One of the biggest trends of the 21st century is the massive growth in the tech and software industries. Everything and everyone is online in some shape or another. As such, many are asking the question: How can I profit from this new digital era? One answer that many are finding their way to? The pursuit of a career in front end development or web design. With this surge of demand on the consumer end of things, companies are now looking to bring on more developers than ever before. During this article, we will take a look into this newly emerging field and check in on a front end developer salary.
Do you need to hire a front end developer? What do front end developers do? What do you need to become a front end developer? Additionally, what is the average front end developer salary? How can I increase my value as a front end developer?
During this article, we will try to answer all these questions and more.
What Do Front End Developers Do?
Even if you’ve never heard of the term front end developer, it is a guarantee that you’ve experienced their work before whenever you go online. Front end developers are responsible for designing the user interface of online websites. The user interface is the point of interaction between computers and humans. Or to simplify, the user interface is the part of a website that we as humans interact with to move around the website. The goal of a user interface is to make the experience of navigating and using a website as simple and efficient as possible. It is often why you will hear the phrase ‘user friendly’ used to describe a site that is easy to navigate.
So, the job of front end developers is to plan and design these user interface systems. The front end developer chooses how they want the website to lay out, where to place images and links, how the site is organized, the aesthetic design of the website, and more. In general front end developers work highly collaboratively with other artists and marketing teams. Front end development is one of the more creative roles in the software and tech industry.
What Do You Need to Become a Front End Developer?
While you don’t technically need a formal college degree in order to become a front end developer, obtaining one can make a big difference in landing your first job. Most companies require that front end developers have a bachelor’s degree or higher in computer science, software development, or another related field. Thankfully the vast majority of major college institutions now offer these programs. Some of the top current programs include; Cornell, UCLA, Stanford, Duke, University of Texas, University of California – Berkeley, and more.
Outside of attending a university, we also recommend that anyone looking to pursue front end development learn coding and programming. Studying HTML and JavaScript are both valuable resources when learning website development. HTML is used to format writing onto website pages. JavaScript coding is often used when developers are trying to make their sites more interactive. Outside of learning these languages, it is really just all about practice and repetition. Continuing to practice and building your online portfolio is a great way to help get yourself noticed by a company looking for front end developers.
What Is the Average Front End Developer Salary?
Now that you understand what goes into becoming a front end developer, you are likely curious as to what the salary is. According many analysis websites, the average front end developer makes between $75,000 and $95,000 a year. Glassdoor estimates the salary to be just over $86,000 per year before bonuses, so that is the number we will roll with. While $86,000 is nothing to turn your nose up at, it is also an average that includes entry-level front end developer roles as well. There is an opportunity to increase your value even more.
How Can I Increase My Value as a Front End Developer?
Despite the very sound $86,000 salary, many would like the opportunity to make more as developers. We don’t blame you. One way to increase your value as a front end developer is by continuing to learn and study new coding languages. The more versatile your skillset as a developer is, the more companies are willing to pay. Furthermore, front end developers could also look at moving into back end integration as well. In general, backend developers tend to make more than front end. So by being able to perform both roles, you set yourself up as a premier option.
Alternatively, you could also look into starting up your own development company. As with anything, it always pays more to be the boss. So if you become confident and competent enough in your skills as a front end developer starting your own firm can be extremely profitable.
Hopefully, this guide has provided some clarity and answered some of your questions about front end developers and their salaries.
