Job Switch Review: Always Negotiate Your Salary
I recently switched jobs. As a developer with 3 years of experience, the pay was so low that I decided to move on.
When the first offer came in, I almost accepted it outright. It was satisfying compared to my current job, but people around me told me to try negotiating once more, so I gathered courage. In the end, they raised the offer by more than 10%.
The most surprising thing was that there was no downside to negotiating. If anything, the vibe was that they valued people who make confident asks. Of course, your skills need to back that up.
What I learned while preparing for the switch is how important it is to check your market value. If you stay at your current company, you'll never know.
8 answers
Agreed. You should definitely negotiate your salary. If you don't, you're losing out.
This is so true lol. Last year, I almost just signed my first offer too, but people around me stopped me and I got a 15% increase. The company actually seemed happier about it.
Well, that's debatable. There are plenty of cases where people negotiated and ended up having their offer rescinded, so you need to read the company's vibe first. I don't agree with the idea that you should always do it no matter what.
I feel the same way. When I was switching jobs, I tested the waters, got rejected, and went somewhere else. Looking back, that was the right call. Knowing your market value is really important.
Oh, I didn't know that. I always just accepted right after looking at the salary table... Next time I'll definitely try negotiating.
Saying that salary negotiation has no downsides seems like a somewhat risky statement. For new hires or juniors, since their skills aren't proven yet, pushing too hard could just end up hurting their image.
Got a source? Is that some kind of statistic that negotiating gets you a 10%+ raise? The people around me didn't raise it that much, honestly.
When I changed jobs, I got offers from three companies and really hiked up my salary. Don't be shy—have at least two offers lined up before negotiating. If you're tied to just one, you're at a disadvantage.