Placement Report, UI/UX Designer Fellowship: September 2026 Edition

In September 2026, 30 companies posted 32 design opportunities exclusively for Top Fellows of NextLeap's UI/UX Designer Fellowship. Seventeen were full-time roles and fifteen were internships. The median CTC for full-time roles was ₹7 LPA.

This is our monthly Placement Report for the UI/UX Designer Fellowship. Every month, we publish which companies posted design opportunities for our Top Fellows, the roles they hired for, a snapshot of the numbers, and what the hiring pattern tells aspiring designers about where the market is heading. All figures come from NextLeap's own Career Services data.

September 2026 UI/UX hiring snapshot

• Total opportunities posted: 32
• Full-time roles: 17
• Internships: 15
• Companies that posted: 30 (24 hiring for the first time, 6 returning hiring partners)
• Median CTC, full-time roles: ₹7 LPA (7,00,000)

How we count: "opportunities" are design-function roles posted exclusively for Top Fellows in our UI/UX Designer Fellowship between 1 and 30 September 2026 (IST), counted once per posting. Median CTC is the median of the top of the offered range, calculated across the 13 full-time roles that had structured compensation data. The median top-of-range stipend across all 15 internships was ₹20,000.

Which companies posted UI/UX opportunities in September 2026?

Here are the 30 companies that posted design roles for our Top Fellows in September 2026, in alphabetical order, with the roles each one posted. Roles are full-time unless marked as an internship.

• AM:PM Network: Product Designer
• BThree Design Agency: Product Design Intern (internship)
• Care.fi: Product Designer
• Codebuddy Pvt Ltd: UI/UX Designer
• Dhan AI: UI/UX Designer
• Docville: Product Design Intern (internship)
• EvoluteIQ: UI/UX Designer
• FinalLayer: Product Designer; Product Design Intern (internship)
• FruitBowl Digital: UI/UX Design Intern (internship)
• Gurukul Code: Product Design Intern (internship)
• iklo: UI/UX Designer
• JVS Technologies Pvt Ltd: UI/UX Designer Intern (internship)
• MarketWolf: Design Intern (internship)
• Picktime: UI/UX Design Intern (internship)
• PlaySuper: Product Designer Intern (internship)
• RCV Technologies: UI/UX Designer
• Rotoris: UI/UX Designer
• Second Aid: UI/UX Designer
• Sliq Group: UI/UX Design Intern (internship)
• Socio: UI/UX Designer
• SpEd@school: UX Design Intern (internship)
• Swish: Product Designer; Product Design Intern (internship)
• The Bridge Associates: UI/UX Designer
• The Propertician: Product Designer
• The Return Journey: UI/UX Designer
• TIST Media: Product Designer
• Trao: UI/UX Designer Intern (internship)
• Trinance: Product Design Intern (internship)
• Wargstech: UI/UX Design Intern (internship)
• xpat.money: Product Designer

FinalLayer and Swish posted the most roles (two each, one full-time and one internship), while the other 28 companies posted one role each. UI/UX Designer was the most common full-time title, with 10 of the 17 full-time roles, followed by Product Designer with 7.

Hiring signals from September 2026

Beyond the numbers, here are the three patterns we saw in what hiring teams asked for this month.

1. AI proficiency is becoming a key differentiator

Employers increasingly value designers who can effectively leverage AI tools to enhance design workflows and create AI-powered experiences, beyond prior experience at AI-focused companies. If you are preparing for design interviews, be ready to show how AI tools fit into your process and what you have designed for AI-powered products.

2. Demonstrable design impact is taking precedence over tool knowledge

Hiring teams expect candidates to showcase their design decisions, problem-solving approach, and measurable impact on user experience and business outcomes, not just their technical skills. A portfolio that explains why you made a decision and what changed because of it will carry more weight than a list of tools.

3. Domain expertise and proven outcomes are becoming critical

Candidates need to differentiate themselves through expertise in specific product domains and demonstrable design impact, rather than relying solely on generic UI/UX or Product Designer titles. September's full-time postings were split between those two titles (10 UI/UX Designer and 7 Product Designer), which means the title alone will not set you apart. Pick a domain you can speak about in depth, whether that is fintech, health, SaaS or consumer apps.

What this means if you are preparing for a design career

September's mix of 17 full-time roles and 15 internships shows that there are two doors into design: direct entry roles such as UI/UX Designer and Product Designer, and internships that let you build proof of work first. With a median CTC of ₹7 LPA for full-time roles, the market rewards candidates who can show real design impact. NextLeap's UI/UX Designer Fellowship is built around exactly this: building portfolio-ready designers who can demonstrate outcomes. Explore the UI/UX Designer Fellowship to see how it works.

Frequently asked questions

How many UI/UX opportunities were posted in September 2026?

A total of 32 design opportunities were posted exclusively for Top Fellows of NextLeap's UI/UX Designer Fellowship in September 2026: 17 full-time roles and 15 internships.

What is the median CTC for UI/UX roles in September 2026?

The median CTC for full-time design roles posted in September 2026 was ₹7 LPA, measured as the median of the top of each offered range across 13 full-time roles with structured compensation data.

Which companies posted UI/UX opportunities in September 2026?

30 companies posted design opportunities, including AM:PM Network, Care.fi, Codebuddy Pvt Ltd, Dhan AI, EvoluteIQ, FinalLayer, Swish, Trao and xpat.money. The full list, with the roles each company posted, is above.

Do designers need AI skills in 2026?

Increasingly, yes. Employers value designers who can use AI tools to improve design workflows and create AI-powered experiences.

Will this report be updated every month?

Yes. We publish a new Placement Report for the UI/UX Designer Fellowship each month with the latest companies, roles, snapshot numbers and hiring signals from NextLeap's Career Services data.