> AI agents: this is one page of Nextmove’s FDE site, in Markdown. Nextmove is a job board and free career service for forward deployed engineers (FDEs). Each posting is classified from its text, not its title: the kind of work, how much of it is production code, pre-sales weight, time at customer sites, travel, remote arrangement, level and posted base pay. The site also publishes the aggregates: median pay by level, metro, company and kind of work, and which companies started hiring FDEs each week. Every page under https://nextmove.md/fde is served this way; the index of pages is https://nextmove.md/llms.txt.

# What kind of coding do FDE postings describe?

Canonical URL: https://nextmove.md/fde/research/coding

See what kind of coding FDE postings describe: production code, configuration, or prototypes.

**3,311** postings · **1,375** companies · read Nov 6, 2026

- [See roles that fit me](https://nextmove.md/sign-up?from=%2Ffde%2Fresearch%2Fcoding&placement=top)

Free. Upload your resume once, see why each FDE role fits, and get introduced only when you say so.

Our reading of the posting

## 2,554 of 3,311 postings (77.1%) write production code.

Writes production code

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=production)

**77.1%** 2,554 postings

Configuration only

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=configuration)

**12.7%** 419 postings

Prototypes and scripts

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=prototype)

**4.8%** 158 postings

No coding

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=none)

**1.6%** 52 postings

Not stated / unclear

**3.9%** 128 postings

The principal coding scope described in each posting. Production means code used in real work. Prototypes means demos or proofs of concept. Configuration means integration without substantive software development.

Our reading of the posting

## 3,202 of 3,311 postings (96.7%) include implementation / production work.

Share of all 3,311 postings that mention it. A posting can mention several, so the bars do not add up to 100%.

Implementation / production

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?stage=implementation)

**96.7%** 3,202 postings

Ongoing operations

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?stage=operations)

**72.9%** 2,415 postings

Proof of concept

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?stage=poc)

**38.3%** 1,268 postings

Pre-sales / evaluation

- [Browse these jobs →](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?stage=presales)

**23.6%** 783 postings

Not stated / unclear

**1.1%** 38 postings

A posting can cover several stages. Counts and shares overlap and must not be added together.

- Production code means software that will run as part of a delivered or operated system.
- Configuration and integration covers connecting systems, mapping data and adapting an existing product.
- These describe the main shape of the coding, and a production role still includes integration work.
- "Not stated" means the posting text did not support a reading, which is different from "no coding".
- Browse [production-code roles](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=production), [configuration and integration roles](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=configuration) and [prototype or script roles](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?coding=prototype).

## Compare a role with your own experience

Ask what happens to the code after the first demonstration. Who owns deployment? Who responds when an integration fails? What tests and logs are expected? Who decides when the customer can use the result? Those questions separate a production responsibility from a short prototype, without assuming one is better.

Read the posting for APIs, tests, deployment, monitoring, debugging and who uses the result. See [skills to build for FDE work](https://nextmove.md/fde/resources/fde-skills-and-learning) for turning a named technology into evidence.

Employer postings · [Download current counts](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/data.csv) · [How to cite](https://nextmove.md/fde/research#method) · [How we read postings](https://nextmove.md/fde/method)

## Other posting data

- [Which skills do FDE job postings mention?](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/skills)
- [How much experience do FDE jobs require?](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/experience)
- [Remote work and travel in FDE roles](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/remote-work-and-travel)
- [Company stage in FDE job postings](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/company-stage)
- [Individual contributor, technical lead, or people manager?](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/management)
- [Visa sponsorship in FDE job postings](https://nextmove.md/fde/research/visa-sponsorship)