Pricing model · engineering partner
TrustChange does not publish a public rate card for IT staff augmentation cost. A real quote depends on role, seniority, domain depth, term, on-call needs and access — and a headline number without those inputs would mislead procurement. This page explains our staff augmentation pricing model: the unit, the drivers, what is included, what is extra and how nearshore staff augmentation pricing compares to offshore. A real quote arrives after a discovery call.
Inclusions
Everything below is priced into the monthly rate. If a line item is not on this list, it is an extra — see the next band. That split is written into the SOW so procurement can compare it line-by-line against another vendor's staff augmentation cost.
Prefer a whole squad? See dedicated development teams and dedicated development team services. Prefer a fixed price and date? Compare with a fixed-scope product build.
Rate drivers
Eight drivers, roughly in order of impact. Two engineers with the same job title can carry very different rates once these are on the table — and that is why a headline IT staff augmentation pricing figure is easy to publish and hard to defend.
Compare shapes: staff augmentation for one skill gap, hire fintech developers for a role-led search, or hire a dedicated development team for a standing squad.
| Driver | Why it moves the rate |
|---|---|
| Role | Backend, frontend, mobile, blockchain, DevOps, QA, compliance — each has a distinct market rate |
| Seniority | Mid-senior, senior and staff/principal; a staff engineer costs more than a senior for a reason |
| Domain depth | Crypto exchange, custody, PSD2 payments and AML case work carry a scarcity premium |
| Term & volume | Longer term and multi-role squads unlock rate improvements — never headline discounts on a one-role trial |
| Time-zone overlap | Full EU business-hour overlap is priced into nearshore staff augmentation pricing by default |
| Access & compliance | Production access, PCI DSS scope or restricted-data handling adds vetting, training and audit cost |
| Notice period | Shorter notice means we carry more bench risk; longer notice is cheaper |
| Currency & payment terms | FX exposure and payment terms (Net-30 vs pre-pay) shift the rate by a small margin |
Nearshore vs offshore
A headline offshore rate is often lower than a nearshore one — that is real. The honest question is total cost to ship in a regulated crypto or fintech context, once time zones, data residency, coordination overhead and audit evidence are in the picture. Below is the trade-off, without the marketing.
If offshore fits your work, we say so — TrustChange is a nearshore-first partner and we do not pretend to be everything. Related: on- and off-ramp integration for adjacent commercial shapes, and CTO advisory for the buy-vs-build call.
| Dimension | Nearshore (TrustChange) | Deep offshore |
|---|---|---|
| Time-zone overlap | Full EU business-hour overlap | Partial to none, depending on region |
| Data residency | EU / EEA hosting, GDPR contracts by default | Case-by-case, often needs bolt-on DPA |
| Rotation risk | Low: standing squad, low churn | Higher: pooled resources, more churn |
| Rate | Higher headline than deep offshore | Lower headline; total cost varies with rework |
| Total-cost-to-ship | Fewer hand-offs, less rework, faster review | More coordination overhead and hidden cost |
| Best fit | Regulated crypto/fintech work with EU/UK stakeholders | Non-regulated, easily specified work; you accept the trade-offs |
How to get a quote
Five steps. Nothing on this page becomes a commercial commitment until an SOW is signed, and every quote is valid for a fixed window so procurement gets a real number to compare — not a ballpark.
30 minutes
We map the role, seniority, stack, licence context, on-call needs and target start date. Output: a scoping note we both work from.
A few working days
Per-role monthly rate, inclusions and exclusions mapped, shortlist plan and validity window. No SaaS pitch, no PDF theatre.
Within 2–3 weeks
Vetted candidates. Your product owner interviews and approves. Nobody joins your team without your written sign-off.
Days
Contract with IP assignment, GDPR data-processing agreement and any add-ons priced explicitly. Then start date confirmed.
Week one onwards
First-week ramp under a written plan, delivery-lead touch-point, monthly business review. Notice period as agreed.
Other shapes
Same engineers, same standard — only the commercial shape changes. If one of these fits better, we quote the alternative on the same discovery call.
A standing EU squad with a lead. Best when the roadmap outruns your headcount for a year or more.
Defined outcome, fixed price, fixed date. Best when scope and date are settled.
Architecture and buy-vs-build review before you commit. Best at the design stage.
Senior engineers inside your team, directed by your lead. This page is the pricing view.
Questions
Six answers up front on the pricing model, why we do not publish a rate card, nearshore vs offshore, inclusions, cost drivers and how to get a real quote. Bring the rest to the call.
Our staff augmentation pricing model is per engineer, per month, in EUR by default, with a minimum term (typically three months) and a 30-day notice to scale down. A rate quote depends on role, seniority, domain depth, term, time-zone overlap and access requirements — the drivers table above lists all of them. We do not publish a public rate card because a headline number without those inputs would mislead procurement. A real quote arrives after a 30-minute discovery call.
A public IT staff augmentation cost is easy to publish and hard to defend. Rates move with seniority, domain, term, on-call needs and access — a senior backend engineer on a three-month trial with production access is not the same commercial shape as a mid-level frontend on a twelve-month standing squad. Publishing one figure would be marketing, not procurement. We quote per role, valid for a fixed window, so the number you compare is the number you would sign.
Nearshore staff augmentation pricing carries a higher headline rate than deep offshore, and it is honest about why: full EU business-hour overlap, EU / EEA data residency, GDPR-aware contracts and a low-rotation standing squad. Deep offshore has a lower headline rate; the total cost to ship in a regulated crypto or fintech context often closes the gap because of coordination overhead, rework and audit-evidence gaps. The comparison table above shows the trade-offs — if offshore fits your work, we say so.
Included: a named vetted senior engineer working full-time on your team from an EU base, standard equipment, VPN/IdP access under your rules, first-week onboarding under a written plan, a named delivery lead for escalation, cover for planned leave and sickness, IP assignment to you and a GDPR data-processing agreement. Extras (priced separately): specialist domain add-ons, 24/7 on-call retainer, on-site travel, third-party pen-tests, above-standard hardware and PII / production-access training.
In order of typical impact: seniority, domain depth (crypto exchange, custody, PSD2 payments and AML case work carry a scarcity premium), on-call requirements, production-data access and term length. Time-zone overlap, currency and payment terms move it at the margin. What does not move it: aggressive discount hunting on a one-role trial — a headline discount there usually means bench risk we would not carry into a long-term engagement.
Book a discovery call and bring the role, the seniority target, the stack, the licence context, the target start date and the term. We come back within a few working days with a per-role monthly rate, a shortlist plan, the inclusions and exclusions on this page mapped to your engagement, and a proposal valid for a fixed window. If a dedicated squad or a fixed-scope build fits your work better than staff augmentation, we tell you and quote the alternative.
Bring the role, the seniority target, the stack, the licence context, the term and the target start date. We come back within a few working days with a per-role monthly rate, a shortlist plan and a proposal valid for a fixed window. No demo theatre.
