All of that assumes that the bonus is actually paid. There are two cases where this isn't an issue: when the bonus is literally guaranteed (which tends only to

All of that assumes that the bonus is actually paid. There are two cases where this isn't an issue: when the bonus is literally guaranteed (which tends only to be true of signing bonuses), or when the bonus is contingent on objective criteria you control, such as completing a particular project, or selling a certain number of accounts. Otherwise, a bonus is based on some combination of company performance (which is probably out of your control) and management whim. If management expects to issue the bonus every year, there's no rational cause to offer a larger bonus rather than a salary increase.