India’s Pronto formalizes house help as its valuation jumps 8× in under a year

Pronto, a startup based in Bengaluru, is transforming India's informal domestic help sector by bringing it online. As the company experiences a surge in daily bookings and extends its presence across cities, it has successfully secured $25 million in a Series B funding round led by Epiq Capital, raising its valuation to $100 million within just nine months. This impressive valuation marks a significant leap from its previous worth of $45 million in August 2025, and more than eight-fold from the $12.5 million valuation at its launch in May. Alongside Epiq Capital, existing investors such as Glade Brook Capital, General Catalyst, and Bain Capital Ventures also contributed to this funding round, bringing the total investment in Pronto to approximately $40 million. Pronto specializes in providing quick and structured services for everyday chores, including mopping and utensil cleaning, with a promise of trained and background-verified professionals available on demand. The startup prides itself on being able to dispatch workers within about 10 minutes across its various operational micromarkets—locations where it offers services—blurring the lines between traditional home services and quick commerce. The company’s workforce, referred to as "Pros," undergoes thorough in-person training and background checks before they can take on bookings. This structured approach aims to offer more reliable income compared to the informal arrangements typically seen in the industry. Currently, Pronto is managing around 18,000 bookings each day, a dramatic increase from approximately 1,000 daily bookings just a year ago. Founder Anjali Sardana revealed that the average time between a customer's first and second booking is merely two days, with the top 10% of users placing nine or more orders each month. With ambitions to reach 70,000 daily bookings by June, Pronto has rapidly expanded its operations from one city to ten, including major urban centers like Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, and Mumbai. The startup has also scaled its service coverage from five micromarkets to over 150 in the past seven months. Despite this growth, the majority of activity remains centered in a few key areas, particularly in the National Capital Region, which constitutes about half of Pronto's total bookings. Sardana emphasized that Pronto has only begun to scratch the surface of India’s largely offline domestic services market, where most hiring still occurs through informal channels. According to her insights, approximately 99.99% of this market remains offline, with fewer than 100,000 individuals utilizing online services each day, while tens of millions of households depend on informal arrangements. Market research indicates that the overall home services sector was valued between ₹5,100-5,210 billion (around $56-$57 billion) in FY 2025, but online penetration remains below 1% of the net transaction value. However, the online segment is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 18-22% through FY 2030, driven by rising incomes, urbanization, and a growing appetite for reliable and convenient services. Currently, Pronto collaborates with about 4,500 active professionals on its platform, with approximately 99% of them being women. Workers who complete around 20 shifts per month can earn a median salary of ₹23,000 to ₹25,000 (around $251-$273), with a retention rate of over 70%. Nonetheless, the demand for services is outstripping the onboarding of new professionals, as bookings continue to grow by about 20% week over week. As Pronto explores new markets, its unit economics are still developing. Sardana mentioned that the company has seen positive financial indicators in its oldest micromarkets in Gurugram, where contribution margins have turned favorable, although newer markets remain in the investment phase. With about $8 million burned to date, Pronto now has roughly two years of runway following this latest funding round. The new capital will primarily be used to onboard more professionals, strengthen its existing market presence, and venture into new cities. Additionally, Pronto is testing new services such as cooking, car washing, and dog walking, while considering expanding into salon services as well. For the time being, the most popular tasks on the platform remain sweeping, mopping, and utensil cleaning. Employing a core team of about 60 individuals, which includes around 15 to 16 in engineering, product, and design, Pronto maintains a lean marketing approach. In the competitive landscape of India’s home services market, Pronto faces rivals like Snabbit and the publicly listed Urban Company. Snabbit recently raised $30 million at a $180 million valuation, while Urban Company reported crossing 50,000 daily bookings. Data from Sensor Tower indicates that Pronto's daily active users grew by about 37% to around 101,000 between late January and late February, outpacing Snabbit's 30% growth during the same period. As competition intensifies, Sardana reaffirmed Pronto’s commitment to service quality, stating, "At the end of the day, customers will gravitate towards the platform that delivers the best service."