Another semi-related tip I've given is: Go out there and interview with other companies, even if you aren't seriously looking. You can get an idea of the marke

Another semi-related tip I've given is: Go out there and interview with other companies, even if you aren't seriously looking. You can get an idea of the market for your skills, and - perhaps more importantly for this thread - possible salaries. A wealth of knowledge can be learned this way, and may give you some leverage for salary negotiations. BTW, you probably don't want to tell your manager you've been interviewing and therefore, know your salary could be $NNN. Err on giving less information and word it as, "I know companies ABC and XYZ are offering salaries in the $NNN-NNN range." Then you can follow up with tptacek's advise, "That's my target. What can I do to reach that?" I do this periodically, though I try not to abuse it or waste anyone's time with a company I have no interest in whatsoever. There's a fine line here. I don't mean to advocate wasting anyone's time, and never do this with startups. It's a small industry and someone could catch wind that you're interviewing just for the sake of interviewing. I find this tactic more useful with large corporations. And used judiciously, it can be advantageous.