Hire Drupal Developers
Drupal suits sites with structured content, many editors and rules about who may publish what. Universities, publishers and public bodies choose it for that reason. The price is complexity: a Drupal site is configuration, custom modules, contributed modules and a theme, and all four must agree.
Our Drupal developers work with Composer-managed sites and configuration kept in version control. The developer joins your repository and issue queue and reports to you. Employment, equipment and cover are handled by us.
What Drupal developers are asked to do
Drupal sites tend to be long-lived. These six areas cover building one, moving one and keeping one maintained.
Migrating from Drupal 7
Drupal 7 reached end of life in January 2025. Moving off it is a rebuild with a data migration, not an in-place upgrade. We map content types, fields, users and files with the Migrate API and rehearse the migration until it runs clean.
Upgrades between Drupal 10 and 11
Removing deprecated API calls, checking contributed modules for compatible releases, and updating PHP and the database where required. Upgrade Status and Rector do the scanning, and a developer deals with what they cannot fix.
Custom modules
Entities, plugins, services, forms and event subscribers written to current Drupal conventions, with configuration schema and automated tests. Contributed modules are patched through Composer, not edited in place.
Content modelling and editorial workflow
Content types, taxonomies, Paragraphs or Layout Builder, revisions, moderation states and permissions by role. The aim is that editors can do their work without calling a developer.
Theming
Twig templates, asset libraries and Single Directory Components, with attention to accessibility and to the render cache. Preprocess logic stays thin so the theme can be replaced later.
Decoupled and API-driven builds
Drupal as a content store for a separate front end, using JSON:API from core or the GraphQL module. Includes preview for editors, authentication, and cache invalidation when content changes.
Drupal and its surrounding tools
A Drupal developer works with the framework, the command line and the services behind the site.
- Drupal
- Drupal 10Drupal 11Drupal CMSViewsLayout BuilderParagraphsWebform
- Code
- PHP 8Symfony componentsTwigComposerDrush
- Migration & upgrade
- Migrate APIUpgrade StatusDrupal Rector
- APIs & search
- JSON:APIGraphQLSearch APIApache Solr
- Data & caching
- MySQLMariaDBPostgreSQLRedisVarnish
- Quality & delivery
- PHPUnitPHPStanPHP_CodeSnifferGitDDEVGitLab CI
Drupal developer levels and what each can carry
Drupal separates site building, theming and module development. Seniority is partly about how many of those one person can handle well.
Junior
Builds content types, views and blocks through the admin, exports configuration, and makes template and style changes. Needs guidance on custom code.
Choose when: the architecture is settled and a lead developer reviews the work.
Mid-level
Writes custom modules and migrations, themes a site from a design, manages configuration between environments and applies security updates with Composer.
Choose when: you have a working site and a backlog of features and maintenance.
Senior
Designs the content model and caching strategy, plans a Drupal 7 migration or a multi-site platform, and investigates faults in cache tags, access control or performance.
Choose when: you are replatforming, running many sites from one code base, or have no Drupal architect.
How work with a Drupal developer gets going
Set out what you have
Drupal version, hosting, whether the site is managed with Composer, and roughly how many custom modules. Add the outcome you want.
We propose an engineer by name
You read their profile and hold a call. The choice is yours, and we offer another person if you ask.
Start small
A single issue from your queue, taken through review and deployment. You learn how the developer works before giving a larger brief.
Then a fixed rhythm
Issues are tracked where you already track them. Once a week you receive a summary of what was merged and what is blocked. One invoice is sent per month.
Drupal developer rates
Our rates are published. Pick the role and move the sliders for an indicative budget.
Rate card
| Role | Hourly | Monthly* |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend / WordPress | AED 110 | AED 17,600 |
| Backend / API | AED 118 | AED 18,880 |
| Full-stack | AED 129 | AED 20,640 |
| Mobile (React Native / Flutter) | AED 129 | AED 20,640 |
| DevOps / Cloud | AED 147 | AED 23,520 |
| AI / Automation engineer | AED 165 | AED 26,400 |
| QA / Test engineer | AED 92 | AED 14,720 |
| UI / UX design | AED 103 | AED 16,480 |
*160 hrs/month full-time. Rates are indicative for planning, in UAE dirhams (converted from our US-dollar rates at the fixed peg of 3.6725), before VAT where applicable, and depend on seniority, contract length and timezone overlap. Longer engagements and multi-role teams are discounted — ask.
Is this a fit for your Drupal site?
We are a good choice when
- You run a Drupal site that needs continuing development and security updates.
- You are still on Drupal 7 and need a planned way off it.
- Your in-house team is strong on content but short of module developers.
- You are an agency with Drupal projects and not enough Drupal people.
Look elsewhere when
- You need a five-page brochure site. Drupal would be more than the job requires.
- You want a developer to attend your office.
- You want the migration priced before anyone has looked at the old site.
- The task is a single small fix that will never recur.
Drupal questions, answered plainly
We are still on Drupal 7. What are our options?
Migrate to a current Drupal release, move to a different platform, or pay a third party for extended security cover while you decide. Staying on unsupported Drupal 7 without cover is the one option we advise against. We can assess the site and describe what a migration involves.
Is moving from Drupal 10 to 11 a big job?
Much smaller than leaving Drupal 7. The two versions share an architecture, so the work is removing deprecated code and updating modules. Sites with many custom modules take longer than sites built mostly from contributed ones.
Do you use contributed modules or write custom code?
Contributed modules first, where one is actively maintained and has security advisory coverage. Custom code is for what is specific to your organisation. We avoid installing a large module in order to use a small part of it.
How is configuration moved between environments?
Configuration is exported to YAML files, committed to Git and imported on each environment with Drush during deployment. Changes made directly in the live admin are either exported back or overwritten, so we agree a rule with your editors.
Who owns the custom modules and theme?
You do. They are committed to your repository and the agreement confirms ownership and confidentiality. Drupal itself and the modules hosted on drupal.org remain under the GPL.
What if our developer moves on?
We arrange a replacement, and you approve the person. Configuration in Git and notes on each issue mean the next developer starts from a documented state.
Start with a few lines about your site
Tell us the Drupal version, what the site is for, and what you need. We reply within one business day.