LinkedIn reveals the top 25 startups in India; CRED, upGrad, and Groww take top 3 spots

The world’s largest online professional network, LinkedIn today released its 2022 LinkedIn Top Startups List for India, revealing the names of the top 25 startups in the country that have shown resilience in an uncertain market environment, and will continue to innovate in 2022.

CRED, an unified payment interface topped the list, valued at $6.4 billion. This young startup maintained its podium position on the LinkedIn Top Startups list, moving from #3 in 2021 to #1 in 2022. The quirky ads of CRED has made it gain popularity in the past two years. It is also setting new benchmarks for its employees well-being by offering them benefits such as ElderCare, egg freezing, and one-on-one support for mental wellness of its employees. 

On the number (#2), the next highest placing businesses is upGrad, one of India’s largest online higher education companies that curates vast upskilling opportunities for professionals and college students, followed by Groww (#3), an online investment platform that provides an objective evaluation of various investment opportunities through stocks and mutual funds. 

This year’s list also features new entrants including e-grocery company Zepto (#4), full-stack car buying platform Spinny (#7), and insurtech startup Ditto Insurance (#12) – all of which are online platforms that are making financial, mobility, and essentials more accessible for consumers in India today. Fitness platform Ultrahuman (#19) and organic food marketplace Living Food (#20) also debuted this year’s list by enabling consumers to lead a conscious and healthy lifestyle.

13 out of the top 25 startups on the list are based out of Bengaluru, the city affirms its reputation as the ‘Silicon Valley of India’. In fact, 58% of all jobs posted by these startups on LinkedIn during the same period from August 1, 2021 to July 31, 2022 were based out of Bengaluru.

The Managing Editor at LinkedIn News India, Nirajita Banerjee speaking on the list, said, “The Indian startup ecosystem displays great resilience as we continue to see the rise of new startups with 68% of entrants on the list appearing for the first time. These startups are navigating the uncertain macro environment by optimising their businesses for sustainable growth and taking a more prudent approach towards scaling their business. It’s also great to see young professionals embrace India’s startup ecosystem, with 56% of all hires in the top 25 startups being aged below 30, and 17% aged below 25, at the time of joining. This list is a great resource for job seekers excited by the opportunity to innovate, solve big problems, and grow their skills within these startups.”

To compile this year’s list, LinkedIn looked at platform data from July 2021 to June 2022 across four pillars: employee growth; jobseeker interest; member engagement within the company and its employees; and how well these startups pulled talent from its flagship LinkedIn Top Companies list.

Here’s a list of the 25 companies that made it to the LinkedIn Top Startups 2022 India list, in order of ranking:

1. CRED
2. upGrad
3. Groww
4. Zepto
5. Skyroot Aerospace
6. MBA Chai Wala
7. Spinny
8. The Good Glamm Group
9. GrowthSchool
10. BluSmart
11. ShareChat
12. Ditto Insurance
13. Simpl
14. Rapido
15. Classplus 
16. Park+
17. BlissClub
18. DealShare
19. Ultrahuman
20. Living Food
21. FamPay
22. AgniKul Cosmos
23. Stanza Living
24. Pocket FM
25. Zypp Electric