Negotiate remote work

Put remote days, location, and location-based pay in the conversation when salary is not the only term that matters.

Currency Base salary Annual base, before bonus. Annual bonus Expected cash bonus for the year, not a percent. Equity, yearly value A yearly value you believe. Leave blank if you will not treat it as cash. Equity terms Your target The number you would accept, not a padded one. That target is Role Optional. Used so the script can name the job.

What you can say honestly I have a competing offer I can describe Competing offer, in your words Leave this blank if you do not have one. The script will not invent it. Scope you can defend Current total pay Optional. Spoken only if you check the box below. I will say this current-pay number. It is the real one. Market data you will cite

Channel Tone

The script updates on this page. These boxes are not uploaded.

Your script

Base $150,000. Annual bonus $15,000. Equity yearly value $20,000.

Priced total: $185,000.

Target total compensation: $195,000.

Target is $10,000 above the priced figure, about 5.4%.

Opener

Thank you for the offer. I am interested in the software engineer role, and I want to talk through compensation while the package is still open.

Anchor and justification

I am targeting $195,000 in total compensation.

From what I can price today: $150,000 base, $15,000 bonus, $20,000 as the yearly equity value I am willing to count.

That priced total is $185,000. I am asking for $10,000 more, about 5.4%, which is my target and not a padded number.

The market check I can cite is that published ranges for this level in my city sit around $180,000 to $200,000 total. The scope I can defend is this. I have done this work remotely and on site. I want the policy in writing.

Name the target once. Do not raise it on the spot, and do not apologize for it.

If they say this is our best offer

I hear you, and I appreciate you saying it directly. If this base is the ceiling, I still want to see whether a signing bonus, the equity grant, or the level can move. If none of those can, I will decide on the package as it stands rather than ask the same question again.

Thank them before you ask what else can move. Then wait.

If they say the budget is fixed

Understood. A salary band is often fixed once the level is fixed. Signing bonuses and equity grants sometimes sit outside that annual budget. Is either of those actually open? If both are closed, what does a pay review look like in six months, and what would have to be true for the level to change?

Ask one question, then stop. A list of demands sounds like you did not hear them.

If they ask for your current salary

I would rather keep this on the pay for this role. A prior salary is a different job, and in some places an employer should not ask. The number I am using here is $195,000.

I am not going to invent a current salary, and I am not required to answer with one.

You can decline. If you answer, use the real number.

Non-salary asks

If salary cannot move the whole way, I will ask about other terms I actually want. I will start with the remote policy.

Remote work matters to me. I would like the written policy: which days, which locations are allowed, and whether pay changes with location.

I would like to confirm paid time off: the number of days, whether they are accrued, and what happens to unused days.

I can start on a date I can keep. If you need someone sooner, tell me the real date and I will say yes or no, rather than agree and then slip.

If base cannot reach the target, I would like to talk about a signing bonus that closes part of the first-year gap. I want the amount, and any payback terms, in writing.

On equity, I would like the grant size, the vesting schedule, the cliff, and what happens to vested shares if I leave. If these are options, I also want the last independent valuation and how long I have to exercise after I leave. I will not treat a percentage as cash.

I would like to know how refresh grants work here: whether they happen on a schedule, what they depend on, and whether this offer is only the initial grant.

Pick the two you care about. You do not have to read all six.

Closing

I would like to get to yes. If $195,000 is possible, I can move forward. If it is not, I am open to a different mix of base, bonus, and equity that lands in the same place. What is the next step on your side?

Email version

Subject: Compensation for the software engineer role

Hello,

Thank you for the offer. I am interested in the software engineer role, and I want to talk through compensation while the package is still open.

I am targeting $195,000 in total compensation.

From what I can price today: $150,000 base, $15,000 bonus, $20,000 as the yearly equity value I am willing to count.

That priced total is $185,000. I am asking for $10,000 more, about 5.4%, which is my target and not a padded number.

Remote work matters to me. I would like the written policy: which days, which locations are allowed, and whether pay changes with location.

Thank you,

[Your name]

Remote work is a compensation term when it changes where you can live, how often you travel, or whether pay is cut for a location. It is a weak substitute for a large salary gap, and a serious term when the policy is vague. This page leads the non-salary section with remote work and sets the channel to email so the policy can be quoted back.

Get the policy

Ask which days are in an office, which locations are allowed, and whether pay changes if you move. “We’re flexible” is not a policy. A sentence that names days and cities is. If a move would cut pay, you need that formula before you accept, not after you have signed a lease.

Ask who can change the policy later. A team norm and a company rule are different. If the company can recall everyone to an office, your offer is an office offer with a temporary exception. You can still accept it. You should know which one it is.

Keep the salary target in the same note. Do not let the remote question replace the number if the number is still wrong. The script states the target first, then the remote ask. Delete the remote paragraph if you do not actually need it.

Questions

Can I trade salary for more remote days?

You can propose it if you would truly take the lower cash. Do not propose it as a test. Say the trade you would accept.

Updated 2026-10-08. Wording help, not legal advice.