I've worked as a software engineer since 2003 and have been laid off several times, which has made me increasingly anxious about job stability. I was laid off in September 2025 and started a new position this July, but I'm already feeling unusually stressed and worried about how long I'll last there. Being new may be part of it, but I keep thinking about what would happen if I were let go again soon. Online discussions often describe long periods of unemployment, sudden layoffs, and a particularly difficult market. I'm unsure how representative that picture is because doomscrolling can distort reality, but the market does seem challenging. How much of this is related to AI, experience level, or particular specialties? Is there still a realistic path to having a stable software development job with a supportive team and a company that values its employees?
5 Answers
The situation has been bad, but some indicators suggest it has improved compared with last year. Online posts tend to overrepresent layoffs and failed searches, so they can make the overall market look worse than it is. That doesn’t make the anxiety less real, but it may help to treat those posts as a distorted sample rather than a forecast of your own future.
Interview expectations have also risen. System design rounds can feel like companies expect candidates to understand their internal architecture or already know the business, rather than simply demonstrate solid design fundamentals. That makes the process feel tougher even for experienced engineers.
A lot depends on where you are in your career. Experienced candidates may find the market manageable, mid-level candidates may have to work harder, and new graduates are dealing with intense competition. Someone entering the field may reasonably consider adjacent paths such as network engineering if local software roles are especially scarce.
The market is definitely difficult, but the experience level and type of role make a big difference. New graduates seem to be facing the steepest competition, while experienced engineers generally have more options, even if finding the right role still takes time.
Some areas are much more crowded than others. Frontend roles appear especially oversupplied, while full-stack work and enterprise development using technologies like Java and .NET still have plenty of demand. AI is affecting hiring and expectations, but it hasn't eliminated software engineering as a profession.
That experience gap is part of what worries me. I have many years in the field, but I still feel like every new job could disappear unexpectedly, so I’m trying to figure out whether that fear reflects the market or just the effect of repeated layoffs.