Bengaluru Software Engineer Salary Guide 2026

Based on aggregated data from offer letters, LinkedIn Salary, Glassdoor India, and community reports in 2026:

Fresher / SDE-1 (0–1 year):

• Service IT (TCS, Infosys, Wipro): ₹3.5–7 LPA
• Mid-tier product (Myntra, Nykaa, BigBasket): ₹12–20 LPA
• Unicorns (Swiggy, Meesho, PhonePe, Razorpay): ₹18–30 LPA
• FAANG India (Amazon, Microsoft, Google): ₹25–45 LPA

Mid-level / SDE-2 (2–5 years):

• Service IT: ₹8–16 LPA
• Mid-tier product: ₹20–35 LPA
• Unicorns: ₹30–55 LPA
• FAANG India: ₹45–90 LPA

Senior / SDE-3 or Staff (5–10 years):

• Service IT: ₹18–30 LPA
• Mid-tier product: ₹35–55 LPA
• Unicorns: ₹55–100 LPA
• FAANG India: ₹90–180 LPA

Note: All figures are CTC (Cost to Company). Take-home is typically 65–75% of CTC after PF, gratuity, and income tax deductions.

Bengaluru's cost of living has risen significantly over the past five years:

Rent (monthly):

• 1 BHK, central areas (Koramangala, Indiranagar): ₹25,000–40,000
• 1 BHK, outer areas (Whitefield, Electronic City, HSR Layout): ₹15,000–25,000
• 2 BHK, central: ₹40,000–65,000
• Flatsharing (room): ₹8,000–15,000

Food and transport:

• Monthly groceries + eating out (reasonable lifestyle): ₹8,000–15,000
• Commute (Namma Metro + autorickshaw): ₹3,000–6,000
• Cab to office (if far): ₹5,000–12,000

Monthly fixed expenses for a single engineer (room + food + commute + phone + internet): ₹25,000–45,000 depending on location and lifestyle.

At an SDE-1 salary of ₹18 LPA (₹1.5 LPA/month before tax, ~₹1.0–1.1 LPA take-home), you can save ₹55,000–75,000 per month comfortably.

Bengaluru: Highest salaries, most company density, best startup ecosystem, most networking opportunities. Trade-off: highest cost, worst traffic, competitive housing market.

Hyderabad: Second largest tech hub. Significant Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Meta presence (all have large offices). Lower cost of living than Bengaluru (rent is 20–30% cheaper). Growing startup ecosystem. No professional tax (saves ₹2,500/year). Strong for FAANG-adjacent careers.

Pune: Strong for manufacturing tech, automotive IoT, BFSI tech. IBM, Persistent, Infosys, Wipro, and several MNCs. Costs are lower than Bengaluru. Good quality of life. Smaller startup density than Bengaluru or Hyderabad.

Chennai: TCS, Cognizant, and Zoho presence. Strong for Tamil Nadu-based mid-tier companies. Lower cost than Bengaluru. Zoho in particular pays well relative to Chennai's cost of living.

For a fresher: Bengaluru is still the best city to start a SWE career if you can handle the initial housing pressure. For a senior engineer with family: Hyderabad or Pune often makes more financial sense.