Outsourcing Software Development to Nepal, for Australian Companies
Australia · pricing in AUD
Australian salaries for senior engineers have not come down, and neither has the wait to hire one. Nepal is four to five hours behind you, so your afternoon is our morning and a question does not cost a day. Rates run well below both local contract rates and the Australian agency market.
When we are online, in your time
Nepal is UTC+5:45, four hours and fifteen minutes behind AEST. Our working day of 09:00 to 18:00 NPT lands as 13:15 to 22:15 on the east coast, so you get three and three quarter hours of live overlap every afternoon, and close to six hours with Perth. Anything needing your morning, we start early for.
| Your city | Zone | Live overlap | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney / Melbourne | AEST (UTC+10) | 13:15 to 17:00 your time | 3h 45m. Our morning is your afternoon. |
| Sydney / Melbourne | AEDT (UTC+11, summer) | 14:15 to 17:00 your time | 2h 45m while daylight saving is on. |
| Brisbane | AEST (UTC+10) | 13:15 to 17:00 your time | 3h 45m, stable all year with no daylight saving. |
| Perth | AWST (UTC+8) | 11:15 to 17:00 your time | 5h 45m, close to a shared working day. |
Why Australian companies look to Nepal rather than closer options
The usual shortlist is the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Indonesia. Nepal is smaller and less crowded, which cuts both ways: fewer thousand-person body shops, but also far less churn. Engineers here stay on a project rather than jumping mid-sprint for a 15 percent raise, and English is the language of technical education, so specifications do not need translating.
- Rates below Australian contract and agency pricing, quoted in AUD.
- Nearly four hours of live overlap with the east coast every afternoon.
- English-medium technical education; no interpreter in the loop.
- Low engineer turnover compared with the larger offshore markets.
- Written scope and fixed price, so the budget is not a moving target.
What we actually take on
Full builds where you have a product idea and no engineering team. Extension of an existing team where you need two more developers and cannot hire them locally. Maintenance and modernisation of software someone else wrote. And specialist work that is hard to staff in Australia at a sensible price, particularly AI, machine learning, data engineering and automation.
How the commercial side works
You get an MSA and an NDA before anything starts, IP assigned to you on payment, and invoices in AUD. Payment is by international bank transfer or Wise. For fixed-scope projects you pay against milestones; for a dedicated team you pay monthly in advance, and you can scale the team up or down with 30 days of notice.
What tends to go wrong offshore, and what we do about it
Offshore engagements fail in predictable ways: the scope was verbal, the team changed without telling you, progress was invisible until a deadline, and nobody owned the accounts at handover. Our answer to each is procedural rather than promised. Scope is written and priced before work starts. You are told who is on your project and told if that changes. A staging environment is open to you at all times. Repositories, hosting and domains are registered in your name from day one.
What it costs, next to hiring locally
| Role | Australian market | With us |
|---|---|---|
| Senior full-stack developer | A$120 to A$160 per hour | From A$3,400 per month full-time |
| Mobile developer | A$110 to A$150 per hour | From A$3,400 per month full-time |
| AI / ML engineer | A$140 to A$200 per hour | From A$3,900 per month full-time |
| DevOps engineer | A$120 to A$170 per hour | From A$3,600 per month full-time |
| Fixed-scope marketing site | A$12,000 to A$40,000 | From A$1,400 |
Local figures are typical Australian contract and agency market rates for comparison. Ours are starting points for full-time engagement, confirmed in a written quote after scoping.
Full tier detail is on the pricing band, and the delivery method is set out on our outsourcing page.
Work delivered from Nepal
- NepalBihekocardA product, not a brochure: design a biheko card in the browser, share one link on WhatsApp or Viber, and collect RSVPs.Read the case study
- NepalTravellers HubA tour operator with no digital front door, turned into a site that explains its programmes and captures enquiries.Read the case study
- Nepal · AustraliaHub Int'l EducationA consultancy drowning in unqualified walk-ins, given a site that answers the first three questions before anyone calls.Read the case study
Questions Australian buyers ask
How much overlap will we actually get with Sydney?
Three hours and forty-five minutes on a standard day, from 13:15 to 17:00 your time, dropping to two and three quarter hours while daylight saving is on. If you need a morning stand-up, we shift our start earlier for it, and we hold a fixed weekly call at a time you choose.
Who owns the code and the IP?
You do. IP is assigned to you on payment under the MSA, and repositories, hosting and domains are registered in your name from the start rather than transferred at the end.
Can you invoice in AUD?
Yes. We quote and invoice in AUD and accept international bank transfer or Wise.
What happens if we are not happy with an engineer on the team?
Tell us and we replace them. For dedicated team arrangements there is no penalty for a swap, and the notice period to reduce or end the engagement is 30 days.
Do you sign an NDA before we discuss the project?
Yes, and we would rather you asked for one. Send yours or use ours; either is fine.
Book a 20-minute intro call
Tell us what you are building and how your team works. You get a written scope and a fixed price in AUD within one business day, with no obligation to proceed.
NDA on request before any discussion. IP assigned to you on payment.