The Real Price Tag of Hiring in Western Europe
Salary is only part of the story. Here's what founders usually miss.
When companies budget for a new hire in Western Europe, they often only look at gross salary. But the fully loaded cost includes employer taxes, benefits, office overhead, recruitment fees, and the time it takes to fill the role.
Add it all up and a senior engineer in Western Europe can easily run 30 to 50 percent more than the same role filled in Bulgaria, with no difference in skill or output quality.
For companies scaling engineering teams, that gap adds up fast - often into hundreds of thousands of euros a year.
Want to see exactly what that gap looks like for your team size and seniority mix?
