DevStaff vs Index.dev
Index.dev is a provider of AI-first engineers, PhD researchers and evals specialists, which it describes as vetted, not just sourced. DevStaff places forward-deployed engineers: senior software, data and AI engineers from Eastern Europe who join your team on time and materials, embedded in under 14 days. Choose Index.dev for what it is built for; choose DevStaff when you want a senior engineer working inside your team, at a published rate.
| DevStaff | Index.dev | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Forward-deployed engineers: senior software, data and AI/ML engineers who join your team and work in your standups, repo and tools | A provider of AI-first engineers, PhD researchers and evals specialists, which it describes as vetted, not just sourced |
| Roles | Software, data, AI/ML, DevOps, QA automation, UI/UX, plus project managers and business analysts | Senior engineers, AI-first engineers, PhD researchers, evals specialists and STEM talent |
| Model | Hourly time and materials, one monthly invoice, minimum €5,000/month; 15-day risk-free period with replacement; instant offboarding, no penalties | No upfront costs, pay only when you hire; talent described as human-vetted and background checked |
| Geography | Eastern Europe, headquartered in Romania; EU business hours, with US overlap on request | A vetted pool of 30,000+ drawn, it says, from a database of 2.5 million professionals filtered for the top 1% |
| Speed | Under 14 days from brief to first working day; most start 24–72 hours after you approve a profile | It says candidates are matched in 24–48 hours |
When Index.dev is the better choice
- You need AI research or evaluation specialists, including PhD-level profiles.
- You want to pay only once you hire and are hiring from a global pool.
When DevStaff is the better choice
- You want senior product engineers embedded in your team on time and materials, with one monthly invoice.
- You want the rate up front: hourly rates by role and seniority are public, with a calculator.
- You want engineers from Eastern Europe, contracted in Romania, in a European time zone.
How DevStaff works
You describe the role, approve a profile, and the engineer joins your standups, repository and tools, usually within 24 to 72 hours of approval and in under 14 days from the brief. Billing is hourly time and materials with one monthly invoice. The first 15 days are risk-free: if it does not work, you do not pay and we replace the engineer. Rates by role and seniority are public at devstaff.ai/rates.