4 ms·
Ask HN: Salary negotiations: startup vs. established companies?
I have several offers from a range of companies -- early stage startups, late stage startups, FAANG companies, small companies, etc.
I've read guides on how to negotiate for each, but I'm at a loss as to how to handle a heterogenous situation like I've found myself in.
I know that I can't expect the same total comp or even base salary from the early stage startups as I can from the big companies.
So with this in mind, do I even have any leverage by telling startup recruiters that I have a much bigger FAANG offer? Is it totally unreasonable to ask for an equivalent total comp? Or would the equivalent be in asking for the same amount in equity?
- jppope 5y agoJust go where you want to work and try to get the comp that you want.
- rmk 5y agoLater stage startups are able to compete successfully against FAANGs on many occasions, particularly if they're pre-IPO. Early-stage startups are less likely to be able to do this. But then, the motivation for joining an early-stage company would be quite different from that for joining a late-stage startup, so you need to have concrete ideas as to what you want: the compensation with lower risk, or other benefits with lower compensation and higher risk.
- throwawayyyy101 5y agoLate stage here means series D? Or earlier?
- rmk 5y agoEvery person has his own definition of what constitutes a late-stage company. For me, a company qualifies as late-stage if any of the following are true: 1. The company has filed their S-1 (including confidentially, but there are rumors). 2. The company needs funding to grow their marketshare; the fundamental product-market fit has been proven and the unit-economics may be favorable now or soon, so the capital is needed purely to grow the business. 3. The company is profitable already and simply wants to be a publicly traded company, and the discipline it brings.