How to Write a Front End Developer Job Description

 Just about everything you see, click or interact with on a website or application is the result of a front-end developer. They are some of the most influential people in the tech industry, and must master coding languages and modern frameworks to blend the technical skill set of a software engineer with the design and UX chops of a seasoned designer.

Given the importance of the visual interfaces that users interact with every day, most businesses choose to hire dedicated experts that specialize in this work. But with billions of websites and apps out there, the competition for this skill set is fierce. This article will walk you through everything you need to write a great front-end developer job description. 

Front-End Developer Skills, Responsibilities and Requirements

Front-end developers code the front end (i.e., the visual portion) of a website or app. Think of a front-end developer as the bridge between the designers who determine what the product will look like and the back-end developers who develop the behind-the-scenes technology that makes everything work. Front-end developers ensure that the product meets technical requirements while providing a user friendly (and beautiful) experience. To do so, they utilize three primary languages: HTML, CSS and JavaScript.  

When it comes to JavaScript, front-end developers work with a number of libraries and frameworks that streamline the process. Some of the most popular include React, Vue and Next.js. They provide enhanced usability and optimization through server side rendering and component architecture, among other features. There are dozens of these libraries and frameworks, so work with your hiring manager to determine requirements and then do a little reading to ensure you have a basic understanding of the subject matter before writing the job description.

A front-end developer must bring a wealth of technical expertise to the table, but the job also requires a host of softer skills. For example, front-end developers must be able to effectively collaborate with colleagues in numerous departments, make recommendations that directly impact products and have a good eye for design.

Front End Developer Job Description Examples

Understanding what a Front End Developer does is critical when trying to write an effective job description, but sometimes you still need a little inspiration. We have you covered with five examples. These are real job descriptions that we sourced from our seven local online communities, though we have redacted some information to protect the privacy of the companies that originally posted these job descriptions.

Example 1

As the Lead Frontend Engineer at [Redacted], you will lead a team of engineers to ship delightful experiences to every customer and potential customer to visit [Redacted]’s site. We expect that you will be both mentor and team leader for your engineers. This means that you will help with technical decisions, coach the engineers reporting to you, and partner with stakeholders cross-functionally - and you will definitely be writing code. On a typical day, you can expect to coach engineers to level up their technical and soft skills, to plan and scope future projects, and to help fix a small bug or guide a new feature development.

If you're an experienced engineering lead with extensive knowledge about Frontend Web development, who also has a passion for building delightful user experiences, join us!

What you'll do:

• Develop delightful user-facing features.
• Build modular layouts, reusable code and libraries for future use.
• Create and maintain automated tests to ensure quality and save time and money.
• Ensure the technical feasibility of UI/UX designs.
• Help set technical standards and best practices for the front end team.
• Optimize application for maximum speed and scalability.
• Collaborate with other team members and stakeholders.

When you join us you'll bring:

• Experience - You've been working in a fast paced consumer company, leading a team of high performing engineers.
• Expert in web markup, including HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
• Expert understanding of client-side scripting and JavaScript frameworks such as Vue and React.
• Proficient understanding of server-side CSS pre-processing platforms, such as SCSS.
• Proficient understanding of JavaScript pre-processing and packaging frameworks such as babel and webpack.
• Good understanding of PHP and some full stack experience. While you’ll be spending most of your time in the V of MVC, we’ll occasionally need help further back in the stack.
• Good understanding of SEO principles including web analytics and ensuring that application will adhere to them.
• Excellent communication skills and experience in collaborative environments.
• The desire to be continually learning about emerging technologies/industry trends.

This role is perfect for you if:

• You enjoy the challenge of leading complex technical projects and delivering iterative solutions that provide value each step of the way.
• You enjoy working closely with partners across the business and within your team to solve problems.
• You’re a great communicator who knows how to organize a team around discovering and delivering solutions, facilitate meaningful discussions, and build consensus.
• You love mentoring engineers and helping them progress on their career path.

Example 2

The Engineering Team is on a mission to build the absolute best software in the local space. We use our data and technology to effectively create and manage local business owners’ digital assets at scale. While our customers are hard at work realizing their passion and dream, our software delivers:.

• A compelling digital experience that matches the authenticity and spirit of that local business to their consumers. We help consumers find their next favorite local business or love the current one even more.
• Data-driven insights about their consumers and their business -- insights they can use to compete with big businesses and thrive.
• A content platform that empowers our content managers to create engaging content while having fun using the tools.

In addition to the top notch engineering talent we have on the team, we also have the best partners -- incredible Product and Design Teams!

As a Front-End Engineer at [Redacted], you will:

• Write gobs of code – we don’t know any other way to hone our craft better!
• Solve technical problems that few have solved before – no one else helps local businesses the way we do.
• Participate in the decision-making process – we want you to Speak Up.
• Mentor junior software engineers -- it’s the best way to collaborate and innovate.
• Take on the challenge of making what you build higher-quality, faster, and more scalable.
• Have a direct impact on the company’s top line performance.

Qualifications:

• At least 5+ years of experience developing front end web applications.
• Deep knowledge and a passion for coding standards, especially HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
• Knowledge of current trends and best practices in front-end architecture, including performance optimization, accessibility, and usability.
• Extensive experience in responsive web design and development.
• Experience incorporating analytics instrumentation and enabling A/B testing.
• Ability to design and implement highly scalable applications with a passion for the user experience.
• A self-driven and conscientious mentality and a commitment to innovate with high- quality work.

Example 3

[Redacted] is looking for a Senior Frontend Engineer who is motivated to excel in advanced client-side technologies. Responsibilities will include designing modern interfaces using the latest JavaScript based architecture and deploying the product to [Redacted]'s cloud infrastructure. You will work with the Product Managers to understand customer requirements and drive UI/UX Designers and Developers to implement features.

Key Responsibilities:

• Work with Product Managers to define product requirements.
• Collaborate with UX/UI Designers to build modern interfaces.
• Design scalable client-side architecture that works with a multi-tenant cloud API.
• Ensure secure coding standards to protect the clients against various vulnerabilities.
• Build reusable code and libraries for future use.
• Optimize application for maximum speed and scalability.
• Mentor junior team members and review their code.

Desired Skills:

• 8+ years of hands-on experience in building scalable client-side products.
• Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Computer Science or in a related field.
• Expert proficiency in JavaScript, TypeScript andAngular. 
• Solid experience in using complex REST API from client-side.
• In-depth understanding of web standards & markup including HTML & CSS, asynchronous request handling, cross-browser compatibility, modern security standards etc.
• Expert level knowledge and practical experience in client-side build/config management and testing tools like Webpack, Jasmine, Karma etc.
• Exposure to Continuous Integration/Delivery pipeline for cloud including Jenkins, Sonar, Docker etc. would be a solid plus.
• Exposure to full-stack development is a plus.
• Working within cross-functional engineering teams as well as peer teams in building an integrated solution.
• Experience with software engineering best practices (e.g. unit testing, code reviews, design documentation) and related tools like GitHub, JIRA.
• Excellent communication, documentation and presentation skills for technical and business audiences.
• Team leadership and mentoring skills; recent work in driving small teams using Agile Scrum development process; past experience in owning products or components.

Font-End Developer Job Description Template

As you can see, there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to hiring a front-end developer. There are, however, plenty of commonalities that we can lean on to start crafting the perfect job description. We’ve taken some of the best elements from the job description samples we examined and created the following template. Please note that this template is intended as a jump off point to get you started. Make sure to customize it to your needs.

Company Bio
[Use this section to provide an attention grabbing overview of your company. Include information about your culture, perks and benefits, career development opportunities and anything else that will get candidates excited about your company.]

Job Description

We are looking for a front-end developer to join our engineering team. You will work with a tight-knit team of engineers, designers and product managers and bring a passion for user experience as well as meticulous attention to detail in order to build intuitive and elegant user experiences. You will have the opportunity to work with the latest tools, including [list your tech stack here]. You will play a key role in guiding our tech stack and will actively mentor your fellow developers.

Responsibilities:

• Create high quality and enjoyable user experiences by building interfaces that are simple, intuitive, performant and reliable.
• Build, test and ship user-facing features in modern tools like [insert your tech stack here].
• Build and maintain reusable code and libraries for future use.
• Help guide our front end stack by identifying and selecting the right tools and frameworks for the job.
• Assist in documenting, debugging, evaluating, and unit testing projects.
• Mentor and pair-program with junior software engineers and other teams.
• Participate in the decision-making process.
• Stay up to date on the latest of front end engineering.

Requirements

• You have at least [desired number of years] experience in front end web development.
• You have at least [desired number of years] experience working with [input desired languages, libraries or frameworks here].
• You have experience working collaboratively with product managers and designers.
• You are able to communicate technical subject matter to a non-technical audience in an understandable and impactful manner.
• You are comfortable making recommendations to a senior level audience.
• You have meticulous attention to detail.
• [Insert desired level of education here.]

How to Use AI to Write a Front-End Developer Job Description

Artificial intelligence can be a great tool for writing job descriptions. It can speed up the writing process, minimize bias and optimize listings for SEO and job board visibility. Here are a few ways you can use AI to create an effective a front-end developer job description:

Description Generator

Tools like ChatGPT or Claude can generate an entire job description from scratch in a matter of seconds — but without the right input, the result is often generic and unlikely to attract quality candidates. To get better results,  be very clear about what you’re looking for, such as years of experience, specific language or framework proficiencies, soft skills and compensation. 

Think of AI as a writing partner, not a replacement. Provide context about your company culture, the team the candidate will join, key responsibilities and potential growth opportunities. The specific you are, the more tailored and detailed the description will be. Doing so will help you stand out from other job posts and attract candidates who are not only qualified, but also a good cultural fit. 

Optimization support 

If you don't want to rely entirely on AI to write a job description, you can still effectively use it in more targeted ways Instead of using it to generate a whole post from scratch,  give it a rough draft and ask it to refine specific elements. For example, you can ask it to flag and replace biased language, remove unnecessary skills or optimize the wording for better visibility on job boards. 

AI can also help improve clarity, fix grammar and formatting issues and tailor the tone to match your company's style guide. And, once you have a solid  draft, AI tools easily adapt it for different audiences, career pages or social media channels. 

Front End Developer Salary Information

Front-end developers serve a critical function, and qualified candidates command a pretty penny on the open market. We aggregated data from our seven local online communities to develop a comprehensive overview of front-end developer salary data, so when you find the right candidate you’ll know what to offer. Crossmarket average salary for front-end developers is $109,266, but compensation can vary based on location and experiences.

Frequently Asked Questions