Salary negotiation

What’s actually negotiable

Three layers that vary in flexibility:

• Base salary: usually the focus. SMBs typically have 5-15% room above the offered base if the band allows it.
• Variable / bonus structure: occasionally negotiable for senior roles. Less flexible at SMB scale because the structure is usually team-wide.
• Equity, signing bonus, start date, vacation: often more negotiable than base. The total-comp framing matters here.

Strong negotiators play across all three layers. Negotiating only on base leaves money on the table.

What candidates often get wrong

• Negotiating without a number: “what’s the most you can offer?” gives the employer all the leverage. Stating a target (“I’d be very comfortable at €95k”) frames the conversation.
• Threatening to walk away when they wouldn’t: ultimatums that are obvious bluffs damage trust without producing offers.
• Negotiating after accepting: once “yes” has been said, the leverage is gone. Negotiate before accepting, not after.

What employers often get wrong

• Reflexive flat “no”: refusing to negotiate at all on a strong candidate is the easiest way to lose them. Even small movement signals respect.
• Anchoring on the candidate’s prior salary: now illegal to ask in much of the EU and operationally bad practice anyway.
• Counter-offer panic: when a candidate negotiates, the employer assumes another offer exists. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t; assuming inflates the spend.

The honest middle

A reasonable negotiation has both sides showing some flexibility and arriving within the band. A candidate who pushes from €80k to €85k on a band that tops at €92k is being reasonable; one who pushes to €110k is signalling they’re not the right fit.

Where Join fits

Salary bands surface during offer drafting in Join, with one click to apply the candidate’s negotiated number. The team sees where in the band the offer sits before sending. See the features page.