Basic economics: supply, demand, competition. I believe programmers in India working for Indian employers make far less than USD $100k per year. That means ever

Basic economics: supply, demand, competition. I believe programmers in India working for Indian employers make far less than USD $100k per year. That means every programmer in India competes with thousands (or more) people with similar qualifications who will work for slightly less, driving the salaries down. American companies employing remote programmers will pay the prevailing rates in the foreign country, because they have their pick of people and the same compensation pressures apply. Indians who can get a visa or immigrate to the US can of course make as much as anyone else with the legal right to work in the US. As another comment mentioned, working as a member of a team and communications skills come into it, as does the time difference. Indian English is not the same as American English, so communication problems and misunderstandings come up. Many employers are not set up to sponsor visas, or don’t want the hassle of paying remote foreigners. The big tech companies that do sponsor visas and have outsourced teams can take their pick and set the prices. Turn the question around: Why is it super hard for someone living in Nigeria to get a good-paying programmer job in India?