Role profile
Web developer
Also called: Frontend developer · Full-stack developer (overlaps) · WordPress developer · Shopify developer · Web designer (overlaps) · UI developer
Web developers build and maintain websites and web applications, handling how they look, how they work and how fast they load. They work at agencies, e-commerce and software companies, in-house marketing teams, and in large numbers as freelancers.
- Median pay, 2025
- $92,650
- $48,100 to $162,290 (10th to 90th percentile)
- US jobs, 2025
- 87,400
- Web developers
- Outlook, 2025-35
- +4%
- As fast as average
- Typical entry
- Bachelor's degree
- No prior experience required
What the work looks like
- Build pages and components from designs in Figma, and make them work on phones as well as desktops.
- Write HTML, CSS and JavaScript or TypeScript, usually inside a framework such as React or Vue.
- Connect front ends to APIs, content management systems and payment or analytics tools.
- Fix layout bugs across browsers and devices, and improve page speed and accessibility.
- Maintain WordPress, Shopify or similar sites for clients, including plugin updates and security patches.
- Work with designers, marketers and SEO staff on landing pages, forms and tracking.
- Deploy changes and keep an eye on errors after release.
How people get in
The BLS describes education requirements ranging from a high school diploma to a bachelor's degree, and notes that a strong portfolio can stand in for formal credentials. Web development is one of the more open tech jobs for self-taught people.
A portfolio of real, live sites does the work a degree does elsewhere: a site for a local business, a nonprofit or your own project, with clean code on GitHub. Freelance and agency work are common first jobs, and agencies give broad experience quickly.
Expect employers to want solid HTML, CSS and JavaScript fundamentals before any framework. Developers who add backend skills and databases can move toward full-stack and software developer roles, which pay more on average according to the BLS.
Skills employers ask for
- HTML and CSS
- JavaScript and TypeScript
- React, Vue or a similar framework
- Responsive design
- Web accessibility (WCAG)
- Git
- REST APIs
- Page performance and Core Web Vitals
- WordPress or Shopify
- Basic SEO
- Figma handoff
Outlook to 2035
The BLS projects 5% growth from 2025 to 2035 for web developers and digital designers, faster than average, with about 13,600 openings a year, tied to e-commerce growth. Web developers on their own are projected at 4%. Site builders and AI tools now cover a lot of simple brochure-site work, so the demand that remains leans toward complex applications, performance and accessibility.
The BLS groups web developers with web and digital interface designers (220,100 jobs combined, $99,520 median). Designers earn a $104,000 median and are projected to grow 6%.
How the pay compares
Web developer highlighted against the other 13 roles we track.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Web developers. Pay is 2025 median annual wage; outlook is projected employment change 2025-35.