University Living is a Noida-based online marketplace that helps students going abroad find and book accommodation.

This Startup Deep Dive explains what University Living does, how it makes money, who backs it, how it compares with rivals and what could go wrong, using publicly available information. It is educational and not investment advice. Last updated: October 2026.

University Living in Brief

• What it is: University Living is an Indian Student accommodation marketplace company based in Noida.
• Who it serves: businesses, institutions, consumers, learners and public-sector buyers.
• Runs a global marketplace for student housing near universities.
• Operates mainly in the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, Europe and Canada, and serves other countries through network partners.
• Claims to have served over 2 million students and provided over 2 million beds since 2015 (company claim).
• Funding: Undisclosed (one directory lists about $2.6 million across 8 rounds, not corroborated).

University Living Quick Facts

Figures marked “reported” come from published reports and may differ between sources; “Not disclosed” means no reliable public figure was found.

What Is University Living?

University Living operates in the Student accommodation marketplace space in India. Understanding a company like this starts with three questions: who is the customer, what painful problem is being solved, and why the solution is better than the alternatives. The sections below apply that lens to University Living.

• Runs a global marketplace for student housing near universities.
• Operates mainly in the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, Europe and Canada, and serves other countries through network partners.
• Claims to have served over 2 million students and provided over 2 million beds since 2015 (company claim).
• Bought a 51 percent stake in UK-based StudentTenant.

The Origin Story of University Living

Every company starts from a noticed gap and a team willing to commit to closing it. Strong origin stories are specific: a clear problem, a founding team with relevant skills, and an early product that real customers could test. Founder-market fit, meaning the team’s lived experience or technical depth in the domain, tends to predict how fast a young company learns.

• Founders: Saurabh Arora, Mayank Maheshwari.
• Saurabh Arora started the company in January 2015 with personal savings.
• Mayank Maheshwari joined as co-founder in December 2015; the two had been flatmates in Delhi.

Key Milestones and Challenges

No startup grows in a straight line. Early years usually involve slow adoption, product rewrites, hiring mistakes and funding gaps. In the Student accommodation marketplace sector the common turning points are a first paying customer, a regulatory approval, a successful product demonstration or a funding round that lets the team invest ahead of demand. How a team responds to setbacks says more about resilience than any single headline.

• January 2015: company set up by Saurabh Arora.
• December 2015: Mayank Maheshwari joins as co-founder.
• August 2018: undisclosed pre-Series A round led by Indian Angel Network and LetsVenture.
• 2020: reportedly seeking a Series A of roughly $5-7 million.
• 2024: acquires 51 percent of StudentTenant (UK).
• Stated goal: stock market listing in India by 2030.

University Living Funding and Investors

Funding history shows how much outside confidence a company has attracted and how long it can operate before needing more capital. Figures below are reported and may differ between sources; valuation figures are estimates unless the company has confirmed them.

• August 2018: pre-Series A, amount undisclosed, led by Indian Angel Network and LetsVenture.

How Does University Living Make Money? (Business Model)

A business model describes who pays, how often and how much it costs to serve them. Strong models show repeat usage, improving margins with scale and acquisition channels that do not depend only on paid spend. Weak models show one-off sales, rising costs and growth that stops when spending stops. For companies selling to businesses, institutions, consumers, learners and public-sector buyers, sales cycles and contract size matter as much as headline growth.

• Paid by accommodation partners out of their marketing spend; students generally pay nothing for the standard service.
• Charges for customised extra services beyond the platform.

The Numbers: University Living Financials

Financial figures show whether growth is turning into a self-sustaining business. Small and private companies often disclose little, so any number below is included only if it was found in public reporting.

• FY24 revenue: about Rs 52.2 crore (tracker estimate).
• FY25 revenue: Rs 85.2 crore per one tracker section, up 63 percent; the same page also shows Rs 64.7 crore with a small profit, so reports differ.
• FY25 result: net loss of Rs 7.8 crore per one tracker section versus profit after tax of Rs 40.9 lakh in another section; reports differ.
• Founder interview (August 2024): revenue Rs 55 crore in the last fiscal year, profitable, Rs 100 crore annual run rate targeted in the current year.
• Gross booking value: $200 million in FY2023-24, $350 million expected the following year (company claim).

Market Opportunity for University Living

Market size is easy to exaggerate, so a useful approach separates the total market from the portion a company can realistically reach with its current product and distribution. The main forces behind demand in this sector are rising digital adoption, cloud and mobile penetration, growing enterprise technology spending, government digitisation programmes and a deep pool of engineering talent. Each of these widens the opportunity, but capital efficiency and execution decide who captures it.

• Global student housing market estimated at $11 billion in 2021 and projected to reach $18.7 billion by 2032 (cited in coverage).

Technology and Product at University Living

Technology is rarely the whole moat, but it drives speed, cost and customer experience. A practical way to assess it is to separate the capability the company controls from the commodity infrastructure it rents. In this sector the important factors are product quality, data and integration depth, security, scalability and the speed of shipping improvements.

• Online marketplace platform with booking, flexible payment options and round-the-clock support.

Team and Culture at University Living

Teams are the most important and least measurable asset of a young company. Look at how complementary the founders’ skills are, how deep the second layer of leadership is, and how the company hires and retains specialists. Culture shows up in small repeated behaviours: how quickly bad news travels upward and whether commitments to customers are kept.

• Saurabh Arora, founder and CEO.
• Mayank Maheshwari, co-founder.

University Living Competitors: Competitive Landscape

A fair competitive analysis names direct rivals, adjacent players who could move into the space, and the customer’s default alternative. Durable advantages include proprietary data or technology, licences and approvals, brand trust, switching costs and cost leadership.

Risks and Challenges for University Living

• Financial figures differ widely between trackers and the founder's statements.
• Dependence on international student flows, which are sensitive to visa and policy changes.
• Competition from other marketplaces and direct property operators.
• Competition: low barriers to entry and well-funded rivals can compress pricing and slow growth.
• Funding risk: technology businesses often burn cash before reaching profit and depend on investor appetite.

Risk is not a reason to avoid a company; it is a reason to price it correctly and to monitor the right indicators over time. Regulation in this sector is shaped by data protection rules under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, sector regulators, consumer protection law and IT rules.

University Living Growth Outlook: What to Watch

• Company targets expansion to New Zealand and Japan and a listing in India by 2030.
• Key indicators: recurring revenue, customer retention, gross margin, customer acquisition cost and runway.
• Funding position: Whether University Living can reach its next milestone before needing new capital.
• Regulation: Changes from data protection rules under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, sector regulators, consumer protection law and IT rules.

Industry Context: Where University Living Fits

India's technology startup ecosystem is one of the largest in the world, supported by cheap data, a large base of smartphone users, digital public infrastructure and a deep engineering talent pool. Companies now build for education, software, mobility, logistics, agriculture, defence, media and more, selling both to Indian customers and abroad.

Durable technology companies usually combine a clear customer problem with repeatable distribution and disciplined unit economics. Growth funded only by spending tends to fade, while products that customers keep using and paying for build compounding advantages.

For readers new to this field, a useful habit is to separate announcements from evidence. A plan, a partnership or a funding headline describes intent, while a delivered product, a paying customer or an audited financial statement describes results. Comparing the two over time shows how reliably a company turns promises into outcomes.

Bull Case and Bear Case for University Living

An investment thesis is a short, testable statement of why a company could become far more valuable, together with what evidence would prove it wrong. The points below are general to this sector and are not forecasts for University Living.

Bull case

• A large and growing base of digital users and businesses expands the addressable market.
• Recurring revenue and strong retention can compound growth.
• Selling into global markets widens the opportunity beyond India.

Bear case

• Heavy competition can compress pricing and margins.
• Dependence on external funding can force painful cost cuts.
• Regulation or platform changes can disrupt a product quickly.

Lessons Founders and Investors Can Take from University Living

Studying a company in the Student accommodation marketplace space offers lessons that go beyond any single firm. The points below are general lessons for the sector and are not claims about University Living.

• Solving a clear, frequent customer problem matters more than adding features.
• Retention and repeat usage are better health signals than sign-ups.
• Disciplined spending extends runway and keeps options open when funding tightens.
• Distribution, not just product quality, decides who wins in crowded markets.
• Building trust through data protection and reliability is part of the product.

How to Evaluate University Living as a Startup

• Customer clarity: Can University Living name its customer and the problem it solves in one sentence?
• Evidence of demand: Look for repeat customers, signed contracts or measurable usage rather than announcements alone.
• Economics: Check whether margins improve as volume grows.
• Execution: Compare announced timelines with what has actually been delivered.
• Funding runway: Estimate how long current capital lasts at the present spending rate.
• Regulatory standing: Confirm required approvals are in place.
• Customer concentration: Check whether a few customers account for most of the revenue.
• Management depth: Look for experienced leaders beyond the founders and a stable core team.

The Takeaway

University Living is part of India’s growing Student accommodation marketplace ecosystem. The useful lesson from studying it is the discipline of asking structured questions about customers, economics, advantage and resilience. Companies that answer them well, repeatedly and under pressure are the ones that endure. Readers should treat any single report, ranking or funding headline as one input among many, and should re-check key facts against recent company announcements. Because public information on young companies is often limited, patience in verifying claims is part of good analysis. Public sources can also describe the same company in different ways, so it is worth checking dates, definitions and whether a figure refers to revenue, total income or transaction value, and whether it covers one entity or a wider group, before drawing conclusions. Small differences in rounding, currency conversion or reporting periods can also change how a figure reads. Comparing the same figure across several recent reports helps show whether it is stable or has changed over time. This article is educational and is not investment advice.

• Clear customers and repeat demand matter more than announcements.
• Regulation and capital needs shape how fast a startup in this sector can grow.
• Track a few leading indicators over time rather than one headline metric.

University Living FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions

What is University Living?

University Living is a Noida-based online marketplace that helps students going abroad find and book accommodation. It is profiled in the Startup Deep Dive series, which explains business model, funding, competitors and risks.

Who founded University Living?

University Living was founded by Saurabh Arora, Mayank Maheshwari, and the company reports a founding year of 2015.

How much funding has University Living raised?

Undisclosed (one directory lists about $2.6 million across 8 rounds, not corroborated). Funding figures are reported and may differ between sources, so readers should check the latest company announcements.

How does University Living make money?

University Living earns revenue from its Student accommodation marketplace products and services sold to businesses, institutions, consumers, learners and public-sector buyers. The exact revenue mix is described in the business model section and is not fully disclosed publicly.

Who are the competitors of University Living?

Reported rivals include Amber Student, UniAcco, Your Space, Good Host Spaces. See the competitor comparison above for how they differ.

What are the main risks for University Living?

Main risks include competition: low barriers to entry and well-funded rivals can compress pricing and slow growth, funding and capital needs, competition and regulation by data protection rules under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, sector regulators, consumer protection law and IT rules. This is educational content, not investment advice.

Related Startup Deep Dives: Velocity — Velocity: revenue-based financing backed by a reported $20M Series A | SS Innovations — SS Innovations: India-built SSi Mantra robot, now on Nasdaq. Browse the full Startup Deep Dive series.

Source

Source: Publicly available data, published reports, industry research, and other credible sources.