Hire
Hire engineers across AI, Python, ML, full stack, and more, plus the AI jobs board.
Hire · Best Firms
Hire remote engineers without the résumé flood
Employer guides for AI, Python, ML, full stack, and more, plus a live AI jobs board for market signal and candidate traffic.
Checked 8 October 2026 · next check 8 November 2026
🎯 The Tech Recruiters: contingency · 20% fee · 3–5 days to first intro · 90-day replacement guarantee · Seed–Series A US (blockchain/fintech/AI/SaaS).
Best Firms is an independent publication and an affiliate partner of The Tech Recruiters. Booking an intro through our link may earn us a referral fee. It does not change our rankings or verified figures.
How to choose the right hire guide
Pick the role type that matches the next six months of work, then open the guide for the specific seat.
- Engineering: read software engineers or full stack developers if one person will own features end to end. Pick the backend, React, Python, Go, web or Android guide when the stack is set, and the DevOps, platform or SRE guide when deploys and uptime are the bottleneck.
- AI and ML: AI engineers build product features on top of models. Machine learning and LLM engineers train, tune and evaluate them. MLOps and AI infrastructure engineers keep pipelines and GPUs running.
- Data: Data analysts answer business questions, data engineers build the pipelines those answers depend on, and data scientists model and forecast. Most early teams need an analyst or data engineer first.
- Security: Security engineers harden the product and the cloud account. A CISO owns the program, compliance and board reporting.
- Crypto and fintech: protocol and smart contract work splits across blockchain, Solidity, Solana, ZK and smart contract auditor guides. Money movement sits with fintech and payments engineers.
- Leadership and fractional: from founding engineer and engineering manager up to VP of Engineering and CTO, plus head of product and product manager. For finance, compare the fractional CFO guide with the startup CFO guide before you commit to a full-time salary.
What every hire guide includes
Each guide follows the same structure, so you can compare roles side by side and brief a recruiter with real numbers.
- 2026 cost bands: pay ranges from public salary sources, with each figure linked to its source. For example, Built In puts average US web developer base pay at $110,610 (Built In).
- Time to hire: a channel table showing how quickly each hiring route tends to produce candidates.
- Interview signals: a scorecard with the skills to test and the red flags that should end a process early.
Hire guides
- Hire AI Engineers
- Hire Python Developers
- Hire Machine Learning Engineers
- Hire Full Stack Developers
- Hire Software Engineers
- Hire React Developers
- Hire Backend Developers
- Hire LLM Engineers
- Hire DevOps Engineers
- Hire Node.js Developers
- Hire TypeScript Developers
- Hire Blockchain Developers
- Hire Solana Developers
- Hire Payments Engineers
- Hire Solidity Developers
- Hire Rust Engineers
- Hire Protocol Engineers
- Hire ZK Engineers
- Hire Smart Contract Auditors
- Hire Fintech Engineers
- Hire MLOps Engineers
- Hire AI Infrastructure Engineers
- Hire Platform Engineers
- Hire Security Engineers
- Hire Site Reliability Engineers
- Hire Go Developers
- Hire Data Engineers
- Hire VP of Engineering
- Hire CTO
- Hire Founding Engineer
- Hire Head of Product
- Hire Data Scientists
- Hire Startup CFO
- Hire Engineering Manager
- Hire Fractional CFO
- Hire Product Manager
- Hire CISO
- Hire Android Developers
- Hire Data Analysts
- Hire Web Developers
In-house vs agency vs contingency
Most startups hire through one of three routes. The right one depends on how many roles you have open and how much recruiting time your team can absorb.
| Route | How you pay | Best for | Trade-offs |
|---|---|---|---|
| In-house recruiter | Salary and tools, whether or not a hire closes | Companies hiring many roles every year | Fixed cost, and slow to ramp on niche technical roles |
| Retained search firm | Fee paid in stages, starting before candidates are presented | Executive searches such as CTO or CISO | Upfront commitment that you pay even if the search stalls |
| Contingency recruiter (The Tech Recruiters) | 20% fee, paid only if you hire | Seed to Series A teams that need senior hires fast | 3 to 5 days to first intro, 14 to 21 days to offer, 90-day replacement guarantee |
Source: fee, timelines and guarantee for The Tech Recruiters from thetechrecruiters.com. In-house and retained rows describe general market practice.
Need help filling the seat?
If you still need help after reading the guide, The Tech Recruiters places full-time hires for US Seed to Series A startups in blockchain, fintech, AI and SaaS. The fee is a 20% contingency, first intros arrive in 3 to 5 days, offers land in 14 to 21 days, and placements carry a 90-day replacement guarantee (thetechrecruiters.com). You pay nothing unless you hire.
FAQ
Which hire guide should I start with?
If one person will own features end to end, start with the software engineer or full stack guide. If the gap is models or pipelines, start with the AI and ML or data guides.
What does The Tech Recruiters charge?
The Tech Recruiters works on contingency at a 20% fee, so you pay only if you make a hire. Placements carry a 90-day replacement guarantee (thetechrecruiters.com).
How fast can I hire through a recruiter?
Timelines vary by role and market. The Tech Recruiters reports 3 to 5 days to first intro and 14 to 21 days to offer (thetechrecruiters.com).
Should finance and leadership hires be fractional or full-time?
Fractional works when you need senior judgment a few days a month, for example a CFO before a fundraise. Hire full-time when the role needs daily ownership. The Tech Recruiters places full-time hires only, and the fractional CFO guide compares both options.
Looking for open roles instead of hiring guides?
Checked 8 October 2026 · next check 8 November 2026