well, the fact that you don't have another offer does not change the negotiation much. They want to hire you so you should use that as a leverage. It's relative

well, the fact that you don't have another offer does not change the negotiation much. They want to hire you so you should use that as a leverage. It's relatively straightforward. solution 1) Tell them you won't join unless they revise the salary. Be ready for them to refuse. solution 2) If you are willing to join with this salary, tell them you expect a higher salary and talk with them. Ask them why they won't match the local average. There is no negotiation if you don't talk. Maybe you'll learn the reason they can't match. Otherwise they'll realize that you are really serious about the bump but that you can negotiate. If they still refuse the raise, do not just accept the job. They will feel they owe you something because you were refused what you asked. Accept the job and immediately ask for something else. They will probably give it to you (should it be a specific laptop configuration, Giants tickets, arranged work schedule, whatever..) These solutions are the same with an offer in hand and bear the same risk too: they can refuse. Also, at that point in the negotiations, you should bypass the recruiter if he/she is a contractor. Ask to talk to the hiring director directly. If you're in Silicon Valley, it won't be long before you find a great company anyway.