Hiring a Web Developer vs Outsourcing: What It Costs
Last updated September 28, 2026. Every number on this page was checked September 25, 2026.
A first web hire in Florida costs $100,539.27 a year in wages and employer taxes, if you pay a computer programmer the state's median wage. Benefits beyond the ones the law requires could add about $33,446 more, based on a national average. A DeskTeam360 plan costs $17,964, $35,928, or $53,892 a year at its published prices. Whether outsourcing saves you money depends on how much web work you've got, and whether one person could cover all of it.
What does one web hire cost before benefits?
In Florida, a computer programmer at the median wage costs $100,539.27 a year. That counts wages plus employer Social Security, Medicare, federal unemployment tax, and Florida reemployment tax. The same job at the US median comes to $108,111.84, plus whatever that state charges for unemployment tax. The tables below show every line and every step of the math.
What one web hire costs: Florida next to the US
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn't publish a Florida wage for web developers. So this table uses two close jobs. Computer programmers come first, because they're the closer match. Web and digital interface designers are a second stand-in. For the whole US, the median web developer wage is $92,650.
| Cost for one year | Florida: computer programmer | US: computer programmer | Florida: web and digital interface designer (stand-in) | US: web and digital interface designer (stand-in) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median wage (BLS, 2025 data) | $93,180.00 | $100,390.00 | $77,730.00 | $104,000.00 |
| Employer Social Security, 6.2% of wages | $5,777.16 | $6,224.18 | $4,819.26 | $6,448.00 |
| Employer Medicare, 1.45% of wages | $1,351.11 | $1,455.66 | $1,127.09 | $1,508.00 |
| Federal unemployment tax, 0.6% of the first $7,000 | $42.00 | $42.00 | $42.00 | $42.00 |
| State unemployment tax | $189.00 (Florida: 2.7% of the first $7,000) | Not counted (each state sets its own) | $189.00 | Not counted (each state sets its own) |
| Total a year, before benefits | $100,539.27 | $108,111.84 plus state tax | $83,907.35 | $111,998.00 plus state tax |
| Total a month (the year divided by 12) | $8,378.27 | $9,009.32 plus state tax | $6,992.28 | $9,333.17 plus state tax |
DeskTeam360's published prices
These are DeskTeam360's published prices as of September 2026.
| Plan | Tasks at a time | A month | A year (a month x 12) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entrepreneur | 1 | $1,497 | $17,964 |
| Marketer | 2 | $2,994 | $35,928 |
| Agency | 3 | $4,491 | $53,892 |
Every plan includes the full team and all 8 services, web development included. The plans differ only in how many tasks run at the same time.
The math, step by step (Florida computer programmer)
- Start with the median yearly wage: $93,180 for a computer programmer in Florida, from BLS 2025 data.
- Add employer Social Security. It's 6.2% of wages up to $184,500 in 2026. $93,180 x 6.2% = $5,777.16.
- Add employer Medicare. It's 1.45% of all wages. $93,180 x 1.45% = $1,351.11.
- Add federal unemployment tax. After the full state credit, it's 0.6% of the first $7,000, or $42. Florida isn't on the US Labor Department's 2026 list of states that may lose part of that credit. The final call comes after November 10, 2026.
- Add Florida reemployment tax for a new employer. It's 2.7% of the first $7,000, or $189.
- Add it up: $93,180 + $5,777.16 + $1,351.11 + $42 + $189 = $100,539.27 a year. Divided by 12, that's $8,378.27 a month.
All four wages in the table are under the $184,500 Social Security cap, so the whole wage gets taxed. Cents are rounded half up.
What's counted and what's left out
| One hire | One contractor | A DeskTeam360 plan | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Counted here | Wages plus employer Social Security, Medicare, federal unemployment tax, and Florida reemployment tax | No official price exists. The person sets the rate | The published monthly price |
| Left out | Benefits, paid time off, equipment, software, hiring costs, and workers' comp. Florida only requires workers' comp at 4 or more employees outside construction | Whatever the person charges | Nothing extra is published |
| Who does the work | One full-time person | One person, for the hours you buy | A team that works on 1, 2, or 3 tasks at a time |
A hire and a plan aren't the same thing. One hire is one full-time person. A DeskTeam360 plan is a team working on 1, 2, or 3 of your tasks at a time. The tables show the size of the gap between the two options.
How much do benefits add to the cost of an employee?
Benefits beyond the ones the law requires add about 35.9 cents for every wage dollar, on a national average. The steps below show where that comes from.
In June 2026, full-time workers in private industry cost employers $54.00 an hour on average. Of that, $36.97 was wages and $17.03 was benefits, which is 31.5% of the total. $3.76 of the benefits was the legally required kind, like Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment tax. The cost table above already counts some of those.
- Take the benefits and subtract the legally required part: $17.03 minus $3.76 = $13.27 an hour. That covers things like paid leave, insurance, and retirement.
- Divide by wages: $13.27 divided by $36.97 = 0.35894, or about 35.9 cents per wage dollar.
- Apply it to the Florida programmer: $93,180 x 13.27 divided by 36.97 = $33,446.00 a year, rounded half up.
This figure is a national average across all full-time private jobs in every state. For a Florida web hire, it's a rough guide.
What do web developers make in Florida cities?
These are the 2025 median wages by metro area, from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
| Metro area | Web developers, median | Computer programmers, median |
|---|---|---|
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach | Not released by BLS | $101,530 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater | $78,910 | $100,140 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford | $83,820 | $100,450 |
| Jacksonville | Not released by BLS | $99,050 |
The main cost table uses the statewide numbers. These city numbers are extra detail.
What rules come with a first hire in Florida?
Four rules matter most for a small agency:
- Reemployment tax. You owe it once you pay $1,500 in wages in a quarter, or have 1 or more employees in any 20 weeks of a year. New employers pay 2.7% on the first $7,000 of each worker's wages, which is $189 a worker.
- New hire report. Florida employers report a new employee within 20 days of the hire date.
- Workers' comp. Outside construction, it's required at 4 or more employees, and owners who are corporate officers or LLC members count toward the 4.
- State income tax. Florida has no state income tax on people.
What are the pros and cons of outsourcing web development?
Every way of getting web work done has a trade-off. This table puts them side by side.
| Way to get it done | What works | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| One hire | One person on your work, full time | You carry wages, employer taxes, and benefits. You're the employer, with the rules above |
| One contractor, paid by the hour or the project | Skills you haven't built in-house. The person sets the rate | Florida's $600 report. The contractor-or-employee test. Ownership needs a signed agreement |
| An outside shop, per project or by the hour | A set price for a defined job, or pay for the hours worked | Estimates can miss. First Call Digital Agency saw delivery times jump around with a past provider |
| A flat monthly team, like DeskTeam360 | A published monthly price. The same people every month. A North American account manager checks the work before you see it. Unlimited revisions included on every plan. Month to month | A plan covers 1, 2, or 3 tasks at a time, which is a different amount of work than one full-time person |
To talk through which of these fits your agency, you can book a call with DeskTeam360.
The button opens DeskTeam360's Book a Call page.
When does hiring make more sense than outsourcing?
A hire makes more sense when you want one person on your payroll, working only on your web work, full time. A DeskTeam360 plan works differently: a full team with all 8 services works on 1, 2, or 3 of your tasks at a time, month to month.
What do agencies say after switching?
Duct Tape Marketing is a marketing agency for small businesses, with a network of about 150 trained consultants and agency owners. They'd spent two years with another firm on a similar model and weren't happy with the results. They found DeskTeam360 on Google and talked with others before choosing. Now DeskTeam360's team handles their websites from design to build to launch, plus page updates for their monthly clients.
"We’re Getting Better Quality & Faster Turnaround Times At A Lower Monthly Cost Than Our Previous Provider."
Sarah Nay, Duct Tape Marketing
On Trustpilot, DeskTeam360 shows a TrustScore of 4.4 from 11 reviews. A few of those reviews:
"We have been very happy with the support DeskTeam360 provides. They are quick to respond to requests and their team has the breadth of experience we need to keep things moving."
Stu Swineford (Trustpilot review)
"DeskTeam360 provided exceptional and very professional work on my website."
D. Green (Trustpilot review)
"I've been a client for 4 months now, and their design and website services are really top notch."
Shoshana Grossman-Crist (Trustpilot review)
Ready to talk it through?
If your agency is turning work away, a call is how you find out if a flat monthly team fits.
The button opens DeskTeam360's Book a Call page.
To run your own numbers first, the ROI Calculator shows what managing hourly helpers costs you in your own time.
That button opens the calculator on DeskTeam360's site. For the rules on contractors, ownership, and logins, see the step-by-step guide.
Sources
These sources cover the numbers on this page and on the home page.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 data, state and metro series (api.bls.gov)
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026, released September 9, 2026 (bls.gov)
- IRS Topic 751, Social Security and Medicare (irs.gov/taxtopics/tc751), and Topic 759, federal unemployment tax (irs.gov/taxtopics/tc759)
- US Department of Labor, 2026 FUTA credit reduction list (oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/futa_credit.asp)
- Florida Department of Revenue: reemployment tax (floridarevenue.com/taxes/taxesfees/Pages/reemployment.aspx), employee or contractor, sales tax, and ruling TAA 01A-019 (floridarevenue.com)
- Florida Statutes, 2026: sections 409.2576 and 212.08 (flsenate.gov)
- Florida Department of Financial Services, workers' comp coverage rules (myfloridacfo.com)
- Florida Constitution, Article VII, Section 5(a) (flsenate.gov)
- Trustpilot, DeskTeam360 reviews (trustpilot.com)
- DeskTeam360's published prices and service pages (deskteam360.com), read September 25, 2026
- DeskTeam360 case studies: Smash Wave Marketing, The Tobie Group, Convert on Command, Duct Tape Marketing, First Call Digital Agency (deskteam360.com/case-studies)
- The math: done two different ways to check it
All checked September 25, 2026. This site isn't connected to the State of Florida, the Florida Department of Revenue, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the IRS, the US Department of Labor, or any other government agency.
What changed
- September 25, 2026: First version of this page.
- September 28, 2026: The full cost tables and math moved here from the home page, and the sources list now covers the home page too. No number changed.