Web3 Job Market Trends Report Through the Crypto Bear Market

The collapse of 2 crypto giants, countless hacks in web2 and web3, tons of lawsuits, multiple countries in a technical recession, and hundreds of thousands of people laid off across the globe. 

This does not even cover half of what we have seen in 2022 and 2023.

Bitcoin’s price has been influenced by these ongoing bear market phenomena evident by historically high-interest rates, hyperinflation, and some countries even facing complete economic collapse.

Yet, the crypto industry keeps on building; people are choosing to innovate and work to build something amazing every single day.

However, this bear market has left many aspiring web3 professionals wondering about the impact on the job market within the Web3 ecosystem. 

So, let’s look at the trends in the Web3 job market during 2022 & 2023, highlighting growth patterns, high-demand roles, and the influence of Bitcoin’s price. 

I will also try and provide insights into the future outlook of the industry and recommendations for individuals seeking a career in the crypto space.

Despite the bear market conditions, the Web3 job market has shown resilience and continues to exhibit promising growth.

The number of developer job applications provides valuable insights into the level of interest and demand/supply equation for technical roles within the industry while the number of developer jobs posted could also indicate the willingness of people to build, even through a bear market.

In the first half of 2022, the trend was relatively stable, with an average of around 4,000 applications per month with a slight dip during August and September.

This also corresponds to the Bitcoin price dipping under $25,000 and S&P 500 losing 9.4% of its value within September alone.

This downturn of the traditional markets took a lot of money out of the risk on asset classes such as small-cap stocks as well as crypto since people chose to go risk-off with their investments and wait it out for a recovery. 

However, from October 2022 onwards, there was a noticeable surge in developer applications, peaking at 6,826 in May 2023 even though November and December 2022 were particularly difficult for Bitcoin’s price affected by the FTX debacle. 

This overall resilient trend suggests that even during the bear market, developers remained eager to join the Web3 revolution.

In parallel, if we look at the number of web3 developer jobs posted on Crypto Jobs List then the average was about 100 jobs a month till November 2022 which is when we saw the FTX crash causing not only the number of jobs available but also applicants to dip for the month of December 2022.

However, since then, the newly listed jobs remained pretty consistent at around 70 per month recently skyrocketing to 150 for May and 151 listed blockchain developer jobs for the first 7 days of June 2023!

The numbers fluctuated throughout the year, but interestingly, the trend remained relatively stable even during the bear market. 

This consistent growth in job listings indicates that companies have been actively hiring developers, even in the face of market downturns.

In fact, the average salary for blockchain developers also seems to be maintaining itself at a very healthy average of about $100k since 2019 through data on CJL as well as pretty similar findings in the Coursera report too.

Developer jobs and applications do tell us how eager people have been to build during the bear market, however, we must also look at marketing roles data to understand how willing companies have been to spend money to acquire new users and build a strong user base.

Marketing spend is usually the first thing that gets cut down from the expenses when the bear market hits.

Web3 marketing jobs listed on CJL saw a downtrend as we went deeper into the crypto bear market with Bitcoin prices declining and world indexes slowing down through the first half of 2022.

Marketing job applications have averaged about 2760 per month since January 2022.

Even though marketing job listings did not see a spurt similar to developer jobs, we still saw a relatively high number of web3 marketing job applications indicating a relatively more supply of marketing talent through the bear market indicating a restrain on marketing spend from the companies.

However, it is worth noting that marketing job listings and applications have shown a flicker of recovery in recent months, indicating a potential rebound in the demand for marketing professionals in the Web3 space.

The crypto job market has witnessed the emergence of new and unique job roles as the industry evolves. 

Companies have been focused on building great products through the bear market and are starting to focus on building strong communities too. 

So, even in the field of marketing, we’ve seen unconventional roles such as "chief meme officer" gain prominence.

Even though the article linked above is from 2021, we have seen a similar trend in alternative and new job profiles popping up that were not present a few years ago.

These new positions focus on leveraging internet culture and meme marketing to promote Web3 projects and connect better with the users. 

While these roles may seem novel, they highlight the crypto industry's innovative and dynamic nature of focusing on culture, creating opportunities for individuals with diverse skill sets.

Additionally, on the technical side, the demand for web3 security professionals also seems to be on the rise.

Certain job roles within the Web3 space have experienced particularly high demand during the crypto bear market. 

Developers skilled in blockchain, smart contract development professionals, and other technical professionals in crypto have remained highly sought after. 

In fact, Coin Telegraph published an article in January 2023 highlighting some "SAFU" jobs in crypto during the bear market and highlighted that technical, mission-critical jobs seem to be the ones to go for.

The data around the job listings and application trends seem to agree with them on this!

Additionally, professionals with expertise in law, global financial regulations, design, and UI/UX have also seen a stable demand.

These roles are essential for driving adoption, attracting investors, and expanding the user base of Web3 projects.

While AI has also been an investor favorite, we have also seen quite a rise in automation and prompt-based openings gaining popularity too.

Recently a friend of mine shared with me that their company had fired a senior editor from the team and replaced a big chunk of their workload with ChatGPT, yes you read that right!

The trends observed in the Web3 job market reflect an interesting correlation between market conditions and hiring activities. 

During periods of market optimism, such as from October 2022 to May 2023, there was a significant increase in developer job applications and job listings. 

This indicates that people are more likely to seek employment in the industry during bullish market phases when crypto prices are on the rise.

However, the data also indicates that people in the crypto space are even more eager to build and participate during bear phases.

The demand for specific skills within the Web3 job market has been influenced by market trends and the evolving needs of the industry. 

During the bear market, companies especially focus on building better products, so technical roles get much more importance than any other kind of role.

However, if we look at the crypto job market, the demand for developers and technical professionals is always high compared to other roles since the industry is at its nascent stages and new tech innovations are always around the corner.

BTW, here is an interesting read around developer jobs trends over the past few years (not crypto specific, but highly interesting nonetheless).

The retention and average contract length is much more for technical professionals compared to non-technical professionals in web3.

This also shows in the number of technical vs non-technical crypto jobs listed on Crypto Jobs List.

If the current trends continue, the rest of 2023 holds promise for the Web3 job market. 

Despite the bear market conditions, the growth in web3 developer job applications and listings suggests that the web3 industry remains attractive to talent. 

As the market recovers and blockchain adoption continues, we can expect increased demand for technical and non-technical roles within the Web3 ecosystem. 

For individuals seeking a career in the web3 space, it is essential to stay up to date with the latest developments and trends. 

Building a strong foundation & understanding of blockchain, the workings of DeFi protocols can significantly enhance your profile. 

This remains imperative even for people seeking non-technical roles in web3.

Additionally, engaging with the Web3 community, attending industry events, setting up talent profiles on crypto job portals, and contributing to open-source projects can also help establish a strong professional network and increase visibility within the space.

Recently, I also shared an in-depth guide to getting your first crypto job that will take you through everything that you’d need to land a role in the industry.

The demand for skilled professionals, particularly developers, remains strong. 

The crypto industry's dynamic nature, the emergence of new job roles, and the intersection with various sectors present exciting opportunities for individuals seeking a career in crypto.

There are always new opportunities and challenges presenting themselves in the world of web3, so make sure to keep an eye out for these if you are really interested in building a strong career here.

It is always a good time to build and innovate in crypto and web3 so get yourself ready, and let’s keep building the web3 industry into a treasure trove.