Naukri alternatives: where else to look for a job in India
If Naukri is not working for you, these are the other places Indian job seekers use, matched to the reason you are looking elsewhere.
All 17 alternatives to Naukri
| Name | Type | Best for | Not ideal for | Cost to you |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naukri.com | reference platform | Wide coverage of Indian employers and consultancies across functions, cities and experience levels. | People who want few, highly targeted recruiter contacts or a narrow niche such as startups only. | Free to search and apply + paid plans (iOS in-app: Naukri Pro from Rs 999 for 1 month) |
| general job board | Reaching hiring managers directly, finding referrals through your network, and roles at MNCs and product companies. | People unwilling to build a public profile or network; Easy Apply roles attract huge applicant volumes. | Free + Premium Career (iOS in-app prices in India listed from Rs 999 to Rs 1,899; plan durations not shown) | |
| Indeed | general job board | Casting a wide net, including listings that link straight to the employer's own application system. | People wanting a curated, niche shortlist; aggregated listings vary in quality and freshness. | Free |
| foundit (formerly Monster India) | general job board | A second general board alongside Naukri, especially if you are also looking at Gulf or Southeast Asian roles. | Niche searches (startups only, senior management only) where a specialist board gives a tighter list. | Not confirmed |
| Shine.com | general job board | A second mass-market board for mid-level roles, with a separate learning and courses arm. | Anyone who dislikes sales calls for paid packages; reviewers report heavy upselling. | Not confirmed |
| Instahyre | tech and startup | Tech and product professionals tired of mass recruiter emails who want fewer, better-matched openings. | Non-tech or entry-level job seekers, and anyone who wants to browse every opening in the market. | Free (paid features exist, prices not verified) |
| Cutshort | tech and startup | Engineers, designers and product people targeting startups and product companies in Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad and NCR. | Non-tech roles in traditional industries, government jobs, or blue-collar work. | Free |
| Wellfound (formerly AngelList Talent) | tech and startup | Startup roles, including remote roles with global startups, where you want pay and equity visible upfront. | Large Indian corporates, PSUs or mass-hiring roles; many listings are outside India. | Free |
| hirist.tech | tech and startup | Tech professionals who want a board limited to software, data, DevOps, cloud and similar roles. | Anyone leaving Naukri to get away from Info Edge platforms, or non-tech roles. | Paid add-ons from Rs 1,499 (iOS in-app); basic free access not confirmed on an official page |
| iimjobs | senior and management | MBAs and experienced managers looking for manager, AVP, VP and leadership roles. | Freshers without an MBA, hands-on tech roles (see hirist), or blue-collar work. | Free + Pro Membership (iOS in-app Rs 1,999 to Rs 2,299) |
| Internshala | freshers | College students and recent graduates looking for internships, first jobs and stipend roles. | Experienced professionals; most listings are entry level. | Free to apply + paid courses (iOS in-app from Rs 499) |
| Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete) | freshers | Students and freshers who want to stand out through case competitions and hackathons, not just a resume. | Experienced hires, or anyone who only wants a plain list of job openings. | Not confirmed |
| apna | blue and grey collar | 10th/12th pass and graduate job seekers looking for local, field, part-time or work-from-home jobs in their city. | Senior professionals or niche tech roles. | Free |
| WorkIndia | blue and grey collar | Workers looking for quick local hiring in many cities, with salary shown on listings. | White-collar professionals or anyone seeking senior roles. | Not confirmed |
| National Career Service (NCS) | government job portal | Job seekers in smaller towns, and anyone wanting a free, government-run channel and local job fairs. | Startup, product-company or senior private-sector roles. | Free |
| Referrals and professional communities | referral and community | Anyone whose portal applications go unanswered, and experienced or senior candidates. | People with no network in their target field yet; it takes time to build. | Free |
| Company career pages | company career pages | Target-company lists, avoiding third-party consultants, and checking whether a role is genuinely open. | Broad discovery; you have to know which companies to check and visit each site. | Free |
Picks by situation
- Too many irrelevant recruiter calls: Instahyre, Cutshort, Wellfound (formerly AngelList Talent)
- Want product companies and startups: Cutshort, Instahyre, Wellfound (formerly AngelList Talent), hirist.tech
- Want remote roles: Wellfound (formerly AngelList Talent), LinkedIn, Indeed
- Senior and management roles: iimjobs, LinkedIn, Referrals and professional communities
- No response to applications: Referrals and professional communities, Company career pages, LinkedIn
- Freshers and students: Internshala, Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete)
- Local, field and blue-collar jobs: apna, WorkIndia, National Career Service (NCS)
- Tier-2 and tier-3 cities: apna, National Career Service (NCS), WorkIndia
How to choose
- Start from why Naukri is not working. List the specific problem first. If it is too many irrelevant calls, move to a curated platform where companies approach you. If it is silence after applying, the fix is usually referrals or direct applications, not another big board. If the problem is the type of employer, pick a niche board for startups, management roles or entry-level jobs.
- Check who owns the platform. Some boards that look like alternatives belong to the same group. hirist.tech and iimjobs are run by Highorbit Careers, which Naukri's parent Info Edge agreed to buy in 2019. That does not make them worse, but if your aim is a different recruiter pool or a different company's policies, factor it in.
- Match the board to your career stage. Students and recent graduates get more from Internshala and Unstop, where employers expect little experience. Mid-level tech people do better on Instahyre, Cutshort or Wellfound. Managers and MBAs should look at iimjobs and LinkedIn. Local and field roles move fastest on apna and WorkIndia. Using a board built for someone else wastes applications.
- Be wary of paying before you get results. Most of these platforms let you search and apply for free. Paid add-ons such as profile boosts, early applicant badges or resume writing are optional and none of the providers we checked guarantee interviews. Try the free tier for a few weeks, track responses, and only pay if a specific feature fixes a specific problem.
Common questions
Is Naukri free for job seekers?
Yes for the basics. Naukri says searching and applying for jobs is free and that it does not charge for interviews. It also sells optional paid services under Naukri FastForward and Naukri Pro, such as resume writing and profile visibility boosts. When we checked the iOS App Store in India, Naukri Pro was listed from Rs 999 for one month. Paying is not required to apply.
Which Naukri alternative is best for IT and software jobs?
For product companies and startups, Instahyre, Cutshort and Wellfound are good starting points because they focus on tech roles and match you with companies. hirist.tech is a tech-only board too, though it belongs to the same group as Naukri. LinkedIn remains useful for reaching hiring managers directly. Most people do best combining one of these with referrals.
Are iimjobs and hirist owned by Naukri?
They are run by Highorbit Careers, which Info Edge, Naukri's parent company, agreed to acquire in 2019 for about Rs 80.82 crore. Info Edge lists hirist.tech as part of its recruitment ecosystem. So they are separate websites with their own focus, management roles for iimjobs and tech roles for hirist, but they are not independent of Naukri's owner.
How do I reduce spam calls after uploading my resume to job sites?
Upload only to platforms you actually use, and delete or hide profiles on the rest. Check each site's privacy settings to limit who can see your phone number. Prefer platforms where companies are verified and mass messaging is restricted. Use a separate email for job alerts. Never pay a caller who promises a job, and use the platform's own tools to verify callers.
Is LinkedIn Premium worth it compared to Naukri's paid plans?
It depends on your problem. LinkedIn Premium Career adds InMail credits to message hiring managers, a longer list of profile viewers and LinkedIn Learning access. Naukri's paid plans focus on visibility to recruiters searching its database. Neither guarantees interviews. If you are already getting views but no replies, paying for more visibility rarely helps; better targeting and referrals usually do.