Salary Counter Offer Calculator: The Number to Say and the Email to Send

A counter offer commonly lands 10 to 20 percent above the initial salary offer, with the exact figure depending on your leverage and the market rate for the role. Calculate your counter in seconds: this free calculator turns your offer into a recommended counter range and a word-for-word script, entirely in your browser.

We never send or store your salary details - the math runs entirely in your browser, no account needed.

Good starting points for the research: levels.fyi, Glassdoor, and the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Use the midpoint for your role, level, and location.

Your leverage
Add bonus or equity

Bonus and equity never change the counter math. They add a total comp line and adjust the script.

Enter your offered base salary above and your counter range will appear here. Nothing you type leaves this page.

You have the number and the words. The hard part is saying them while a real person pushes back. NegotiateIt is a practice simulator where an AI hiring manager does exactly that.

Practice the salary call

Or read how the salary negotiation scenario plays out first.

A worked example

Say the offer is $85,000, your research puts the market midpoint at $92,000, and you have no competing offer but you are a strong fit. The offer sits inside 90 to 110 percent of the market figure, so the default 12 to 16 percent band applies to the offer:

So you counter at $97,500, and the deal commonly settles somewhere between the original $85,000 and your counter. The email would read:

Example email 
Subject: [Role title] offer

Hi [Hiring manager name],

Thank you for the offer - I am excited about the role and the team, and I want to make this work.

On base: based on the market for this scope (around $92,000) and the specific value I bring, I am asking for $97,500. If you can get the base there, I am ready to accept.

Whatever the answer, I appreciate you working through this with me.

Best,
[Your name]

Common questions

How much should I counter offer on a salary?

A counter commonly lands 10 to 20 percent above the initial offer, with the exact figure depending on your leverage and the market rate for the role. If you have a researched market midpoint and the offer sits well under it, counter from the market figure instead of the offer. With a competing offer in hand, the top of the band is commonly defensible.

Can a counter offer make the company withdraw the job offer?

Rare, by recruiters' own account. A polite counter with a defensible number is a normal part of hiring at most companies. Where offers do get pulled, the usual causes are ultimatums, phantom competing offers, or repeated re-negotiation after an agreement - none of which a single well-worded counter involves.

Should I counter even if the offer is already strong?

A modest counter on a strong offer is commonly still expected and low risk. When the base already sits above market, the bigger wins are usually elsewhere: a signing bonus, an earlier review date, or additional time off. Ask for one of those alongside a small base bump rather than pushing the base alone.

Should I negotiate by email or on a call?

Email gives you exact wording, time to think, and a written record - useful when the conversation makes you freeze. A live call is faster and lets you read the room, and some hiring managers prefer it. Pick the channel where you can stay calm; this calculator gives you a script for both.

What if they say the number is final?

Final is commonly a position, not a fact - and even when the base truly is locked, other levers usually move: signing bonus, start date, review timeline, title, time off. Acknowledge the constraint out loud, then ask which lever has room. A calm second ask after a final rarely costs anything.

Where does my salary data go?

Nowhere. The math runs entirely in your browser - this page never sends or stores the numbers you type, and no account is needed.