Software developer gross salary in India (2026): fresher (0–2 yrs) ₹4.5–8 LPA; mid-level (3–5 yrs) ₹10–20 LPA; senior (8+ yrs) ₹25–45 LPA. Top product companies and GCCs pay ₹50 LPA+ at senior levels.

Salary premium in Bengaluru over the national average for tech roles. Experienced developers in Bengaluru earn ₹20–35 LPA, versus ₹18–30 LPA in Mumbai, with Hyderabad, Pune, and Delhi NCR close behind.

Employer EPF (Provident Fund) contribution: 12% of basic wages, split 8.33% to the EPS pension scheme and 3.67% to the employee's EPF account. The statutory wage ceiling is ₹15,000/month, though many employers contribute on actual basic pay. The employee contributes a further 12%.

Employer ESI (Employees' State Insurance) contribution: 3.25% of gross salary, applicable only to employees earning up to ₹21,000/month. The employee contributes 0.75%. Most professional/tech hires exceed the threshold, so ESI rarely applies to them.

Gratuity accrual rate: 15 days' wages per completed year of service (last drawn basic × 15/26 × years), provisioned at ~4.81% of basic pay. Payable after 5 years of continuous service — except fixed-term employees, who under the 2026 Labour Codes earn gratuity proportionally from day one.

Total employer statutory load in India: typically 10–17% above gross salary depending on salary structure and ESI applicability. Example: a ₹50,000/month gross employee costs the employer roughly ₹54,500–57,000/month all-in.

India's four consolidated Labour Codes took effect on 21 November 2025; the central rules operationalising them were notified on 8 May 2026. State-level rules are still rolling out, so multi-state employers face a transitional patchwork.

Increase in the PF-eligible wage base for employers restructuring under the new 50% rule: basic pay must now be at least 50% of total remuneration. Employers who previously set basic at 30–40% of CTC see their PF-eligible base rise 25–67%, directly raising employer PF and gratuity outlay in rupee terms.

Realistic year-one cost of establishing a foreign-owned Indian subsidiary: incorporation, tax registrations, DSC procurement, bank account setup, and first-year legal/compliance retainer. Ongoing overhead adds $2,000–3,500/month in a single state. (Bare incorporation fees alone are only ₹35,000–90,000 — a figure often misleadingly quoted as the full cost.)

Time to first compliant hire: 4–6 months via own entity (incorporation is 3–4 weeks, but apostilled documents, RBI/FDI filings, bank KYC, and auditor appointment stretch the real timeline), versus 7–10 working days via an Employer of Record.

EOR pricing in India (per employee per month, 2026): India-focused specialists charge $99–200, while global platforms charge $499–699 for the same country. Specialist pricing reflects local operating costs rather than global platform overhead.

Typical break-even headcount where running your own Indian entity becomes cheaper than EOR. Below that, EOR saves $34,000–62,000 in year one for a 5-person team once entity setup and compliance overhead are counted.