A reply when a recruiter says this is our best offer. Thank them, ask what besides base can move, and know when to decide.
Sample figures are filled in so you can see the script. Replace them with your offer before you copy it.
Your script
Base $162,000. Annual bonus $0. Equity yearly value $18,000.
Priced total: $180,000.
Target total compensation: $190,000.
Target is $10,000 above the priced figure, about 5.6%.
Opener
Thank you for telling me this is your best offer for the software engineer role. I appreciate you saying it plainly, and I want to answer it once before I decide.
Say this, then stop. Let them respond before you add the number.
Anchor and justification
I am targeting $190,000 in total compensation.
From what I can price today: $162,000 base, $0 bonus, $18,000 as the yearly equity value I am willing to count.
That priced total is $180,000. I am asking for $10,000 more, about 5.6%, which is my target and not a padded number.
I am treating that as a claim about the whole package, not only the base. If a signing bonus, the equity grant, or the level can still move, I want to hear that now. If they cannot, I will decide on the offer in front of me.
The market check I can cite is that totals I have seen for this level in my city sit around $185,000 to $205,000. The scope I can defend is that the interviews had me owning a service, not shadowing one.
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 heard you say this is your best offer. If the base cannot move, I still need a direct answer on a signing bonus, the equity grant, and the level. If none of those can move, I will decide on this package rather than ask the same question again.
I also want the level in writing, so I know whether we are talking about the same job.
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 $190,000.
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 a signing bonus.
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.
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.
Pick the two you care about. You do not have to read all six.
Closing
Thank you again. I am excited about the people I have met. I will stay easy to reach while you see what is possible, and I will not drag the decision out.
Stop talking after the question. The next person to speak should be them.
Email version
Subject: Compensation for the software engineer role
Hello,
Thank you for telling me this is your best offer for the software engineer role. I appreciate you saying it plainly, and I want to answer it once before I decide.
I am targeting $190,000 in total compensation.
From what I can price today: $162,000 base, $0 bonus, $18,000 as the yearly equity value I am willing to count.
That priced total is $180,000. I am asking for $10,000 more, about 5.6%, which is my target and not a padded number.
I am treating that as a claim about the whole package, not only the base. If a signing bonus, the equity grant, or the level can still move, I want to hear that now. If they cannot, I will decide on the offer in front of me.
The market check I can cite is that totals I have seen for this level in my city sit around $185,000 to $205,000. The scope I can defend is that the interviews had me owning a service, not shadowing one.
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.
Thank you again. I am excited about the people I have met. I will stay easy to reach while you see what is possible, and I will not drag the decision out.
Thank you,
[Your name]
This page is the phone call after a recruiter says the offer will not go higher. The sample is not the counter-offer email. It is a grateful reply to “this is our best offer”: $162,000 base, no annual bonus, and $18,000 of yearly equity value, against a $190,000 total you would accept. The script thanks them for saying it plainly, names that target once, and asks whether a signing bonus, the equity grant, or the level can still move. If they cannot, it stops. Replace the figures with the offer you actually heard.
One check, then decide
If they explain the band and nothing outside it is open, you have your answer. Accept, or decline, on the package in front of you. Asking the same question in three emails does not unlock a secret band. It tells them you did not hear the first answer.
Sometimes “best” means “best base.” A signing bonus or a larger new-hire grant can exist in a different budget. That is why the script asks about those by name. If they say those are closed too, believe them unless you have a specific reason not to, such as a written policy they already shared.
Write down the answer after the call. If you accept, the letter should match what they just called the best offer, including any exception they made. If you decline, a short thanks is enough. You do not owe them a speech.
Questions
Does “best offer” always mean there is no room?
It means you should ask once what else can move, then take the answer. Some recruiters use the phrase early. The facts are in what they say about bonus, equity, and level afterward.
Updated 2026-10-08. Wording help, not legal advice.
