Hiring a Trustworthy React.js Developer
Table of Contents
In addition to guest posting on the UpCity blog, PopArt Studio is featured as one of the Top Web Design Agencies in the United States. Check out their profile!
If you’ve researched different platforms for web development, then you’ve probably heard about React.js, an open-source Javascript library that development teams use as a preferred tool for developing web interfaces. React is especially critical and vital nowadays in the development of single-page apps. It’s among those go-to libraries that power such digital powerhouses as Facebook and Instagram.
Since it’s truly remarkable, it’s no wonder that businesses opt for this library and look for reputable React software engineers and developers.
As such, this article will go over everything businesses of different sizes from different industries need to know regarding finding a good React.js developer, what skills to look for, and where to look for them.
How to Hire React.js Developers the Right Way
React programmers tackle the different user-experience-related challenges that arise during the development cycle. The best React developers are key players when it comes to exceptional front-end development, as they are often responsible for everything site visitors see in web apps or on web pages. Working closely with web designers (or UI experts), they are the professionals who create the “look” of an app or site to ensure visitors will like it and won’t abandon it.
Still, the question begs to be answered – why would you need these React.js developers?
Why and When To Hire React.js Developers?
There are a couple of reasons why businesses should consider hiring dedicated React.js developers. Even the smallest companies can benefit from their services, just like enterprise-level entities!
Small Businesses/Startups
When it comes to cost-effective but high-quality interface development, React experts can be a huge asset for smaller businesses.
For instance, the library makes great use of reusable components, making them easily implementable in any new site or app project. This can significantly reduce the required working hours to finish a development project, better catering to tighter budgets. Extensive and reliable community support of React can also significantly speed up development, making it an ideal choice for smaller companies without vast development budgets.
Medium-Sized Firms
These businesses have been around for a while now and know that the UX of their web app plays an integral part in being successful online.
React can be a massive help in this regard, as it can help you develop a stable app that will remain relevant for years to come. React is managed by Meta’s development team, meaning that it gets regular updates along with the necessary security patches to keep its performance optimized.
Large Organizations
Needless to say, stability and security are essential for enterprise-level businesses as well. Giants like Netflix, Airbnb, and WhatsApp all use React to power their applications’ front end.
Now, let’s just say a few short sentences about where React.js shines best.
- Lifestyle apps: social media apps have showcased React’s power incredibly well. The platform is excellent for videos and images and also gives regular notifications on user updates, with share, stream, and a myriad of other functions.
- eCommerce platforms: Great site structure and user-friendliness are both essential for eCommerce companies. With the ability to create intuitive navigation, React is a go-to option for businesses looking for a tool to keep everything optimized.
- Cross-platform apps: For those companies who want to create a web app that has both Android and iOS covered, React native is the obvious choice.
The Best Uses for React.js
Depending on your needs, React might not be the best programming language for your project. React.js shines best in specific types of mobile applications and with particular tech stacks (normally ones including other Javascript libraries like Node.js on the backend).
Lifestyle Apps
Social media apps have showcased React’s power incredibly well. The platform is excellent for videos and images and also gives regular notifications on user updates, with share, stream, and a myriad of other functions.
eCommerce Platforms
Great site structure and user-friendliness are both essential for eCommerce companies. With the ability to create intuitive navigation, React is a go-to option for businesses looking for a tool to keep everything optimized and user-friendly.
Cross-platform Apps
For those companies who want to create a web app that has both Android and iOS covered, React native is the obvious choice.
Hear From Industry Experts
Read the latest tips, research, best practices, and insights from our community of expert B2B service providers.
Hiring a React Developer
Now that you are more familiar with the possibilities of React itself, it’s time we talk about the javascript developers who work with the library.
As React has a multitude of possible applications for different web frameworks, you will need to consider that different experts will have different experience levels. Whether you need a junior or senior React developer will determine the years of experience you look for, the hourly rate you pay, and the size of the talent pool. It’s becoming more and more difficult to find cost-effective developers with the right soft skills and know-how as competition heats up!
Some of the requirements will also vary depending on the project at hand, so we should focus on the most common skills that these experts must have.
Junior Developers
These professionals are on the (somewhat) less experienced end of the spectrum, with around a year to a year and a half of work experience behind them. They clearly understand the basics of both React and Angular, as well as other common Javascript frameworks.
Good and reliable juniors should also have a working knowledge of CSS, HTML, and Git. Also, they should be good at speaking English, at least at the B2 level or higher.
They should also understand MVC/MVVM concepts, the importance of debugging and unit testing, and have at least some experience regarding server-side rendering.
Medior Developers
These professionals have worked with React Native for at least two years, meaning that they should have a more comprehensive understanding of all the technologies we mentioned above, like the knowledge of CSS.
They should be experts in TypeScript and JavaScript and should also understand how state management with Redux works. They should also be experienced in mobile app development with consuming API endpoints. Lastly, they should also be proficient in written and spoken English.
Senior Developers
These experts should have more than five years of working experience with React and should also have extensive knowledge of using TypeScript for creating React-based interfaces. They should also have solid experience with using different front-end environments such as SASS, WebPack, and ES6 and understand different dev patterns like loC, MVVM, and MVC. They should also be capable of building RESTful services and APIs.
Proficiency in English is also a must, and they should also be familiar with the nature of other JS frameworks like Angular, Vue, and JQuery.
Where to Find React.js Developers?
For the most part, businesses opt either for outsourcing these needs to a software development company or choosing an in-house team. Both of these methods have their own set of benefits. In-house teams are often more accessible from a legal standpoint and can also speed up the development cycle as communication is more streamlined.
On the other hand, outsourcing can often make it easier to find the right experts because you can hire from all around the world. It can also be a cost-effective way to get a project done, and vendors will usually help with different legal processes so you and your outsourced team can focus on development.
Outsourcing to Agencies
When working with outsourcing agencies, you will be able to hammer out high-quality projects promptly, as the legal aspects of these jobs will be handled by managers and HR experts, which means you can focus on your work and the project needs.
These agencies can hire the right React experts quickly and locate the best development teams for the job, assessing their capacities and skillset in different areas of expertise. Agencies will also take care of contract signing and will help set up effective communication channels between the developers and your business.
Taking this route is ideal if you have a large and intricate project where you need a team that’s dedicated to building your website or app. Also, this is a great option as you have every legal aspect covered, which is great for accountability reasons.
Dedicated Freelance Platforms for Hiring React.js Developers
Freelance websites can come in handy if you have a smaller project at hand. There are several freelance platforms you can use, but experts usually recommend visiting either Toptal or Upwork to find the right experts.
Upwork: This is one of the largest freelancer portals on the internet, bringing several benefits to the table. You get in-depth information regarding the skills of your possible candidates, success rates of their previous projects, can get customer reviews – all in a well-organized interface.
Toptal: Another large platform with vigorous acceptance criteria, ensuring that you browse only from the best.
React.js Developers from Online Classifieds
If you want to save time with finding candidates, job posting sites (like Indeed, Hubstaff Talent, etc.) can be of great help as you only have to post the job ad, and the developers will apply by themselves.
Social Networks for Hiring React Developers
Professional social networks (such as LinkedIn) enable you to reach out to professionals personally, and they can also apply to your job opportunities.
No matter which platform you opt for, at the end of the day, you need to hire a professional developer that possesses the necessary skills that your project requires.
Hiring React Developers: Checking for Qualifications
Asking the Right Interview Questions
Consider these questions to check whether your candidate is skilled enough to tackle your
project.
What are the limitations of React.js?
For starters, a good React developer will know that React is a library and not a framework. Still, understanding its intricate nature can take time. Learning proper coding in React is also something that will take people some time because the library uses JSC and inline templating.
Why do you render() in React?
Every single component in the library should have a dedicated render() as the components return a single React element representing the native DOM component. When experts render several HTML elements, they must group them within a single enclosing tag ( <form>, <group>,<div>).
What are the Props?
In React user interface development, props (or properties) are the library’s read-only components that are always passed down to child components through parent components in an app. The child component is unable to send the prop back to the parent, helping maintain the data’s unidirectional flow.
Honestly, when it comes to creating web applications with React.js, there are a lot more questions you can ask. If you are looking for a more time-efficient approach, you can always turn to other methods as well.
Look At Candidate Profiles
You can always take a look at your potential developer’s profile on LinkedIn or Upwork, which shows their skills. On that end, freelance platforms will also have testimonials from other employers who’ve worked with your potential partners.
Look for Recommendations
As mentioned above, you can read customer reviews about these developers where other employers write about their experiences with the candidates. No matter whether these experts were working for these employers full-time or only the duration of a single project, the employers will probably be thorough when it comes to assessing the developers’ skills, experience, virtues, and possible weak points.
Look at Past Experiences
The number of projects the candidate has worked on (and the list of companies they worked for) may also be an excellent indicator for assessing their skills in web development.
What You Need To Do To Hire The Best React Developer
To make both your search and your candidates’ life easier, it’s a great idea to have well-defined expectations and requirements for your project. As such, you should:
Know your Needs and Budget
To ensure that the entire project will be a success, you need to properly define your project, its needs, and the budget you can allocate.
When you know what you need, it’s easier to sign a win-win contract with your developer that will include everything from deadlines to budgeting, communication rules, and more.
Prepare for The “Job Interview”
If you are planning to interview your candidates personally, you should already know what skills you are looking for (both soft and hard), and you should have a good idea of what experience level you seek. Assess your candidates’ technical skills and whether there are any shortcomings you are ready to accept or not.
Evaluate Developer Portfolios
Before opting for a development team or a single expert, carefully study all the portfolios you receive. This way, you can see all the projects your candidates participated in, the responsibilities they had, and the results they achieved.
Hiring the Right React Developer
As React can be used in a wide variety of cases, giving a conclusive answer on how to hire a React.js developer can be rather tricky. Depending on the intricacy of your application development requirements, business size, and area of expertise, you might need to look for different skills and experience levels than the next company.
Still, when you’ve defined your needs and budget, finding the right expert for the job will become less challenging.
