Foreign investment (FI) is essential for the economic growth of a nation, particularly when domestic capital is inadequate to satisfy growth demands. FI contributes to capital formation, technological advancement, employment generation, and overall economic growth by bridging the divide between domestic savings and investment. Consequently, the current investigation is an endeavor to investigate the trends and fluctuations in FI inflows in India from 1990–91 to 2022–23. It also examines FI inflows by country and sector from 2014–15 to 2024–25. The study is founded on secondary data that has been gathered from reputable sources, including the World Investment Report, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). The results indicate a substantial increase in the inflow of foreign capital to India during the study period. Although there has been a general increase in foreign investment in India during the study period, this increase has not been consistent, as there are substantial fluctuations in the quantity of foreign investment inflow. The coefficient of variation in FI is 93.172%, which indicates a high degree of variability. Mauritius and Singapore have emerged as the primary sources of FI inflows and UAE's contribution has increased significantly. During 2024–25, the services sector attracted the maximum share of foreign investment, followed by computer software and hardware, according to the analysis.