Sector Snapshot · IT-Software

India's Software and Deep-Tech Talent Pool Leads the World

A fast-read primer on India's IT-software and technology sector — the backdrop against which we benchmark every company's cost structure in this category.

US$100 bn
Software product industry size target, 2025
28%
India's share of global STEM talent pool
1.8 lakh
DPIIT-recognised startups (3rd-largest ecosystem)
38th
Global Innovation Index rank, 2025
US$131.31 bn
Projected Indian AI market size by 2032

Talent and Employment Continue to Scale

India's share of the world's technical talent pool keeps growing, alongside a fast-expanding overall workforce.

India's Global Talent Share

STEM talent pool vs. software engineering professionals

28%
STEM Talent Pool
23%
Software Engineers

Total Employment (crore)

2017-18 → 2023-24

47.5cr
2017-18
64.33cr
2023-24

What's Pushing the Sector Forward

A huge talent pool, rising R&D investment, and a supportive policy framework define the sector.

Huge Talent Pool
  • 28% of the global STEM talent pool, 5.8 million professionals
Rising Investment
  • Rs1 lakh crore Research, Development & Innovation Scheme
  • Tata Electronics investing $10.41bn in a Gujarat semiconductor facility
Policy Framework
  • Rs20,000cr allocated for R&D and innovation
  • A dedicated Deep Tech Fund of Funds

Recent Developments

A sample of the industry-wide and policy moves shaping the sector through early 2026.

Companies We Benchmark in This Sector

Listed Indian IT-Software companies in tDoBe's cost-benchmarking coverage.

TCS
Infosys
HCL Technologies
Wipro
Tech Mahindra
LTIMindtree
Oracle Financial Services Software
Persistent Systems
Coforge
Mphasis
Hexaware Technologies
Tata Elxsi
KPIT Technologies
Fractal Analytics
Zensar Technologies
RateGain Travel
Intellect Design Arena
Sonata Software

The Cost Benchmark — What We Actually FoundtDoBe Think Report

The market facts above are public background. What follows is tDoBe's own work: every "Other Expenses" line from these companies' own financial records, read by hand and sorted into one clear set of categories — not a keyword search, not each company's own way of reporting it.

13.1%
tDoBe Average — Other Expenses as % of net revenue
17.1×
Gap between the highest and lowest company
11
Cost categories, sorted by meaning
2.2%
Biggest single category — IT/Software
FY24/25
Latest available financial records

Where Companies Land — Total Other Expenses

Each mark is one company's total Other Expenses as % of net revenue. No company is named here.

13.1%
0%10%20%30%40%50%

tDoBe Average by Cost Category

Ranked from biggest to smallest.

IT/Software
2.2%
Miscellaneous & Others
1.0%
Travel & Conveyance
0.9%
Legal & Professional Fees
0.6%
Repairs & Maintenance
0.6%
Total Other Expenses
13.1%
Where the Cost Really Sits

IT & Software spend leads the category list, followed by general overheads and travel — a straightforward reflection of what a software business actually spends money on.

Why the Range Is So Wide

This is one of the widest ranges we've measured. Companies in this sector report subcontracted and outsourced delivery work very differently in their own filings — that reporting difference, more than any underlying gap in efficiency, is the single biggest driver of the spread.

Why the Comparison Is Fair

We use each company's own standalone financial records — not group numbers, not each company's own labels. Every cost line is read by hand and placed into one common set of categories, so every company is compared the same way.

See Where Your Own Company Stands

This is the free, sector-wide view. It tells you where IT Software stands as a whole — not where your own company stands against it, category by category, in rupees.

Report
$999
Your company, named, benchmarked against the sector. Every category broken out and explained. Delivered in about a week.
Consulting
$4,999
7 working days. We work straight from your own records, on the categories you want answered first.

A below-average number is a reason to call too — the benchmark keeps improving as we go.

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Compiled from public government and industry sources, February 2026 update · Figures rounded · tDoBe sector snapshot, for informational purposes · Cost Benchmark findings compiled from companies' own financial records, FY2024/25.