Skillcept Online
Key takeaways
- With 1–3 years’ experience, Data Engineers earn ₹7.6–8.3 lakh a year; with 3–6 years, ₹11.3–12.5 lakh; with 6–9 years, ₹17.5–19.4 lakh (AmbitionBox, 22 Oct 2026).1
- Data Scientists earn ₹3–4 lakh more at each of those bands: ₹11.3–12.5 lakh, ₹15–16.6 lakh and ₹20.5–22.6 lakh (AmbitionBox, 22 Oct 2026).3
- The gap is partly about employers: more than half of AmbitionBox’s Data Engineer salaries come from IT services, at ₹9.1–10 lakh, while at internet companies Data Engineers show ₹19–21 lakh, within ₹2 lakh of Data Scientists.13
- The market is big and growing: AmbitionBox holds 1.1 lakh Data Engineer salaries and shows the average up 24% over two years, and TeamLease Digital projects 12.0% pay growth for Data Engineers in FY27–28.19
The short answer
If you want one source, use AmbitionBox: it shows a range for each experience band and how many salaries sit behind it. Here is what it showed for Data Engineers on 22 October 2026.1
| Experience | Typical yearly pay | Salaries behind it |
|---|---|---|
| 1–3 years | ₹7.6–8.3 L | 33,800 |
| 3–6 years | ₹11.3–12.5 L | 73,000 |
| 6–9 years | ₹17.5–19.4 L | 4,600 |
| Overall, 1–7 years | ₹11.6–12.8 L | 1.1 lakh |
Source: AmbitionBox, Data Engineer salaries in India, page updated 20 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026. Ranges as AmbitionBox shows them.
A Data Engineer is the person who builds and runs the pipelines that move data from where it’s created (apps, payments, sensors, business systems) into a warehouse or data lake: clean, on time and ready for analysts, data scientists and AI systems. It’s a big market. AmbitionBox holds 1.1 lakh Data Engineer salaries, against 61,600 for Data Scientists.13
First jobs often carry another title, and pay less:
| Role | Experience | Yearly pay | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Junior Data Engineer | 0–1 year | ₹4.3–5 L | AmbitionBox182 salaries, a small sample |
| Associate Data Engineer | 0–1 year | ₹6.5–7.2 L | AmbitionBox337 salaries |
| Data Engineer | Under 1 year | ₹5,18,398 average total pay | PayScale125 salaries |
| Data Engineer | 1–4 years | ₹8,11,562 average total pay | PayScale886 salaries |
| Data science roles in GCCs, data engineering included | 1–3 years | ₹10–18 LPAIndicative | Taggd |
Sources: AmbitionBox (pages updated 17–20 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026),2 PayScale (9 Oct 2026)6 and Taggd (4 Sep 2026).10 GCCs are global capability centres, the in-house technology centres of global companies.
On AmbitionBox, first-year Data Engineer titles pay from ₹4.3 lakh to ₹7.2 lakh, and the Associate title pays about two lakh more than the Junior one for the same year.2 Global capability centres sit at the higher end from the start.
Data Engineer vs Data Scientist: the pay gap
Data Scientists earn more at every experience band AmbitionBox shows, by ₹3–4 lakh a year.13 Every other source points the same way, though by very different amounts (next section).
| Years | Data Engineer | Data Scientist |
|---|---|---|
| 1–3 years | ₹7.6–8.3 L33,800 salaries | ₹11.3–12.5 L24,100 salaries |
| 3–6 years | ₹11.3–12.5 L73,000 salaries | ₹15–16.6 L35,500 salaries |
| 6–9 years | ₹17.5–19.4 L4,600 salaries | ₹20.5–22.6 L2,800 salaries |
Source: AmbitionBox, Data Engineer (page updated 20 Oct 2026) and Data Scientist (19 Oct 2026) salaries, read 22 Oct 2026.13
Part of the gap is about who employs them. More than half of AmbitionBox’s Data Engineer salaries (64,100 of 1.1 lakh) come from IT services and consulting, the lowest-paying employer type for both roles; for Data Scientists it’s about a third (21,700 of 61,600).13 Compare the two inside the same kind of company:
| Employer type | Data Engineer | Data Scientist |
|---|---|---|
| IT services and consulting | ₹9.1–10 L | ₹12.9–14.3 L |
| Management consulting | ₹12.9–14.2 L | ₹15.9–17.6 L |
| Analytics and KPO | ₹13.4–14.8 L | ₹13.8–15.3 L |
| Software product | ₹16.5–18.2 L | ₹19.3–21.4 L |
| Financial services | ₹17.5–19.4 L | ₹19.2–21.2 L |
| Internet | ₹19–21 L | ₹20.7–22.8 L |
Source: AmbitionBox, all experience levels in each employer type, as of 22 Oct 2026.13
In IT services the gap is about ₹4 lakh; at internet and financial services companies it’s under ₹2 lakh, and in analytics firms about half a lakh.
Which should you aim for? Choose the work, not the gap. Data engineering suits people who like building systems that run every day, and it’s a natural next step from software testing, support or development. Data science suits people who like questions, statistics and models. Our guide to moving from IT services into data and AI lays out both routes, and our Data Scientist salary guide covers that role’s pay in full.
Why the sources disagree
Every source puts Data Scientists ahead, but by anything from about ₹30,000 to about ₹8.6 lakh a year. None of them is wrong: they count different people and different kinds of pay.
| Source | Data Engineer | Data Scientist | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|
| AmbitionBox | ₹11.6–12.8 L typical, 1–7 years | ₹15.3–16.9 L typical, 1–8 years | 1.1 lakh and 61,600 salaries reported by employeesUpdated 20 and 19 Oct 2026 |
| Indeed | ₹9,50,296 average base salary | ₹12,19,776 average base salary | 997 and 308 salaries in job postings from the past 36 monthsUpdated 11 and 8 Oct 2026 |
| PayScale | ₹9,85,309 average base salary | ₹10,17,652 average base salary | 1,143 and 1,267 salary profilesUpdated 9 Oct and 9 Jul 2026 |
| Levels.fyi | ₹21,18,968 median total pay | ₹29,82,081 median total pay | Self-reported packages with stock and bonus, leaning to product and big-tech firmsUpdated 21 Oct 2026 |
| TeamLease Digital | ₹9.1 LPA rising to ₹29.6 LPAYears not stated; its GenAI example runs from 0–2 to 6–8 years | ₹31–35 LPA by 6–8 yearsWith GenAI and ML roles | An analysis of 37,000 technology and digital roles29 Sep 2026 |
All read on 22 Oct 2026. Sources: AmbitionBox,13 Indeed,45 PayScale,67 Levels.fyi8 and TeamLease Digital, as reported by CXOToday.9
Four things explain the spread:
- Whose salaries are counted. Employees’ own reports (AmbitionBox), pay stated in job ads (Indeed), salary surveys (PayScale), or packages from people at product and big-tech firms (Levels.fyi).
- What counts as pay. Base salary alone, or total pay with stock and bonuses, which can add several lakh.
- Experience. An average that mixes freshers with eight-year veterans describes neither.
- Sample size. A few hundred salaries can swing a lot; tens of thousands are steadier. Levels.fyi doesn’t show how many Data Engineer packages sit behind its figure.
For a first or second data engineering job, AmbitionBox’s bands and PayScale’s early-career figures are the closest to what you’re likely to be offered.
By city and employer
On AmbitionBox, Gurugram pays Data Engineers the most, at ₹13–14.4 lakh a year; the other big cities sit between ₹10.4 lakh and ₹12.5 lakh.1
| City | Typical yearly pay | Salaries behind it |
|---|---|---|
| Gurugram | ₹13–14.4 L | 4,000 |
| Bengaluru | ₹11.3–12.5 L | 30,400 |
| Hyderabad | ₹10.9–12.1 L | 20,600 |
| New Delhi | ₹10.9–12 L | 2,700 |
| Chennai | ₹10.8–12 L | 8,800 |
| Pune | ₹10.6–11.8 L | 18,700 |
| Mumbai | ₹10.6–11.7 L | 5,100 |
| Noida | ₹10.4–11.5 L | 3,400 |
Source: AmbitionBox, 1–7 years in each city, as of 22 Oct 2026.1 Indeed’s job postings put Coimbatore first, at ₹14,47,352, then Gurgaon (₹10,43,300) and Bengaluru (₹10,35,924).4
The employer matters more than the city. Beyond the employer types above, AmbitionBox shows retail companies paying Data Engineers ₹18.2–20.1 lakh and fintech ₹16.5–18.3 lakh, against ₹9.1–10 lakh in IT services.1 Global capability centres are a big part of the higher end: NASSCOM counts 2,117 of them in India, employing 2.36 million people.11 Our guide to data science and AI salaries by city compares seven roles across the same cities.
The skills behind the number
On AmbitionBox, a tool or platform in the title doesn’t raise pay on its own: Azure Data Engineers and Big Data Engineers show less than plain Data Engineers at both early bands, and the senior title pays the most.12
| Title | 1–3 years | 3–6 years |
|---|---|---|
| ETL Developer | ₹4.7–5.2 L | ₹6.9–7.6 L |
| Azure Data Engineer | ₹5.5–6 L | ₹8.2–9.1 L |
| Analytics Engineer | ₹6.4–7.6 L217 salaries, a small sample | ₹9.8–11.4 L333 salaries, a small sample |
| Big Data Engineer | ₹7.1–7.8 L | ₹9.8–10.8 L |
| Data Engineer | ₹7.6–8.3 L | ₹11.3–12.5 L |
| Senior Data Engineer | Not shown | ₹16.4–18.2 L |
Source: AmbitionBox, pages updated 17–21 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.12 Every other figure rests on more than 1,000 salaries.
What the work needs: AmbitionBox’s top skills for the title are Python, SQL, Spark and PySpark, big data and Hadoop, ETL, data warehousing, data modelling, data quality, AWS and Scala.1 In plain words:
- ETL (extract, transform, load) is the process of pulling data from source systems, cleaning and reshaping it, and loading it where it’s used.
- Apache Spark is an engine for processing large datasets across many machines; PySpark is its Python interface.
- A data warehouse is a database built for analysis, holding cleaned, historical data from across a business.
- Data modelling is designing how tables relate, so queries stay fast and numbers stay consistent.
Where AI changes the number
TeamLease Digital places data engineering among its “AI-Adjacent” roles, which apply AI within established workflows, a step away from the “AI-Core” roles that build AI systems. Pay pulls apart by tier: a GenAI Developer goes from ₹11.2 LPA at 0–2 years to ₹34.5 LPA at 6–8 years, and TeamLease projects FY27–28 pay growth of 16.2% for GenAI Developers against 12.0% for Data Engineers.9 Across the market, Naukri found median salaries 53% higher for AI-skilled roles.12
Where our program overlaps
Our program doesn’t train data engineers: it’s built for Data Analyst, Data Scientist and AI/ML Engineer roles. It does teach several of the foundations data engineers use, and here is exactly which:
| Data engineering skill | In our program | Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Python: files, CSV, JSON, databases | Module 1, Python from zeroAbout 51 hours | Every plan |
| SQL: joins, window functions, CTEs, views, stored procedures, indexes | Module 4, SQL for data analysisAbout 11 hours | Every plan |
| Cleaning and combining data: Power Query, pandas, web APIs | Module 3, data analysis and visualisationAbout 30 hours | Every plan |
| Apache Spark for big data | Module 5, machine learningAbout 19 hours | Every plan |
| Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD with GitHub Actions, MLflow | Module 9, Production RAG & LLMOpsAbout 13 hours | Infinity |
| Cloud platforms: AWS Bedrock, Google Vertex AI, Databricks | Module 9 | Infinity |
| Pipeline scheduling, streaming, warehouse design | Not covered as subjectsLearn them separately | No plan |
Source: our curriculum, with the hours and tools of every module.
If data engineering is your goal, add the rest from official, free documentation: the Apache Spark documentation for processing at scale, and the Apache Airflow documentation for scheduling pipelines. Every module, with its hours and tools, is in our curriculum.
Your minimum salary assured, worked out
On our Data Science & AI Job Guarantee Program, no fee after placement is due until a job pays at least your plan’s minimum salary assured. A full-time data engineering job is software work that uses data, so it can count as well as data science, analytics and AI roles; we confirm each job from the offer letter and payslip. In the words of our FAQ:
A full-time job in data science, analytics, AI/ML, BI or software work that uses data, with fixed annual pay at or above your minimum salary assured, that you accept within 12 months of signing the agreement (and join within 90 days after those 12 months end, if it starts later). It counts whether we arranged it or you found it, anywhere in India, remote or abroad.
- A full-time job
- In data science, analytics, AI/ML or BI
- At or above your minimum salary assured
In writingAgreement 2.2Agreement 2.4
Enter your fixed annual pay to see your minimum on each plan. On ₹6 lakh fixed pay, the plan minimums win: ₹9 LPA on Plus and ₹12 LPA on Infinity, since adding 35% or 85% to ₹6 lakh gives only ₹8.1 LPA or ₹11.1 LPA. On ₹8 lakh, ₹9 LPA or your salary + 35%, whichever is higher, comes to ₹10.8 LPA on Plus, and ₹12 LPA or your salary + 85%, whichever is higher, to ₹14.8 LPA on Infinity. The salary option uses the fixed pay on your last 3 payslips when you complete.
- GoData Analyst roles₹6 LPA≈ ₹50,000 a month₹6 LPA on Go, whatever you earn today.
- PlusData Scientist roles₹9 LPA≈ ₹75,000 a month₹9 LPA or your salary + 35%, whichever is higher.
- InfinityAI/ML Engineer roles₹12 LPA≈ ₹1,00,000 a month₹12 LPA or your salary + 85%, whichever is higher.
Your minimum salary assured is the lowest fixed annual pay a job must offer before any fee after placement is due: a threshold for the fee, not a promise of any salary. The salary option uses the fixed pay on your last 3 payslips when you complete, if it’s ₹25 LPA or less and you share them. In writing: Agreement 2.3. Nothing you type here is stored or sent.
Questions
What is the salary of a Data Engineer in India?
On AmbitionBox (22 Oct 2026), Data Engineers earn ₹7.6–8.3 lakh a year with 1–3 years’ experience, ₹11.3–12.5 lakh with 3–6 years and ₹17.5–19.4 lakh with 6–9 years. Indeed’s average base salary from job postings is ₹9,50,296.
What does a fresher Data Engineer earn?
With under a year’s experience, AmbitionBox shows ₹4.3–5 lakh for Junior Data Engineers and ₹6.5–7.2 lakh for Associate Data Engineers (22 Oct 2026). PayScale’s average total pay for Data Engineers with under a year is ₹5,18,398, from 125 salaries.
Who earns more, a Data Engineer or a Data Scientist?
Data Scientists, by ₹3–4 lakh a year at each experience band on AmbitionBox (22 Oct 2026). The gap is smaller where both are paid well: at internet companies, Data Engineers show ₹19–21 lakh and Data Scientists ₹20.7–22.8 lakh.
Which city pays Data Engineers the most?
On AmbitionBox (22 Oct 2026), Gurugram, at ₹13–14.4 lakh a year, then Bengaluru at ₹11.3–12.5 lakh. Indeed’s job postings put Coimbatore first, at ₹14,47,352. The employer type matters more than the city: internet companies show ₹19–21 lakh.
Is data engineering a good career in 2026?
Pay is rising: AmbitionBox shows Data Engineers’ average salary up 24% over the last two years, and TeamLease Digital projects 12.0% pay growth for Data Engineers in FY27–28. It’s also a big market, with 1.1 lakh Data Engineer salaries on AmbitionBox.
Does Skillcept Online’s program teach data engineering?
No. The Data Science & AI Job Guarantee Program trains for Data Analyst, Data Scientist and AI/ML Engineer roles. It shares data engineering’s foundations: Python, SQL and Spark on every plan, and Docker, CI/CD and cloud platforms on Infinity.
Sources
- AmbitionBox, Data Engineer salary in India, page updated 20 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- AmbitionBox, Junior Data Engineer (17 Oct 2026), Associate Data Engineer (20 Oct 2026), Senior Data Engineer (21 Oct 2026), Big Data Engineer (17 Oct 2026), Azure Data Engineer (21 Oct 2026), ETL Developer (21 Oct 2026) and Analytics Engineer (17 Oct 2026) salaries, read 22 Oct 2026.
- AmbitionBox, Data Scientist salary in India, page updated 19 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- Indeed, Data Engineer salaries in India, 11 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- Indeed, Data Scientist salaries in India, 8 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- PayScale, Data Engineer salary in India, 9 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- PayScale, Data Scientist salary in India, 9 Jul 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- Levels.fyi, Data Engineer and Data Scientist pay in India, 21 Oct 2026, read 22 Oct 2026.
- TeamLease Digital, Digital Skills & Salary Primer FY2026–27, reported in CXOToday, 29 Sep 2026.
- Taggd, GCC skills in demand, from the GCC Talent Lab Report 2026, 4 Sep 2026.
- NASSCOM, GCC Runway Monitor, 9 Oct 2026.
- Naukri, AI Jobs Report, 16 Jul 2025.
