Offshore teams can be cheaper on paper and slower in practice. A nearshore studio keeps the work in your hours, so questions are answered the same day and reviews happen live.
Why a Canadian studio
- Same working day. Mountain Time sits between both coasts: one hour ahead of San Francisco, two behind New York.
- Same language and business culture. Plain English, familiar contracts, and expectations that do not need translating.
- Currency. The US dollar has bought roughly 1.35 to 1.42 Canadian dollars through 2026, so work priced in Canadian dollars goes further from a US budget.
- One connected partner. Website, software, automation and reporting from one studio instead of four vendors in four time zones.
What Arctos builds
ADA and website accessibility
Website accessibility suits under the Americans with Disabilities Act keep rising: roughly 8,700 were filed in 2025, and Title III has no small-business exemption. There is no federal rule naming a standard for private businesses, but courts consistently treat WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the benchmark.
For public entities, the Department of Justice's Title II rule sets WCAG 2.1 AA, with deadlines extended in April 2026 to April 2027 for larger entities and April 2028 for smaller ones.
Arctos builds to WCAG Level AA from the first design, which is far cheaper than an audit and retrofit after a demand letter. How this site approaches it.
State privacy laws
The US has no single federal privacy law for websites. Instead, twenty states have comprehensive consumer privacy laws in effect, each with its own thresholds and rights, and a growing number require sites to honour Global Privacy Control, the browser signal that says “do not sell or share my data.”
In practice that means knowing which tracking tools run on the site, loading them only when allowed, and respecting opt-out signals automatically. These decisions are cheapest at the design stage.
Questions
Do you work with companies in the United States?
Yes. Arctos is based in Calgary, Alberta, and works with organizations across Canada and the United States.
What time zone does Arctos work in?
Mountain Time, the same as Denver and Phoenix. That is one hour ahead of the West Coast and two hours behind New York, so the working day overlaps fully with every continental US time zone.
What is nearshore software development?
Working with a team in a neighbouring country that shares, or nearly shares, your time zone. Compared with offshore teams, it keeps real-time collaboration: same-day answers, live reviews, and meetings inside normal hours.
Can you build a website that meets ADA accessibility expectations?
Arctos builds to WCAG Level AA, the standard US courts and the Department of Justice use as the practical benchmark for website accessibility. No one can promise a site will never be sued, but building to the standard from the start is the strongest position.
Do US state privacy laws affect our website?
They can. Twenty states have comprehensive privacy laws in effect, and many require honouring opt-out signals such as Global Privacy Control. Which apply depends on where your customers live and your size; confirm the details with your counsel.