When a business decides it needs a developer, a designer, and a marketer, the instinct is often to hire. Build a team, bring them in-house, maintain control. It sounds logical — until you look at the actual numbers.
The Real Cost of a US In-House Hire
A mid-level full-stack developer in the US commands a base salary of $110,000–$150,000 per year. But salary is only part of the cost. Factor in:
- Employer taxes and benefits — typically adds 25–35% on top of base salary
- Recruitment — agency fees of 15–25% of first-year salary, or months of internal hiring time
- Equipment and software — laptop, licences, tools: $3,000–$8,000 upfront
- Onboarding time — a new hire typically takes 3–6 months to reach full productivity
- Management overhead — someone on your team has to manage, review, and develop them
For a single senior developer, the true first-year cost is often $160,000–$220,000. For a team of four (developer, designer, marketer, QA), you’re looking at $500,000–$800,000 per year — before office space or tooling.
The Cost of a Managed Offshore Team
A fully managed execution team through Rebrandic — same four disciplines, senior specialists, accountable delivery — costs significantly less. Most clients save 60–75% compared to equivalent US in-house costs. The exact figure depends on team composition and hours, but the gap is substantial regardless of how you configure it.
And critically: there’s no recruitment cost, no onboarding lag, no employer overhead, and no long-term headcount commitment. If your needs change, you scale the team up or down — without redundancy processes or severance.
What You Don’t Sacrifice
The concern with offshore teams is quality. That concern is valid when teams are unvetted, unmanaged, and poorly integrated. It’s not valid when vetting, management, and quality control are built into the model — which is precisely what Rebrandic provides.
Our specialists are pre-vetted, trained in-house, and managed by a dedicated Account Lead. Every deliverable goes through internal review. You get US-standard output at India-based rates.
When In-House Still Makes Sense
In-house hiring makes sense when you need deep long-term product ownership, when a role is core to your competitive advantage, or when regulatory requirements demand it. For most execution functions — design, development, marketing, QA — the managed offshore model delivers better value at every stage of growth.
Curious what a team would cost for your specific requirements? Book a 30-minute call and we’ll put together a clear comparison.
