In our 2025 Developer Skills Report, we found that 79% of developers prefer hybrid or remote work, but only 64% are afforded that type of flexibility. The gap between where developers work and where they want to work varies sharply by region, role, and age. And those mismatches matter for retention and hiring.
Let’s dig into the data, highlighting the regions getting it right, the ones out of step with developer preferences, and what it means for employers navigating a global talent pool.
Among all developers surveyed:
The direction is unmistakable: developers want flexibility. Preferences lean very slightly in favor of hybrid work (40% vs 39%), suggesting that many developers see value in some level of office presence.
Fully in-office roles? Least preferred, by far.
The U.S. shows one of the closest alignments between developer preference and reality, with both hybrid and remote models widely available. Yet as some large tech employers begin reinstating return-to-office mandates, this harmony may be short-lived.
African developers show a balanced preference between remote and hybrid work. Interestingly, the current and preferred work arrangements are nearly aligned, suggesting the market has already adapted to developer preferences in this region.
Why? Despite average internet speeds being slower than in some regions, African developers have embraced remote work, possibly because:
Western Europe
Central/Eastern Europe
Across Europe, developers are signaling a strong interest in hybrid setups. Western Europe, in particular, has a moderate split between remote and hybrid, but both subregions have far fewer developers wanting to be in the office than those who actually are. Of note, Central and Eastern Europe’s largest disparity isn’t a push for more remote work: developers there actually favor less remote in favor of more hybrid.
A key driver for hybrid appeal in Central and Eastern Europe may be the prevalence of smaller teams or solo contributors, who benefit from face-to-face camaraderie and knowledge-sharing they don’t always get when working alone. Many developers there also appear to be recalibrating after experiencing fully remote setups during the pandemic, recognizing that occasional in-person interaction can strengthen social bonds and enhance team alignment. Thus, while autonomy remains important, a balanced mix of remote flexibility and in-person touchpoints resonates with the region’s evolving work culture.
Among developers in the Asia-Pacific region(excluding India), there’s a stark mismatch between what employers provide and what developers want. Fully in-office roles remain the norm for almost half of respondents, even though a mere 15% actually prefer being on-site full-time. This 31-point discrepancy is the largest in our survey, suggesting that while tech infrastructure and connectivity are steadily improving across the region, traditional workplace cultures still exert a strong pull toward in-person attendance.
India’s tech workforce stands at an inflection point. While 41% of developers in India work full-time in the office, only 26% want to. That 26% is the highest in any major region we surveyed, pointing to a stronger cultural acceptance of onsite work, shaped by norms in large domestic IT firms where face time is often tied to mentorship and team cohesion.
But even in India, just one in four developers actually prefer being in the office full-time. That says a lot about how far the workplace has shifted. And where it’s heading.
Meanwhile, fully 40% of Indian developers say they want a hybrid setup. What’s driving the shift?
Overall, India’s in-office culture is evolving, but it hasn’t fully caught up with what developers want. Tradition and leadership expectations keep many roles anchored to physical offices. That’s why employers who lead with flexibility, especially thoughtful hybrid models, can stand out in a competitive talent market.
Latin America shows the strongest preference for remote work of any region. If anything, it’s more than just a preference; it's essentially unanimous.
Why? Latin America's remote preference appears driven by several factors:
Younger developers aren't universally driving remote-first attitudes:
Ages 18-24:
Ages 25-34:
Contrary to common assumptions, the youngest developers (18-24) show more openness to office work than other age groups. While they still prefer less office time than they currently have, their shift away from the office isn't as dramatic as their slightly older peers.
It's also worth noting that it's relative. Yes, the youngest developers are more open to in-office work, but that 31% is where that preference tops out. The 18-24 cohort is as likely to prefer remote work, and more likely to prefer having a hybrid option.
Why? Several factors might explain this counterintuitive finding:
The 25-34 age group shows the strongest shift toward remote work, with a 13-point gap between current and preferred remote arrangements. These developers are likely established enough to work independently but may also be entering life stages (like starting families) where flexibility becomes more valuable.
Older developers (45+) show the strongest preference for hybrid work, suggesting they value maintaining some connection to the office while gaining flexibility.
While actuals and preferences do vary by role, it’s nowhere near as pronounced as by geography. And even then, a lot of the variation may be due to the geographic distribution of certain roles.
For example, security and cloud engineers report higher levels of flexibility, but those roles are also more distributed in geographies with greater flexibility, such as the United States. In our survey, 6% of front-end developers say they are in the United States, compared to 15% of cloud engineers and 14% of security engineers.
Despite clear developer preferences for more flexibility, many major tech employers continue mandating office attendance. This is driven by several factors:
What's particularly striking is that these return-to-office mandates often apply globally, ignoring the significant regional variations we've documented.
In regions like Latin America, APAC, and Africa, remote preference is high, but office presence remains the norm in many companies. This misalignment creates real risks, such as recruitment and retention challenges and possible geographic hiring limitations.
Our data suggests a one-size-fits-all approach to work arrangements is increasingly untenable. Some examples of calibrated approaches:
Employer flexibility should map to local norms, not headquarters preferences.
The direction is clear: developers want flexibility. But their reality often depends more on geography than role. Employers that recognize these local nuances, rather than just enforce global policies, will win the global talent race.
Future posts in this series will explore additional deep cuts from our data, including AI usage patterns, learning behaviors, and hiring friction points. Follow along for more insights from the 2025 Developer Skills Report.