Moving a programmer to Estonia: work, money and cost of living

On Habré articles about moving to different countries are quite popular. I collected information about moving to the capital of Estonia - Tallinn. Today we’ll talk about whether it’s easy for a developer to find vacancies with the possibility of relocation, how much you can earn and what to expect from life in northern Europe.

Tallinn: developed startup ecosystem

Despite the fact that the population of all of Estonia is approximately 1.3 million people, and about 425 thousand live in the capital, there is a real boom in the development of the IT sector and technology startups. To date, four startups connected with Estonia have achieved unicorn status - their capitalization has exceeded $ 1 billion. This list includes Skype projects, the Playtech gambling platform, the Bolt taxi call and transport rental service and TransferWise money transfer system.



In total, there are about 550 startups in Estonia, and the total investment in them over the past year amounted to € 328 million.

Quality and cost of living in Tallinn

The country and its capital demonstrate good results in terms of living standards. According to Mercer, the Estonian capital is among the top 100 cities in terms of living standards. Tallinn took 87th place in the ranking. For comparison, Moscow was only in 167 place, and St. Petersburg took 173 line.



Also, according to the Numbeo website, the cost of living in Tallinn is lower than in Moscow and many other European capitals (Berlin, Vienna, etc.). Thus, prices for rental real estate in Tallinn, on average, are more than 27% lower than in Moscow. 21% less will have to be paid at the restaurant, and consumer prices are 45% lower!



Another plus of Tallinn - Estonia is part of the European Union and the Schengen area, from it you can easily and inexpensively get to anywhere in Europe.







Airfare from Tallinn to London can be found for $ 60-80

Work in Estonia: how to find how much you can earn

Today, the profession of a developer is one of the most sought-after in Estonia, as hundreds of local IT companies are sorely lacking in staff.







Programmer jobs in Tallinn



As for salaries, Estonia is also included in the euro zone. Largely therefore, they pay more here than in EU countries that have kept their currency, such as Hungary ... A quick analysis of startup vacancies with Angel.co shows that the standard salary plug in the IT sector today is € 3.5-5 thousand per a month before taxes, but there are also companies that pay significantly higher - for example, the same Estonian unicorns.



Moreover, even the salary of an entry-level developer will be very good for Estonia. The average earnings in the country in the second quarter of 2019 were 1,419 euros before taxes - the country is still located on the outskirts of Europe and is not among the richest.



Let's talk about which sites you can look for work in the country's IT sector. The list is strongly influenced by the fact that a significant part of the companies in the industry are startups:

• Angel.co - on the popular site for startups there is also a section with vacancies where they can be filtered, including by country.
• StackOverflow - here periodically post vacancies for developers with the possibility of relocation.
• Glassdoor - A decent amount of jobs can be found on Glassdoor.

It is quite popular with Estonian companies and LinkedIn, so having a well-designed profile in this social network increases the chances of finding a job. There are frequent cases when recruiters of Estonian companies write to strong developers themselves and are invited to an interview.



In addition, the “start-up” approach to hiring involves non-standard search opportunities - for example, all kinds of hackathons and competitions organized by companies from Estonia are not uncommon.

Based on the results of such contests, it is often also possible to get a Job Offer. For example, right now there is an online championship for developers from the Bolt company - the prize fund is 350 thousand rubles, and the best programmers will be able to pass an interview and receive an offer with the possibility of relocation in just a day.

Documents and arrangement after moving

The process of moving to work in Estonia is described in sufficient detail on the Internet, so we will restrict ourselves to the main points. First of all, relocation will require a work permit - it is drawn up by the employer, and an accelerated procedure is provided for startups.



So after passing interviews and receiving an offer, a permit is issued very quickly - it can be obtained within 24 hours. So the main waiting time will be for a visa to enter the country.



After entering and obtaining a residence permit, you will be able to experience the charm of Estonian e-government. A huge number of services in the country can be obtained online - even prescriptions written by a doctor are tied to ID and can be viewed online. All this is very convenient.



Another plus of Estonia, which is especially striking for those who move from megalopolises, is compactness. Almost anywhere in Tallinn can be reached in 15-20 minutes, often on foot. Even the airport is located very close to the city.

Communication and entertainment

The presence of a huge number of international companies in Estonia led to the arrival of many expats in the country. In some areas of the city you can often hear English - this language is quite enough for communication and normal life. Russian-speaking people here are also quite comfortable - in recent years, Estonian companies have been actively transporting developers from the countries of the former USSR, so finding friends with a similar mentality will not be a problem.



A developed startup ecosystem is good for having a large number of professional meetings and hangouts - in terms of their number, small Tallinn will not yield to huge Moscow.



In addition, the Estonian capital is quite conveniently located - therefore, concerts here as part of world tours often give world stars. For example, here is a poster for a Rammstein concert to be held in 2020:







Of course, there are things that you will need to get used to in a small country - for example, IKEA appeared in Estonia recently, and before that I had to buy furniture in other places. The saturation of cultural life is also generally lower than in Moscow or St. Petersburg - there simply can’t be 425 thousand people in a city, for example, as many theaters as in a megalopolis.

Total

Estonia is a small, quiet European country. Ordinary life here does not boil like in a metropolis, for the most part local residents do not earn much.



But for engineers today it is a very good place. A huge amount of work, powerful IT companies, many with a billionth capitalization, decent salaries, active hangouts and rich opportunities for networking and career development, as well as one of the most advanced electronic states in the world, it is pleasant and comfortable to live here.