Are you beginning your startup journey in this city? We’ve got something for you.
At Plum, we’re always talking to Founders like you who want to build the best teams and products. That’s why they take the giant leap of moving to a new city — one that matches their aspirations.
But, navigating a new city’s ecosystem while running a business and maintaining a social life can be tricky. In this guide, we’ve compiled everything you should know about Hyderabad’s tech, startup, and life beyond the work scene.
📣 If you have any recommendations, resources, or information you’d like to contribute, please fill this form (it won’t take more than 2 minutes), and we’ll be happy to add.
Whether it's working with founders to create the right business and health insurance policies or building a resource kit to help you communicate with empathy — we help you put your needs first.
But our definition of care doesn't stop there. We built this guide to welcome you to a city that’s rapidly becoming a startup hub. Share this with your new and old team members, and if you have a relocation policy, linking this guide to help others navigate the same boat would be helpful! We built this to help you do just that.
If you'd like to learn more about Plum and what we're up to, follow this link.
Each startup city has its charm. Bangalore is the Silicon Valley of India. Mumbai has the highest number of unicorns and soonicorns. Chennai’s the SaaS Capital of India. And Delhi? It’s the IPO Capital of India. But what about Hyderabad?
Investors tend to focus on cities like Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bangalore when it comes to funding startups. Of late, there’s been a shift — a new city is emerging as India’s next startup powerhouse and is gaining prominence. That city is Hyderabad.
With over 240 funded startups, supported by 550+ domestic and international investors, resulting in a total funding of $2.6 Bn between Jan 2014 and Aug 2023 (acc. to Inc42 report), Hyderabad is rapidly becoming a prime destination for founders.
Keeping statistics aside, the city also has advanced infrastructure, affordable real estate, and competitive cost of living, making it all the more lucrative.
One startup operator even tweeted about why they’d choose Hyderabad over other metropolitan cities in a heartbeat.
Today, this city is a popular location for B2B SaaS, manufacturing, fintech and IT sectors.
The primary catalyst for Hyderabad’s startup boom is its proactive State government which has introduced a range of initiatives designed to facilitate the growth of start-ups.
With innovation hubs like T-Hub, T-Works, Research and Innovation Circle of Hyderabad, and Startup Telangana — Hyderabad is at an undeniable advantage as its startups scale up.
On an aside, this city is also other things. It’s known for its biryani, cafes, rich history, culture, and most importantly, its happy-go-lucky people.
Hyderabad teaches you that there’s nothing a conversation and chai can’t fix. The city even ranked higher than Pune, Bengaluru, and other cities in Mercer’s quality of living index (Source).
However, it's important to consider the cons such as traffic congestion, air pollution and extreme weather (esp during summers).
So, if you’re planning a move to Hyderabad or you’re already here, we hope this guide helps.
Where are all the founders and their teams hanging out?
{{starter-guide-table-39="/web-library/components"}}
Hyderabad’s accelerators, incubators, and startup programs to boost your 0-1 startup journey.
{{starter-guide-table-40="/web-library/components"}}
Find your next investor from a curated list of active VCs and investors, recommended and verified by your fellow-founders.
{{starter-guide-table-41="/web-library/components"}}
A curated list of journalists in Hyderabad to get your stories covered.
X and LinkedIn are great platforms to keep up with the ongoing trends, doing customer research, hiring the 1% talent, and more. Curating the perfect feed begins with following the right people. Here’s a list of people who’ve been active in the Hyderabad startup ecosystem.
{{starter-guide-table-42="/web-library/components"}}
We’ve recently set up our new workspace and we understand that A LOT goes into building one. Here are a couple of options you can consider while building your new workspace.
💡 Here’s a list of the top co-working spaces in Hyderabad. We filtered this list based on Google reviews and chose the ones rated 4.0 ⭐ and above. Best if you’re a lean team, building up from scratch.
P.S. The following prices are an average and not the exact quote you might receive from vendors. This is a disclaimer that there could be price discrepancies depending on the location you choose and demand vs supply.
{{starter-guide-table-43="/web-library/components"}}
💡 Ideal to invest in working out of a tech park if you’ve crossed 300+ employees in scale. It also becomes cost-effective when compared to co-working spaces.
☕ These are relevant for all areas. Go to the one nearest to your place.
{{starter-guide-table-44="/web-library/components"}}
☕ The following cafes are location-specific and are rated as some of the best places to work out of. Check them out.
👥 Cafes and restaurants suitable for a catch-up with your co-founder(s), investors, and other external stakeholders/clients.
🍱 Restaurants to take your team out for a bite or drink or both!
🚧 P.S. The following breakdown is a subjective POV. We also advise our readers to conduct their own research before making a final choice.
{{starter-guide-table-45="/web-library/components"}}
There’s enough space for all your interests in Hyderabad. There are also enough people who have similar interests. Here’s a curated list of communities, groups, and places where you’re likely to meet people interested in the same things as you.
{{starter-guide-table-46="/web-library/components"}}
A playlist of Telugu music curated by a Hyderabadi. Jump right in.
Hyderabad and biryani are almost synonyms. It’s the first thing that comes into your mind when you think of the city. If you’re new to the city and are looking for biryani recommendations, take a look at the list below.
We hope this guide is full of information that has been useful in your Hyderabad startup journey. Consider this a WIP list and if you have any recommendations, resources, or information you’d like to contribute, please fill this form, and we’ll be happy to add.
Plum is a modern-day insurtech, providing benefits and insurance for companies that care.
Our mission is to accelerate the adoption of health insurance in India by making employee health insurance and benefits accessible, affordable, and usable for employees.
We also provide exclusive business insurance plans to help startups mitigate risk, enabling founders to go forth with courageous and ambitious bets.
If you’re a founder who wants to cover your team and business with the best care and benefits, visit our website.
Special thanks to Kiran Darisi, Aravind Kumar, Sanjay Enishetty, Sunil Kosuri, Vyshali Sagar, and Tarun Davuluri for helping us build this guide.