Fresher IT Salary in India 2026: By Role and City

What the data actually says

We looked at 284 recent fresher listings on Hirastra. These are estimates drawn from listings, not official figures, and they will differ from what any one company actually pays.

The median full-time package was about ₹13.0 LPA across 254 roles, but the range ran from about ₹2 LPA to ₹38 LPA. That wide gap matters more than the median.

For internships, the median stipend was about ₹32K per month across 30 internships. Stipends vary a lot by company, role and city.

Why the median can mislead you

A median of ₹13 LPA does not mean a typical fresher will get ₹13 LPA. Our listings lean towards product-focused and tech-heavy openings, and the top end pulls expectations upwards.

Many freshers, especially those joining large service companies through mass hiring, start at lower packages. Pay depends on the employer, the role, the college tier, and how you perform in the selection process.

Treat the median as a middle point in a very wide spread. Your own number could sit well above or below it, and that is normal.

Fresher salary by city

City matters, mostly because of which companies hire there. Here is what our listings showed (medians, estimates only):

• Bengaluru: about ₹14.0 LPA (126 roles), the largest sample in our data
• Pune: about ₹11.5 LPA (23 roles)
• Hyderabad: about ₹11.2 LPA (30 roles)
• Chennai: about ₹11.2 LPA (14 roles)
• Gurugram: about ₹9.0 LPA (14 roles)

Read the city numbers with care

Sample sizes differ. Bengaluru has 126 roles, while Gurugram and Chennai have only 14 each. Small samples can swing a lot with one or two high-paying listings.

A higher salary in a costlier city does not always mean more savings. Rent, commute and food can eat the difference, so compare take-home and living costs, not only the headline figure.

Remote and hybrid roles may not follow city patterns at all. Check work from home jobs if location flexibility matters to you.

What shapes pay by role

We will not quote role-wise figures we cannot back up, but some patterns are well understood. Pay usually rises with how specialised the skill is and how directly it ties to a company's product.

Roles in developer jobs and AI and ML jobs often attract wider ranges than generic support or testing roles, but the spread within each is large. Check salaries on Hirastra for current role-level estimates.

• Skill depth: strong data structures, projects and system basics widen your options
• Company type: product firms, startups and service companies pay differently
• Selection route: coding rounds, mass tests and campus drives lead to different bands
• Internships: a good one can lead to a pre-placement offer; see the PPO guide

CTC is not what lands in your account

A ₹10 LPA CTC does not mean ₹83,000 a month in hand. Variable pay, joining bonuses, insurance, provident fund and notice-period clauses all change the real figure.

Always ask for a breakup of fixed, variable and one-time components. Our CTC vs in-hand salary guide walks through how to read an offer letter.

And remember: genuine employers never charge a fee for a job, training, or an offer letter. If anyone asks for money, read how to spot fake job offers.

How to use this to plan your search

Numbers are only useful if they change what you do. Here is a simple way to apply them.

1. Set a realistic range, not one number, using the data above as a rough guide.
2. Check the role and company on its official career page for the stated pay or band.
3. Compare offers on in-hand pay, growth and learning, not CTC alone.
4. Strengthen your profile with projects, and run your resume through the ATS resume checker.
5. Apply widely through verified listings. Hirastra lists current openings on today's jobs and off-campus drives.

Frequently asked questions