To compare job offers, put each one on the same worksheet and compare total compensation, not just base salary: cash, equity, retirement match, benefits, time, location, and growth. Give the benefits you would actually use a dollar value, score each offer against your priorities, and use the comparison as evidence in negotiation. A higher base salary is not automatically the better offer.
Key takeaways
- Compare total compensation and total value, not the base number that is easiest to see.
- Put both offers on one page, and show year-one value separately from steady-state value.
- Dollar-value what you would use: retirement match, health premiums, PTO, equity, commuting.
- Use official wage data to test whether an offer is strong for the role and location.
- Negotiate only with real offers — never invent a competing offer to create leverage.
What should you compare besides base salary?
Base salary is the first number you see and usually the least complete. Two offers with the same base can differ by thousands of dollars a year once you count the bonus, the retirement match, health premiums, paid time off, equity, and commuting. Before you decide anything, write down every component you can get in writing from each employer.
A useful comparison covers seven areas: cash (base, bonus, commissions, allowances), equity, retirement, health and other insurance, time (PTO, holidays, flexibility), location (commute, remote policy, relocation), and growth (title, level, manager, path to the next role). If an employer will not put a number on something, write “unclear” on the sheet — that is a finding, not a gap to fill with optimism.
How do you calculate total compensation?
Total compensation is everything of value the employer pays, converted to dollars for the same period. Build it in a single table so you can see the components side by side.
| Component | What to ask for | How to put it on the sheet |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | The annual base in the written offer | Annual dollars, before tax |
| Target bonus | The target percentage and how it has paid out historically | Target dollars; treat the upside as uncertain |
| Equity | The grant, vesting schedule, cliff, and share price or valuation | Value vesting per year, not the total grant |
| Retirement match | The match formula and the vesting schedule | Maximum employer contribution at your salary |
| Health insurance | The plan summary and the total premium the employer pays | Employer contribution per year, not just your payroll deduction |
| PTO and holidays | Days of PTO, holidays, and the accrual schedule | Days times your daily rate; note the value you place on time off |
| Commute and remote policy | Days in the office, stipend, parking or transit | Annual commute cost and hours |
| Sign-on and relocation | Amount, timing, and any repayment clause | Add to year one only |
| Growth and path | The next level’s scope, promotion path, and learning budget | Score it in the decision matrix below |
Year one is not the same as year two. Sign-on and relocation land once, equity often has a one-year cliff, and a bonus may be prorated. Put the year-one total and the steady-state total on separate lines so a big sign-on does not disguise a weaker long-term package.
Tip
Ask for the benefits summary in writing and read the employer’s contribution, not just the deduction on your paycheck. Two plans that look similar can differ by thousands of dollars a year in what the company pays on your behalf.
How do you value benefits you don’t use yet?
Some benefits look irrelevant until the year you need them. A retirement match is money you leave on the table if you do not contribute enough to earn it. Health coverage matters most in the year something goes wrong. Paid time off is salary you already earn, whether or not you take it. Value the items you would plausibly use, and note the ones you would not.
- Retirement match. If your salary is $60,000 and the employer matches up to 4% of pay, the maximum match is $2,400 a year — hypothetical numbers, and only if you contribute enough to earn it.
- PTO. Ten extra days at a $60,000 salary is roughly $2,300 of paid time, before you count what the days off are worth to you; both figures are hypothetical.
- Health coverage. Ask what the employer pays toward the premium, and compare deductibles and networks for the plan you would actually choose.
- Equity. Value the shares that vest each year, and treat private-company equity as uncertain until there is a real market for it.
HBR’s 2024 article “When Weighing Job Offers, Consider More Than Just Salary” makes the same point: salary is a major factor, but the whole package deserves attention, and a single perk is rarely the deciding factor (subscription required).
How do you compare cost of living and location?
You do not need an index to see the biggest costs: rent, commute time and cost, state and local income taxes, and one-time moving expenses. Compare the same housing type in both places, and calculate the commute in hours as well as dollars. A salary that looks larger can be smaller in real terms once housing and commuting are on the sheet.
Official wage tools help you check the offer against the market. O*NET OnLine publishes percentile wage data by occupation, and My Next Move lets you pull local wages by state or ZIP code; both are U.S. Department of Labor tools built on BLS wage data. As an example of how wide these bands run, O*NET’s page for human resources specialists lists a national average of $75,940 (the page reports it as a median), with the lowest 10% at or below $47,180 and the highest 10% at or above $128,720. That spread is the lesson: one average hides the range for your level and location, so pull local data first.
Pay transparency rules give you another comparison point. New York State’s pay transparency FAQ explains that since September 17, 2023, postings for roles performed at least partly in New York must include a pay range, and the range must be a good-faith minimum and maximum, not an open-ended figure. A published range is the employer’s own statement about what the role can pay — use it as a benchmark, not as proof that your offer is fair.
How do you weigh growth, manager, and risk?
Money is one column, not the decision. Ask what the job will teach you, who you will report to, and what could change in the next year. Questions worth asking in the final rounds: What does success look like in six months? Why is this role open? How is the team organized, and has it changed recently? What is the path from this role to the next one? Vague answers are information about how the role is managed, not just small talk.
HBR’s 2024 article “7 Questions to Ask When Weighing a Job Offer” suggests a simple test: ask yourself what you might be overlooking before you commit, a question designed to surface the factor you have not considered (subscription required). Write the answer on the worksheet rather than keeping it in your head.
On risk, compare like with like. A bigger title at a small, early-stage company carries different risk from the same title at an established one, and a role that is open because the team is growing is different from one that opened after the last person left in three months. If the next step matters more than this year’s pay, ask each employer how promotions are decided; our guide to asking for a promotion lists the questions worth asking. Name the risk on the sheet and decide how much uncertainty you can tolerate.
How do you use one offer to improve another?
Only use this move with two real offers. If both are in writing and you would genuinely accept either one, you can tell an employer that you have a competing offer and ask whether the base, sign-on, or level can move.
Using a competing offer honestly
“I want to be direct with you: I have another offer in writing, and I’m taking it seriously. I would rather join your team. The difference is mostly base salary — yours is $X and the other offer is $Y. Is there room to close that gap, or to offset it with a sign-on bonus?”
If the gap is a one-time item, the guide to negotiating a sign-on bonus shows how to size the ask and read a repayment clause. If the bigger difference is where you work, the guide to negotiating remote work covers days, schedule, and trial periods. Do not invent a competing offer. Recruiters talk to each other, details can be checked, and a bluff that gets called can cost you the job you actually wanted. Keep the other company’s confidential details out of the conversation, give a deadline that is true, and be ready to accept if the employer matches. If a recruiter tries to place you based on your past pay rather than the role’s range, the scripts in our guide to salary history questions keep the conversation on the new role. If the exchange turns into a formal counter, the counter offer guide has email templates, and the complete sequence is in our guide to how to negotiate salary. If this is your first negotiation, start with first job salary negotiation before you ask for a change; it covers the basics that a second offer usually assumes.
A simple decision matrix
Pick the criteria that matter to you, give them weights that add up to 100%, score each offer from 1 to 5, and multiply. The weighted totals are not the decision — they show where the decision is actually coming from.
| Criterion | Weight | Offer A score | Offer B score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total compensation | 35% | 4 | 5 |
| Growth and learning | 25% | 5 | 3 |
| Manager and team | 15% | 4 | 3 |
| Location and commute | 15% | 3 | 5 |
| Benefits and time off | 10% | 3 | 4 |
| Weighted total | 100% | 4.00 | 4.10 |
The scores are hypothetical. Offer B wins by a tenth of a point even though Offer A is stronger on growth and manager. If you change a weight — say growth matters more than money to you at this stage — the result flips. That sensitivity is useful information, not a problem with the method.
Hypothetical example: two offers
Here is a worked example with made-up numbers. Offer A pays a higher base and is hybrid. Offer B pays a lower base but adds a larger target bonus, a stronger retirement match, remote work, and a sign-on bonus.
| Item | Offer A | Offer B |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | $85,000 | $80,000 |
| Target bonus | 5% ($4,250) | 10% ($8,000) |
| Retirement match (maximum) | 3% ($2,550) | 6% ($4,800) |
| Sign-on bonus | $0 | $5,000 (year one only) |
| Year-one compensation before health and PTO | $91,800 | $97,800 |
| Steady-state compensation before health and PTO | $91,800 | $92,800 |
| Work location | Hybrid, three days in office | Fully remote |
All figures in this example are hypothetical and leave out health premiums, PTO, equity, and taxes. In year one, Offer B is worth about $6,000 more; at steady state the gap shrinks to about $1,000. Whether B is the better offer depends on what remote work is worth to you, the commute you avoid, and which manager you would rather work for. Put your own numbers in the same table before you decide.
Checklist before you accept
- Both offers are in writing, with base, bonus target, and start date.
- You know how the bonus actually works, including proration and how much of it is discretionary.
- You have the equity grant, vesting schedule, and cliff in writing.
- You have the benefits summary in writing, not just a verbal description.
- You have valued PTO, commute, and the remote policy for both offers.
- You have compared each offer with local wage data for the role.
- You have asked for anything you need — title, level, start date, sign-on — before you accept.
- You have not resigned from your current job until the written offer is signed and contingencies are clear.
If you decide to turn one offer down, the guide to declining a job offer politely has email templates that keep the relationship intact.
How we researched this guide
We build salary and offer guides from primary and official sources. This page draws on O*NET OnLine's occupation and wage data and My Next Move's local salary tool (both U.S. Department of Labor resources), two 2024 Harvard Business Review articles on weighing offers (total compensation and questions to ask; subscription required), and the New York State Department of Labor's pay transparency FAQ. The decision matrix and example offers are our own hypothetical examples, not market data.
Pay practices and benefit rules change, and we review this page when the underlying guidance changes. If you spot an error or an outdated source, email us — our editorial policy explains how corrections work.
Note
This article covers general comparison methods, not tax, legal, or financial advice. Compensation rules and benefit plan details vary by employer and location. Ask a qualified professional about your situation, and confirm the terms in writing before you accept.
Frequently asked questions
Should you negotiate multiple job offers?
Yes, if both offers are real, in writing, and you would genuinely accept either one. You can tell an employer you have a competing offer and ask whether the base, sign-on, or level can move. Never invent a competing offer to create leverage: recruiters talk, details can be checked, and a bluff that gets called can cost you the offer.
How do you compare equity in job offers?
Compare the value that vests per year, not the total grant. Ask for the vesting schedule and any cliff, the current share price or valuation, and what happens to unvested shares if you leave or the company is sold. For private companies, treat the paper value as uncertain and weigh it below cash you can count on.
What if one offer expires before the other?
Ask for more time before the deadline, and be specific about when you will decide. Some employers will extend a few days if you ask politely and early, especially when you are comparing two real offers. Do not accept an offer to hold a spot while you wait for another one; that can damage your reputation in a small industry.
How do you choose between money and growth?
Put both on the same worksheet and decide in advance how much money matters relative to learning, the manager, and stability. A raw salary difference is not a decision by itself: a lower offer with a better manager and a clear path to the next level can be worth more over a few years. Score the tradeoffs, then check whether the result matches what you actually want.
How do you compare a sign-on bonus between two offers?
Treat a sign-on bonus as a one-time item and compare it in year one, not as part of recurring pay. Ask when it is paid, whether it has a repayment clause, and what conditions apply. A larger bonus can make year one look stronger while the base and annual raise potential stay lower, so put it on a separate line and compare steady-state pay as well.
How do you weigh cost of living when comparing offers?
Compare the same housing type, commute time and cost, state and local taxes, and one-time moving expenses for both locations. Use local wage data from O*NET OnLine or My Next Move to see how pay for your occupation compares in each area. A cost-of-living index can help, but the line items you will actually pay are more useful.
Sources and further reading
We link to primary and official sources so you can verify the details yourself.
- O*NET OnLine (U.S. Department of Labor) — National wages by occupation
- My Next Move (U.S. Department of Labor / O*NET) — Local salary information
- Harvard Business Review — When Weighing Job Offers, Consider More Than Just Salary (subscription)
- Harvard Business Review — 7 Questions to Ask When Weighing a Job Offer (subscription)
- New York State Department of Labor — Pay Transparency Act Frequently Asked Questions
How this guide was written. This page is part of Role Handbook, an independent career publication. We research each guide against primary and official sources, use worked examples and scripts instead of vague advice, and update pages when the underlying rules or practices change. Every page lists its sources. See our editorial policy for details and corrections.