Staff augmentation vs traditional IT staffing: what's the difference in 2026?

You need to scale your development team. Staffing agencies offer traditional body leasing. Nearshore studios offer staff augmentation. Is it the same thing? No. And the difference matters.

Traditional IT staffing

Traditional staffing is the historical model: you rent a developer by the day. They work on-site (or remote), use your tools, follow your processes. The agency charges €400-800/day depending on the profile. They recruit, place, and bill. That's it.

Next-generation staff augmentation

Nearshore staff augmentation is different. You integrate an engineer into your team, but they're supervised by a tech lead who guarantees quality. They use AI tools (Claude Code, Copilot) that multiply their productivity. And they cost 40% less than a traditional staffing profile.

Concrete comparison

Monthly cost of a senior Java dev — Traditional staffing Paris: €12-16K/month. Nearshore staff augmentation: €7-9K/month. Technical supervision — Staffing: your problem. Nearvik: senior tech lead included. AI productivity — Staffing: the dev uses whatever they want. Nearvik: Claude Code + Copilot integrated into the workflow.

When to choose staffing vs staff augmentation

Traditional staffing works when you need a very specific profile, on-site, for a short project. Nearshore staff augmentation is ideal for sustained scaling (3 months+), when you want guaranteed quality, and when you want to reduce costs without sacrificing competence.

How it works at Nearvik

You describe your need. We propose 2-3 profiles in 48-72h. The profile integrates into your team in 1 week. Our tech lead runs weekly quality checks. Monthly billing, 30-day notice. Simple, transparent, effective.