Since its founding by the Aztecs, Mexico City has been a leader in culture, talent, innovation, and power. With over 21 million residents, the city continues to draw talented individuals from all over Mexico to find opportunities in CDMX.
As U.S. and Canadian businesses began looking for ways to outsource, Mexico City was a natural first step. Its thriving cultural life, deep financial roots, top-tier schools, and political presence gives U.S.-based organizations direct access to the best Mexico and the rest of Latin America have to offer.
Although there are other cities within Mexico making waves in the tech community, like Guadalajara and Monterrey, CDMX is still the leading outsourcing destination for software and tech recruitment in Mexico.
Why is Mexico City (CDMX) important to the tech world?
After the industrial collapse of the 1980s, foreign investment grew through the 1990s due to a more liberal political ecosphere and a recognition of CDMX’s strategic positioning in the rest of Latin America.
By the end of the 20th century, CDMX was considered the gateway to doing business in Latin America, with most major U.S. companies establishing some sort of office or presence in the city.
While CDMX grew as a place of financial, cultural, and political power, tech giants like Microsoft, Apple, Google, and HP began building offices in the city. Ventures like StartUp Mexico began seeding innovation and top universities in the city grew their software engineering graduates to a point where more talent was graduating from Mexico City than any major U.S. city.
Mexico City is important to the tech world because it has a large pool of talent, a strong infrastructure of financial and political support, and exists as a leader in the rest of Latin America.
However, the biggest reason CDMX is important to the tech world is not because of the tech presence per se, but because of everything else that makes Mexico City significant.
A cultural, financial, and political hub
Simply put, Mexico City is where things are happening in the Latin American world. Every major financial institution is in Mexico City. The best universities are in Mexico City. World renowned artists, innovators, and entrepreneurs call Mexico City home and it shows no signs of slowing down.
For a firm wanting to grow an outsourcing presence in Mexico, the greatest appeal and asset of CDMX is that there is an embedded culture of collaboration, cross-pollination, and innovation happening there.
A great example of this is the growth of the Fintech industry in CDMX.
Mexico City: The gateway to success in Latin America
CDMX is a leader in Latin America, has a high level of cultural similarity to the U.S., and is under a 6-hour flight from just about any major U.S. airport. Particularly for companies hoping to establish a long-term presence in Latin America, CDMX is a great choice.
As a company expands and looks to outsource further into Latin America, like Brazil or Argentina, having an established office in CDMX makes the jump into other areas of Latin America easier. Not only does it cut down on travel time for organizations, but it gives them a chance to build a presence that already has a foothold in the Latin American culture and economy.
Mexico City by the numbers
Total tech talent pool: 150,000 software developers
Average salary for:
- Full stack developer – $3,156/month ($8,250/month in U.S.)
- Front End Developer – $2,871/month ($6,333/month in U.S.)
- Back End Developer – $3,379/month ($7,250/month in U.S.)
Major tech companies in the area:
- SAP
- Microsoft
- Cisco
- Globant
- Robert Bosch
- Uber
- Amazon
- IBM
- Oracle
- Honeywell
- Salesforce
- Apple
- HP
- Intel
Whether you are looking to expand your team through near sourcing, hire new tech talent, or build, operate, and transfer a new division of your company, Mexico City has a lot to offer.
To learn more about CDMX and other regions in Mexico and how they compare to other outsourcing destinations, be sure to download our Tech Salaries Report 2021.
CodersLink empowers scaling companies to build, grow and manage remote tech teams in Latin America. Through remote staffing and direct placements, we ensure the best companies find the best talent to continue growing their technology teams, fill skill gaps and respond to scaling needs.
