The smartest hire you'll make this year costs £25/hr.
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All-inclusive rate - zero hidden costs
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Fully-vetted, fully-managed remote Engineers
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Dedicated support + continuous AI training
Trusted by 100+ leading teams across the UK & USA
We've built real trust over time
See your team's cost…and your savings
Smart Working cost
£25 hour
Equivalent to 4,333 £/month (all-in rate)
Includes: Dedicated Account Manager and Customer Success Manager, complete vetting, onboarding, HR admin, payroll, performance management, compliance and continuous AI training.
Local hiring in United Kingdom
£40 hour
Equivalent to 6,933 £/month
Additional costs: UK - Agency fees + National Insurance (15%) + minimum pension contributions (3%)
EU - Agency fees + other costs (15% to 65%)
USA - Agency fees + other costs (18% to 40%)
Average Engineer tenure
Average time-to-hire
vs. local hiring
The numbers don’t lie
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Engineers placed | 400+ |
| Average time-to-hire | 10 days |
| Average Engineer tenure | 26 months |
| Cost savings vs. local hiring | ~50% |
| Placement fee | £0 |
| Hidden fees | £0 |
| Training fees | £0 |
| End-to-end talent lifecycle management fees | £0 |
What our clients say
“Their service has been invaluable to our scaling, the resources secured have been of a great standard and integrated with our existing teams very well. Our goal is to build 24/7 development and support, and Smart Working will be part of that growth.”
“Smart Working has delivered on its promises, and we hope to continue to work with them in the future. This partnership has changed our views on remote hiring, transforming it from a ‘last resort’ tactic into a core part of our scaling plans.”
“Smart Working isn’t about slavishly following a job spec. We had detailed discussions on our situation, roadmap and the capabilities we needed. They clearly understood our specific requirements within the context of our business goals, and delivered an elite tech backbone.”
Why companies choose Smart Working over other options
| SmartWorking | Traditional agency | Contractors | In-house hires | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time-to-hire | 10 days | 2-6 months | 2-6 weeks | 2-6 months |
| Placement fee | £0 | 15-30% annual salary | Variable | 15-20% recruiter fee |
| Vetting | Technical & logic + comms + interviews + background verification | CV screening only | Variable | Your team's time & capability |
| Compliance & payroll | Fully managed | Your responsibility | Your responsibility | Full HR overhead |
| NI / Pension / Local charges | All included (no additional cost to you) | Additional cost for you | N/A | Additional cost for you |
| Average tenure | 26 months | Not tracked | Low | 17 months |
| Time-to-value | From month 1 | 3-6 months | 2-3 months | 3-6 months |
| Dedicated support | Throughout partnership | No | No | Your team's time & capability |
| AI training | Continuous in-house training | No | No | Usually no |
Talk to us about your open roles. 30 mins, no obligations. See vetted, elite profiles in 3 days.
The compliance questions your legal team will ask. Answered.
IR35 rules do not apply to the arrangement (since all Smart Workers are provided as part of a managed service and are employed/paid by the Service Provider – Smart Working).
Smart Working is ISO 27001 certified and GDPR compliant. All our Engineers operate under robust data processing agreements and NDAs.
All code and intellectual property created by your Smart Working Engineer belong to you. Our contracts are explicit on this. You own everything built on your brief. Your data stays yours, period.
We provide clear, enforceable contracts. Notice periods are structured based on how we agree to set up your teams. No ambiguity, no sudden, freelance-style disappearances.
Smart Working is the employer of record. We handle payroll, tax, and any statutory obligations. You receive one clean invoice per month.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. All our Engineers are matched to your timezone. They work your hours, attend your standups and are reachable when your team is. No asynchronous gaps.
Yes. We regularly place full engineering squads – frontend, backend, DevOps, QA, Cloud, AI/ML – for clients scaling fast. Whether you need 1 dev or 10, the process is the same: brief us, we vet and match, you interview and hire.
Every developer passes a 4-stage vetting process: technical & logic assessments, English communication evaluation, in-person expert interviews and background/reference verifications. Our average Engineer tenure of 26 months and NPS of 75 reflect the quality of that process.
No. Smart Working is designed for fully-integrated, dedicated hiring – Engineers who work full-time as part of your team, not freelancers juggling multiple clients.
Our average time-to-hire is 10 days. For some roles, we can move faster. If you have an urgent requirement, tell us – we’ll prioritise your search.
Yes. English proficiency is a mandatory part of our vetting process – both written and spoken. You won’t find yourself repeating requirements or chasing clarification.
No. There are no additional fees for our continuous AI training. We want our Engineers to be at the very top of the AI curve. The rate you see is the rate you pay. Everything is included.
It’s rare, but if, for any reason, a placement isn’t working, we act fast. We’ll work with you to understand the issue and find a replacement without additional cost or business disruption to you.
We do. Smart Working acts as the employer of record. We manage all payroll, tax, and statutory obligations. You receive one monthly invoice. No HR admin overhead on your side.
We track developer hours using productivity software included in your rate. You have full visibility of time worked, idle time, productivity, etc. There are no surprises at invoice time.
Your next great Engineer is already vetted.
They're waiting for your brief.
100+ companies have stopped overpaying for engineering talent. What’s stopping you from joining them?
all-in, no hidden costs
average tenure
time-to-hire
