonable limits, preferably to immediately neighboring counties with similar time zones, cultural aspects, working styles, and professional demeanors.

Conclusion

React development has become a cornerstone of modern web and mobile application development, owing to its flexibility, performance, and robust ecosystem. With a strong community, extensive libraries, and continuous updates from Meta, React remains at the forefront of front-end technologies.

For businesses and developers, embracing React offers the opportunity to build dynamic, high-performance applications with a consistent and maintainable codebase.

Outsourcing React development can be a strategic move for many businesses looking to leverage specialized expertise, reduce costs, and accelerate project timelines.