Job Postings Hide the Salary Range

“They have a salary range posted at the very top, but then there’s a “max compensation” amount they will not exceed… so why even have the range listed? I waste a minute reading through to find that the range isn’t really what I expected. This is a government listing but I have also seen it with other private companies as well. What are your thoughts? submitted by /u/FitStatistician5218 [link] [comments]”

“It’s so annoying how many jobs don’t list the range they are willing to pay. I just have to guess if it’s worth my time to apply to like half of the posted jobs. submitted by /u/According-Feeling705 [link] [comments]”

The best way to know is ask - if you score an interview.

submitted by /u/Tentacleavage [link] [comments]

“yeah if they dont even bother to show a salary what else will they try to get away with, its a sign of more to come.”

“This is true for all postings. You really just need to focus on the lower end, that's what they'll offer you”

“But what if they post a range that is misleading?”

“Yeah this is a tricky question to navigate. Definitely don’t take some of Reddit’s advice and come back with a snarky or sarcastic reply… Personally, I give a very small range or flat number (e.g. $105k-$115k), but I follow up by reassuring that see compensation as more than just the base. There are benefits, mobility, and incentive compensations and more to consider. There is a lot that makes a salary ‘right’. I also always state that if my number creates any hesitancy please talk to me. I’m al”

“For me at least this would be a hard no. Assuming your current salary is competitive they’re not even offering you a competitive salary”

“Yeah it’s really hard to navigate in this market. A lot of companies ask for a range on the application form as a required field too I have taken the approach you’ve outlined in your post during interviews”

“TL;DR: I’m currently employed making upper-$60s and have spent about a month interviewing for a role with a small company with a posted range of ~$60k–$85k. After multiple rounds, they’re preparing an offer. I’m pregnant (not yet disclosed) and would ideally negotiate ~$82k, 12 weeks fully paid maternity leave in writing, and changes to a broad noncompete. I’m also trying to determine whether some things during the interview process — particularly an hour-long interview with the COO that focused”

“nobody hires at the max of the range. Midpoint is where they target. max of the range is for internals that have been there 15 yrs.”

“I applied to a job that did not post the pay range. When they emailed me Thursday to set up an interview for Monday, they asked when I was available and what my salary expectations were. I told them my availability as well as salary expectations, but realized well into Friday I hadn’t received a reply. Worried that the business would be closed on the weekend and I would not hear anything until Monday, the day of the interview and potentially seeing the email too late, I sent a follow up email as”

“So I work for a tech company, a big one, but one that isn't generally considered "prestigious". I am very well paid, but don't really enjoy the work anymore, so I started applying to see what else there is out there. I had a recruiter screen for a big tech company (one of the prestigious ones, you can probably name it), and it was going well until she asked me for my desired salary range. I told her it's early in the process, but that I saw the range on the posting and I wo”

“If they took my original first offer of 85k I’d have probably taken it no questions asked. But the contradictions and low ball offer outside the advertised range has given me pause and thrown up some red flags”

“I’ve just been offered a job with a small business and I’m really torn about whether to accept it. The advertised salary range was $80k–$90k. I was offered $75k. I asked whether they would consider $80k, but they said because I don’t have enough experience in some areas of bookkeeping, they want to keep the offer at $75k. They also said if I wasn’t comfortable with that, they would need to consider their other candidate. For context, I currently earn $80k in a finance role and have several years”

“Background: Interviewing with a large company for a role that advertised base pay as 275-300K. Got to the end and recruiter says that the most they can offer is 280. I reminded him of my experience, qualifications etc. and told him I was entertaining offers in the range of 300-325 so obviously I’d be at least at the top of their range. He then said that that would be impossible due to salary equity at the company etc. My question is Why?! Why do companies advertise some bullshit range they aren’”

“Hi all I’m curious on people’s perspective on salary negotiation. Mostly because I have a bad habit of not trying to. I got a job offer. The posted range was around a 30k pay band and they gave me an initial offer 6k below the ceiling of it. I’m wondering if I should ask if there’s wiggle room or not. It’s a bit lower than what I currently make but I already knew that and it has lifestyle trade offs. However, the benefits costs are 2.5 times higher than my current rates for the same level of ben”

“I received a new grad engineering offer from a Southern California defense startup for $107.5k base plus equity in ISOs. The posted salary range for the engineer position is $105k–$140k. I’m currently interning at the company and would return full-time in June 2027. Between now and then, I’ll also be doing a three-month engineering internship at SpaceX before finishing school. They also mentioned a possible $2.5k–$5k relocation stipend since I already live in Southern California, but nothing has”

“I received a new grad engineering offer from a Southern California startup for $107.5k base plus equity in ISOs. The posted salary range for the engineer position is $105k–$140k. I’m currently interning at the company and would return full-time in June 2027. Between now and then, I’ll also be doing a three-month engineering internship at SpaceX before finishing school. They also mentioned a possible $2.5k–$5k relocation stipend since I already live in Southern California, but nothing has been pu”

“I received a new grad engineering offer from a Southern California startup for $107.5k base plus equity in ISOs. The posted salary range for the engineer position is $105k–$140k. I’m currently interning at the company and would return full-time in June 2027. Between now and then, I’ll also be doing a three-month engineering internship at SpaceX before finishing school. They also mentioned a possible $2.5k–$5k relocation stipend since I already live in Southern California, but nothing has been pu”

“I recently got rejected from a job on Indeed because my salary was out of their un-posted range. No interview, no negotiation, just an auto-rejection email. They literally asked me to guess a random number, then denied me when I guessed incorrectly.”

“The should not apply section is a bit of an eye roll or red flag. With the should not apply section, I probably wouldn't apply if this posting doesn't have the actual salary range. Salary and benefits is usually how I filter jobs as it really tells you how the company views the role and more broadly it's employees. I usually never apply for roles that don't have the salary range included in the job posting.”

“I’ve been looking mostly on LinkedIn. Some examples of ranges are $226,000 - $533,000 and $186,000-$363,000 and $236,500-$449,300. The last time I was looking at jobs in this field (it’s kind of adjacent to what I’m currently doing) average comp was in the low 2s. Do you think they’re just advertising a higher potential to reel people in but they’re only going to offer at the bottom of the range? submitted by /u/Ok-Bear7221 [link] [comments]”

“Hello, I had a 3rd round interview with Global Director of Program management on 8/3/26. I thought I did well during initial, 2nd round and 3rd round interview. On 8/13/26 HR asked for my salary expectations from and I said the middle of the posted range. I followed up with them on 8/21/26 for any updates at 9-10am Today is 8/31/26 and I have heard nothing back from them. Does this mean I am essentially ghosted and should not expect an offer? I am extremely anxious and worried because I wanted i”

“Hello, I had a 3rd round interview with Global Director of Program management on 8/3/26. I thought I did well during initial, 2nd round and 3rd round interview. On 8/13/26 HR asked for my salary expectations from and I said the middle of the posted range. I followed up with them on 8/21/26 for any updates at 9-10am Today is 8/31/26 and I have heard nothing back from them. Does this mean I am essentially ghosted and should not expect an offer? I am extremely anxious and worried because I wanted i”

“Hello, I had a 3rd round interview with Global Director of Program management on 8/3/26. I thought I did well during initial, 2nd round and 3rd round interview. On 8/13/26 HR asked for my salary expectations from and I said the middle of the posted range. I followed up with them on 8/21/26 for any updates at 9-10am Today is 8/31/26 and I have heard nothing back from them. Does this mean I am essentially ghosted and should not expect an offer? I am extremely anxious and worried because I wanted i”

“Hello, I had a 3rd round interview with Global Director of Program management on 8/3/26. I thought I did well during initial, 2nd round and 3rd round interview. On 8/13/26 HR asked for my salary expectations from and I said the middle of the posted range. I followed up with them on 8/21/26 for any updates at 9-10am Today is 8/31/26 and I have heard nothing back from them. Does this mean I am essentially ghosted and should not expect an offer? I am extremely anxious and worried because I wanted i”

“Hello, I had a 3rd round interview with Global Director of Program management on 8/3/26. I thought I did well during initial, 2nd round and 3rd round interview. On 8/13/26 HR asked for my salary expectations from and I said the middle of the posted range. I followed up with them on 8/21/26 for any updates at 9-10am Today is 8/31/26 and I have heard nothing back from them. Does this mean I am essentially ghosted and should not expect an offer? I am extremely anxious and worried because I wanted i”

“I applied for a specialist position with a company. During the hr screen, they said that they were able to pay somewhere between the 40th and 60th percentile of the listed range. Based on my research, that seemed fair. I said that we were in the same ballpark and proceeded to interview. After the interview, I received an offer. They upped the title to sr. Specialist. However the offered salary was exactly at the 50th percentile of the lower specialist level. It’s around the 30th percentile of th”

“I made the mistake of not providing a salary range when the company asked me for base pay expectations, and there was no salary range on the job listing. The company offered me 10k more than I asked for, but when I shared my target base pay, I had no information on benefits (health insurance, 401k), which are practically nonexistent. Now that I have the full picture of the benefits, can I still negotiate for more? Assuming they offered me 10k more to offset the lack of benefits, but there are vi”

“I made the mistake of not providing a salary range when the company asked me for base pay expectations, and there was no salary range on the job listing. The company offered me 10k more than I asked for, but when I shared my target base pay, I had no information on benefits (health insurance, 401k), which are practically nonexistent. Now that I have the full picture of the benefits, can I still negotiate for more? Assuming they offered me 10k more to offset the lack of benefits, but there are vi”

“being upfront is literally posting the salary range instead of having it come to a time waste over emails.”

“I applied for a job as an Onboarding Manager (AKA Implementation Manager). These positions typically pay $75,000 - $95,000 per year. I was making $94,000 at my last job. If employers want to hire people and pay below market rate, that's their prerogative. However, they would save time, and potential applicants would save time, if they include the salary in the job posting. submitted by /u/LurkingandPosting [link] [comments]”

“I’ve never worked with a recruiter before and I stupidly applied for a position through one with no listed salary range. Recruiter asked the lowest I would accept. I told her that was private but my target is . . . . She came back and said my target was outside the budget could I go lower? I said thanks but I’m not interested unless they give a salary range. Finally got a salary range and went ahead with the interview. Interview went well but now the recruiter is repeatedly asking the lowest I’l”

“"The pay range is a lot lower than my current salary though." More than posted range is hard. A lot more than posted range is usually going to be fantasy.”

“Has anyone asked for a lot more than the posted salary range? I'm assuming I wouldn't get passed up on if I tried. submitted by /u/Next_Fig_7057 [link] [comments]”

“You can check to the website where you have seen the job offer, see if there is salary range or you can also search for a similar job that has description on it, then compare it to other offers. Doing that, you will have idea how much it is worth”

“Looking to see if this is normal. I have 10 years of experience in a relatively niche field (read: hard to find jobs that match outside of my original company). I stumbled upon a job post for a VERY close match and was thrilled, so I applied. They reached out within a day to setup a phone screen. It went well, but when she got to the salary, it got weird. The starting range listed was $24-34/ hr. I told her I'd need to be closer to $33-34 and with my experience, it didn't seem crazy. Whe”

“Basically the title. This is for a software engineering position specializing in AI agents. There’s very little data available on what this company pays for similar roles, and they won’t give me a salary range. I’m currently unemployed and don’t have any other offers, so I’m trying to be careful. I don’t want to lowball myself, but I also don’t want to ask for too much and risk having them pull the offer. What do I do here? submitted by /u/Desperate_Plenty_175 [link] [comments]”

“Just received my first offer post grad (search has been brutal since May). I also just got my EAD card for initial OPT. It’s a remote job and they have offered 70k with no bonuses at all. The posted range was 70-90k but it’s an entry level role so I was expecting to be in the lower half of the range (they even told me that). However, when the director of finance asked, I said ideally I would like 80k but can work around a 75-80k range. My question is, given the current market and also the uncert”

“Thank you for a fantastic reply!!! I appreciate it. I've found some jobs do post the range for that specific role and then also include a range that is for a wider net. As you mentioned, an "approximate" for that type of role. I totally agree, doesn't hurt to ask.”

“WHY are jobs posting roles, and not the salary range? I'm finding this more and more common. Then when you ask the recruiter or HM, they go silent. As much as I love to work, I need money to live lol. What am I missing? submitted by /u/Elizwheeler22 [link] [comments]”

“I’m at the end of the interview process and having the compensation discussion tomorrow with HR. The advertised pay range is 110-130k. I want 140k. Is it reasonable to ask for 10k more than the max pay range? Has anybody done that? My experience exceeds the JD. submitted by /u/we-meet-again [link] [comments]”

“This morning I got a job offer for a Development Associate position within Higher Ed Advancement. The posted range was 50-84k, they offered me 64K on the call. Im an alumni of the institution but this would be my first job out of college, I don't have direct fundraising experience but I make up for that in my data analysis/management skills from my Econ degree and years of customer facing experience. I live in an expensive city in the states and was hoping to get closer to 70K. During the fi”

“I understand that logic, for sure, but when it comes to advertising a position as paying between $x and $y, the implication is that an experienced candidate could reasonably expect to be hired at $y”

“If the salary range isn't provided in the role listing and I'm interested enough, I'll reach out by email and ask them. If the range meets might requirements/value, then I'll apply. If not, I'll move on. And if they don't answer my question, I won't pursue it.”

“Put yout acceptable range with the low end the lowest you're comfortable with. This is how you self select out if they're not willing to pay that, but at the same time you could be leaving money on the table. But that's the risk you take. If it only allows one number and no range, put yout median. Lastly, go to their glass door and look at the salary ranges posted for the role. Not all companies, but most have some posted.”

“I applied for a marketing role earlier this week that looked pretty normal on paper. The job description had the usual vague stuff about collaboration, managing campaigns, working with different teams, etc. No salary range listed, but that unfortunately isn't unusual, so I applied anyway. This morning I got an email from the recruiter saying they were "excited to move me forward" and the next step is to record a 5 minute video introducing myself, explaining my background, why I wan”

“I’ve been looking and interviewing for jobs since last November. FINALLY made some progress… I’m in the final round interview (total of 5 rounds) this week. The posted salary range is $90k-$110k. If asked what my expected salary is, do I go in at the lower end just to get into the company? I’m sure there are/is another candidate(s) on their final round with me too, so I don’t want to over-price myself. Part of me says to negotiate towards the middle of the range, but part says to go in at the bo”

“I have a few interviews coming up, and today I had one where the salary range was about $60k wide. Based on the job description and the fact that I’ve been working in this field for 5 years now, I felt like asking for somewhere around the middle of the range was fair. Unfortunately, I didn’t negotiate when I accepted my current role after undergrad, and over the last 5 years my promotions have only increased my salary by about $20k total. When the recruiter asked for my salary expectations, I ga”

“The "competitive salary" line is such a red flag at this point. If a company won't tell you the range upfront, they usually know it's bad and are hoping you either don't know your worth or are desperate enough to take whatever they offer. I had this exact dance on a remote role last year. Three rounds in, finally asked about comp and got "we're flexible based on experience" with a straight face. I just stopped responding. Funny how "flexible" always”

“I never answer that question. They will tell me their range and I will tell them if their range is acceptable, otherwise they are not a good fit. It's also a red flag. If they are trying to get the best deal, they don't care about quality and will never give you adequate raises. It also tends to mean you will work with incompetent people, as they are the only ones who stick around.”

“Some states haves passed laws that require companies to post their salary bands. It’s pretty insulting that companies don’t just do that as the bare minimum.”

“I had a phone interview with a recruiter and she asked me what my salary requirements were and I told her and it was certainly within range of the salary range that was posted for the job. She let me know that they would not be paying that much since it's towards the upper end of the salary range and that they're only going to pay towards the lower half. It was a total waste of my time. I told her I wasn't interested. I saw another job ad that said remote but when I was reading throu”

“ask their range first if you can, something like “what budget do you have for this role” then anchor a bit above midpoint of local us rates for your level, not 20hr. glassdoor levels.fyi etc help. sucks cause finding anything decent now is pain”

“"purely based on resume" Its not? If I have the most exceptional resume and interview in the world are you going to offer me 50mil or something? You already know the range. So you can easily specify instead of hiding the minimum wage you want to give people.”

Pay range: $0.00-00,000,000.00

“If a job posting shows a range, or a benefit like being hybrid, it should be illegal for a potential employer to change that after the fact. Just had a first round interview go from posted range to max pay being well below the posted range, and the expectation being in office despite the posting still showing it is a hybrid role. I had to point out to the interviewer that the posting still shows its hybrid. Clearly attention to details isn’t their strong suit…. Sigh End rant. submitted by”