What is a web programmer and what do they do?

Web programming, the best career you can choose in 2023...

The technology industry is in full growth, websites are less static and more and more interactive, offering a modern and wonderful experience to users.

Websites have long since ceased to be pages exclusively for reading content, because today you can do so much more on a website: from animations, calculations and payments to video games, artificial intelligence...

And users love attractive and interactive pages!

That's why every technology company needs a team of web programmers.

But money aside, it's quite an enriching and satisfying profession. Because the task of the web developer is to innovate in everything they do. After all, they are part of the technology industry and have to grow with it.

So it's a profession that is worth all the effort in every way you look at it.

What is a web programmer?

A web programmer is a programmer whose field of development is on the web. The difference between web programmers and other programmers is that web programmers develop applications that work primarily for browsers.

In that sense, a web programmer is the same as a web developer, understanding that a web developer is someone who develops the logic and functionality of a web app or interactive page.

There is a lot of confusion between the concepts of web designer and web developer. Many use these terms as synonyms. And to a certain extent they are, because both the web designer and the web developer have knowledge of HTML and CSS.

The confusion also arises because many companies ask for web developers who know how to design or web designers who know how to program.

Despite this common area, both professions have their differences. Mainly because the web developer is a programmer and the web designer is a designer.

While the web designer focuses on the layout of the site, the web developer is in charge of the logic and interaction of the page.

A good example of this are web developers who work on the server side or backend. They hardly ever work with the design of the website.

The same cannot be said for the frontend web developer. So if you want to qualify for better jobs and outperform the competition, your profile as a frontend developer should include knowledge of web design. That is, HTML, CSS and Javascript as a minimum.

What does a web programmer do?

A web programmer fulfils different functions that depend on their experience, their knowledge, the languages they use, their specialisation and the position they hold in a project or company. 

In general, these are the most common responsibilities of a web developer: 

1. Laying out the design of the website so that it works in browsers. 

2. Making websites more interactive. 

3. Developing the logic by which a web application works. 

4. Testing and improving web applications. 

5. Building databases and bringing that information to be displayed on the web page or application.

6. Making websites safer (cyber security). 

7. Improving website performance and speed.

More experienced developers are able to create their own projects or lead development teams to be more effective in project creation. 

3 Types of web developers

Yes, and in fact, although they all work on the web, there are many, many specialisations within web development and each specialisation is very different from one another. 

But, generally speaking, we can mention three types of web developers:

1. The front-end developer

The front-end developer is the one who works on the client side, in other words, the one who develops the visual part of the website. Everything that the user can see and interact with has been created by a frontend developer. 

The frontend developer is in charge of: 

• The structure of the website: i.e. the order of all the elements on the website, this structure is created with HTML.

• The layout of the website: everything that makes a website beautiful and attractive is designed by the frontend developer. It's ideal if the design is created by a UX/UI designer so that the developer is in charge of laying out that design more quickly and effectively. However, it's an excellent plus when a developer has an excellent UX/UI design background, as they can do the whole process.

• The functionality and interaction of the website: we talk about functionality when the website responds and acts according to the user's interactions. An example of functionality is buttons that switch a page to dark mode. These respond to user interaction to make a change on the page. All client-side functionality is created with Javascript

2. The back-end developer

The back-end developer is the one who works on the server side. That is, their scope of work is in everything that the user does not see, for example: 

• The database. 

• The application logic. 

• How data interacts and is displayed on the web. 

• The security of the website. 

The field of work of a backend web developer is larger than that of the frontend. Let's look at some examples of backend specialisations. 

• Backend developer. 

• Database administrator. 

• Server administrator. 

3. The Full Stack Developer

The full stack developer is an all-in-one developer. It's a developer who combines the skills of a frontend and a backend. So they are able to develop in both environments.

This type of developer is the highest paid in the industry and also tends to have the most responsibility.

Full stack developers are also often able to handle business logic, hosting environments, user experience and more.

There are different types of full stack developers depending on the stacks they handle. Stacks are the group of programming languages that the developer knows.

The salary of a web developer in 2023

Web development is among the highest paid professions in recent years. Thanks to the growth of technology and digital transformation, web development is one of the professions of the future. So you won't be out of a job as a web developer.

On the contrary, if you are good and experienced, you will get an excellent salary. A developer's salary can vary depending on many factors: your experience, your specialisation and the country you work in.

Let's see what the salary of a web developer is depending on the country in which they work: 

1. Salary of a web programmer in Europe 

In Spain alone, the salary of a web programmer is between 20,200 euros at the low end and 80,000 euros at the high end. The average is 31,600 euros per year, which is equivalent to 2,633 euros per month. 

2. Salary of a web programmer in the United States 

In the United States, salaries are much higher. A Junior web developer earns on average $56,000 per year. While a Senior web developer can earn from $70,000 to $150,000 a year. 

3. Salary of a web developer in Latin America

A web developer can earn between $9,000 to $13,000 per year working for local companies. 

The salaries in Latin America are the lowest in the market compared to the options we saw above. 

However, when compared to other salaries in Latin America, $13,000 is an excellent salary.

What languages should you learn to be a web developer in 2023?

To begin with, every web developer has to learn HTML and CSS. These are not programming languages as such. However, all web pages work with HTML and CSS. So every web developer should know these languages at least in their basic form.

We recommend 7 languages you can learn to become a web developer. You don't need to learn all of them. The best thing to do is to learn one and become an expert at it.

1. Javascript

Javascript is the only programming language you can use for client-side programming. 

Javascript is quite a powerful language. Especially because in the last few years it has achieved a huge reach, as Javascript can also be used for server-side programming and even for developing mobile applications. 

Javascript is a language that you have to learn if you want to be a front-end developer. 

2. Python 

Python is a programming language that works mainly on the backend. Its main feature is that it has very simple syntax. For this reason, it's the first language you should learn if you are starting out in programming.

Python is the language par excellence for artificial intelligence, neural networks and Big Data. It's also perfect for backend development. 

3. Java

Java is one of the classic languages for object-oriented programming. It is cross-platform. And for this very reason, it has been an option for web development for many years.

Thanks to this, learning Java will allow you to develop in different environments. Not only for web, but also for mobile applications using the same code.

Many applications and web pages are developed with Java and it has libraries that will make your life easier when developing.

4. Ruby 

Ruby is also an object-oriented language, easier to learn than Java. Its syntax is quite flexible in many aspects and very easy to read.

One thing that characterises Ruby is metaprogramming. This is the ability for developers to create their own methods, modify constants and manipulate the inheritance hierarchy.

Ruby is a language used for web server development and for the video game industry.

5. PHP

PHP is another classic server-side language. It's mainly used to turn static pages and applications into dynamic ones and it doesn't have a very difficult syntax.

Many consider PHP to be outdated and believe that there are better options. However, many, many web pages are developed in PHP and continue to be developed. In fact, PHP is constantly being updated.

Wordpress, one of the most popular CMSs for several years, is designed in PHP.

In addition, Laravel, one of the most popular frameworks for companies today, is based on PHP.

6. C++

C++ is a language that was created based on C, with the feature of being object-oriented. It's one of the oldest programming languages, created back in 1979.

Adobe, Windows, Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome are developed in C++. It can also be used for video game development.

C++ offers a core and a standard library that makes development easier for programmers. It's quite efficient for low-level programming and it's one of the most popular languages today.

7. C#

C# (pronounced "C Sharp") is a programming language created by Microsoft and it's also object-oriented. It's the first programming language to be used for video game development and robotics. 

It can also be used to develop web applications, but also in different environments and operating systems. 

How to be a web developer in 2023? 

Web programming is one of the best professions you can choose in 2023. Being a web developer will open up a place for you in the world of technology, an industry that is here to stay, as it's booming. 

The web developer is one of the highest paid and most in-demand profiles today.

Training is essential to become a web developer. So the first thing is to familiarise yourself with the basics of web development.

Next, decide what kind of web developer you want to be: frontend or backend. Depending on your choice, you will have to choose a learning path.

Frontend and backend learning paths are very different and varied in themselves.

So it is best to choose a specific path and not learn languages at random.

Choose a set of languages that will make you have a useful stack to be hired by a company!

Do you want to study programming? Let us know in the comments your honest opinion.