Job Offer Comparison Calculator

How to compare job offers: the short version

1. Convert everything to yearly, before-tax dollars for the same hours.
2. Keep guaranteed pay apart from target bonuses, commission and equity.
3. Look at year one and year two separately — sign-on bonuses and vesting cliffs make them differ.
4. Treat equity as an estimate that could be worth much less (or more) than its stated value.
5. Subtract what you'll pay — health premiums and commuting — and note what the employer adds.
6. Count hours: expected work hours, paid time off and commute time change what each hour is worth.
7. Ask "what would have to be true?" — what bonus payout or equity value closes the gap.
8. Then weigh the things a calculator can't price: the work, the people, growth, stability and flexibility.

The calculator above does steps 1–7 for you. Step 8 is yours.

1. Put every offer in the same units

Offers arrive in different shapes: an hourly rate here, a salary there, "OTE" for a sales role. Turn each one into yearly gross pay. For hourly pay, multiply by the hours you'll realistically work — the hourly to salary calculator does this. Don't compare a biweekly paycheck with a semi-monthly one: there are 26 of the first and 24 of the second.

2. Separate guaranteed pay from "maybe" pay

The most common mistake is adding a target bonus to a base salary and calling it your pay. A target is what the employer aims to pay if goals are met; it can pay less, or nothing. Label every component:

3. Split the first year from later years

A sign-on bonus is paid once, so it makes year one look better than every year after. Equity with a one-year cliff pays nothing until the first anniversary — and nothing at all if you leave before it. A first-year bonus may be prorated if you start mid-year. Compare first-year cash and ongoing yearly cash side by side; the calculator shows both.

Guaranteed recurring cash + guaranteed one-time cash = first-year guaranteed cash

In the example, Offer B's sign-on lifts year one to $102,000, but from year two its guaranteed cash is $92,000.

4. Value equity honestly

Equity can be the biggest number in an offer and the least certain. Before giving it any weight, find out:

• What kind it is. Restricted stock units (RSUs) at a public company have a market price today, though it moves. Stock options are worth only the amount the share price ends up above the exercise price. Private-company equity may not be sellable for years.
• The vesting schedule and cliff. A common pattern is four years with a one-year cliff, but terms vary.
• How the stated value was calculated — at what share price or valuation, and on what date.

The calculator spreads your estimate evenly over the vesting years, shows it separately from cash, and labels it an estimate. If the cliff is longer than 12 months, first-year equity is shown as zero.

5. Count benefits — and what they cost you

Two offers with the same salary can leave you with very different amounts once benefits are counted. Health coverage is usually the biggest item. KFF's 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey reports that covered workers contributed on average $1,440 a year for single coverage and $6,850 for family coverage, toward average total premiums of $9,325 and $26,993 (a third-party survey estimate, not your cost). Ask each employer what you would pay for the coverage level you need, and enter that figure.

Retirement contributions from the employer (a match or a fixed contribution) are real money but usually come with conditions — you may need to contribute yourself, and contributions may vest over time. Enter the amount you expect to receive and note the conditions. Paid time off has value too: the PTO value calculator shows what those paid days are worth, and the commute calculator shows what an office schedule costs in time and money.

6. Count your time

Salary divided by hours is the number that most often flips a comparison. A higher salary with longer hours and a daily commute can pay less per hour of your life than a lower salary that's remote.

(260 weekdays − PTO days − paid holidays) × (hours per week ÷ 5) = yearly work hours

Commute hours = one-way minutes × 2 × office days per week × weeks worked ÷ 60.

We show guaranteed cash per hour worked, and per hour worked plus commuting. We never turn your time into dollars unless you choose a value per hour — and even then it's reported separately, not mixed into pay.

7. Stress-test the gap: "what would have to be true?"

When one offer has more guaranteed pay and the other has more upside, ask what it would take for the upside to make up the difference. The calculator answers in plain terms, using only your numbers — for example: "Offer B's variable pay would need to pay out at least 58% for its yearly cash to match Offer A's guaranteed cash." If the answer requires an unusually good year, that's useful to know.

8. Weigh what money can't measure

None of the numbers above tell you whether you'll like the work, learn from your manager or trust the company's direction. Write down what matters most to you — growth, stability, flexibility, the team, the mission — and judge each offer against that list. There's no universal right answer, which is why this tool doesn't produce a single score.

Worked example

The example offers loaded in the calculator, computed by the same code:

Offer A pays more guaranteed cash. Offer B has a bigger first year, a target bonus, equity, more paid time off and no commute — but longer hours. Which is better depends on how much you trust B's bonus and equity, and how you value time and flexibility.

Why many offer calculators mislead

When we reviewed tools that currently appear for "job offer comparison calculator", common shortcuts included adding a percentage bonus straight into total pay, treating an equity estimate like cash, averaging a sign-on bonus across years, and filling unrated factors with a neutral score before producing a recommendation. Each shortcut hides uncertainty. Our approach keeps those parts separate so you can see exactly what you're relying on.

Questions to ask before you accept

• Is the bonus guaranteed, discretionary or formula-based? What has it paid out at my level?
• When is the sign-on bonus paid, and what are the repayment terms?
• What type of equity is it, how was its value calculated, and what's the vesting schedule?
• What would I pay for health coverage at my coverage level? What's the deductible?
• How does the retirement contribution work, and when does it vest?
• What hours does the team actually work, and how many office days are expected?
• How much paid time off, and how many paid holidays?

FAQ

Should I compare offers before or after tax?

Start before tax so offers are on equal footing. If they're in different states or very different pay levels, use the paycheck calculator for federal estimates; state taxes are not yet included on this site.

How do I compare an hourly job with a salaried one?

Convert both to yearly pay for the hours you'd really work, then compare per-hour value with the salary to hourly calculator.

Is the offer with the highest total compensation the best?

Not necessarily. "Total compensation" often mixes guaranteed pay with targets and equity estimates. Compare the guaranteed part first, then decide how much the uncertain parts are worth to you.

Can I use this to negotiate?

Yes — the unknowns list is a ready-made set of questions, and the sensitivity lines show what a counteroffer would need to change.

Sources

1. 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey — Summary of Findings — KFF. Accessed October 9, 2026.