National average salary figures for India are heavily weighted by lower-income roles, so they say little about what corporate professionals earn. If you're hiring skilled talent in India, two things matter more: role-specific pay benchmarks and how fast salaries are rising. Employers in India project average salary increases of 9.1% in 2026, according to both Aon's Annual Salary Increase and Turnover Survey and EY's Future of Pay 2026 report.
India is a booming tech hub with a talented workforce of developers, programmers, designers, and engineers. For global employers, India is one of the top destinations to hire full-time employees across industries. But before extending an offer, it's important to research the hiring landscape, and not just labor laws and compliance requirements. You should also understand how pay and annual increases in India vary by role, industry, and seniority so your job offers are competitive and demonstrate your commitment to fair compensation.
Here's a guide to how minimum wages, salary increases, and pay factors work in India, so you can make informed offers.
What’s the average salary in India?
National averages and medians for India include every type of worker, from domestic and informal roles to senior corporate professionals. Because a large share of the workforce is in lower-paid roles, these figures sit far below what skilled corporate employees earn. They aren't a useful benchmark for an offer to a developer, engineer, or finance professional.
For hiring decisions, use current, role-specific benchmarks for the city and seniority you're hiring for, and factor in expected annual increases.
How much are salaries in India expected to increase in 2026?
Salary increases in India remain high. Aon projects an average increase of 9.1% in 2026, up slightly from an actual 8.9% in 2025, based on data from more than 1,400 organizations across 45 industries. EY's Future of Pay 2026 report also projects 9.1% for 2026
Increases vary by industry. According to Aon, the highest projected increases for 2026 are in:
- Real estate and infrastructure: 10.2%
- Non-banking financial companies (NBFCs): 10.1%
- Automotive and vehicle manufacturing: 9.9%
- Engineering design services: 9.9%
Technology platforms and products are projected at 9.4%, while technology consulting and services sits at the low end at 6.6%.
EY's data points the same way. Global capability centers (GCCs) are projected to lead at 10.4%, followed by financial services at around 10%, e-commerce at 9.9%, and life sciences and pharmaceuticals at 9.7%.
Attrition is also easing. Aon reports attrition fell to 16.2% in 2025, down from 17.7% in 2024 and close to pre-COVID levels. EY puts 2025 attrition at 16.4%, with more than 80% of exits voluntary.
What this means for you: if you're hiring in India, budget for annual increases in line with these projections for your industry, and time your review cycle so offers and raises stay competitive with local employers.
What’s the minimum wage in India?
Understanding the minimum wage in India helps establish the legal baseline for compensation. It’s also important because it reflects how local regulators value different types of work.
India sets a national floor wage, but minimum wages vary depending on the state, the geographical area’s development level, the employee’s industry, and their occupation.
The worker’s skill level—unskilled, semi-skilled, skilled, and highly-skilled—also influences the minimum salary in India. These distinctions make for a complicated system.
In addition, Indian employees also earn statutory benefits. These include welfare payments, gratuities based on seniority, insurance, and leave provisions (like maternity leave).
India's new Labour Codes are also changing how pay is structured. They introduce a standardized definition of wages and expanded social security provisions, and Aon notes that many employers are reassessing and restructuring compensation as a result (AON). EY reports that organizations are running cost modeling exercises and upgrading payroll systems to prepare.
Avoid relying on minimum wage standards when determining salary compensation. These wages are unlikely to cover the costs of living, let alone be competitive to candidates with other international offers. Also, be prepared to extend statutory benefits and ideally offer packages that go above local minimums. An employer of record (EOR), like Oyster, can help you compliantly navigate benefits administration from wherever you are.
What factors influence salary in India?
Various factors determine salary amounts in India, and understanding the cultural context can help you craft an informed compensation offer for a professional from this country. Here’s what you need to know:
How do age and experience affect salary?
Higher salaries often come with experience, and experience, with age. Just like in other countries, workers in India tend to earn the most during the height of their career before tapering off and heading toward retirement.
As you consider the costs of hiring in India, avoid ageism and base salaries on skills and experience—not on a person’s age—even if the country’s payment statistics indicate age-based wage disparities.
How do education levels affect salary?
People with higher levels of education in India often earn more than others. The country categorizes wages by skill level, meaning that those with formal or on-the-job education have higher salaries. For example, a construction worker with little experience earns less than one who has gained niche abilities.
That said, these designations are unlikely to affect highly-skilled professionals, who often earn outside of the traditional minimum wage structure regardless. International employers hiring highly educated professionals should base their salary benchmarks on what international competitors offer for remote work in this market.
How does industry affect salary?
According to data from Indeed, India’s highest-paying roles are in industries like medicine, technology, and banking. Given this data, if you’re planning on hiring tech talent from India, the wages you offer will likely fall into the highest-earning categories. Professionals accustomed to working with international companies may ask for higher compensation that more closely resembles US salaries.
How does gender affect salary?
India has a significant gender pay gap, with average salaries notably higher for men. While this fact isn’t necessarily representative of all industries and types of work, it’s still apparent in the salary-by-gender averages, which estimate significantly higher salaries for men.
While statistics may favor men’s earnings, companies shouldn’t. By following an “equal pay for equal work” mentality, international hirers can fairly offer comparable salaries to people of all genders.
How does location affect salary?
Studies suggest that states with stronger economies are also those with higher salaries. Familiarize yourself with the going rates for work in the cities you’re hiring, as well as the cost of living, to help determine what’s fair. For example, talent in cities like Mumbai and Delhi, where incomes and costs of living are higher than in other regions, should earn more than their rural counterparts.
Reward your global team with compliant payroll through Oyster
Thinking about hiring a talented remote professional from India? Go ahead. Oyster has your back.
Oyster helps you maintain compliance and speed when hiring and paying international employees or independent contractors. You make a fair compensation offer, and Oyster handles the rest, streamlining everything from onboarding to payday. Oyster’s Employer of Record platform helps with accurate tax withholding and benefits administration and facilitates quick, automated payments to 120+ countries. And with Oyster’s EOR services, you can confidently hire employees without needing to establish a foreign entity.
FAQ
Navigating an international economy is never easy. Here are the answers to a few common questions that other employers hiring Indian employees or contractors have asked.
What’s a good salary in India?
Defining a “good” salary in India depends on several factors, primarily where a person lives and how many dependents they have. A person living in a major urban area, where the cost of living is high, will need to earn more to make ends meet than someone in a rural area where day-to-day costs are less.
About Oyster
Oyster is a global employment platform designed to enable visionary HR leaders to find, engage, pay, manage, develop, and take care of a thriving distributed workforce. Oyster lets growing companies give valued international team members the experience they deserve, without the usual headaches and expense.
Oyster enables hiring anywhere in the world—with reliable, compliant payroll, and great local benefits and perks.
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