Tech hiring drops to 5-year low in January

Bengaluru: January 2026 kicks off with not-so-good news for techies as the month will see a 24% year-on-year drop in active tech jobs. The month will also witness the second-lowest tech jobs demand level recorded in the last five years. From its peak of 2,62,000 openings in January 2022, there is a massive 60% slide in job openings in January 2026 (1,03,000), according to specialist staffing firm Xpheno.

Of total active tech jobs, job openings in Bengaluru alone are 24,000, which is an 11% decline from December 2024 and a 37% drop year-on-year.

“The Indian tech sector, that once dominated the country’s overall talent action, seems to have caught a cold in late 2022 and continues to struggle with a low-to-no recovery trajectory,” Xpheno Co-founder Kamal Karanth said.

After being the first to recover from COVID-induced lockdowns, the tech sector went hyper on talent action from early 2021 to late 2022. The active demand from the tech sector peaked in January-February 2022, with more than 2,60,000 active demand and held 85% dominance in overall active jobs.

“However, when headwinds and adversities hit in the latter half of 2022, the tech sector rollback was the sharpest and fastest. As active demand quickly dropped by 50% to hit 1,33,000 in January 2023, the sector was set on a slide that it has found hard to recover from. But for a few short-lived periods of recovery, the overall slide down continues and the outlook for a recovery to regain earlier volumes is not encouraging,” he added.

Of other job openings, GCCs-Tech alone is set to see a growth of 13% month-on-month at 17,000 openings and 7% year-on-year.

Tech Job Outlook in January 2026

The report adds that overall, the tech sector continues to witness a downward trajectory in active talent demand volume. The volume of active openings in the sector has remained sluggish over the last six to eight months. The tech sector’s current contribution to India’s total active talent demand is 52%, going past the 50% mark for the second time in over 3 years now, Xpheno added. Biz Staffing Comrade Managing Partner Puneet Arora said hiring will be selective and focused on deep technical skills in 2026. “Some large IT firms are expected to keep hiring cautious due to macroeconomic pressures and short-term revenue forecasts,” he added.

CIEL HR MD and CEO Aditya Narayan Mishra said the hiring outlook for the first half of the year is expected to be cautiously optimistic, with organisations shifting from volume-driven hiring to a skills-first approach. “Overall headcount growth may remain measured, but demand for specialised talent continues to gain momentum. Recruitment activity is expected to be led by sectors aligned with technology-driven transformation and essential services. Overall demand will focus more on niche skills than broad-based hiring,” he added.