We source, vet, and manage hiring so you can meet qualified candidates in days, not months. Strong English, U.S. time zone overlap, and compliant hiring built in.
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.NET Core (now .NET 6.0+) is Microsoft's modern, cross-platform runtime for building cloud-native applications, APIs, and microservices. Unlike Framework (Windows-only), Core is open-source, cross-platform, and runs on Linux, Windows, and macOS. Microsoft now simply calls it '.NET' (version 5.0+). .NET Core introduced significant improvements: faster performance, smaller footprint, built-in dependency injection, unified configuration, and cloud-first architecture. ASP.NET Core (the web framework) is significantly more performant than its Framework counterpart.
.NET Core dominates new .NET development. It's the platform of choice for microservices, cloud applications, containerized systems, and API-first architectures. Most organizations are actively migrating from .NET Framework to .NET Core, making Core expertise highly valuable. The ecosystem around .NET Core is thriving: Entity Framework Core, ASP.NET Core, dependency injection, and modern cloud tooling are all mature and actively developed.
.NET Core is particularly strong for: building APIs and microservices, cloud deployment (especially Azure but also AWS and Google Cloud), containerized systems (Docker), real-time applications (SignalR), and cross-platform development. A developer skilled in .NET Core understands not just C# but cloud-native patterns, async concurrency, and DevOps practices.
Hire .NET Core developers when you're building new systems on the Microsoft stack, migrating from .NET Framework, or scaling existing .NET applications. If your architecture is cloud-first, microservices-based, or containerized, .NET Core is a natural fit. If you're committed to Azure or multi-cloud with strong C# requirements, .NET Core developers are essential.
Common scenarios: building REST APIs with ASP.NET Core, implementing microservices with .NET Core, migrating a .NET Framework monolith to containerized microservices, building real-time applications with SignalR, or developing cross-platform CLI tools. .NET Core's performance is significantly better than Framework, making it ideal for high-throughput systems.
.NET Core is NOT a good choice if you need to stay on Windows-only infrastructure or have legacy dependencies that only work on .NET Framework. If your team is entirely invested in open-source tooling (Linux, Node.js, Python), the Microsoft ecosystem might not be a good cultural fit.
Junior (1-2 years): Comfortable writing C# code in .NET Core, understands async/await basics and Task-based patterns, can build simple APIs with ASP.NET Core, familiar with Entity Framework Core, understands dependency injection patterns, comfortable with Visual Studio debugging, knows how to use Docker basics.
Mid-level (3-5 years): Proficient with ASP.NET Core and building production APIs, experienced with Entity Framework Core query optimization, understands advanced async patterns and Task composition, has deployed to cloud platforms (Azure preferred), comfortable with microservices patterns, experienced with automated testing frameworks, understands caching strategies.
Senior (5+ years): Architect-level understanding of .NET Core application design, has designed and built microservices systems, experienced with cloud-native patterns (containers, serverless, distributed systems), strong performance optimization skills, has led team efforts on major migrations or refactoring, mentors junior developers, understands DevOps integration and CI/CD pipelines.
1. Tell me about a .NET Core API you've built. Walk me through your architecture and design decisions. Look for understanding of routing, middleware, error handling, and authorization. Strong answers discuss trade-offs and scalability considerations.
2. Describe a time you optimized a .NET Core application for cloud deployment. What challenges did you face? Tests cloud experience. Look for discussions of containerization, environment configuration, secrets management, and cost optimization.
3. You're tasked with migrating a .NET Framework monolith to .NET Core microservices. What's your approach? Tests strategic thinking. Strong answers discuss incremental migration, strangler fig pattern, database separation, and team coordination.
4. Walk me through your approach to designing a microservice in .NET Core. Look for understanding of bounded contexts, communication patterns (sync/async), data isolation, and deployment strategies.
5. How do you handle distributed transactions or eventual consistency in a microservices system? Tests architectural depth. Good answers mention saga pattern, event sourcing, and compensation mechanisms.
1. Explain async/await in .NET Core. How is it different from threading? Tests understanding of async I/O. Good answer covers Task-based asynchrony, thread pool, and ConfigureAwait(false).
2. How does dependency injection work in ASP.NET Core? What are the lifetime scopes? Tests DI knowledge. Strong answer covers Singleton, Scoped, and Transient lifetimes and implications.
3. Describe Entity Framework Core's lazy loading, eager loading, and explicit loading. When would you use each? Tests ORM knowledge. Look for understanding of performance implications and N+1 problems.
4. How would you implement distributed caching in a .NET Core application? Tests scalability thinking. Good answers mention IDistributedCache abstraction, Redis, and cache invalidation strategies.
5. What's the purpose of middleware in ASP.NET Core? Give an example of custom middleware. Tests framework knowledge. Strong answer covers the middleware pipeline and practical examples.
Provide a simple ASP.NET Core API endpoint with an inefficiency or bug (e.g., N+1 query, missing error handling, inefficient async pattern). Developer identifies and improves in 60 minutes. Evaluate understanding of .NET Core patterns, debugging approach, and optimization thinking.
Junior (1-2 years): $32,000-$44,000 per year
Mid-level (3-5 years): $48,000-$68,000 per year
Senior (5+ years): $72,000-$98,000 per year
Staff/Architect (8+ years): $100,000-$140,000+ per year
US equivalents run 20-30% higher. Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia have strong .NET Core communities, with growth in cloud-native skills. Most work in UTC-3 to UTC-5, providing 6-8 hours of overlap with US East Coast.
Latin America has a thriving .NET Core community, built on the foundation of existing .NET Framework expertise. Many experienced .NET developers have transitioned to .NET Core, bringing enterprise knowledge to modern architectures. Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia have large meetup communities, active contributions to open-source projects, and university programs teaching modern cloud-native development.
Time zone advantage: Most LatAm .NET Core developers are UTC-3 to UTC-5, providing 6-8 hours of real-time overlap with US East Coast. This is valuable for cloud-native development, where discussions about architecture and deployment strategies benefit from quick collaboration.
English proficiency is strong among LatAm's cloud-native developer cohort. They're accustomed to working on remote teams and learning from English-language documentation. Cultural alignment is natural: they understand enterprise development, respect code quality, and are pragmatic about cloud costs and optimization. Cost efficiency is significant. A mid-level .NET Core developer in LatAm typically costs 30-40% less than a US equivalent.
South's matching process starts with understanding your architecture. You share your project: cloud platform (Azure, AWS, or both), microservices or monolithic, deployment model (containers, serverless, traditional), and your timeline. Our team screens for developers with hands-on .NET Core and cloud experience, conducting technical assessments focused on your specific stack.
Next, you interview candidates. South's vetted developers articulate cloud-native patterns, discuss microservices architecture, and explain how they'd approach your project. Most interviews confirm technical depth and cultural fit within 30 minutes.
Once matched, South provides ongoing support: contract facilitation, payroll processing, compliance handling, and a 30-day guarantee. If the developer isn't the right fit, we refund your fees and match you with a replacement at no cost. Start your match today.
.NET Core is used for building cloud-native applications, APIs, microservices, and cross-platform systems. It's the platform of choice for modern .NET development.
For new projects, hire .NET Core (or .NET 5.0+). For existing .NET Framework applications, hire Framework developers. Modern development is moving toward Core/modern .NET.
.NET Core excels for complex, type-safe APIs with strong performance. Node.js is faster to prototype and has a larger ecosystem. Choose .NET Core for enterprise APIs; choose Node.js for startup-speed development.
Mid-level .NET Core developers range from $48,000-$68,000 per year. Senior developers cost $72,000-$98,000+. Rates depend on country and cloud experience.
From your first conversation to an offer, typically 5-10 business days. It depends on your availability and technical specificity.
For building new systems from scratch, mid-level developers are often sufficient. For complex architecture, microservices design, or mentoring teams, seniority adds value.
Yes. South works with full-time, part-time, and project-based engagements. Part-time and contract work is common for feature development or optimization.
Mostly UTC-3 to UTC-5 (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia). That's 6-8 hours of real-time overlap with US East Coast.
We conduct technical assessments covering C#, async patterns, ASP.NET Core, cloud deployment (Azure/AWS), and microservices architecture. We verify work history and conduct reference checks.
South backs every hire with a 30-day guarantee. If the developer isn't the right fit, we refund your fees and match you with a replacement at no cost.
Yes. South manages all compliance, payroll, benefits, and local tax requirements. You deal with one contract and one invoice.
Yes. South has placed full .NET Core teams (3-8 developers) for large cloud-native projects. We can structure team hires around a senior architect with mid-level and junior developers.
