Glossary · Hiring and outsourcing models

Nearshoring

Nearshoring is moving work to a nearby country with a similar time zone, rather than a distant one. For U.S. companies, that usually means Mexico or other parts of Latin America. The appeal is overlapping hours and shorter travel; the trade-off is cost, so compare local pay benchmarks role by role before deciding.

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What it means in practice

Time-zone overlap is the main argument for nearshoring, but it is not the only way to get it. Many professionals in the Philippines work U.S. business hours as a matter of routine, so a U.S. company gets the same live overlap without nearshoring.

Our country comparison pages put the Philippines next to Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil with sourced local pay benchmarks, time overlap, and English proficiency scores, so you can compare the options on facts.

We hire in the Philippines only. Other markets appear on our site as cost benchmarks.

  • Offshoring

    Offshoring is moving work to people in another country, usually one with lower labor costs, a large skilled workforce, or useful time-zone coverage.

  • Time-zone overlap

    Time-zone overlap is the number of working hours two people or teams share live on the same day.

  • Follow-the-sun

    Follow-the-sun is a working model where tasks pass between teams in different time zones at the end of each workday, so work continues around the clock.

  • Labor arbitrage

    Labor arbitrage is the cost advantage a company gains by having work done where wages and living costs are lower, while selling in a higher-cost market.

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