Portugal is increasingly successful at attracting tech talent — but struggles to keep it. Despite offering lower salaries than much of Europe, the country has become a competitive destination for international companies. The real problem is retention: many skilled professionals continue to leave for better-paying opportunities abroad.
This info is from Hays Portugal’s Tech Talent Explorer, which looked at data from almost 10,000 IT experts in 32 countries. The tool says that 60% of techies might switch jobs by 2026, and finding people in areas like cloud, DevSecOps, and AI is still tough. Portugal gets a boost from cheap labor, which makes it nice for outsourcing, but they're short on cybersecurity and machine learning skills.
At the Tech Talent Decoded online talk, leaders in the field said that salaries are going up as foreign companies hire people remotely in Portugal. But they also said that it's not just about the money: cool projects, career growth, and a good life outside of work are big now. Companies like Capgemini and OutSystems are helping with relocation, training, good benefits, and chances to move around inside the company.
Portugal could be a big tech center because of where it is, how much it costs to hire, and the quality of the workforce. But as the speakers wrapped up, the main thing is not attracting talent — it’s making them stay.
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