SkilsMVP

Salary research guide

How to know your market rate before negotiating

Negotiating without data is guessing. Here is how to research your market rate — so you know exactly what to ask for.

Why salary research is the foundation of negotiation

You cannot negotiate effectively if you do not know your market rate. Most candidates undervalue themselves by 10–30% simply because they have not done the research. The research takes 2–4 hours. The payoff can be $10,000–$30,000 per year compounding for the rest of your career.

The data sources and what each is good for

No single source is complete. Each one has a different lens on compensation. Use at least three.

1

Levels.fyi

The most accurate source for total compensation at major tech companies (FAANG and similar).

Shows base salary, bonus, and equity separately. Filter by company, role, and years of experience. Limitation: less coverage at smaller companies.

2

Glassdoor

Broad coverage across company sizes.

Base salary data only — does not show total comp. Use for benchmark ranges and to verify Levels data.

3

LinkedIn Salary

Shows salary ranges by title, location, and years of experience.

Useful for roles that Levels does not cover well — particularly non-engineering roles.

4

Blind

Anonymous discussion platform for tech professionals.

Real salary data shared by people at specific companies. Search by company name. More qualitative context than structured data.

5

Payscale and Salary.com

Better for non-tech industries and smaller companies.

Less accurate for major tech companies where Levels is more reliable.

6

Your network

The most accurate data is from real people at that company.

A 20-minute coffee chat with someone in a similar role reveals what the ranges actually are — including equity refresh packages, signing bonus norms, and negotiation flexibility — which data sources do not always capture.

How to triangulate to a number

Raw data from multiple sources needs to be synthesized into a single confident number you can walk into the conversation with.

  1. 1

    Pull data from 3+ sources

    Use the same role, company size, and location for each source. Mixing apples and oranges produces a meaningless number.

  2. 2

    Calculate the median of the ranges

    You are looking for the center of gravity, not the highest number you can find.

  3. 3

    Adjust for years of experience

    Add 5–10% per year above the minimum, up to the 75th percentile of comparable roles.

  4. 4

    Target the 75th percentile — not the median

    Companies expect negotiation and budget for it. Anchoring at the median means you will likely land below it after the inevitable back-and-forth.

The location adjustment

Remote roles vary widely. Some companies pay the same regardless of location — “location-agnostic” — while others pay local market rates. This distinction can move your number by 20–40%.

Before you research

Look up the specific company’s compensation policy before pulling numbers. Applying San Francisco benchmarks to a company that pays local Israeli rates — or vice versa — will give you a misleading target. Check job postings, ask your recruiter early, and confirm with people in your network who work there.

Next step

Now put the data to work

You have the number. Here is how to use it in the actual negotiation conversation.

Learn negotiation tactics