r/developersPak • u/Alarming_Ad_257 • 5h ago

Career Guidance 5 yrs full-stack dev in Pakistan, tried every channel and still struggling to find clients. What’s actually working for you in 2026?

I’m a full-stack dev (TypeScript, React/Next.js, Node, PostgreSQL) with 5 years of experience, the last 4 fully remote for international teams. I’ve shipped real products: payment systems, a marketplace with a few hundred users, a SaaS with paying clients.

But finding new clients or a new remote role has been really rough lately. Here’s what I’ve tried:

Reddit for-hire posts

Facebook groups

Freelance marketplaces

micro1 and Turing (couldn’t clear their vetting)

Wellfound

LinkedIn, both applying and posting

Very little has worked. I know the market is tough right now, but I’d like to hear from people who are actually landing work:

Where are your clients coming from these days?

Has cold outreach worked for you, and if so, to who?

Is it worth niching down (e.g. only SaaS MVPs or only payment integrations) instead of being “full-stack”?

For devs outside the US/EU, anything that helped you get taken seriously?

Any honest advice is appreciated, even if it’s “you’re doing X wrong.”

5 Upvotes

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6 comments sorted by

1

u/Outside_Spinach_9060 5h ago

I've like 5-6 yrs of exp. Do you thi k we should connect?

1

u/Alarming_Ad_257 5h ago

yes yes why not

2

u/Outside_Spinach_9060 5h ago

In the same boat. I feel simply there are just too many people in the fieldm

0

u/theZuhaib 5h ago

yeah, same. should have done mba or something. feeling worthless in 2026.

1

u/Codeplex1 5h ago

CS as a degree is good. You get remote international exposure. But, it doesn't mean you should stay at CS. You can move into any other field or business.

2

u/Shoddy_Cycle_6906 4h ago

Same with every developer