this is a surprising answer. in my world (react/frontend) most conferences pay for travel or at least help defer a significant amount of the cost up to a limit. your employer should also have a budget for conf travel.
but agreed on the reward of speaking at confs. just that people shouldnt find it a norm to pay to speak.
> your employer should also have a budget for conf travel.
In my case, my employer paid my travel/lodging fees and I did not have to pay anything out-of-pocket (or take PTO or anything). However, if I were (for example) between jobs -- or if my employer refused to pay for travel/lodging to conferences -- I'd still strongly recommend the buy.
In my experience, larger or more corporate conferences tend to pay more (including travel, lodging, and sometimes cash compensation), but the smaller, more "community-oriented" conferences do not.
but agreed on the reward of speaking at confs. just that people shouldnt find it a norm to pay to speak.