Devvista is a software development and growth agency whose clients in the US, UK, Australia, Canada and the UAE hire dedicated AWS developers and cloud engineers from us. Choose hourly hours, a small team, or a fixed price.
Running software on Amazon Web Services means choosing from hundreds of services, and each choice affects cost, security and how easily the system changes. Below: what our AWS engineers build, which roles to hire for which job, the cost, how to check a candidate and how hiring works from your country.
What our AWS developers build
Cloud-hosted web apps and APIs
Applications deployed to AWS with separate test and production environments, backups and monitoring.
Serverless backends
Functions, queues and managed databases that run without servers to look after, designed so the monthly bill follows real usage.
Migrations to AWS
Moving servers, databases or storage to AWS in steps, with a rollback plan and a cost check at each step.
Infrastructure as code
Environments described in code so a new copy can be created and reviewed like any other change, instead of being clicked together by hand.
Cost and security reviews
Finding unused resources, open access and missing backups in an existing account, ranked by risk and saving. See our hire Azure developers page for the Microsoft cloud.
Three common ways to run an app on AWS, and which one to start with
Most first AWS projects begin with one of three patterns. The table compares them in plain terms, so the brief you give an engineer already names a direction.
| Pattern | How it runs | Good when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serverless functions | Code runs only when called, with managed storage and queues | Traffic is uneven and the team is small | Hard-to-trace flows without good logging |
| Containers | The app is packaged and run on a managed container service | You already package apps in containers or need steady performance | More moving parts to monitor and update |
| Virtual servers | You rent machines and manage the software on them | You are moving an existing system as it is | Patching and capacity become your job |
| Our view | Start with the simplest pattern that meets the need | Decide with a written estimate of monthly cost | Revisit when usage doubles |
Our hire Azure developers page covers the Microsoft route, and our guide to hiring dedicated developers covers the engagement models.
Common AWS needs and the service families that serve them
AWS offers many services, and the right ones depend on the job. The table pairs common needs with the family of services usually considered, and with what to ask a candidate about each.
| Need | Service family usually considered | Main trade-off | Ask a candidate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Run a web app or API | Virtual servers, containers or serverless functions | Control versus how much you manage | Why this option for our traffic pattern? |
| Store files and backups | Object storage with lifecycle rules | Cheap to hold, charged to retrieve | How long do we keep each kind of file? |
| Hold relational data | Managed relational databases | Convenience versus tuning freedom | How do backups and restores work here? |
| Do slow work in the background | Queues and scheduled functions | Simplicity versus strict ordering | What happens to a job that keeps failing? |
| Control who can do what | Identity and access management | Fast setup versus least access | Which rights does each service role hold? |
A good engineer explains the trade-off in the last column in plain words, and shows the monthly cost estimate beside the design.
What it costs and how you can hire
Rates for AWS developers follow one scale: hourly from $10 to $100, or fixed from $500 up to $100,000 depending on scope. We state the price before work starts, in US dollars.
| Model | Best for | Pricing |
|---|---|---|
| Dedicated AWS developer by the hour | Operating and improving a live AWS environment each month | By developer level |
| Small AWS team | A launch that needs infrastructure, application code and release checks in one plan | Hourly, per person |
| Fixed-price build | A migration, an environment setup or a review with a written scope | By complexity |
| Scoping first | You need a design and a cost view before committing to AWS | A short engagement that ends in a written spec |
Illustration (an estimate, not a quote): a serverless backend on AWS for a mobile app, with accounts, an API, a managed database, queues and monitoring, at an assumed $40 an hour:
| Work | Hours |
|---|---|
| Design and cost estimate | 20 |
| Accounts and sign-in | 26 |
| API functions | 50 |
| Managed database and backups | 24 |
| Queues and background jobs | 26 |
| Infrastructure as code | 28 |
| Monitoring and alerts | 20 |
| Documentation and handover | 12 |
| Total | 206 hours, about $8,240 at $40 an hour |
Remove the background jobs and the total falls; add a second environment and it climbs. Bring your use case and we will price your own.
Which AWS developer profile you need
AWS projects need someone who has run a system in production, so ask what they have operated, not only built.
| Profile | What they do | Ask to see |
|---|---|---|
| Application engineer on AWS | Writes the code that runs on the services | A system they shipped and the alarms on it |
| Infrastructure engineer | Describes environments in code and keeps them repeatable | An environment rebuilt from code in front of you |
| Solutions designer | Chooses services and sizes them against a budget | A design beside the real invoice it produced |
| Lift-and-shift specialist | Relocates existing servers and data with little change | A cut-over runbook from a past move |
Common situations and what to hire
AWS work begins from a few usual starting points.
| Your situation | What to hire | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A new product with unpredictable traffic | A serverless backend built by a small team | Cost follows usage, and alarms watch the bill |
| Servers you want to retire | A migration engineer on a staged plan | Each step has a rollback and a cost check |
| An AWS account nobody understands | A cloud architect for a review by the hour | Findings are ranked by risk and saving |
What the first month of a AWS hire looks like
- Week one: access to the AWS account, a review of what runs today and a written plan.
- Week two: environments defined in code, with accounts and access rules in place.
- Week three: the first services deployed, with monitoring and a cost alarm.
- Week four: a rollback test, a backup restore test, documentation and a handover session.
How to check any AWS developer before you hire
Ask every shortlisted developer the same questions and compare the answers side by side. Vague answers are the first filter.
- How would you separate test and production so a mistake in one cannot reach the other?
- How do you manage access, so each person and service has only the rights it needs?
- How do you keep the monthly bill predictable, and what alarms warn of a spike?
- How do you back up the data, and when did you last test a restore?
- How would you roll back a failed release?
- Which AWS accounts will be in our name at handover?
- Ask for a small paid trial task before you commit: a short written design for one small system, with the services chosen, the reasons and an estimated monthly cost.
Be cautious of anyone who promises a start date or a result before they have seen your scope. Scope sets the timeline.
Mistakes to avoid when hiring AWS developers
Cloud mistakes show up on the bill and in security reviews.
- Using one account and broad access for every environment.
- Choosing services because they are new, not because they fit.
- Skipping backups and never testing a restore.
- Building environments by hand, so nobody can reproduce them.
Hiring from the US, UK, Australia, Canada and the UAE
Devvista works remotely with clients in the US, UK, Australia, Canada and the UAE and has no office in any of them. Calls, written specs and a shared project board replace site visits.
Who this is for, and who it is not
| A good fit | Not a fit |
|---|---|
| A business moving to AWS or running a product that needs cloud skills | A request to use as many AWS services as possible |
| A team adding a cloud engineer by the hour | A project needing developers on site |
| Owners who approve a written design and a cost estimate | A plan with no budget for monitoring and backups |