Infosys offers ₹21 lakh entry-level packages: What freshers need to know

Infosys has raised fresher salaries to as high as ₹21 lakh per annum for specialised technology roles as part of its AI-first strategy, expanding early-career hiring and targeting 20,000 graduate recr

Infosys has raised entry-level salaries and is now offering packages of up to ₹21 lakh per annum for freshers hired into specialised technology roles. This marks the highest starting pay currently on offer in the Indian IT sector and comes as the company steps up efforts to strengthen its AI-first capabilities and attract digitally native talent.

 

How much is Infosys paying entry-level freshers?

 

According to recruitment banners and social media posts reviewed and verified by Moneycontrol, Infosys is preparing an off-campus hiring drive for 2025 graduates. The company plans to recruit engineering and computer science students for specialised roles, with salaries ranging from ₹7 lakh to ₹21 lakh per annum. The top package stands out at a time when fresher salaries across much of the IT industry have remained largely flat for several years.

 

 

Which roles are being offered and what are the salary details?

 

The roles on offer include Specialist Programmer (L1 to L3) and Digital Specialist Engineer (trainee). These positions are open to BE, BTech, ME, MTech, MCA and integrated MSc graduates in computer science, IT and select circuit branches such as ECE and EEE.

 

Salary structure under the programme includes:

 

• Specialist Programmer L3 (trainee): ₹21 lakh per annum

 

• Specialist Programmer L2 (trainee): ₹16 lakh per annum

 

• Specialist Programmer L1 (trainee): ₹11 lakh per annum

 

• Digital Specialist Engineer (trainee): ₹7 lakh per annum

 

Infosys said the hiring is aligned with its AI-first approach, which requires both upskilling existing employees and bringing in fresh talent with specialised digital skills. “Our early-career hiring combines campus and off-campus drives, and we have expanded opportunities in the Specialist Programmer track, with packages up to ₹21 lakh per annum,” Infosys Group CHRO Shaji Mathew said in a statement to Moneycontrol.

 

How do Infosys fresher salaries compare with other IT firms?

 

Low entry-level pay has long been a concern for engineering graduates, with salaries at India’s top IT firms showing little growth over the past decade. According to Moneycontrol analysis, while median CEO compensation jumped 835 per cent from ₹3.37 crore in FY12 to ₹31.5 crore in FY22, the median fresher salary rose just 45 per cent, from ₹2.45 lakh to ₹3.55 lakh.

 

Some companies have begun offering higher pay for niche roles. TCS runs digital and prime elite hiring tracks offering ₹7 lakh and ₹11 lakh per annum respectively. HCLTech has announced a four-times higher pay package for an “elite cadre” of freshers, while Wipro offers specialised programmes such as Turbo and WILP, where top performers can earn up to ₹6.5 lakh per annum.

 

How many freshers is Infosys hiring in FY26?

 

Even as parts of the global technology sector continue to see layoffs, Infosys has stepped up graduate hiring. The company has already hired 12,000 freshers in the first half of FY26 and remains on track to meet its target of recruiting 20,000 fresh graduates this financial year, Infosys CFO Jayesh Sanghrajka said during the company’s Q2 earnings call on October 16.

 

Infosys also reported its fifth consecutive quarter of net headcount addition, adding 8,203 employees in the September quarter. Net addition for the first half of FY26 stood at 8,413, taking the company’s total workforce to 331,991 employees.