Back End Developer Jobs in Illinois
Back End Developer jobs in Illinois are among the most active in the Midwest, with strong demand from fintech, enterprise software, healthcare technology, and e-commerce companies at every level from entry-level junior developers through principal and staff engineers. Chicago leads hiring volume by a wide margin, with Naperville and Champaign-Urbana also generating steady openings, and established employers such as Morningstar, Zebra Technologies, and Discover Financial Services maintain deep back end engineering teams in the state. The most sought-after specialties in Illinois right now include distributed systems, API development, and cloud-native architecture on AWS or Azure. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
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Job Title: Java Lead Backend Developer
Location : Chicago, IL, USA
Job Overview:
We're hiring on behalf of our client (RibbitzLLC) a Java Lead Backend Developer. As a Java Lead Engineer you will contribute to design, development and deployment of the company's state-of-the-art digital platform. This is a Backend Developer role and it requires 10+ years of building Java 17 applications, RESTful APIs, and high-availability backend systems. Key tech is AWS (IAM, Kinesis, DynamoDB, SQS, SNS, KMS), SQL/Slick, and DevOps.
As Lead, you will design, develop, and deploy the digital platform, lead geographically dispersed teams, and mentor junior developers. You will solve complex technical problems, drive architecture decisions, and ensure software quality.
Education Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering
Preferred Education:
- Master's degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering
Required Skills:
- 10+ years' experience of designing and developing software applications in Java.
- Minimum of 3+ years’ experience in leading geographically disbursed teams
- Strong experience with Java 17
- Strong experience in Backend development
- RESTful web services
- AWS knowledge – IAM, Kinesis, DynamoDB, API stack, SQS, SNS, KMS
- Experience with Slick, SQL queries and DevOps
- High Availability and Reliable Solutions
- Some architecture experience.
- Ability to work under pressure and within time constraints.
- Passion for technology and an eagerness to contribute to a team-oriented environment.
Responsibilities:
- Competent to perform all programming and development assignments without close supervision; normally assigned the more complex aspects of systems work.
- Acts as team leader for development and support groups; provides programming and application/technical leadership, guidance, and assistance to other team members.
- Works directly on complex application/technical problem identification and resolution, including responding to off-shift and weekend support calls
- Works independently on complex systems or infrastructure components that may be used by one or more applications or systems.
- Drives application development focused around delivering business valuable features 6. Maintains high standards of software quality within the team by establishing good practices and habits.
- Identifies and encourages areas for growth and improvement within the team
- Mentors junior developers
- Communicates with end users and internal customers to help direct development, debugging, and testing of application software for accuracy, integrity, interoperability, and completeness.
- Leads development of new functionality and applications on cross-functional teams
- Performs integration testing and customer acceptance testing of components that requires careful planning and execution to ensure timely, quality results.
- Participates in technology evaluation and recommendations.
- Applies an enterprise-wide view to solutions to support the adoption of standards and practices and promote reuse.
Pay: $50.00 per hour
Expected hours: 45.0 per week
Work Location: In person
Job Title: Java Lead Backend Developer
Location : Chicago, IL, USA
Job Overview:
We're hiring on behalf of our client (RibbitzLLC) a Java Lead Backend Developer. As a Java Lead Engineer you will contribute to design, development and deployment of the company's state-of-the-art digital platform. This is a Backend Developer role and it requires 10+ years of building Java 17 applications, RESTful APIs, and high-availability backend systems. Key tech is AWS (IAM, Kinesis, DynamoDB, SQS, SNS, KMS), SQL/Slick, and DevOps.
As Lead, you will design, develop, and deploy the digital platform, lead geographically dispersed teams, and mentor junior developers. You will solve complex technical problems, drive architecture decisions, and ensure software quality.
Education Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering
Preferred Education:
- Master's degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering
Required Skills:
- 10+ years' experience of designing and developing software applications in Java.
- Minimum of 3+ years’ experience in leading geographically disbursed teams
- Strong experience with Java 17
- Strong experience in Backend development
- RESTful web services
- AWS knowledge – IAM, Kinesis, DynamoDB, API stack, SQS, SNS, KMS
- Experience with Slick, SQL queries and DevOps
- High Availability and Reliable Solutions
- Some architecture experience.
- Ability to work under pressure and within time constraints.
- Passion for technology and an eagerness to contribute to a team-oriented environment.
Responsibilities:
- Competent to perform all programming and development assignments without close supervision; normally assigned the more complex aspects of systems work.
- Acts as team leader for development and support groups; provides programming and application/technical leadership, guidance, and assistance to other team members.
- Works directly on complex application/technical problem identification and resolution, including responding to off-shift and weekend support calls
- Works independently on complex systems or infrastructure components that may be used by one or more applications or systems.
- Drives application development focused around delivering business valuable features 6. Maintains high standards of software quality within the team by establishing good practices and habits.
- Identifies and encourages areas for growth and improvement within the team
- Mentors junior developers
- Communicates with end users and internal customers to help direct development, debugging, and testing of application software for accuracy, integrity, interoperability, and completeness.
- Leads development of new functionality and applications on cross-functional teams
- Performs integration testing and customer acceptance testing of components that requires careful planning and execution to ensure timely, quality results.
- Participates in technology evaluation and recommendations.
- Applies an enterprise-wide view to solutions to support the adoption of standards and practices and promote reuse.
Pay: $50.00 per hour
Expected hours: 45.0 per week
Work Location: In person
See All 7 Back End Developer Jobs in Illinois
Find roles in Illinois that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Back End Developer JobsBack End Developer Jobs by City in Illinois
Where Illinois roles are concentrated, by current openings.
Back End Developer Job Market in Illinois
A snapshot from current Illinois openings, updated as new roles post.
Who's Hiring
What Illinois Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in back end developer jobs across Illinois.
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, or a closely related technical field
- Proficiency in at least one back end language such as Java, Python, Go, or Node.js
- Experience designing and maintaining RESTful or GraphQL APIs at production scale
- Hands-on work with relational databases like PostgreSQL or MySQL and cloud platforms
- Familiarity with containerization tools including Docker and orchestration platforms like Kubernetes
- Understanding of CI/CD pipelines, version control with Git, and Agile development practices
Back End Developer Jobs in Illinois: Frequently Asked Questions
How do you become a back end developer in Illinois?
Back end developer is not a licensed profession in Illinois, so there is no state board exam or registration required to work in the role. Most Illinois employers expect a bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, or a related discipline, though bootcamp graduates and self-taught candidates can qualify by demonstrating a strong project portfolio. Building experience with technologies common to Illinois industries, such as fintech APIs or healthcare data pipelines, helps candidates stand out in the state's competitive market.
How much do back end developers make in Illinois?
Back end developers in Illinois earn a median of about $132,110 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $80,980 for the lowest 10% to over $194,740 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.
Which companies hire back end developers in Illinois?
Employers hiring back end developers in Illinois right now include SMARTZ, Photon, and InfoTech, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of October 2026. Illinois's deep concentration of financial services, healthcare IT, and enterprise software firms means back end engineering roles open consistently throughout the year across both large corporations and growth-stage technology companies headquartered in the Chicago metro.
Which Illinois cities have the most back end developer jobs?
Chicago, Champaign, and Downers Grove account for the largest share of back end developer openings in Illinois. Chicago dominates because it is home to a dense cluster of fintech firms, insurance technology companies, and enterprise software headquarters, while Naperville and other Chicago suburbs draw openings from corporate technology campuses and large logistics and manufacturing companies with significant engineering functions.
Are there remote back end developer jobs in Illinois?
Yes, and more than most fields. Back end development is a desk-based, code-centric discipline that translates naturally to remote and hybrid arrangements. About 67% of back end developer openings tied to Illinois are remote or hybrid as of October 2026, reflecting how broadly distributed engineering teams have become. Roles focused on cloud infrastructure, API services, and data platform engineering tend to offer the greatest remote flexibility.
How can I get hired as a back end developer in Illinois with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path is landing a junior or associate software engineer role at one of Illinois's many mid-size technology or financial services companies, which regularly hire new graduates and career changers. Employers such as Morningstar and Discover Financial Services run structured new-graduate programs, and Illinois's large healthcare IT sector offers associate developer roles that do not require prior industry experience. Candidates without a degree can strengthen their candidacy by completing a recognized bootcamp, contributing to open-source projects, and building a portfolio that demonstrates working API or database work rather than tutorial exercises.
Where can I find and apply to back end developer jobs in Illinois?
You can find and apply to back end developer jobs in Illinois on Migrate Mate, which lists current openings tied to the state. Search the listings to find roles that match your experience and preferred location, then apply directly to the ones that fit.
See All 7 Back End Developer Jobs in Illinois
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