What is a backend developer?
Backend developers are essentially responsible for building software and participating in the full life cycle of the product. Compared to frontend developers that work on the client-facing side of software, backend developers focus on the backend of development.
Backend developers work with customers to develop software solutions. Although they typically operate alone in specific tasks, backend developers collaborate on projects with programmers, graphic designers and other professionals. Communication and leadership skills are important in this role.
They possess strong technical abilities and are able to lead other professionals during the development process. Backend developers usually have broad technical skills but may specialize in niche functions such as programming languages, mobile applications, web development and more.
Skills and abilities
To perform effectively in their roles, backend developers are expected to possess the following skills:
- Technical knowledge: Working knowledge and application of technologies related to development, such as JavaScript and other computer programming languages as well as server, API and database management
- Writing code: Experience in writing code for a variety of products or within their specialization
- Full life-cycle experience: Experience in the full development process from product research to launch
- Communication: Effective communication with customers and clients to identify software solutions, and the ability to give instructions and guide team members involved in development
- Problem-solving: Identify and resolve problems as they arise during the development process
- Analytical: Research and analyze software needs to design effective solutions
- Detail-oriented: Identify issues, opportunities and solutions across various stages of development
- Interpersonal: Able to collaborate with team members and other professionals
Duties and responsibilities
Backend developers are primarily responsible for consulting with clients to create solutions and products that support their goals. They develop applications and software that support frontend development. Their day to day duties include:
- Develop software to meet users’ needs
- Designing and implementing storage solutions, security improvements and other server improvements
- Recommend software upgrades and solutions for existing products to clients
- Use code to write programs according to designs or delegate and guide programmers to write code
- Collaborate with team members and professionals for various stages of the development process
Education
Backend developers usually have a bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer and information technology or related fields like engineering or mathematics. These degrees provide a broad understanding and working knowledge of topics related to backend development. Some organizations hiring for more advanced roles may prefer backend developers with master’s degrees.
Salary expectations
According to Indeed Salaries, the average salary for a backend developer is $115,007 per year. Salaries may vary significantly according to geographic location, experience, education and the level of the role.
Career development
Backend developers are in high demand to develop mobile applications and health and medical technologies. Over time, backend developers may advance in their existing roles to project managers or systems managers.
What is a backend engineer?
A back end engineeris responsible for applying engineering principles to the overall structures related to software development. This includes design, development, maintenance, testing, and evaluation. They possess the technical abilities of developers but use them in more advanced manners to incorporate analytics and testing into their tasks. They focus on backend functions like server scripts, data management and APIs on a bigger scale and in a systematic fashion.
Backend engineers collaborate with clients, customer success teams and quality assurance to gain better insight into their projects. This role requires regular interaction and communication with collaborators.
Since backend engineers analyze, test, and develop software solutions with a large-scale and systemic approach, their role requires exceptional skills in math and science. They are involved in every stage of the development life-cycle and develop solutions methodically and with consideration to the structural design and optimization. Backend engineers include application engineers who design, implement and maintain software on a large scale. System engineers are responsible for the maintenance of IT systems and infrastructure.
Skills and abilities
Successful backend engineers typically possess the following skills and abilities:
- Mathematical skills: Methodically apply mathematical skills to the structural design of software solutions
- Technical knowledge: Possesses working knowledge to work with databases, APIs and other server-related functions
- Writing code: Able to write code in several programming languages
- Leadership skills: Able to delegate tasks to developer teams
- Communication: Collaborates with team members and communicates with clients tounderstand software needs
- Analytical: Identify structural improvements and opportunities to development processes
- Problem-solving: Solve structural issues to improve overall development efficiency and effectiveness
- Broad understanding: Experience working with a wide degree of software development structures and applying engineering principles
Related: Analytical Skills in the Workplace: Skills and Examples
Duties and responsibilities
Backend engineers are responsible for focusing on overall software structure design. This means that they focus on systems that support software design with consideration to all users. Their daily duties include:
- Perform testing, analysis and scaling with application to backend software features like database, APIs and server-scripts
- Communicate and collaborate with colleagues and users to gain insight and relay information
- Solve structural technical issues of large scopes and complexity
- Recommend improvements and upgrades for backend products to clients and collaborators
- Identify and resolve efficiency impediments and technical debt
- Write code to a high degree of quality and with attention to precision and long-term planning, using languages like JavaScript or C++
Education
Backend engineers usually have a bachelor’s degree in software engineering, computer science or related fields such as math or information technology. More advanced positions may require backend engineers to have further education, such as a master’s degree or specialized boot camps.
Salary expectations
Salaries for backend engineers differ according to geographic location, experience, education, and other factors. According to Indeed Salaries, the average salary for backend software engineers in the US is $115,784 per year.
Backend developer vs. backend engineer
Backend developers and backend engineers are related in many ways and are often referred to interchangeably, but there are core differences. Both participate in the full life-cycle of product development and sometimes have overlapping functions but have slightly different tasks and use different approaches and principles in their work.
The primary difference between the two roles is that developers apply creativity to smaller solutions, while engineers use scientific methods and engineering principles for technologically-efficient design structures. They possess similar skills, such as a working knowledge of programming languages and backend systems, but engineers apply these skills in a more advanced fashion to the overall design structure while developers focus on smaller tasks within the structure.
Backend engineers perform similar tasks to developers but on a larger scale. Although they respond to problems as they appear, they also anticipate issues and systematically resolve them. They’re interested in solving structural efficiencies and minimizing technical debt. Backend developers resolve issues as they arise and have more creativity since their solutions don’t typically influence the broader structure of the software.
At the beginning of the life-cycle process, backend developers collaborate with clients to identify their software needs. They use their creative skills in the design and development of functional solutions. Backend engineers, however, assess client needs with a systematic approach, applying engineering principles in the design of technological solutions to minimize technical debt.
Developers and engineers often possess similar but different kinds of education. Both are usually required to have a bachelor’s degree, but developers may focus on computer science and information technology, while engineers usually obtain software engineering or mathematics degrees. Both can elect to obtain master’s degrees or other education like coding boot camps. Developers can sometimes substitute a degree with boot camp education, but engineers usually have a formal degree. Depending on their location, engineers may also need to obtain a license in their state of employment.
Hiring backend developers
Evaluating resumes
When screening candidates for backend developer roles, you should look for skills and traits that suggest experience solving backend issues on smaller scales. Software developers often have specialized abilities, such as with specific programming languages or software types. Look for languages noted in their resumes, such as Ruby or Javascript.
Take note of other terms they may use to describe past employment. Frontend developers don’t work with backend systems, but full-stack developers can perform backend developer work.
Backend developers should also possess both analytical and creative skills. This allows them to problem-solve issues efficiently and innovatively. They should also be detail-oriented since many of their functions require them to focus on small-scale software solutions.
Read more: How to Read an Applicant Resume: Resume Tips
Skills assessment
To test the skills and traits of backend developers, provide them with problems and look at previous projects. Consider how they approach the tasks you give them with attention to important traits like creativity, analysis and technical skill. Ask them to describe previous projects and identify various obstacles and the solutions they implemented. Make sure their combination of skills and traits is well-aligned with your team.
Hiring backend engineers
Evaluating resumes
Like developers, software engineers might describe themselves as frontend or full-stack engineers. Frontend engineers perform work that is related to but different from backend engineers. If you’re hiring for a backend engineer role, look for candidates with full-stack or backend experience.
They should have experience working with broad structural projects and focusing on collaborator solutions. In addition to the technical skills of a developer, a backend engineer’s resume should include advanced mathematical and analytical skills. Since they’re responsible for creating long-term structural solutions, their resume should represent logic and planning skills.
Skills assessment
You can often test engineers with the same problems you provide to developer candidates. While you’re looking for creativity from developers, engineers should demonstrate efficient solutions concerning technological debt and structural optimization. As with developers, investigate their previous work to gauge how they approach problems and if they’d fit your organization well.
Related: How to Properly Use Talent Assessment Tests in Business
Backend developer vs. backend engineer FAQs
Is a backend developer the same as a software developer?
Software developer is a broad category that describes many roles. Software developers include frontend, backend and full-stack developers, but they all perform different functions. Frontend developers are responsible for the client-facing side of software, while backend developers deal with the server-side. Full-stack developers can perform both functions.
What are examples of backend technology?
Backend developer refers to the server-side of software development. It involves databases, architecture and server scripts. Although users don’t see it, backend development is working each time users perform an action on the frontend. Articles on web pages, for example, are retrieved from a database and rendered with the server.
Are backend developers in demand?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects backend developer employment to rise 22% from 2020 to 2030. Organizations that produce applications and software will require backend developers and engineers to support development, launch and maintenance.