How to compare job offers and negotiate your salary

1. Get the complete offer and response deadline

A headline salary is not enough to choose a job. Ask for the written offer, benefits information, proposed contract and response deadline. Thank the recruiter, confirm your interest and identify any missing terms before starting the negotiation.

MIT’s negotiation guidance recommends understanding the offer, prioritising your needs and agreeing a response date. If you need more time, request a specific date and explain what you still need to evaluate. An extension is not guaranteed.

Keep a short list of unanswered questions with the original documents. Record who can confirm each answer: the recruiter, hiring manager or someone responsible for the contract.

2. Compare pay on the same basis

Record gross base pay, currency, pay period, contracted hours and employment arrangement for every offer. Convert monthly base salary into an annual figure only after checking how many payments are guaranteed. If currencies differ, record the exchange rate and date used; your future spending power can change.

A contractor’s monthly invoice amount and an employee’s monthly salary are not interchangeable. List unpaid time, insurance, equipment, administration and other costs you would cover yourself. Work out take-home pay separately using the rules for your actual jurisdiction and circumstances.

For international roles, first check the remote job’s location and contract conditions. A higher advertised rate is of little use if the employer cannot engage you where you will work.

3. Separate base salary, bonuses and equity

Harvard’s offer evaluation guide includes bonuses, equity, paid leave, flexible arrangements, retirement benefits and insurance alongside base salary. Use separate rows so that a conditional payment does not look like recurring salary.

Ask for the documents behind every component. “Up to” and “target” describe a different proposition from a fixed amount. Establish whether the equity award is shares, options or another instrument. Understanding its terms does not remove uncertainty about its future value or your ability to turn it into cash; do not use an advertised valuation to fund a monthly budget.

• Bonus: What determines the payout, when is it paid, and what happens if you leave before that date?
• Signing payment: Is it conditional, and must any of it be repaid if you leave?
• Equity: What instrument is granted, when do rights vest and what sale restrictions apply? If it is an option, what are the exercise price and deadlines?
• Benefits: When do they start, what must you contribute, and which terms depend on eligibility?

4. Use a job offer comparison worksheet

This hypothetical comparison assumes two full-year employment offers in the same country and currency. The amounts are illustrative, not salary benchmarks. Both roles have the same contracted weekly hours; holiday figures exclude public holidays on the same basis.

Offer A has higher first-year cash if the target bonus pays in full and the signing payment is retained. Offer B has £3,000 more recurring base pay. Neither calculation includes tax, equity or the personal value of leave.

5. Weigh working conditions and growth

Define your essential conditions before scoring attractive extras. These might include a minimum base salary, a workable schedule or a confirmed location. Then compare the manager, responsibilities, learning opportunities, commute, on-call expectations and flexibility.

MIT’s offer comparison worksheet weights factors by their importance to you, then scores each offer. Use a simple version with your five most important factors. An unresolved term stays unknown; giving it an optimistic score hides the question.

Ask what development looks like in practice: protected learning time, project ownership or regular feedback. Compare the answer with your current skills and learning priorities. A vague promise of progression is difficult to assess.

6. Research a defensible salary request

Collect a small set of relevant benchmarks: published ranges from comparable vacancies, recent salary research with a clear method and information from recruiters working in that market. Match responsibilities, seniority, location, company type and contract basis.

Keep the date, source and pay definition beside each figure. Base salary and total compensation answer different questions. A national occupation average or a small collection of anonymous submissions is context, not proof of the exact salary this employer should pay.

Prepare two or three pieces of evidence from your experience that match the role’s scope. Describe work you performed and outcomes you can explain. Personal expenses help you set your own minimum; they do not establish the employer’s salary range.

7. Make one clear counteroffer

Decide your preferred outcome, acceptable alternative and point at which you would decline. Ask for the change that matters most, such as base salary, and explain why. Be clear about the currency and whether the figure is annual gross base pay.

Raise other essential conditions together so the recruiter understands the full decision. If salary is fixed, ask whether a signing payment, start date or working arrangement can change. A scheduled review is useful only when its timing and criteria are clear; it does not promise a raise.

Harvard’s guide notes that some employers use set packages and explicitly warns against misrepresenting competing offers. Negotiate honestly before accepting, and recognise that the employer may decline the request.

8. Open the negotiation with a professional email

A short email can request a discussion and state your proposal. Harvard recommends a live conversation, while acknowledging time-zone exceptions. Follow the employer’s communication process and use a call when a complicated package needs discussion.

The example below uses an invented role and amount to show the structure. Replace both with accurate details and a figure supported by your research. Avoid a long list of arguments or an invented competing deadline.

9. Check the revised terms before accepting

If the employer counters, compare the complete revised package with your original worksheet. Check whether a higher payment changes the role, hours, bonus eligibility or another term. Confirm agreed changes in the written offer and relevant contract documents.

Review the terms before accepting verbally or in writing. For example, GOV.UK explains that accepting an unconditional job offer creates a binding employment contract in the UK, and that the offer and acceptance can be verbal. This is a UK example; check the applicable law for your arrangement instead of assuming obligations begin only when you sign a document.

If the answer is no, assess the existing offer against your minimum requirements. Thank the recruiter and either accept through the requested process or decline clearly. Do not keep negotiating solely to obtain a symbolic concession.

Keep the decision deadline and original messages together. The CVer application history guide explains how to review progress and check the messages behind updates. Read the recruitment process guide if conditions or remaining checks are still unclear.