SIC Tech Salary Benchmarking Report 2026: What IT Companies in Surat Are Paying
Data from 200+ Surat IT companies reveals how salaries have shifted across engineering, AI/ML, design, and leadership roles — and what is driving the change.
Surat IT Community has published its annual Tech Salary Benchmarking Report 2026 — the most comprehensive compensation study of Surat's IT ecosystem. Data was gathered from 200+ member companies across company sizes ranging from 10 to 500+ employees.
Key Findings
- Average tech salaries in Surat grew by 14% year-over-year — outpacing Ahmedabad (11%) and Vadodara (9%)
- AI/ML engineers command a 35–45% premium over equivalent-experience software engineers
- Retention bonuses are now offered by 60%+ of companies with 50+ employees
- Remote and hybrid work is offered by 78% of companies — making Surat competitive with Tier 1 cities
- Equity/ESOPs offered by 22% of companies, up from 9% in 2024
Role-wise Salary Ranges (Surat, 2026)
- Junior Software Engineer (1–3 yrs): ₹3.5L – ₹7L per annum
- Mid-level Engineer (3–6 yrs): ₹7L – ₹16L per annum
- Senior Engineer / Tech Lead (6+ yrs): ₹16L – ₹30L per annum
- AI/ML Engineer (2–5 yrs): ₹10L – ₹25L per annum
- Product Manager (3–7 yrs): ₹10L – ₹22L per annum
- UI/UX Designer (2–5 yrs): ₹4L – ₹12L per annum
- CTO / VP Engineering: ₹25L – ₹60L per annum
What Is Driving Salary Growth?
Three forces are pushing salaries up across Surat IT: competition for AI-capable talent, pressure from remote-first companies in Bangalore and Pune hiring Surat engineers, and a maturing startup ecosystem that is creating demand for senior leadership at founder-adjacent roles.
What the Data Means for Hiring
Companies paying below the 50th percentile for engineering roles are seeing 40%+ higher 12-month attrition. The report recommends quarterly compensation reviews for companies scaling past 50 employees, and structured ESOP policies for startups that cannot compete on base salary alone.
Access the Full Report
SIC members have exclusive access to the complete benchmarking data including percentile breakdowns, company-size filters, and role-specific charts. Contact the SIC team or visit the Resources page to download.
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