Average Rust Developer Salary in 2024

Rust is a modern programming language popular for its:

• performance

• safety

• reliability

With its unique features and growing demand in various industries, Rust developers salaries are a topic of discussion.

And we want to join it!

In this article, ProCoders will look into:

• average salary of rust developer

• factors that influence them

• tips to save your development budget, and more

Why Is Rust Popular?

According to the Stack Overflow 2023 Developer Survey, more than 80% of developers who use Rust want to keep using it. This is a clear sign of its growing demand and developer satisfaction. This loyalty is for a reason.

No, for at least three reasons!

Safety First: Memory and Thread Safety Without Compromise

Rust focuses on memory safety without using garbage collection. Its ownership model prevents common issues like null pointer errors and data races, often occurring in C or C++. This makes Rust a great choice for building reliable, secure software. This is especially the case for systems programming and embedded applications where bugs can cause serious risks.

Rust also offers thread safety, allowing developers to write concurrent code confidently. Catching errors at compile time reduces runtime crashes and makes software more stable—crucial for performance-critical environments.

Superior Performance Benchmarks

Rust matches the speed of C++ while offering better safety guarantees. Unlike many modern languages, Rust avoids garbage collection. This allows it to achieve low-level performance without sacrificing reliability.

Rust also delivers great results for tasks that require maximum efficiency, such as:

• blockchain networks

• game engines

• real-time systems

Its ability to provide zero-cost abstractions helps developers to write high-level, readable code.

Rust vs. Other Languages:

• Rust vs. C++
  Rust offers similar performance but better memory safety, reducing critical bugs.

• Rust vs. Go
  Go focuses on simplicity and garbage collection, while Rust prioritizes fine-grained control and raw speed. For performance-intensive workloads, Rust is often the winner.

Real-World Use Cases Driving Demand

Rust’s pros make it a perfect fit for industries that value performance and reliability:

• Blockchain and Web3
  Platforms like Solana and Polkadot rely on Rust. It provides speed and secure code for decentralized systems and smart contracts.

• Embedded Systems
  Every byte counts in IoT devices and resource-constrained environments.

• Performance-Critical Software
  Rust is a trusted tool for tech, from cloud infrastructure like AWS Firecracker to game engines. It handles workloads where downtime or bugs are unacceptable.

Recommended: Web3 Developer Salary

What Factors Influence Rust Developer Salary

Location: Regional Salary Differences and Cost of Living

There are two main reasons why this is a factor. First, there are different living standards in countries. Second, salaries tend to be more competitive in regions with a high demand for skilled Rust developers.

• USA
  Rust developers in the United States earn some of the highest salaries globally. Senior developers can earn up to $200,000 annually. Cities like San Francisco and New York City offer premium pay. Why? Same two reasons we’ve mentioned — strong competition for talent and higher living costs.

• Europe
  Germany and Great Britain offer competitive salaries. Countries like Estonia and Croatia have lower rates in Central Europe due to differences in demand and cost of living.

• Other Markets
  Countries in Asia and parts of Central Europe provide more affordable developer rates. It makes these locations attractive for businesses that look to hire skilled talent at reduced costs.

Seniority: Experience and Career Progression in Senior to Junior Rust Developer Salary

Rust developer salaries increase with experience, as they should.

• Junior Developers
  Typically have 1-2 years of experience. They are skilled in basic Rust programming. They may work on smaller tasks or assist senior developers on larger projects.

• Mid-Level Developers
  With 3-5 years of experience, these developers can:
  • handle complex coding tasks
  • debug issues
  • optimize performance

They often take ownership of specific components of a project.

• Senior Developers
  With 5+ years of experience, senior Rust developers are experts in complex systems programming. They often:
  • lead teams
  • architect solutions
  • implement performance-critical features

Here’s an example of a skill growth path for a Rust developer.

1. Year 1-2: Learn Rust fundamentals, contribute to open-source projects, and write clean, efficient code.
2. Year 3-5: Master advanced concepts like ownership, concurrency, and zero-cost abstractions. Gain expertise in frameworks like Rocket and Actix.
3. Year 6+: Architect large-scale systems, lead development teams, and specialize in emerging fields like blockchain or IoT.

Industry: How Demand Shapes Salaries

Rust’s versatility has led to its adoption in several industries. However, salaries can vary depending on the industry’s demand.

• Blockchain
  Rust is a preferred language for blockchain platforms like Solana and Polkadot due to its security and performance. Rust developers in this industry earn higher salaries as blockchain projects often involve complex, high-stakes development.

• Embedded Systems
  Rust is increasingly used in IoT devices and systems programming because of its memory safety and low overhead. While demand is growing, salaries may be slightly lower than in blockchain due to budget constraints in embedded projects.

• Gaming
  Game developers favor Rust for its performance and low-latency features. However, salaries vary widely based on project size and company budget.

• Cloud and Systems Programming
  Platforms like AWS (Amazon Web Services) use Rust to build high-performance tools like Firecracker. The demand for reliable, scalable solutions increases salary here.

Recommended: Business Intelligence Developer Salary

How Much Does a Rust Developer Make?

According to Indeed, the Rust average salary is $93,000 annually in the US. That’s about $47 per hour. It’s a median Rust engineer salary, so half of all developers make more than that amount, and half make less.

We’ve seen how many factors influence the final number. To make it easier, we’ve created a table to show you how much Rust developers make in different countries.

Rust Developer Average Salary

Here, we’ve gathered information about the salaries of Rust developers. You can see several countries. We aim to compare the best-known markets, like the US and the UK to less-known Central Europe.

We’ve also divided the table by levels of expertise to make the navigation easier for you.

Country	Junior	Middle	Senior
USA	$122,656	$156,000	$200,000
Great Britain	$68,197	$83,696	$105,395
Germany	$46,312	$48,273	$83,446
France	$67,953	$67,953	$84,805
Estonia	$15,221	$26,094	$57,624
Croatia	$22,625	$32,239	$39,855

In-Demand Skills for Junior to Senior Rust Developer Salary

To hire top Rust developers, you need to identify candidates with the right skills and industry experience. Below are the must-have expertise to look for when building a skilled Rust development team.

Rust Fundamentals

A deep understanding of Rust’s core features is crucial.

• Ownership Model
  Rust’s ownership system guarantees memory safety without using a garbage collector. Developers need to understand ownership, borrowing, and lifetimes to write reliable code.

• Memory Safety
  Expertise in writing secure code and avoid common bugs like:
  • null pointer dereferences
  • data races

• Concurrency
  Rust’s concurrency model (e.g., using threads, async/await) allows developers to build multi-threaded applications.

Experience with Frameworks and Tools

Top-tier Rust developers often have hands-on experience with frameworks and tools for productivity.

• Web Frameworks
  • Actix: A powerful, fast framework for building backend services with async capabilities.
  • Rocket: A high-level framework for rapid web application development.

• Asynchronous Programming Tools
  • Tokio: A runtime for building asynchronous applications, commonly used for networking and distributed systems.

The skills to use these tools allow developers to create scalable, high-performance applications efficiently.

Proficiency with Cargo and CI/CD Pipelines

Cargo, Rust’s package manager and build system, is integral to efficient Rust development. A skilled developer should be familiar with:

• Dependency Management
  Using Cargo to manage libraries and tools within a project.

• Testing
  Writing unit tests, integration tests, and leveraging Cargo’s testing suite for robust code validation.

• Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD)
  Setting up automated pipelines to streamline builds, testing, and deployments.

Experience with tools like GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or Jenkins for CI/CD ensures smooth workflows and faster delivery cycles.

How to Create Job Offer That Will Attract The Top-Notch Developers

There are experienced people in many countries. But hiring the right ones on the first try can be difficult. Maybe you have tried to attract the best Rust developers but failed. Maybe you’re still on the way to creating an ideal image of an employee.

We know there are different situations. But ProCoders is with you and on your side!

Here are some tips for creating a job offer that will attract top-notch frontend and backend developers.

Have your job description written in plain language. Developer candidates may not understand some inside jokes and jargon of your company. They want a concise and straightforward description of the role and what it entails.

That being said, you can use your brand’s tone for people to remember you.

Add some details about the position itself:

• what skills are needed

• how many years of experience are required

• what is the salary range is

• whether or not there are remote options available

Write not just what you need from a candidate. Give them info about what they will get from your company.

Cost-Saving Strategies When Hiring Rust Developers

Hiring skilled Rust developers doesn’t have to break the bank. Here are actionable strategies to save costs without sacrificing results.

Freelancers vs. Full-Time Developers

Choosing between freelancers and full-time developers depends on your project scope and long-term needs.

We’ll review the pros and cons of both options here in brief.

Freelancers

• Pros:
  • Cost-effective for short-term or small projects.
  • Flexibility to scale resources up or down as needed.

• Cons:
  • Limited availability for ongoing support.
  • Quality and reliability can vary widely, requiring careful vetting.

Full-Time Developers

• Pros:
  • Ideal for long-term projects and ongoing maintenance.
  • Greater accountability, team integration, and consistent quality.

• Cons:
  • Higher costs for hiring, benefits, and retention.

Recommendation: For short-term, well-defined projects, freelancers might be a smart choice. However, consider hiring full-time developers or partnering with dedicated teams for complex or long-term projects.

Building a Hybrid Team

A cost-efficient approach to hiring involves building a hybrid team. We don’t mean in-house vs remote now (although this will work as well). We mean combining senior developers with junior or mid-level specialists.

Allocate the seniors to critical tasks like:

• system architecture

• performance optimization

• mentoring

Their expertise builds a solid foundation for your project.

Assign junior/mid-level developers to tasks like:

• coding smaller features

• debugging

• unit testing

This reduces costs while allowing lower-level devs to learn under senior guidance.

Using Outstaffing Agencies Like ProCoders

Partnering with an outstaffing agency like ProCoders offers:

• Expertise

• Competitive rates

• No overhead of in-house hiring

There are several benefits of choosing ProCoders as your tech ally.

• Access to Pre-Vetted Talent
  ProCoders offers developers that we choose ourselves. They have great technical skills, industry experience, and communication abilities.

• Quick Scaling
  Need to scale your team up or down? ProCoders’ flexibility allows you to adapt to changing project demands quickly.

• Reduced Administrative Overhead
  Skip the hassle of recruitment, onboarding, and HR management. ProCoders handles it all for you.

• Integration with Your Team
  ProCoders developers understand your corporate culture, workflow, and communication processes. They become a real extension of your team.

You can choose to spend months looking for a perfect in-house team. You can also choose to onboard a highly skilled Rust developer with ProCoders in 1-2 weeks.

How to Hire Robust Rust Developers with ProCoders?

If you’re looking for professional Rust developers, ProCoders can help!

We have a quick and easy process of matching you with candidates.

1. We start with a thorough understanding of the partner’s project needs.
2. We ask questions about which developers they need. Thus, we identify the skills and industry experience required for the project.
3. If a suitable developer is available, we arrange an interview between the client and the developer. The client may skip this step if they fully rely on us.

We immediately begin hiring to find the perfect candidate if no developers are available.

This is what ProCoders’ hiring process looks like:

1. First, we conduct thorough research to find talent.
2. We then pre-screen candidates to ensure they work well within our team and align with our company culture. We also assess their English proficiency to meet our standards.
3. We conduct a basic knowledge and skills test to eliminate unsuitable candidates.
4. Our practicing Rust developers then conduct tech interviews to evaluate the candidate’s knowledge.
5. Finally, we let our clients interview the candidate. They can ask any questions they want or trust our judgment entirely.

Once we find a developer who meets our high standards, we onboard them as a member of the client’s team and our employee.

This approach benefits us because we are interested in finding the most skilled developers. Why? They will remain with us even after the project is completed.

At ProCoders, we value communication, transparency, and business ethics. You’ll manage your outstaffed team directly.

Finally, we at ProCoders understand how important it is to keep your data safe. Our employees sign NDAs and make sure your development plans are under wraps.

Contact Us and Let’s Choose the Right Rust Developers for You!

Conclusion

Understanding the salary trends and factors that influence the Rust developer salary is crucial. If you’re looking to hire developers in the field, you must know what they expect.

With Rust’s growing demand in various industries, developers earn more competitive salaries. They may vary based on seniority and location.

By using ProCoders’ expert tips and salary guide, you can calculate and optimize your development budget. Doing so wisely won’t compromise on quality.

Additionally, we can help you hire robust Rust developers quickly and at a reasonable fee. We ensure communication, transparency, and business ethics.

Contact us today to improve development and save your budget!