Our annual salary benchmarking study across 18 industries and 6 cities. Includes AI/ML demand surge, non-tech function growth, and tier-2 city trends.
India's GCC ecosystem crossed the 1,700-centre milestone in 2024, with headcount growing 18% year-on-year — the fastest expansion in the sector's history. This report synthesises primary salary data from 12,000+ placements WeHireIn made in 2024 across 18 industries and 6 cities.
Key Findings
- Software engineering CTC in Bangalore rose 14% YoY, crossing ₹28L median at senior level
- AI/ML roles saw the steepest demand spike — 3.4× more mandates in 2024 vs 2022
- Non-tech GCC hiring (Finance, Legal, HR) grew 40% — outpacing tech hiring for the first time
- Hyderabad emerged as the #1 city for pharma and healthcare GCC hiring
- Tier-2 cities (Kochi, Ahmedabad, Coimbatore) contributed 12% of total GCC placements
Engineering Salary Benchmarks by City
| Role | Bangalore | Hyderabad | Pune | Gurugram |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior SWE (6–9 yrs) | ₹28–38L | ₹24–34L | ₹22–30L | ₹26–36L |
| Staff Engineer | ₹45–65L | ₹38–55L | ₹35–50L | ₹42–60L |
| Senior Data Scientist | ₹30–42L | ₹26–38L | ₹24–34L | ₹28–40L |
| ML Engineer (LLM) | ₹38–55L | ₹32–48L | ₹30–44L | ₹36–52L |
| VP Engineering | ₹80–140L | ₹70–120L | ₹65–110L | ₹75–130L |
Key Insight
The salary premium for GCC roles in Bangalore vs Hyderabad has narrowed from 18% in 2022 to 11% in 2024, as Hyderabad's talent depth improves. Companies should reassess their location strategy.
The Non-Tech Surge
The most significant structural shift in 2024 was the acceleration of non-tech GCC hiring. Finance & Accounting roles grew 45%, Legal & Compliance grew 38%, and HR Operations grew 52% in mandate volume. This reflects the maturation of GCCs from IT-only cost centers to full-function capability hubs.
AI/ML Talent: Supply Still Lagging Demand
Despite India producing 1.5M+ STEM graduates annually, AI/ML specialist supply remains tight. Our data shows an average time-to-hire of 68 days for senior ML engineers — compared to 38 days for backend software engineers. Companies need to build proactive pipelines, not reactive searches.