How to Hire the Right Flutter Developers for Your Project

What to Consider When Hiring Flutter Developers?

Native mobile development experience

Developers without native mobile app development might have gaps in knowledge that can lead to lengthened problem-solving. This can generate more costs and uncertainty if a solution picked by the developer is actually the most effective one. Developers with 3+ years of experience in native app development have a greater understanding of mobile environments and best practices. This helps them find the most optimal solution faster.

Cross-platform experience

For small projects that require only one developer, it’s great to find someone experienced in developing for two platforms: iOS and Android. This way, you’ll be able to release your product for two platforms and have certainty that the developer is familiar with the differences and requirements present on both platforms.

Drive to learn

Flutter is a dynamic technology that’s constantly evolving — you have to follow the news and upgrades to know which solutions work best for specific use cases. That’s why when talking to developers about your project gauge their eagerness and interest in the technology. Flutter is relatively young: not every use case has been explored. Also, while Flutter can be used for web development, there aren't that many libraries available for out-of-the-box integrations.

Why Do You Need an Experienced Flutter App Developer?

It seems like a no-brainer, but experience in native development is hugely important when considering Flutter developers. The development is rarely straightforward — there are always problems of varying complexity bound to crop up. Different issues can surface when inexperienced Flutter developers work on the project.

Here are just some of the possible scenarios:

• New product launch
• Additional maintenance
• Rebuilding the existing software
• Native app into a cross-platform
• Web into mobile (or mobile into web)

All these scenarios have edge cases that require experience to implement well. For example, during a new product launch, it might be wiser to hire a team that consists of a designer, developer, and product manager to validate an idea (by using no-code discovery) before jumping straight into development. That way, you can minimize the risk of spending money on a solution that doesn’t have a problem among your target audience.

Where to Find Flutter Developers?

There are several places where you can hire Flutter app developers. Depending on the project size, search for talent on:

Freelance platforms

Freelance platforms are a great place to hire Flutter app developers for small projects where you already have the feature requirements and designs. A good Flutter freelancer can swiftly build the app according to requirements.

Some of the platforms where you can look for freelancers:

• Upwork
• Hubstaff Talent
• fiverr

Benefits of hiring a freelancer

Because there’s no project manager, UX/UI designer, or tester, hiring a freelancer is the cheapest option. Upwork also offers companies the ability to hire agencies, where freelancers signed to an agency work on different parts of the client’s project.

Drawbacks of hiring a freelancer

Since there’s only one freelancer working on your project, you have to consider their potential unavailability caused by vacations, sick days, or other obligations. This can negatively impact the release of your product or bug fixing when something comes up during that absence. Also, not every freelance platform (e.g., Upwork), reviews freelancer experience.

Specialized recruitment agencies

If you want to hire Flutter developers, you can always turn to a specialized recruitment agency to find the top talent for your project. Toptal has a very strict applicant screening process and can be a great choice for companies who are looking to improve their capacity or build small products.

Some of the platforms where you can look for verified Flutter developers:

• Toptal
• Arc
• Flexiple
• Gun.io

Benefits of specialized recruitment agencies

The thorough screening process and personalized talent recommendations based on consultations ensure the developer fits both culturally and experience-wise. You have access to vetted and experienced specialists that often have project management skills on top of development experience.

‍Note: After working with a developer hired from an agency, there’s an option to hire in-house to complete your team.

Drawbacks of specialized recruitment agencies

You still hire a single specialist. While that isn’t a drawback in many scenarios, complex projects call for a team of professionals. You can always build a team using the agency, but that might be an overkill with unnecessary complications in terms of team management and time-zone alignment.

Software development agencies

Software development agencies that have experience in Flutter likely solved multiple problems that come up during development. Learn how to find a good app development agency.

Benefits of using a software development agency

Years of experience and senior developers aboard help agencies find solutions to any possible problems in the code in a cost-effective manner.

Since developing and designing for mobile is different from other types of software, experience in mobile app development is critical to ensure an app follows best user experience practices and is focused on solving user problems. A software agency with a portfolio of completed projects for mobile knows how to design and develop people-centered products.

Experience of an agency often means they don’t need in-depth project immersion to start delivering value. All their internal structures are prepared to adjust to many company sizes and types. After the collaboration is nearing an end, you can make a swift transition and start building an in-house team that can draw on their experience, know-how, and business consultancies to be sure your app production process moves in the right direction.

Drawbacks of using a software development agency

There might be some cultural misalignment that can result in difficult cooperation. This is especially evident when cooperating with a software agency that operates in a significantly different mindset.

Because you’re just starting a business relationship with the agency it’s difficult to estimate whether they’re honest and bill the hours right. While this can be mitigated by agreeing what types of tasks are billed, there’s always a degree of risk that an agency isn’t fair enough.

Is There a Demand for Flutter App Developers?

Since Flutter is currently the most popular cross-platform framework, there’s a great demand for developers working in the technology. The increased demand is caused by Flutter’s versatility — it helps businesses launch for multiple platforms at once and validate product ideas quickly with pixel-perfect Flutter apps. The goal of all cross-platform tools is to simplify team management — with one code for all platforms, there’s only one team to maintain and manage.

Because the demand is quite high, there's a shortage of skilled Flutter developers, particularly those with experience in native app development.

Why considering the market demand is important when hiring Flutter developers

Being aware of the market demand for Flutter developers is important especially in scenarios when you have an in-house team of developers. When you’re scaling your product and need a bigger team to accommodate the growing product development needs, you might struggle to find a good fit for your project quickly. Bar the whole recruitment process, making sure the developer you choose will possess the necessary experience and skills will take some time — the development pace of upcoming product extensions can be slow.

One of the solutions would be to assess the length of time you’d need another developer for. So when you know you’ll need assistance only for a time, instead of hiring in-house, consider hiring from a freelance platform, a recruitment agency, or a software agency. One of the biggest benefits of hiring a software agency in that case is instant access to product consultations and design audit.

How Much Does it Cost to Hire a Flutter Developer?

Hiring costs vary depending on where you hire Flutter developers from and engagement type.

All candidates screened for this research had a proven track record of successful projects. This means you can find cheaper developers, but there’s no guarantee of the quality of development and communication or project management.

Here are the examples of hourly rates you can expect when outsourcing your Flutter development needs to different regions of the world:

How to Hire the Best Flutter Developers?

Ranges for Flutter developers vary greatly from country to country. And while you can find lower rates than the ones stated above, we advise against hiring Flutter developers with low rates. Unless their proven experience and available portfolio are convincing, a low-rate developer is a risk that can end with a much higher cost in the long term.

That said, when hiring a Flutter developer from different sources, read developer vetting policies and skill screening assessments available on various platforms. A strict experience validation policy will help you reach talent that can handle your project needs. If vetting comes with custom Flutter developer recommendations based on requirements, the chances of finding a good fit are even higher.

If you decide to do a skill assessment on your own, here’s the minimum a Flutter developer candidate should have:

• Upper intermediate English level (B2)
• Experience in native mobile development (e.g., Kotlin, Swift)
• Experience in Dart
• Knowledge of API integrations and modifications
• Skill in working and customizing third-party libraries

Experience in native mobile development and the completion of many similar projects to yours can help a developer jump right into work without needing much project immersion and context.