Startup India Seed Fund Scheme Statistics 2026: Incubators, Startups and Funds Approved
· 2 min read · 7 official sources
By the end of 2025-26, 219 incubators had been selected under the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme and the full Rs 945 crore corpus was committed. Incubators had approved over Rs 605 crore for more than 3,400 startups, says DPIIT, and these startups had created over 22,600 jobs by December 2025.
Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS): key numbers
Infographic
Startups selected by incubators in the first three years
Number of startups picked by incubators and funding approved to them each calendar year, 2021 to 2023.
| Year | Startups selected | Funding approved (Rs crore) |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 146 | 20.86 |
| 2022 | 569 | 99.38 |
| 2023 | 1,025 | 186.19 |
Source: pib.gov.in, as on 31 December 2023
Women-led startups funded by year
Women-led startups selected by incubators and funds approved to them. The 2025 figure runs to 31 October 2025.
| Year | Women-led startups | Funds approved (Rs crore) |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 68 | 14.06 |
| 2022 | 273 | 53.68 |
| 2023 | 487 | 87.59 |
| 2024 | 473 | 84.27 |
| 2025 (to 31 Oct) | 334 | 45.18 |
Source: pib.gov.in, as on 31 October 2025
Top States by startups selected, 2021 to 2023
Startups selected by incubators in each State, added up for 2021, 2022 and 2023 from the official year-wise table.
| State | Startups selected |
|---|---|
| Maharashtra | 319 |
| Karnataka | 254 |
| Tamil Nadu | 155 |
| Gujarat | 136 |
| Delhi | 114 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 112 |
| Telangana | 104 |
| Haryana | 81 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 74 |
| Rajasthan | 65 |
| Odisha | 48 |
| Kerala | 47 |
Source: pib.gov.in, as on 31 December 2023
Funds approved to incubators by year
Amount approved to incubators each calendar year. Most of the corpus was handed out by 2023, so later approvals are small. 2025 runs to 31 October.
| Year | Approved to incubators (Rs crore) | Disbursed to incubators (Rs crore) |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 282.9 | 163.6 |
| 2024 | 99.7 | 105.2 |
| 2025 (to 31 Oct) | 42.3 | 94.6 |
Source: pib.gov.in, as on 31 October 2025
How seed money reaches a startup
What the numbers show
The Startup India Seed Fund Scheme started on 1 April 2021 with a corpus of Rs 945 crore. It does not fund startups directly. The money goes to incubators, which choose startups and release grants and debt. By the end of 2025-26, 219 incubators had been selected, the whole corpus was committed, and incubators had approved over Rs 605 crore for more than 3,400 startups, DPIIT said in an April 2026 release on PIB.
The trend over the years
Selection picked up quickly once incubators were in place: 146 startups in 2021, 569 in 2022 and 1,025 in 2023, as per a February 2024 Rajya Sabha answer. By 31 December 2025 the count was 3,271 startups with Rs 590.93 crore approved. Money flowing to incubators followed the reverse path. Approvals to incubators were Rs 282.9 crore in 2023 but only Rs 42.3 crore in 2025, because the corpus was nearly used up.
State differences
Startups are concentrated in a few States. From 2021 to 2023, Maharashtra (319) and Karnataka (254) together accounted for about a third of all startups selected, followed by Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Delhi. Several North Eastern States had fewer than five each.
Women-led startups
Women-led startups made up 1,635 of the startups funded by 31 October 2025, with Rs 284.79 crore approved, says a Rajya Sabha answer released by PIB in December 2025. Their numbers peaked in 2023 at 487 and stayed close in 2024.
What the figures do not tell you
Approved is not the same as paid. Grants are released in milestone-based instalments, so the amount actually received by startups is lower than the approved figure. The jobs number, over 22,600, is self-reported. No official data shows how many funded startups are still running.
Where to check the live numbers
The seed fund portal at seedfund.startupindia.gov.in lists the selected incubators. DPIIT gives updated totals in answers to Parliament questions and in its year-end releases on PIB.
Frequently asked questions
How many startups have got money under the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme?
More than 3,400 startups had been approved for over Rs 605 crore by incubators by the end of 2025-26, according to a DPIIT release on PIB in April 2026.
How many incubators are there under SISFS?
219 incubators had been selected by the end of 2025-26, and the full Rs 945 crore corpus had been committed to them. In December 2023 the count was 198.
Which State has the most SISFS startups?
Maharashtra, with 319 startups selected from 2021 to 2023, followed by Karnataka (254) and Tamil Nadu (155), as per a Rajya Sabha answer released by PIB in February 2024.
How many women-led startups have been funded under SISFS?
Incubators had approved about Rs 284.79 crore for 1,635 women-led startups as of 31 October 2025, according to PIB. Healthcare and life sciences had the most, with 310.
Is the Seed Fund Scheme still giving money in 2026?
Startup applications closed on 31 May 2026. The scheme was extended only so that incubators can keep releasing money already approved and finish approved activities.
Eligibility, documents and how to apply: Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) full guide
Charts, data files and the infographic are free to download, share and embed with a link back to this page.
Sources
This guide was checked against these official pages:
- pib.gov.in (www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2253019)
- pib.gov.in (www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2227597)
- pib.gov.in (www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2202984)
- pib.gov.in (www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2197662)
- pib.gov.in (www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2004641)
- pib.gov.in (www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2114865)
- seedfund.startupindia.gov.in (seedfund.startupindia.gov.in/)