6 reasons why Portugal is ideal for your IT nearshore projects

By Ana Sim Sim

Portugal als IT-Outsourcing Standort

When choosing your IT nearshore partner, one of the most important aspects is the partner’s location. In recent years, Portugal has become a top country for IT nearshoring – here are the 6 reasons why:

Global center for talent
Portuguese universities are internationally recognized for the high quality of their teaching programs, both in engineering and management. In addition, the country is among the European top 10 in English proficiency, placing it ahead of other countries such as Romania or the Czech Republic, which are also popular locations for IT outsourcing. Portugal is also among the European leaders in French and Spanish. Last but not least, Portugal has long been a popular destination for expats due to its affordable cost of living, excellent weather and great food. This means the country is home to diverse talent from around the world that companies can tap into for their teams.

Outstanding value for money
Reducing non-core business activities is one of the main benefits of IT outsourcing, so this is obviously one of the main aspects you should consider when choosing your partner.

The average annual salary for a software developer in Portugal is around 22,000€ – that’s 2.1 less than in Sweden, 2.45 less than in Germany and 2.82 less than in Norway. This means you can save money on developing your product without compromising on quality!

The location
Portugal shares a time zone with the United Kingdom (a major global economic center) and is only one hour behind most countries in Central Europe. Therefore, you and your nearshore team can work with a large communication window without having to wait long for answers.

Face-to-face meetings are no problem either! Portugal is geographically close to most countries in Central Europe – the average flight time is about 2.5 hours with hundreds of daily flights to all business centers in the region, both from Lisbon and Porto. At ALTER SOLUTIONS we have offices in both locations, just 20 minutes from each airport. You are welcome to come whenever you want!

A hospitable country
Portugal shares the cultural values of most European countries, which can facilitate relations between teams. In addition, the Portuguese are known as friendly, sociable, hardworking and easily adaptable people. Since communication is a key factor for success in managing remote teams, you will have a decisive competitive advantage with us.

State-of-the-art IT infrastructures
When it comes to software development, ensuring a high-quality ICT infrastructure is essential when evaluating potential nearshore locations. According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2019, Portugal ranks 21st out of 141 countries for infrastructure quality and 34th for ICT adoption, and was praised in the European Commission’s Digital Economy and Society Index Report 2020 for its widespread provision of ultra-fast broadband, ranking second, just behind Sweden.

Social and political stability
Portugal is the third most peaceful country in the world, according to the Global Peace Index. The country has experienced social and political stability in recent decades and is considered a symbol of EU recovery. As an EU member state, Portugal adheres to European standards and regulations, for example in terms of data protection and security.

Leading global companies such as Google and Microsoft have already established nearshore teams in Portugal. Is your company next? Let us know where we can help or learn more about our Nearshore IT Center in Portugal.