Latest / The Tech Career Podcast with Fexingo: Engineering Jobs, Interviews, and FAANG Career Strategy / How to Negotiate Your First Engineering Salary
Transcript
- Lucas: So you get your first engineering offer. You're excited — maybe a little relieved — and the number looks pretty good. But here's the thing: the first number is almost never the final number. And most early-career engineers leave tens of thousands of dollars on the table because they don't negotiate. Luna: I've definitely been there. I remember my first offer out of college — I was just grateful someone wanted to hire me. The idea of asking for more felt almost rude. Lucas: Right, and that feeling is incredibly common. But the data is pretty clear. A study from 2024 looked at over 10,000 tech offers and found that candidates who negotiated increased their total compensation by an average of 12 percent. For someone starting at $100,000, that's an extra $12,000 a year — just from having a conversation. Luna: Twelve percent is significant. But I bet a lot of that comes from people who focus only on base salary, right? Lucas: Exactly. That same study found that engineers who negotiated only on base salary improved their offer by about 6 percent on average. But those who also pushed on equity and signing bonus saw their total package jump closer to 15 to 20 percent. The mistake is treating base salary as the only lever. Luna: So where do you even start? If you're a bootcamp grad or you're coming from a non-traditional background, you might not have a ton of leverage. Lucas: There's a great case I want to walk through. A friend of mine graduated from a coding bootcamp last year — no CS degree, no prior engineering job. He got an offer from a Series B startup in Austin for $85,000 base, plus options. He negotiated it up to $110,000 base, a $15,000 signing bonus, and 50 percent more equity. Luna: That's a massive jump. How did he do it? Lucas: First, he didn't say yes on the call. He thanked them, said he was excited, and asked for 48 hours to review the offer. That's the single most important move — create space. Then he did three things: he researched market data, he prepared a specific script, and he practiced that script out loud. Luna: Let's break each of those down. What kind of market data did he use? Lucas: He used Levels.fyi and the Blind app to find salary bands for similar roles at comparable startups in Austin. He also reached out to two alumni from his bootcamp who worked at companies of similar size and stage. He didn't just say 'I want more money' — he came with a specific number: $110,000 was the 50th percentile for his role and experience level in that market. Luna: So he anchored with data, not emotion. That's smart. What did his script look like? Lucas: He called the recruiter and said something like: 'I'm really excited about the team and the product. I've been reviewing the offer, and I want to make this work. Based on my research for similar roles in Austin, the market range for this position is $105,000 to $120,000. Is there flexibility on the base salary?' Short, respectful, and backed by data. Luna: And the recruiter just said yes? Lucas: Not immediately. The recruiter said she'd check and came back with $95,000. That's when he used the second script: 'I appreciate you coming up, but I was hoping to get closer to $110,000. Is there anything we can do on base, or maybe we could adjust the signing bonus or equity?' Notice he didn't just accept the first counter. Luna: That's a good point — the first counter is often still not the final offer. I think a lot of people stop there because they feel like they've already pushed. Lucas: Right. And in this case, the recruiter came back with $110,000 base, plus the signing bonus and extra equity. The whole process took four days. But here's the part I want to emphasize: he was polite and collaborative the entire time. He never said 'I need this or I walk.' He framed it as 'I want to make this work, can we find a way?' Luna: That's a really useful distinction. But I want to be honest — even with a script, the fear of losing the offer is real. How do you handle that anxiety? Lucas: It's real, and it's rational. But the research shows that the risk is very small. A study from Harvard Business Review found that only about 1 in 10 offers are actually withdrawn because of negotiation. And in tech, it's even lower because companies expect it. Recruiters told me off the record that they factor in a 10 to 15 percent buffer for negotiation. Luna: So if you don't ask, you're essentially leaving that buffer on the table. That's a helpful way to think about it. Lucas: Exactly. And if the company withdraws an offer just because you respectfully asked for more, that's probably a red flag about the culture anyway. You might have dodged a bullet. Luna: Before we move on, I want to touch on something you mentioned earlier — equity. A lot of early-career engineers don't really understand how to value options, especially at a startup. How do you negotiate something you can't easily price? Lucas: That's a great question, and it's the area where people leave the most money on the table. The first thing is to ask for the details: how many shares are outstanding, what's the strike price, what's the 409A valuation. You can use that data to calculate the percentage of the company you'd own. A good rule of thumb for a Series B company is that an early engineer might get 0.1 to 0.5 percent. If they're offering less than that, you can ask for more. Luna: And you can negotiate the number of options separately from the base salary. That's key. Lucas: Right. A lot of people think 'I already asked for a higher base, I can't ask for more equity.' But those are separate buckets. Companies often have more flexibility on equity than on cash, especially at startups that are conserving runway. So you can absolutely say: 'I understand the base is tight, but could we increase the option grant by 25 percent?' Luna: And signing bonuses — those are another lever. Especially if base salary is capped. Lucas: Yeah, signing bonuses are often easier to move because they're a one-time cost. If a company can't raise the base to $120,000, they might be willing to do $110,000 plus a $10,000 signing bonus. That's still a better total package for you in the first year. Luna: If today's episode was useful to you and you want to keep it ad-free, buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo helps. It's a small way to support the show and keep these conversations accessible to everyone. Lucas: Yeah, we really appreciate that. And now let's talk about what happens when you're negotiating with a big company like a FAANG — because the dynamics are different. Luna: How so? Lucas: At a large company, the recruiter has less discretion over base salary because there are strict bands. But they have more flexibility on stock and signing bonus. I've seen cases where a candidate got an extra $50,000 in restricted stock units just by asking — not because the recruiter was being generous, but because the budget for equity is separate from the budget for salary. Luna: So the strategy shifts. At startups, you negotiate everything as a package. At big companies, you focus on the components where they have wiggle room. Lucas: Exactly. And one more thing — if you have multiple offers, use them. You don't have to be aggressive about it. You can say to company A: 'I have an offer from company B that includes X. Is there anything you can do to make your offer more competitive?' That's not a threat; it's a fact. Luna: Does that work even if company B is not a direct competitor? Lucas: Absolutely. Recruiters understand that candidates shop around. The key is to be honest. Don't fabricate an offer. But if you have a real competing offer, share the details — it gives the recruiter ammunition to go to their compensation committee and ask for more. Luna: What about timing? When during the interview process should you start talking about compensation? Lucas: Early, but not too early. In the first phone screen, it's fine to ask about the salary band for the role. Most companies will share a range. That helps you decide whether to proceed. But don't get into specifics until you have an offer in hand. Negotiating before they've decided they want you is a waste of leverage. Luna: And if the range is below your expectations, do you just bow out? Lucas: You could, but I'd recommend continuing the process anyway. Sometimes the range adjusts based on your experience, or you might learn something valuable from the interviews. Plus, you can always say no later. Luna: I want to circle back to something my friend mentioned — she negotiated once and the recruiter got a bit defensive. How do you handle a negative reaction? Lucas: Stay calm and collaborative. If the recruiter says 'This is our best and final offer,' you can say: 'I understand. I'd like to take a day to think it over.' Then consider whether you're truly okay with the offer. If not, you can politely decline. Most of the time, though, 'best and final' isn't actually final. Recruiters say that to close the negotiation. Luna: So call their bluff, but politely. Lucas: Exactly. And if you decide to walk away, do it graciously. You never know when you'll cross paths with that recruiter or hiring manager again. Luna: Let's wrap up with one actionable takeaway for our listeners. Lucas: I think the biggest one is: prepare a script, practice it out loud, and then make the call. The anxiety never fully goes away, but it gets easier with practice. And remember — the worst that happens is they say no, and you're exactly where you started. But if they say yes, you've changed your financial trajectory for years to come. Luna: That's a solid note to end on. Thanks, Lucas. Lucas: Thanks, Luna. See you next time.