Software development in Lviv: 10 and 10 facts you need to know

With its 763-year history, Lviv is known today not only as a tourist destination with a rich history but also as a great tech hub where businesses can hire dedicated developers. If you are looking for offshore software development companies in Eastern Europe, Lviv will definitely appear on your list as the most favorable country for setting up a dedicated offshore team. Here is everything you need to know about local IT landscape and the city when searching for software developers in Lviv for your next IT outsourcing project.

FACTS ABOUT OFFSHORE SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRY IN LVIV

The IT industry is the most developed sphere in Lviv along with tourism and mechanical engineering.

1. There are about 317 IT companies in Lviv that either offer offshore software development services or function as independent IT product companies.

2. The city boasts over 21,000 professionals working in tech, and by the end of the year, this figure is set to reach 24,000.
3. In 2019, IT companies in Lviv expect to see 5,000 graduates entering the local IT labor market.
4. Offshore software development companies in Lviv encourage the professional development of employees and in 2018 they spent $1M on employee training.
5. An average IT specialist in Lviv is 28 years old with over 3 years’ experience.
6. 76,6% of IT specialists have a technical background and 23,4% are non-technical specialists.
7. Lviv IT sector created about 63,000 new jobs in related industries in 2018, which means that one IT specialist created 3,1 workplaces.
8. Lviv is the cultural capital of Ukraine, which makes it an appealing place to live in, and thus attracts high-quality specialists nationwide.

Source: Lviv IT cluster

9. Lviv regularly hosts international IT conferences, such as the Lviv IT Arena, GDG DevFest Ukraine, IT Weekend, iForum, Lviv IT Jazz Conference, GameDev Conference, Lviv Quality Assurance Day, and many others which gather industry leaders from all over the world.
10. Lviv has a vibrant local IT community that fosters offshore software development services in the city:

• Startup Depot  - a business incubator that develops a culture of technological entrepreneurship by helping local start-ups to enter the global market.
• Lviv IT Cluster - a community of leading software development companies, product companies, and other industry players. It is aimed at fostering the development of the Ukrainian IT industry and improving the lives of software developers in Lviv. Established in 2008, the cluster helps to reform IT education, organize industry-related conferences, roadshows, and IT tours as well as other media projects to improve the IT landscape in the country.
• Testers.Lviv.UA – a professional community of software testers that conducts monthly seminars on testing under the brand “Testers’ Talks” which organizes and assists conferences on testing such as Lviv QA Conference.
• PM Community – a professional community that gathers project management to share the experience of practicing IT managers, disseminate best practices and train the best IT managers.
• Google Developers Group –  an open volunteer geek community that creates exciting projects and shares experience about Google technology with passion and meets about two times a month in the offices of the biggest IT companies in Lviv. Each year, it organizes GDG DevFest – the biggest Google related event in Ukraine.
• WISC – a western Ukrainian formation of engineers and specialists in the field of information security and information technology. The community holds a series of conferences and workshops and co-organizes Lviv IT Arena. It also develops a unified platform of botnet detection and network management centers.

GENERAL FACTS ABOUT THE CITY

Not so long ago, Lviv was mostly industrial, but Information Technology has changed it all. So now it is one of the largest IT cities in Ukraine where the majority of offshore software development companies operate. So it is the place where the historical past is interwoven with the innovative future.

“Lviv - population 700,000, believed to have been founded in the mid-13th century — is known for its art and its culture.” - The Washington Post

Lviv was under the rule of a number of European countries such as Germany, Poland, Hungary, and Austria. So ancient Lviv has developed a unique multicultural tradition which manifests itself in architecture first of all. A lot of historical buildings in Lviv are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Therefore, thousands of tourists visit Lviv every year to explore the streets and buildings that are steeped in history.

1. Euromonitor International’s city arrivals research included Lviv in its 2017 top 100 cities list based on 2017 international arrivals. Lviv went up by 52 positions between 2012 and 2017 and got 80th place in 2018.
2. In 2018, the number of tourists that visited Lviv increased by 20% compared with 2017. According to the tourism and resorts department of the Lviv Regional Administration, the city hosted about 3 mln tourists.
3. 50% of all architectural tourist landmarks in Ukraine are located in Lviv, according to Lviv Tourist Products Catalogue 2014.
4. Lviv is a great place to live for traveling to neighboring countries. The city sits a stone’s throw from the EU border (60 km), and the distance to the nearest European airports is as follows:

Source: Air miles calculator

5. Lviv cooperates with international financial institutions including EBRD, World Bank, KfW, GTZ, USAID.
6. Lviv is a member of Eurocities, European Cities Marketing, OWHC (Organization of World Heritage Cities) and Energy-Cites.
7. Lviv development strategy, which is a project developed by City Institute, is outlined in the Lviv Complex Development Strategy by 2025.
8. Lviv occupies 8th position in the inaugural Smart Locations of the Future ranking produced by Financial Times division fDi Intelligence.
9. In 2018, IT Park, the largest infrastructure project of Western Ukraine,  was launched in Lviv. IT Park is an ambitious development project stretching forth 10 hectares and designed to host up to 14,000 people. It will consist of 6 class A office buildings, with a total area of around 164,000 m2, 3 business centers, a 200 keys hotel, and a designated multi-functional area for leisure and social needs.
10. Lviv is also the place where the first ever gas lamp was invested. Today, this achievement is remembered by a cafe called Hasova Lampa found in the same building.

Wrap-up

The city of Lviv is famous not only for its multifaceted culture and unique atmosphere but also for its vast pool of skilled software developers. Lviv IT companies invest heavily in cultivating the talent and compete for the title of the best employer. So if you are looking for a trusted offshore software development company to build a development team in Lviv, learn more about N-iX. According to the latest employer rating conducted by DOU, N-iX is ranked among the top 5 best employers in Ukraine with 800-1,500 IT specialists. Contact our experts to learn more.