Should I mention the offer amount from another company during salary negotiations?
I received an offer from another company, and I’m planning to ask my current company for an adjustment based on the pay of current employees. The difference is only about 1 million KRW, and I’m debating whether to mention it.
I’m cautious because it might come across as a threat. I’d like to hear how people who have actually done this phrased it.
4 answers
I did something similar recently, and framing it as “I’ve received an offer elsewhere, but I want to stay here, so I’m bringing it up” got a decent response. I didn’t mention a specific amount, though—just something like “an adjustment relative to market rate is needed.” When you name an exact number, it can feel like you’re being compared, and that often backfires.
Honestly, if the difference is only KRW 1 million, it’s better not to bring it up. From the company’s perspective, you could get labeled as “someone who won’t leave anyway,” and because the amount is ambiguous, it can come across as a threat. It’s more effective to play this card when the offer difference is 20–30%. For now, it’s cleaner to just ask for an adjustment based on internal benchmarks.
Agreed. Like the person above said, it's better not to bring up numbers. If you keep dangling a 1 million won offer, it'll only hurt your credibility lol.
Well, isn't that an old story? These days, hiding the fact that you have an offer can often be more of a disadvantage. I'm curious about the reasoning. I've actually seen quite a few cases around me where someone didn't mention it and ended up not getting a salary adjustment.