Negotiating a Higher Salary After a Job Offer

How should you negotiate a higher salary after a job offer?

We asked HR professionals and business leaders for their best advice. Here are 10 effective tips for how someone can negotiate a higher salary after a job offer.

1. Avoid Salary Negotiations Over Email

The best way to negotiate a higher salary after receiving a job offer is by having an in-person conversation. In this situation, it is important to be professional and polite, but also assertive. Before beginning negotiations, make sure that you know your worth and can explain why you are deserving of the increase in pay. Research industry standards and come prepared with data to support your case. During the conversation, be mindful of how you phrase yourself and listen carefully to the other party’s perspective. Be prepared to compromise and agree with what works for everyone involved. With effective communication and a little bit of patience, you can successfully negotiate a higher salary after receiving a job offer.

Michael Fischer, Founder, EliteHRT

2. Research What Value You Add

Do your research and be ready to show the firm the value you can add. Gather information on industry norms for comparable roles before bargaining, and emphasize your unique abilities and achievements that make you a valued asset to the organization. Present your case throughout the negotiation with poise and professionalism, demonstrating how the suggested wage aligns with your qualifications and the going rate for the industry. Be prepared to make concessions and create a win-win solution. If a pay raise is not attainable, consider requesting other benefits like better/flexible working hours, more vacation time, or possibilities for professional growth.

Peter Bryla, Community Manager, ResumeLab

3. Express Confidence

While negotiating a salary can feel intimidating, you must express confidence when doing so. That being said, you do not have to be too aggressive or demanding. You can remain calm and polite while stating your desired salary and supporting this request with valid reasoning, such as solid examples of how effective your work performance has been. It’s all about how you present yourself.

Miles Beckett, Co-Founder & CEO, Flossy

4. Look Into Recent Salary Trends in Your Industry

Thoroughly research recent salary trends in your industry. This will give you an idea of what the current market rate is for a role like yours. Be confident and focus on the value that you can bring to the company rather than simply asking for more money. You should also expect counter-offers or requests from employers, so be prepared with your response before going into negotiations.

Asker Ahmed, Director & Founder, iProcess

5. Bring Proof to Back Up Your Request

First, you need to understand what you’re worth to the company. You can do this by looking at similar jobs in your area or industry and then researching what those positions pay. You can also talk with your peers about their salaries — but be careful not to share too much information. Next, you need to know why the company wants you on board: what do they see as your value? What do they think you can do for them? This information will help them understand why they should pay more. Finally, be prepared with an alternative offer — one that is better than what they’ve offered but still within reason (and within budget). If they say no, thank them for their time and move on.

Rengie Wisper, Marketing Manager, Check CPS

6. Don’t Hyper-Focus on Money

Negotiating a job offer is not just about that initial salary — it’s about the entire career you could be building. You can gain so much more than money by negotiating hard for the right compensation package. Career growth, flexibility in job timing and responsibilities, bonuses, better benefits, and perks can all improve your quality of life and advance your career in other ways than simply filling your pocket. So don’t let those early ground negotiations be centered solely on salary. Instead, understand the bigger career landscape you’re entering and the opportunities available to make sure you have a genuinely rewarding career from now on. At this stage, you can ensure that your daily life at the new company will be enjoyable and well-suited to your needs.

Piotrek Sosnowski, Chief People & Culture Officer, hiJunior

7. Know Your Worth

Always keep one thing in mind: the first offer is never the best offer. Don’t be afraid to ask for more. My top tip for negotiating a higher salary? Research, research, research. Before you even start talking numbers, do your homework and find out what the market range is for your position and experience level. Websites like Glassdoor are great resources. Also, try to only discuss salary after you’ve received the job offer, not before. This way, you can use the offer as leverage during negotiations. When you’re ready to negotiate, come prepared with your research and use it to explain why you deserve a higher salary. Be confident and assertive, but also listen to the company’s counteroffer. It’s not just about the money — you can also negotiate for other benefits like flexible work hours or additional vacation time.

Derek Sall, Founder & Financial Expert, LifeAndMyFinances

8. Practice with a Close Friend

Go over your talking points in practice to make you feel more prepared and see where you can improve. If you want to get better, practicing in front of a friend or coworker who can give you honest feedback is the way to go. If that doesn’t work, you may always videotape yourself or practice in front of a mirror. In my opinion, it’s crucial that you do this because it’s normal to feel awkward when discussing money with others. However, the more you do it, the more prepared you’ll be when the time comes to have that conversation.

Timothy Allen, Sr. Corporate Investigator, Corporate Investigation Consulting

9. Leveraging Multiple Job Offers

Leveraging multiple job offers is a great way to negotiate a higher salary. By having multiple offers, I negotiated a 10%+ increase in base pay in my first job out of college — despite having limited leverage given that it was my first job in the industry. When looking for job offers, try to time your interviews so the offer processes line up around the same time. If you can do this, you’ll be able to negotiate honestly with both companies without needing to “sell” them on anything. Just saying you have another job offer and that you’re trying to decide can speak for itself.

Axel DeAngelis, Founder, Jumpcoast

10. Be Ready with Concrete Evidence

My favorite strategies for asking for and negotiating a higher salary after a job offer:

• Be ready with a list of your accomplishments, and all the reasons you’re worth what you’re asking for (not why you need the money). If you can assign a dollar value to how much the accomplishments on that list have earned or saved organization money, that’s even better.
• Present some impressive proof of your accomplishments, such as evaluations, awards, third-party recommendations, etc. But, if the proof isn’t truly impressive, it can be counterproductive. If that certificate showing you met required goals in the fourth quarter of 2007 is the best you can do, keep it to yourself.
• Explain the benefit to the company in giving you that kind of money. What are they getting from you at that rate that they wouldn’t be getting from someone else at a lower salary?

Barry Maher, Principal, Barry Maher & Associates

How JobsInTheUS Can Help

Our network of state-specific job sites help job seekers find real, local, quality jobs where they want to work — including full‑time, part‑time, remote and seasonal positions. Search for local jobs by keywords, location radius, company, or industry from any of our state sites, including JobsInME, JobsInNH, JobsInVT, JobsInMA, JobsInRI, JobsInCT, and more.

Many of our verified local employers also search our resume database to find potential candidates before posting positions. Log in and update your resume now and save it to your JobsInTheUS account to stand out from other job seekers.