Toptal Blog

The Toptal Blog is the top hub for developers, designers, finance experts, executives, and entrepreneurs, featuring key technology updates, tutorials, freelancer resources, and management insights.

Toptal core team members share their experience, expertise, and perspectives on the Toptal Edge Blog

Featured in

World-class articles, delivered weekly.

An In-depth Look at C++ vs. Java

Deciding on a language can be intimidating when you don’t have deep experience with the available options. This comparison explores the fundamental differences between C++ and Java, and what to consider when choosing between them.

10 minute readContinue Reading

Timothy Mensch

Timothy is an experienced software architect who has created multiple game engines with C++, including one used in more than 100 titles. His extensive background in Java ranges from Android game and application development to industry experience at Amazon, building an Android client for the AWS AppStream service. He has used more than 20 programming languages in his career, several of which he custom created to meet a specific need.

An Effective ROI Framework for Developing a Work-from-anywhere Policy

As workers increasingly prioritize flexible working arrangements, Toptal finance expert John Lee suggests a strategy to help employers balance the potential risks and rewards of offering a WFA option.

12 minute readContinue Reading

John Lee

John Lee is the co-founder of The Work From Anywhere Team. He advises corporations and individuals on how to solve for tax complexity and other regulatory risks in an increasingly geomobile remote working environment. John has worked across EMEA, APAC, and the US, and has been a remote worker himself. He’s a chartered accountant and has held senior roles for global multinationals, including CRH.

4 Steps to Mastering the MVP Development Process

In the world of startup products, design resources are scarce. This four-step MVP process helps designers build and launch user-friendly products on time without blowing their budgets.

10 minute readContinue Reading

Calin Balea

Calin is a product designer, lean UX practitioner, and branding specialist with experience at both startups and large companies. He’s worked on end-to-end product design from concept and strategy to usability testing to visual design. Calin works well with small teams and startup founders to iterate quickly, test early, and deliver on time.

Don’t Always Champion the User: How to Balance Business Priorities and UX

Designers who advocate for the user without showing an awareness of business objectives are at risk of being ignored. These strategies will help you communicate the value of UX to stakeholders.

10 minute readContinue Reading

Damir Kotorić

Damir is a digital designer who has created payments systems at Booking.com, open-data portals for Australian state governments, and the search experience at Envato Market. He has also facilitated design sprint workshops at Harvard University, been a lead UX instructor at General Assembly, and led AR/VR design at Archimedes Digital.

5 Lessons From Fast-growing Tech, Energy, and Fintech Companies

Worried about the impact of economic volatility on your company’s revenue? Toptal asked leaders of four hypergrowth companies what drives their continued expansion.

8 minute readContinue Reading

KJ Bannan

KJ is the former Executive Editor of Smart Enterprise magazine and now writes about business, technology, and software for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Robb Report. KJ has a master’s in journalism from New York University and a certificate in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace from the University of South Florida Muma College of Business.

Medical Billing Reimagined: A UI/UX Case Study

Toptal designer Beatriz Garcia de Prado explains how she built a digital product to replace the outdated paper forms doctors were sending to insurance companies.

10 minute readContinue Reading

Beatriz Garcia de Prado

Beatriz Garcia de Prado is a UI/UX designer and branding expert who has worked for clients such as ABN AMRO, Ahold Delhaize, Dutch transport company Broshuis, and aperitif maker Haus. She is the former creative director of EMN & OLLA The Agency, and former managing director and art director of EMN in Bahrain. She is also the co-founder and art director of the luxury table linen brand Prado y Barrio.

How to Conduct User Research as a Team of One

User research is essential to product design, but it can be challenging to do alone. Explore how a solo designer can optimize time and resources to uncover important user insights.

10 minute readContinue Reading

Anna Vasyukova

Anna is a data-driven product designer who specializes in user research, analytics, and usability testing. She holds an MBA, a Certificate in User Experience Design from the Nielsen Norman Group, and a Professional Diploma in UX Design from UX Design Institute.

Less Trust, More Truth: Web3 Design Best Practices and Patterns

Developers want Web3, a decentralized model of the internet, to become mainstream. To achieve that, designers need to make Web3 apps more consistent and intuitive.

10 minute readContinue Reading

Mayank Sharma

Mayank is a product designer who specializes in fintech and building Web3 apps and platforms. He has extensive knowledge of blockchain, cryptocurrency, and financial exchanges.

Understanding Twitter Dynamics With R and Gephi: Text Analysis and Centrality

Centrality and text analysis allow users to get more out of their social network data. Here’s how you can leverage them using R and Gephi.

12 minute readContinue Reading

Juan Manuel Ortiz de Zarate

Juan is a developer, data scientist, and doctoral researcher at the University of Buenos Aires where he studies social networks, AI, and NLP. Juan has more than a decade of data science experience and has published papers at ML conferences, including SPIRE and ICCS.

Most-read Articles

World-class articles, delivered weekly.

Toptal Finance Experts

Join the Toptal^® community.

Hire Top Talent or Apply as a Freelancer

Toptal Blog