Even though the industry is still in its a relatively early growth phase, there a stacks of groundbreaking projects with some of the world's most intelligent people working on them. This gives aspiring developers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to define the next version of the Internet.
But before jumping into blockchain development, it’s essential to prepare. Below, you can find a quick starter guide for learning web3 development and finding the job of your dreams.
How to become a blockchain developer?
In 2021 the number of web3 developers reached a record 18,000. The web3 ecosystem is still small (if we compare it to some 6.8 million cloud-native developers or 16.4 million Javascript coders), but growth is definitely exponential. With the rapid consumer adoption of crypto and more money pumped into the industry through investments, demand for web3 developers is set to increase over the coming months and years - even in a volatile market.
If we take the total market capitalization of all the blockchain companies, it recently surpassed the valuation of Amazon – the most successful ecommerce venture on the planet. Just consider this. We are talking about an industry that's highly dependent on technical skills. Blockchain projects worldwide strive to recruit talented coders who will help them grow and stand out in an increasingly crowded market. And they are looking for not only native web3 developers but programmers from many other fields.
So the good news for every current or aspiring web3 developer is that the demand for your services is huge. And it won’t decrease anytime soon. Below, you’ll find some recommendations that should help you on your journey to land the web3 job of your dreams.
How to find a web3 job?
First, you need to know how to find a web3 job. While searching for a developer job opportunity, you should first look at crypto job boards such as CryptoJobs, Crypto Jobs List, PompCryptoJobs, or Web3.career. On each of these services, you’ll find many options on every level, in every department, and each niche.
Get to know blockchain recruiters in your network. Headhunters very often take a look at LinkedIn, too. If they decide that your professional profile matches the vacancy description they want to fill, you can expect an immediate message. It’s crucial to treat LinkedIn profile as a personal portfolio and a showcase page. It’s a chance to stand out from the crowd and convince potential employers by showcasing your experience, projects, or blogging activity.
If you're interested in a particular project, you can of course check job offers directly on its website. For example, at Ramp Network you can find our current openings on our careers page. As the industry grows and the need for web3 staff increases, most crypto companies have similar sections on their websites.
Blockchain development courses for web3 developers
Obviously, you have to begin with learning the principles of blockchain technology. It’s the core and foundation of every web3 project.
That is why most web3 development courses and tutorials start with explaining the mechanics and design of blockchain. There are also several valuable courses that focus solely on the blockchain, describing it in more detail. You should definitely take a look at:
Smart contracts courses for web3 developers
Smart contracts connect blockchain principles with decentralized applications (dApps). They enable the implementation of unique mechanics and features (tokenization, decentralized finances, NFTs, DAOs, etc.) into the dApp. So it’s the only way for web3 developers to make applications work as they want.
Understanding their principles is equally important as knowing the blockchain mechanics in general. You can learn smart contracts by undertaking web3 development courses as:
- Smarter Contracts at Coursera
- Distributed Systems at ETH Zürich
- Ethereum Whitepaper (not a course per se but a very valuable source of information)
Solidity tutorials for web3 developers
While looking for web3 development courses, don’t forget about the ones related to Solidity – one of the most popular programming languages in the blockchain world. It enables you to write smart contracts and use the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) – a software platform to create decentralized applications.
Below you can find a shortlist of recommended Solidity courses and tutorials:
- Certified Solidity Developer by Blockchain Council
- Master Ethereum & Solidity Programming From Scratch in 2022 at Udemy
- Become a Blockchain Developer at Udacity
As a web3 developer, you don’t have to rely only on Solidity while building applications. Many devs use such languages as Rust (compatible with Solana) or a very popular JavaScript (compatible with Lisk or Agoric). The choice of the programming language very much depends on your needs and the project you are working for. However, keep in mind that – even if you are an experienced JS or Rust developer – you’ll need to adjust your skills to the blockchain principles and characteristics.
Soft skills for web3 developers
When it comes to soft skills for developing in web3, think about the attributes of a web3 environment. Openness to change, willingness to constantly expand your knowledge, and ability to work in a team (very often consisting of members from different continents and timezones) – are all traits will be indispensable while developing for web3.
How can I learn web3?
The web3 courses above will serve as the perfect starting point for each stage of your learning path. By gaining and extending your knowledge about blockchain, smart contracts, Solidity, and so on, you’ll get a better understanding of the uniqueness of web3 and prepare yourself for most of the development challenges in your daily job.
But your journey doesn’t end there. At the next stage of your web3 learning, you can take a look at popular blockchain-related books, starting with more general ones (e.g., “Blockchain Bubble or Revolution” by Aditya Agashe, Parth Detroja, Neel Mehta) and ending with tech-focused pieces (e.g., “Hands-On Smart Contract Development with Solidity and Ethereum: From Fundamentals to Deployment” by Kevin Solorio, Randall Kanna, and David H. Hoover).
Last (but not least) you can learn web3 by practicing. The more projects you’ll work on during the early stages of your career, the more benefits you’ll get out of them later. An extensive portfolio will also be helpful while convincing your future employer to pay a little bit more than average for your work.
Web3 development stack
As with other development jobs, web3 coders need to use a specific set of technologies to conduct their daily duties. Web3 developer stack consists of several libraries, frameworks, wallets, and dApps that are essential for effective and efficient work.
First, let’s break down the web3 developer stack into main categories:
- Layers
- Development environment
- File Storage
- Web3 libraries
- Wallets
- Web3 front-end frameworks
Layers in web3 development stack
At the beginning, you have to decide what protocol you want to build your project on. You can choose between blockchains compatible with Ethereum Virtual Machine, such as Ethereum, and layer-2 networks – Polygon, Arbitrum, or ZkSync.
You can also decide to build on main Ethereum competitors like NEAR, Solana, Cosmos, or Lisk. Each of them has its distinct features that may be useful for your project (e.g., Cosmos – interoperable with other chains, Lisk – built using JavaScript, etc.).
Development environment in the web3 development stack
Depending on your previous choice, you’ll have to pick one of the popular web3 frameworks. For EVM-compatible blockchains, you can use such tools as Truffle or Hardhat. Others offer individual solutions such as Anchor (for Solana) or specific Software Development Kits (e.g., for Cosmos and Lisk). You should also think about using a tool like Remix IDE that helps write, compile, and deploy smart contracts.
Software development kits are also helpful while implementing specific tools into dApps. For example, by using the Ramp Network SDK, you can easily add on-ramping software to your application. Thanks to a faster onboarding experience and payment flow, users will be able to buy tokens quickly and safely and interact with the project conveniently. Solutions like on-ramping are critical to taking a blockchain project mainstream.
File Storage in the web3 development stack
In web3, storing data is always a tricky thing – the more information we leave on-chain, the more congested and slower the blockchain becomes. So it's helpful to use protocols such as Arweave, Filecoin, or layer-2 scaling solutions for Ethereum to keep data off-chain and increase throughput.
Web3 libraries in the web3 development stack
Libraries help web3 developers create decentralized applications easily and more efficiently. Thanks to them, devs can quickly build interfaces on top of blockchain and implement smart contracts. Take a look at web3.js and ether.js in particular – these are probably the two most popular solutions.
Wallets in web3 development stack
Wait, why should web3 developers use web3 wallets at all? Besides storing cryptocurrencies, tools such as Metamask help devs test their solutions. It is also a great way to connect a built dApp with the end-user – thanks to interactions using various tokens.
Web3 front-end frameworks in the web3 development stack
Web3 developers also need frameworks that will help them combine the previous layers of dApps with accessible UX and design. You can check out React and Next, especially. They are used not only by individual developers but also largest web3 entities, including popular exchanges.
Web3 jobs – web3 developer salary
In web3, compensation very much depends on what a web3 developer does. As the Web3 Jobs portal states, you can expect the highest average salaries in such positions as Mobile Developer, Rust Developer, Senior Developer, Lead Developer, and Smart Contract Developer.
Compensation will be very much determined by the character of the company, the stage of development it's at and your level of experience. As your work on web3 development will be related to the overall growth of the project, you can quickly increase the value of the company – along with your salary. So thanks to the early stage of the industry’s growth, your compensation very much depends on you.
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