Developer Market in 2025: Which Skills Are in High Demand

Hello HaWkers, the job market for developers has undergone significant changes in recent years. After the hiring boom of 2021-2022 and the mass layoffs of 2023-2024, the 2025 scenario shows clear signs of recovery, but with different rules.

Are you prepared to understand what companies are looking for now? Let's analyze the latest data and identify the opportunities that are emerging.

Market Overview

The developer market in 2025 is stabilizing after turbulent years. Data shows consistent recovery, but with different preferences than we've seen before.

Market Numbers

Growth projections (2023-2033):

• Expected growth: 17%
• New jobs in the US: ~327,900
• Global investment in software engineering: projected 14% annual growth
• Software engineering spending in the US in 2025: estimated at $200 billion

Entry-level market recovery:

• Jobs for 0-3 years of experience: +47% since October 2023
• Competition: still high, but improving

Sectors Hiring the Most

Some industries are leading developer hiring with impressive growth.

Growth By Sector

Sector	Job Growth	Main Driver
Investment Banking	+91%	Financial automation and AI
Industrial Automation	+73%	Robotics and smart manufacturing
Information Services	+60%	Big data, cloud and AI
Healthcare Tech	+45%	Healthcare digitalization
Cybersecurity	+38%	Increased digital threats

Big Tech Hiring Again

After the 2022-2023 layoffs, major tech companies are expanding their teams again:

Companies with most open positions:

• Apple
• IBM
• Amazon
• Google
• Microsoft

💡 Insight: Engineering headcount at Big Tech is growing again, signaling confidence in the long-term market.

Most Valued Skills

What companies are looking for has changed significantly. There's a clear preference for specialization and adaptability.

Hot Technical Skills

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning:

• AI Engineers: massive demand, especially in the San Francisco area
• Knowledge in LLMs and language models
• AI integration in existing applications
• MLOps and deploying models to production

Cloud Computing:

• AWS, Azure and Google Cloud remain essential
• SaaS, IaaS and PaaS
• Serverless architectures
• Kubernetes and containerization

Backend and Data:

• Python, SQL and automation
• APIs and microservices
• Data processing at scale
• Systems integration

Important Changes

What's declining:

• Frontend-only positions are decreasing
• Preference for full-stack or specialized backend professionals

What's rising:

• AI engineers
• Cloud specialists
• Developers with systems integration experience
• Cybersecurity professionals

Experience vs Education

One of the most significant changes is how companies evaluate candidates.

Skills-Based Hiring

Companies are prioritizing demonstrable skills over degrees:

What matters more:

1. Portfolio with practical projects
2. Open source contributions
3. Experience with specific technologies
4. Relevant certifications (cloud, AI)

What matters less:

• Degree from a prestigious university
• Formal Computer Science education (for many positions)

Preference for Experience

The market is favoring mid-level and senior professionals:

Current scenario:

• Companies prefer hiring developers with 3+ years of experience
• Entry-level is recovering, but with high competition
• Senior professionals with AI skills are extremely sought after

How to Stand Out

For entry-level professionals:

• Build real projects and put them on GitHub
• Contribute to open source projects
• Obtain cloud certifications (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Learn AI fundamentals and LLM integration

For experienced professionals:

• Specialize in a high-demand area
• Develop communication and technical leadership skills
• Stay updated with AI and automation
• Build online presence (blog, LinkedIn, conferences)

Remote Work in 2025

The remote work landscape is stabilizing, but with important nuances.

Current Trends

General data:

• 87% of professionals prefer flexible arrangements
• Hybrid models are becoming the standard
• 100% remote opportunities are decreasing in most areas

Important exception: AI Engineers

• Companies offer more remote positions to attract specialized talent
• Demand exceeds supply, giving professionals negotiating power

Implications For Your Career

If remote work is a priority for you:

Areas with more remote opportunities:

• AI/ML Engineering
• DevOps and SRE
• Cloud consulting
• Own product development

Areas with more on-site:

• Positions at large traditional corporations
• Entry-level jobs
• Roles requiring intense collaboration

The Impact of AI on the Profession

Artificial intelligence is changing the way developers work.

How AI Is Being Used

Task automation:

• Code generation with GitHub Copilot, Cursor and similar
• Automated testing
• Assisted debugging
• AI-generated documentation

What this means:

• Developers need to learn to work WITH AI tools
• Focus shifts from "writing code" to "solving problems"
• Soft skills like communication and critical thinking gain importance

From Developer to AI Engineer

An interesting trend is career migration:

The transition from software developer to AI engineer is relatively straightforward: just build applications on top of LLMs. Many developers are making this self-taught change.

Steps for transition:

1. Learn machine learning fundamentals
2. Experiment with LLM APIs (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.)
3. Build projects that integrate AI
4. Understand prompt engineering concepts
5. Explore frameworks like LangChain, Semantic Kernel

Salaries and Compensation

Salaries vary significantly by specialization and region.

Salary Ranges (USA, 2025)

Role	Annual Salary Range
ML Engineer	$180k - $400k
AI Researcher	$200k - $500k
Staff Engineer	$200k - $350k
Senior Backend	$150k - $280k
Full Stack Senior	$140k - $250k
DevOps/SRE	$140k - $260k
Frontend Senior	$130k - $220k

Note: Salaries in markets like Brazil are different, but the trends of which specialties pay more are similar.

Benefits Beyond Salary

What companies are offering:

• Equity and stock options
• Performance bonuses
• Learning budgets
• Unlimited vacation days (at some companies)
• Schedule flexibility

Conclusion: How to Prepare

The 2025 market rewards adaptability, specialization, and continuous learning.

Recommended Actions

1. Invest in AI: Even if you don't want to specialize, understand how to use AI tools
2. Specialize: Choose a high-demand area and go deep
3. Build portfolio: Practical projects are worth more than theory
4. Stay updated: The market changes fast
5. Develop soft skills: Communication and collaboration are differentiators

If you want to dive deeper into specific technologies that are in high demand, I recommend checking out another article: Claude 4 from Anthropic where you'll discover the latest AI news that can impact your career.

Let's go! 🦅