How to hire a full-stack TypeScript engineer strong on both sides

To hire a full-stack TypeScript engineer, source from public code and from teams running a similar stack, such as Next.js, Node and Postgres, then test both halves. Ask how types travel from the database to the UI and what happened when an API changed. Most candidates are strong on one side, so probe the other.

Why full-stack TypeScript hires go wrong

TypeScript runs on both sides of most modern web apps, so many engineers can honestly write full-stack on a CV. In practice most are strong on one side. A React specialist may have only wired up endpoints someone else designed; a Node engineer may never have dealt with hydration or request waterfalls. The hire works when you know which side your team needs most and test the other on purpose.

The second trap is type depth. Adding types to a JavaScript codebase is not the same as designing with them. The signal is whether types are shared across the stack and checked at runtime boundaries, or written twice by hand and hoped to match.

What the market for TypeScript engineers looks like

• BLS has no TypeScript or full-stack code; the nearest group is software developers.
• Software developers earned a median $135,980 a year in May 2025.
• BLS counted 1,717,800 software developer jobs in 2025, projected to grow 10% to 2035.
• About 106,100 openings a year are projected for developers, QA analysts and testers combined.
• Source: [BLS, Software Developers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm), modified 27 August 2026, read 5 October 2026.

Where do you find full-stack TypeScript engineers?

Public code is the best evidence for this role. Look at GitHub profiles with TypeScript repositories that touch both a UI and a server, contributors to open source projects in the stack you run, and authors of npm packages. Conference and meetup speakers on Node, React or TypeScript topics are another strong pool.

Companies that ship a similar product on a similar stack are the deepest source: a SaaS team on Next.js, tRPC or NestJS and Postgres has already solved problems you have. Titles vary: full-stack engineer, software engineer, product engineer, web engineer, Node.js developer or React developer. Search on the stack and the work, then use the title to break ties.

Frontend engineers who have taken on API work, and backend engineers who have shipped UI features, are both good adjacent pools. Ask which way they want to grow.

Search strings for a full-stack TypeScript engineer

A Boolean string and the same role in plain English. Swap the frameworks and location for yours, or build a string with the free Boolean search generator.

BOOLEAN
("full stack" OR "full-stack" OR "product engineer" OR "software engineer")
AND TypeScript
AND (React OR "Next.js" OR Remix)
AND ("Node.js" OR NestJS OR tRPC OR Express)
AND (Postgres OR PostgreSQL OR Prisma OR Drizzle)
NOT (intern OR "QA" OR recruiter)

PLAIN ENGLISH
Senior full-stack TypeScript engineer, remote in Europe, with 5+ years building SaaS products end to end in React or Next.js and Node, on Postgres with Prisma or Drizzle. Must have shipped features across UI, API and database. tRPC or GraphQL a plus.

Reading profiles for evidence of both sides

Every candidate is read against the full brief, and the card says why they matched, such as "Current role" or a skill listed.

The Cognitive searches ~900M public profiles from a plain brief like the one above. Someone with React and no backend history still appears, below those who meet both must-haves. Cards can show an "Open to work" badge, the profile shows tenure per role, and verified emails and phone numbers are revealed only for people you keep.

What to assess in a full-stack TypeScript engineer

Ask about features they shipped. Each question below pushes on the side a candidate is likely to be weaker on.

Tell me about a feature you built end to end in TypeScript. Where did the types come from?

Types shared between frontend and backend, such as zod schemas or tRPC, with runtime validation at the boundary.

When the API changed, did the frontend find out at compile time or in production?

Walk me through shipping one feature across UI, endpoint and database.

The React UI, the endpoint, a migration, and how the migration rolled out without downtime.

How do you decide what renders on the server and what on the client?

A real split of server and client components in the Next.js App Router, and where they fetch data to avoid waterfalls.

Tell me about a slow query you found and fixed.

An N+1 spotted in Prisma or Drizzle logs, and the include or batching change that fixed it, with numbers.

How did you notice it before users did, or did you?

Which strict compiler setting changed how you write code?

A flag like noUncheckedIndexedAccess, what it caught, and how they test across the stack with Vitest and Playwright.

Running a fair technical exercise for TypeScript engineers

Do

• Use a small repo with a UI, an API and a database already wired up.
• Ask for one feature that crosses all 3, with types shared between them.
• Cap it at 2 to 3 hours, or run it as a paired session.
• Review it with the candidate and ask what they would change.

Do not

• Test algorithm puzzles the job never uses.
• Set a take-home that is really unpaid product work.
• Grade only the side your reviewer knows best.

A full-stack TypeScript hiring process in 6 steps

1. Name the stack and the weaker side Write the frameworks you run and which side of the stack this hire must be strongest on.
2. Source from code and similar teams Search profiles on stack and shipped work, check public repositories, and post the role in parallel.
3. First round on real features A structured conversation about a feature shipped end to end, scored on frontend and backend criteria separately.
4. Technical exercise One feature across UI, API and database in a starter repo, or the same as a paired session.
5. System design and team round A senior engineer explores a design they would own; the team checks how they review and take review.
6. Offer quickly Strong TypeScript engineers usually have several processes running. Decide within days of the final round.

How The Cognitive fits TypeScript engineer hiring

Senior engineers lose hours to first-round screens. The Cognitive's AI interview runs that round as a live, two-way video conversation of 20 minutes, enough for frontend and backend criteria, or 10 for a quick check. The rubric is fixed and the questions adapt, so a candidate who says "we use TypeScript everywhere" gets asked where the types come from. It does not compile code, so the exercise stays.

The AI probes up to 5 resume claims and marks each verified, refuted or unclear. Each report gives a 1 to 5 score per criterion, overall written feedback, the transcript and the recording. Nothing is rejected automatically. With 60+ ATS integrations, imported candidates get a note written back and their stage never moves. AI Sourcing and AI Interview each start at $99/month.

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Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to hire a full-stack TypeScript engineer?

BLS has no TypeScript category; software developers, the nearest group, earned a median $135,980 a year in May 2025, and senior full-stack engineers at funded companies often earn more. Add any agency fee and engineer interview time. On The Cognitive, AI Sourcing and AI Interview each start at $99/month.

Where can I find full-stack TypeScript developers?

Public code on GitHub, contributors to open source projects in your stack, npm package authors, and meetup or conference speakers on Node and React. Teams shipping similar products on a similar stack are the deepest pool. Profile search reaches the ones who are not applying.

How long does it take to hire a full-stack TypeScript engineer?

Mostly as long as your engineers take to screen and review. A first round that does not need a senior engineer on every call, and a fast decision after the final round, remove the usual delays. We have not found a reliable, current time-to-fill figure for this role, so we do not quote one.

What skills should a full-stack TypeScript engineer have?

Type design shared across frontend and backend with runtime validation at boundaries, React or Next.js architecture, Node API design, database access and migrations with an ORM such as Prisma or Drizzle, and testing across the stack. Ownership of a feature from UI to database ties it together.

How do I tell if a candidate is really full-stack?

Ask them to walk through one feature from UI to database, then push on the side they mention least. Engineers who have shipped both sides talk about migrations, query performance and rendering choices with the same detail. A technical exercise that crosses all 3 layers confirms it.

Can an AI interview assess TypeScript skills?

It assesses how a candidate explains real decisions, such as when they used generics, unions or runtime validation, and follows up when an answer stays general. It does not compile code, so keep a hands-on exercise for the candidates you shortlist.

Should I hire a full-stack engineer or 2 specialists?

A full-stack engineer suits small teams where one person ships whole features and the stack is shared. Specialists make more sense when the frontend or the data layer is complex enough to need deep, dedicated attention. Many teams hire full-stack first and specialise as they grow.

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