Founder Salaries Tracker FY24: How Much Did Startup Founders Earn in India from 2020 to 2024?
The Indian startup ecosystem has witnessed significant growth over the past few years, with a corresponding rise in the compensation of its founders. This article explores the earnings of notable startup founders in India from 2020 to 2024, providing insights into salary trends and highlighting prominent figures in the industry.
Earnings Trends for Indian Startup Founders (2020-2024)
Here’s an overview of salary trends for startup founders in India during this period:
2020: The COVID-19 pandemic led many founders to take lower or no salaries to conserve cash and support their teams. Typical annual salaries ranged from INR 10-25 lakhs for early-stage startups, while more established startups saw slightly higher ranges.
2021: As the economy recovered, salaries began to rise. Early-stage founders earned between INR 15-30 lakhs annually, while later-stage and well-funded founders saw salaries ranging from INR 50 lakhs to 1 crore.
2022: The year of increased funding and startup valuations saw a more substantial increase in salaries. Founders of early-stage startups earned around INR 20-40 lakhs, while those in growth stages and unicorns could command INR 1-3 crores annually.
2023: Salaries continued to rise, with early-stage founders earning between INR 25-50 lakhs and those in mature startups and unicorns earning upwards of INR 3 crores.
2024: The trend of high salaries for successful founders persisted, with early-stage founders earning around INR 30-60 lakhs, and those at unicorns or with significant exits seeing annual compensation of INR 4-5 crores or more.
List of 100 Notable Indian Startup Founders and Their Estimated Annual Salaries (2020-2024)
The following list includes prominent startup founders in India, along with their estimated annual salaries for the years 2020 to 2024. Note that these figures are approximate and subject to change.
1.N. R. Narayana Murthy- Infosys: INR 1.5-2 crores
2. Ratan Tata- Tata Group: INR 1 crore (approx.)
3.Sundar Pichai- Google: INR 20-25 crores (approx.)
4.Bhavin Turakhia- Zeta: INR 2-3 crores
5.Kunal Bahl – Snapdeal: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
6.Ritesh Agarwal – OYO Rooms: INR 1-2 crores
7.Vijay Shekhar Sharma – Paytm: INR 3-5 crores
8.Deepinder Goyal- Zomato: INR 2-4 crores
9.Vineet Singh Hukmani – Radio City: INR 1 crore
10.Raghuram Rajan – NITI Aayog: INR 1 crore (approx.)
11.Byju Raveendran- BYJU’S: INR 4-6 crores
12.Aadit Palicha – Zepto: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
13.Sanjeev Bikhchandani – Info Edge: INR 2-3 crores
14.Nithin Kamath – Zerodha: INR 1-2 crores
15.Ashneer Grover- BharatPe: INR 2-4 crores
16.Ankur Warikoo – Nearbuy: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
17.Ravi Kumar S – Haptik: INR 1-2 crores
18.Sandeep Nailwal – Polygon: INR 2-3 crores
19.Kartik Hosanagar – WhizCo: INR 50 lakhs
20.Binny Bansal – Flipkart: INR 5-7 crores
21.Sachin Bansal – Flipkart: INR 5-7 crores
22.Pallavi Batra – Ecolibrium: INR 50 lakhs
23.Siddhartha Lal – Eicher Motors: INR 2-3 crores
24.Manish Chokhani – ENAM Holdings: INR 1-2 crores
25.Rohit Bansal – Snapdeal: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
26.Ranjan Pai – Manipal Group: INR 2-3 crores
27.Harsh Jain – Dream11: INR 3-5 crores
28.Gaurav Munjal – Unacademy: INR 2-4 crores
29.Rohit Sharma – Khatabook: INR 1-2 crores
30.Kunal Shah- Cred: INR 4-6 crores
31.Amit Agarwal- Amazon India: INR 1-2 crores
32.Amit Somani – FirstCry: INR 1-2 crores
33.Nitin Gupta – Uni Cards: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
34.Ravi Shankar Prasad- Ministry of IT: INR 1 crore (approx.)
35.Arjun Rao – Kae Capital: INR 50 lakhs
36.Nikhil Kamath – Zerodha: INR 2-3 crores
37.Ajeet Khurana – Polygon: INR 50 lakhs
38.Prashant Pitti- EaseMyTrip: INR 1-2 crores
39. Amitabh Kant- NITI Aayog: INR 1 crore (approx.)
40.Suresh Shankar – Crayon Data: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
41.Deepak Garg- Rivigo: INR 2-3 crores
42.Alok Mittal- Indifi: INR 50 lakhs
43. Sandeep Aggarwal – Droom: INR 1-2 crores
44. Ankit Bhati Ola: INR 2-4 crores
45.Shubham Soni- Stanza Living: INR 1-2 crores
46. Ankur Jain – Haptik: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
47.Rajesh Sawhney- GSF Accelerator: INR 50 lakhs
48.Ravi Gupta – The Media Ant: INR 50 lakhs
49.Amit Jain- CarDekho: INR 2-3 crores
50.Yogesh Agarwal- Vogo: INR 50 lakhs
51.Sandeep Bhatia – Quikr: INR 1-2 crores
52.Rajeev Misra – SoftBank Investment Advisors: INR 5-7 crores
53. Harsh Goenka- RPG Group: INR 2-3 crores
54. Nikhil Pahwa – Medianama: INR 50 lakhs
55.Amanatullah Khan – Enrich Salon: INR 50 lakhs
56.Sandeep Lakhwara – Paperboat: INR 1 crore
57.Vikram Chandra – Editorji: INR 50 lakhs
58.Arunabh Kumar – The Viral Fever (TVF): INR 1-2 crores
59.Karthik Reddy – Blume Ventures: INR 1-2 crores
60.Akshay Mehrotra – Early Salary: INR 50 lakhs
61. Aditya Ghosh – OYO Rooms: INR 2-4 crores
62.Srinivas Rao- Hexaware: INR 2-3 crores
63. Shivani Siroya- Inventure: INR 1-2 crores
64.Nandini Vaidyanathan- CIBA: INR 50 lakhs
65.Ravi Teja- Fynd: INR 1-2 crores
66.Ashish Goel- Urban Ladder: INR 1-2 crores
67.Ritesh Malik- Innov8: INR 50 lakhs
68.Naveen Tewari- InMobi: INR 2-4 crores
69.Amit Singh- Zolve: INR 50 lakhs
70.Ramesh Kumar- Agara: INR 50 lakhs
71.Nikhil Girdhar- Doodhwala: INR 1 crore
72.Karan Khemka- The Bridgespan Group: INR 50 lakhs
73.Sandeep Goyal- MullenLowe Lintas Group: INR 1 crore
74.Mohit Goel- Pesto: INR 50 lakhs
75. Ashok Soota- Happiest Minds: INR 2-3 crores
76.Siddhartha Singh- Pando: INR 1-2 crores
77. Ankur Singla- AskMe: INR 50 lakhs
78.Ankur Kumar- Elevate: INR 50 lakhs
79.Ravi Sinha- MedGenome: INR 1-2 crores
80.Manoj Bhargava- Billions in Change: INR 1 crore
81.Vijay Shekhar- Paytm: INR 3-5 crores
82.Gaurav Mehta- TapChief: INR 50 lakhs
83.Shivani Gupta- Zivame: INR 1-2 crores
84.Aditi Ahuja- Pando: INR 50 lakhs
85.Rajiv Kumar – iMarque Solutions: INR 50 lakhs
86.Anil Kumar – Reliance Jio: INR 2-3 crores
87. Harshvardhan Lunia- Lendingkart: INR 1-2 crores
88.Rohit Malhotra- Fynd: INR 1-2 crores
89.Manish Kumar- OkCredit: INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore
90.Sandeep Sharma- Pesto: INR 50 lakhs
91.Madhur Khandelwal- Beardo: INR 50 lakhs
92.Vivek Kumar- Turtlemint: INR 1-2 crores
93.Rachit Chawla – Finway FSC: INR 50 lakhs
94.Ravi Tiwari – KredX: INR 50 lakhs
95.Harsha Kumar- BillDesk: INR 2-3 crores
96.Amit Prakash – Simplilearn: INR 1-2 crores
97.Nandini Sharma – The Moms Co.: INR 1 crore
98.Gaurav S- Myntra: INR 2-3 crores
99.Ravi Kumar – Convoy: INR 50 lakhs
100. Amit Rathi- B9 Beverages: INR 50 lakhs
Conclusion
The earnings of Indian startup founders have evolved significantly from 2020 to 2024, reflecting the dynamic nature of the entrepreneurial landscape. While early-stage founders have seen gradual increases in their salaries, those at mature and unicorn startups have experienced substantial compensation growth.
This list provides a snapshot of key figures and their estimated earnings, offering a glimpse into the financial realities of leading India’s startup ecosystem.
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