Salary and job offers
Calculators for the numbers and guides for the conversation: comparing offers, asking for a raise, and countering an offer without souring it.
The number on the offer letter is rarely the whole picture. Bonus, retirement match, health cover, paid time off, commute and cost of living can move two similar salaries apart by thousands a year. The comparison calculator puts all of that side by side.
When the offer is close but not there, most employers expect a counter. The counter-offer generator writes a short, professional email from your target number and one reason; the guides cover how much to ask for, when raises are actually decided, and what a 4% raise adds to each paycheck.
Tools
Job Offer Comparison Calculator
How to compare job offers properly: put two or three side by side and see which one is actually worth more once benefits are counted.
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Pay Raise Calculator
Enter a percent or a flat salary increase and see your new annual, monthly, biweekly, weekly and hourly pay. Or work out what percent a raise is.
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Counter Offer Email Generator
Counter offer email template, filled in for you. Ask for more without putting the offer at risk; we do the percentage math first.
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AI Email Writer
Write a professional email in seconds: recruiter follow-ups, thank-you notes, requests to professors. Pick the tone and length.
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How to Compare Two Job Offers - Salary, Benefits and Commute
An $88,000 offer can beat a $95,000 one by $3,300 a year. Here is the arithmetic — 401(k) match, health premiums, PTO and commute time — that shows which offer actually pays more, plus a decision table for the factors no calculator can score.
7 min read
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Total Compensation - How to Value an Offer Beyond Base Salary
Base salary is one line of five. Work out what a 401(k) match, a bonus, an RSU grant, PTO and health premiums are each worth per year, then watch a $95,000 base add up to $118,020 of real annual compensation.
7 min read
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Job Offer in a New City? Do the Math First
A $115,000 offer in California can be worth less than $95,000 in Arkansas. Here is how to convert a salary between two places using federal price data, why rent does most of the damage, and the costs the calculators never show you.
5 min read
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How Much of a Raise Should You Ask For?
Wages rose 3.1 percent over the year to June 2026 while prices rose 3.4 percent, so the average raise was a small pay cut. Here is what to ask for instead, a table of ranges by situation, and the number you should never say out loud first.
5 min read
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When Do Companies Give Raises, and When Is It Decided?
The raise you get in March was mostly decided in November. Here is the timeline of a typical review cycle, how to find yours without anyone telling you, and the short window where a conversation still changes the number.
6 min read
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What a 4% Raise Actually Adds to Each Paycheck
A 4 percent raise on $72,000 is $2,880 a year and about $78 a paycheck after federal tax and FICA. Here is the arithmetic with 2026 IRS figures, what happens when a raise straddles a bracket, and why nobody is pushed into a higher tax band.
5 min read
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How to Write a Counter Offer Email (With a Template)
A counter offer email is five sentences and one number. Here is the template, the arithmetic behind picking the number, a full worked example that moved $88,000 to $92,000, and the three sentences that quietly weaken every draft.
6 min read
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How to Negotiate Salary After a Job Offer
The strongest leverage you will ever have with an employer lasts about 72 hours and starts the moment they say yes. Here is the order of operations, what to say when the recruiter asks for your number first, and what to trade when base will not move.
6 min read
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What to Say When You Counter an Offer on the Phone
A written counter gives you time to think. A phone call gives you four seconds. Here is a word-for-word script with the pauses marked, replies for the five things recruiters actually say, and the one question to ask before you hang up.
6 min read
Common questions
How do I compare two job offers?
Convert both to total annual compensation: salary, bonus you can realistically expect, employer retirement match, the value of health cover, and paid time off in dollars. Then adjust for cost of living if the cities differ. The comparison calculator does this in a minute.
How much of a raise should I ask for?
In 2026, 3 to 5 percent is a typical merit raise in the US and UK; 10 percent or more usually needs a promotion, a market gap, or a competing offer. Ask with a number and one reason, not a range.
Can negotiating make an offer get withdrawn?
Very rarely, and almost never for a polite counter with a reason. Offers are withdrawn over tone, ultimatums, or asking for far above the posted range. Keep it short, specific and friendly.
Is it better to negotiate by email or by phone?
Email gives you time to word it and leaves a record; the phone is faster and feels more personal. Either works. If you counter by phone, follow up with a two-line email confirming what you asked for.