How to compare two job offers
Two offers rarely arrive in the same format. One recruiter may lead with salary, another with a target package, and both may leave important conditions to separate documents. Build a shared worksheet before choosing. It should explain the pay arithmetic and the practical differences that matter to your life and career.
Use the same period and definitions, compare fixed cash first, then add clearly labeled bonus and equity scenarios alongside the job itself.
Collect comparable terms in one place
Request the written offer, bonus or commission plan, equity award terms and benefit summary from each employer. Record role scope, location, work arrangement, start date and currency. Put each pay component in its own row, and mark missing information as unknown. An incomplete column identifies a question to resolve; it should not become a falsely precise total.
Choose the same comparison interval for both offers, such as twelve full months from the start date. If the start dates differ, also inspect the gap in income before the later role begins. Use gross compensation in the pay table. The CFPB’s gross and net definitions help explain why these totals do not predict take-home pay.
Build three pay views
First, compare base salary and any fixed payments under their stated conditions. Second, show variable bonus or commission at explicitly chosen outcomes. Third, add modeled equity scheduled to vest in the period, with the award type and valuation assumption visible. Keep cash and equity subtotals so a large grant does not conceal a difference in regular cash.
Show first-year and later-year compensation separately. Remove signing money from years when it is not paid, and do not assume future raises or refresh grants. Inspect cliffs, payment dates and repayment conditions. A multiyear scenario can expose timing differences, but it should remain a calculation under stated assumptions rather than a prediction of future earnings.
Compare benefits and responsibilities alongside pay
Review insurance premiums and coverage, retirement contributions, paid leave and eligibility dates. Employer benefit cost and the value to you are different measures; BLS’s employer-cost definition illustrates that distinction. Keep useful plan facts in the comparison even when you cannot credibly assign them a dollar value. Check when coverage begins if your start dates differ.
Write down expected hours, commute, travel, schedule control, manager responsibilities and growth opportunities. Identify which details are confirmed and which are impressions from interviews. A simple priority list can help you weigh these factors without creating a scoring formula that pretends to be objective. Your preferred tradeoffs need not match someone else’s.
Resolve the uncertainties before deciding
List the questions that could change your decision: applicable bonus terms, the actual role level, vesting timing, a repayment clause or location-specific salary. Ask for answers in writing and update only the affected rows. If you use benchmarks, match their career, geography, period and pay measure rather than comparing your target package with an unrelated base-pay median.
Run a scenario with no variable payout, then your chosen at-target view. Consider whether essential commitments work in the lower-cash view and what you would give up by leaving your current role. State the reason for your choice in a few sentences, including unresolved assumptions. The worksheet supports your judgment; the highest modeled total does not decide the whole question.
A first-year advantage can reverse later
Illustrative full-year USD cash offers; annual bonuses pay at target in the scenario. Equity, benefits and deductions are excluded.
| Component | Offer A | Offer B |
|---|---|---|
| Annual base | $100,000 | $110,000 |
| Bonus target | $10,000 | $11,000 |
| One-time signing | $25,000 | $5,000 |
| First-year cash at target | $135,000 | $126,000 |
| Later-year cash at target | $110,000 | $121,000 |
| Two-year cash at target | $245,000 | $247,000 |
Offer A leads by $9,000 in year one; Offer B leads by $2,000 over two years at the stated targets.
Different bonus outcomes or employment durations change the result. This table does not establish which job is better for you.
Common questions
Should I choose the higher total?
Inspect cash certainty, timing, role scope, benefits and your priorities. A modeled total helps describe one tradeoff; it cannot settle every difference.
How do I compare an offer with missing equity details?
Keep the equity field unknown, request the award terms and compare confirmed cash separately until the information is available.
Can I compare a target package with a base-pay median?
Compare base with base first. Use a total-compensation benchmark only when its included components and cohort fit your comparison.
Further reading
These official sources explain the definitions and requirements discussed above. The guide’s calculations are original illustrative examples from Wages.fyi.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: gross income, net income and pay periods
- U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: selling restricted securities
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: employer compensation costs and benefits
Citation: Wages.fyi, “How to compare two job offers,” published October 13, 2026.
Make the tradeoffs easier to see
Compare two packages while keeping your cash, target bonus and vesting assumptions separate.