IT Sector Debate: Rs 50 lakh salary is like Rs 25 lakh

The information technology industry in India is witnessing significant progress over the last few years. However, the projection of the salaries is becoming a growing cause of concern amongst senior professionals in view of the prevailing inflation conditions.

A recent post on social media by Sourav Dutta sparked a wide debate about tech salaries in Bengaluru. He questioned whether a ₹50 lakh per annum (LPA) salary in today’s Bengaluru feels like ₹25 LPA due to the rising cost of living.

Many users jumped in, saying even ₹50 LPA doesn’t offer the same comfort anymore and joked that “₹50L is the new ₹10L.” With the cost of rent, food, and overall living going up, techies feel their high salaries don’t stretch as far as they used to.

Others pointed out that ₹50 LPA is still a big number, and such packages are mostly given to experienced professionals. They also highlighted that most ₹50 LPA packages in big companies like Microsoft or Google include stock options and bonuses, not just base salary.

For example, the base pay might only be ₹16–18 LPA, while the rest is in stock grants over several years. So, the monthly in-hand salary can be just ₹1.2–1.5 lakh.

The discussion also compared Bengaluru to other cities. In places like Hyderabad, ₹25 LPA still holds solid value. But Bengaluru, being India’s top tech hub with over a million tech workers, continues to demand higher salaries due to lifestyle costs.