The primary difference between a private limited company and an LLP is the regulatory act which governs the two, where Pvt. Ltd. Companies are governed by the Companies Act, 2013 and LLPs are governed by the LLP Act, 2008.
A point of similarity is that both of these entities offer limited liability, where the private assets of the partners (in case of LLP) and shareholders (in case of Pvt. Ltd. Company) aren’t at risk provided either the company or the LLP goes into any form of debt. The key difference here is that there can be a distinction between shareholders and management (directors, etc.) in a Pvt. Ltd. Company, whereas it is the partners of the LLP who are management personnel as well.
It is relatively cheaper to start and maintain an LLP, while it has limitations where it cannot raise funds from the public and as for a Pvt. Ltd. Company, it is advantageous since it is incorporated as a separate legal entity and it can have its own assets – however, it has more compliances as compared to an LLP and can’t trade its shares publicly. Another aspect of differentiation between the two is that an LLP offers no limit on the number of members, while a Pvt. Ltd. Company limits the maximum number of members to 200. As for number of directors, both types of entities require a minimum of two directors (or two designated partners in case of an LLP) – where there is a limit of 15 directors in a Pvt. Ltd. Company and no limit on the number of partners in an LLP.