Guides

Practical, original articles on reading pay data, comparing offers, and negotiating — written to help you use the calculators and country reports without treating a chart as a decision.

• How Pay by Role sources salary dataHow Pay by Role sources salary data: observed vs modeled city pay, public labour-market APIs, and why uncovered country–job medians are never invented.12 min read
• How to read a salary range (p10, median, and p90)Learn how to read a salary range: what p10, median, and p90 mean, how to place an offer, and the mistakes that make a wide band look like a promise.11 min read
• Salary vs cost of living: how to compare cities fairlyCompare salary vs cost of living across cities: COL-adjusted pay, rent as a share of take-home, taxes, and when a price index helps or misleads you.12 min read
• How to negotiate a job offer with salary dataNegotiating a job offer with salary data: prepare a walk-away number, cite local percentiles, pick a backup lever, and close without burning goodwill.13 min read
• Remote work and location-based pay, explainedRemote work and location-based pay: geo bands, what to ask before you move, and how to compare the same job across cities after tax and living costs.12 min read
• Take-home pay explained: gross vs net salaryTake-home pay explained: gross vs net on Pay by Role, what simplified tax models include, and why our net figures often run higher than a real payslip.13 min read
• When to trust salary data (and when not to)When to trust salary data: job-post red flags, survey bias, observed vs modeled city pages, and when to ask HR for the budgeted band instead of a chart.14 min read
• Changing careers and pay: how to benchmark a switchChanging careers and pay: benchmark peer occupations, expect seniority cuts, and compare old vs new roles one variable at a time before you resign.13 min read
• Understanding pay index and cost-of-living indexUnderstanding pay index and COL index on Pay by Role city pages: how modeled estimates use them, and the mistakes that double-count or invent cash.12 min read
• How employers set salary bands (and how to use that)How employers set salary bands: leveling, geo differentials, equity vs cash, and why public percentiles inform an ask but do not override internal rules.14 min read
• Comparing two job offers: cash, tax, and riskA step-by-step way to compare two packages on cash, tax, location, and risk — without mixing seniority or treating equity as guaranteed salary.13 min read
• What a competitive salary actually meansWhy “market rate” is not a single number, how to use percentiles instead of averages, and when a below-median offer can still be a rational trade.12 min read
• Salary vs contractor vs hourly payHow to convert employee salary, hourly wages, and contractor rates into a comparable annual number — and why benefits and unpaid time change the math.12 min read
• Inflation, raises, and real payHow to tell whether a raise beat prices, how we use CPI context on country pages, and why a promotion can still feel like a pay cut after rent.11 min read
• Relocating for a job: a money checklistWhat to cost before you accept a move — wages, taxes, housing, and one-time expenses — and how to use city salary pages without fooling yourself.13 min read
• First-job and early-career payHow to read occupation medians when you are entry-level, where intern and graduate offers usually sit on the chart, and how not to anchor on senior bands.12 min read
• Bonus, overtime, and total compensationHow to separate base, bonus, overtime, and equity so you can place a package on a salary chart without counting money you might never see this year.12 min read
• Research pay before you share your numberHow to walk into a screening call with a range from public wage data, what to say if they ask for current salary, and how to avoid anchoring yourself low.11 min read
• Asking for a raise with market dataHow to build a raise case from scope and local percentiles, when to wait for compensation cycle, and how to name a number without turning it into a threat.13 min read
• Why the same job pays differently by cityIndustry mix, housing, labour supply, and pay indexes — how to read city-to-city salary gaps on Pay by Role without treating every difference as a conspiracy.12 min read
• Reading a payslip against a salary pageHow to map gross, deductions, and net on a real payslip to the figures on Pay by Role — and why they will not match to the dollar in practice.11 min read
• Using salary calculators without fooling yourselfWhat each Pay by Role calculator is for, which numbers to type, and the mistakes that turn a useful estimate into a bad offer decision for you.11 min read
• Job-hopping vs staying: the pay mathWhen changing jobs raises pay faster than internal raises, when staying still compounds, and how to use local percentiles so you are not guessing.12 min read

Prefer the methodology summary? See About & methodology. Figures are estimates — read the disclaimer.