Indian employers are pulling talent well beyond the metros, with 69% of organisations reporting a rise of more than 30% in hiring from tier II and III cities over the past two years, according to a report by Genius HRTech Limited released on 20 September 2026.
The findings draw on inputs from 1,729 employers surveyed in August across sectors including finance and BFSI, FMCG, engineering, information technology, manufacturing, telecom, and retail and e-commerce. The report points to a broad shift toward distributed hiring as companies widen their talent pools. It also found that 55% of respondents expect the majority of their organisation’s hiring to move to tier II and III cities over the next three years, and 37% expect manufacturing and engineering to drive the highest demand in those locations over the next two to three years.
“Tier II and III cities are no longer being viewed simply as alternatives to metros,” said R P Yadav, chairman, Genius HRTech. He added that the opportunity is moving from cost arbitrage toward long-term workforce strategy, with infrastructure and specialised skills the next priority.
The staffing data echoes the survey. Active tech job openings in tier 2 and tier 3 cities rose 95% year-on-year to 41,000 in September 2026, up from 21,000 a year earlier, according to staffing firm Xpheno, even as demand across megacities eased from a mid-2025 peak. An earlier KPMG study found 54% of employers intending to hire from smaller cities, signalling that the trend predates the latest survey.
