For Desired Salary, What Should I Put? The Ultimate Guide...

Introduction

The moment arrives in nearly every job application process. You're sailing through the online form, listing your experiences, and attaching your meticulously crafted resume. Then, you hit a small, unassuming text box with a deceptively simple label: "Desired Salary." Your heart might do a little flutter. A bead of sweat may form. Type in a number too high, and you risk pricing yourself out of consideration before you even get a chance to interview. Type in a number too low, and you could be leaving tens of thousands of dollars on the table over the next few years. So, for desired salary, what should you put?

This question is more than just a box to fill; it's the opening move in a strategic negotiation that will define your financial well-being at a new company. Getting it right is a skill—one that can be learned, practiced, and mastered. The potential upside is enormous. Answering this question strategically can be the difference between a good offer and a life-changing one. A well-researched, confident answer sets the tone for the entire hiring process, positioning you as a high-value professional who understands their worth in the market.

As a career analyst who has coached hundreds of professionals through offer negotiations, I once worked with a talented marketing manager who, when faced with this box, put down the exact same salary she was making at her current, underpaying job. She received an offer for that exact amount. Through coaching, she learned how to re-address the conversation, armed with market data. She successfully renegotiated an offer $22,000 higher than her initial ask. This isn't a rare anomaly; it's the tangible result of knowing how to answer this single, critical question.

This guide is designed to be your definitive resource for navigating the "Desired Salary" question. We will demystify the process, replacing anxiety with data-driven confidence. We will break down every factor that determines your market value and provide you with a step-by-step framework for calculating and communicating your worth.

### Table of Contents

[What Purpose Does the "Desired Salary" Question Serve?](#what-purpose-does-the-desired-salary-question-serve)
[How to Determine Your Target Salary: A Deep Dive](#how-to-determine-your-target-salary-a-deep-dive)
[Key Factors That Influence Your Salary](#key-factors-that-influence-your-salary)
[The Future of Salary Negotiation: Job Outlook and Career Growth](#the-future-of-salary-negotiation-job-outlook-and-career-growth)
[How to Get Started: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Answering the Salary Question](#how-to-get-started-your-step-by-step-guide-to-answering-the-salary-question)
[Conclusion: From Applicant to Empowered Negotiator](#conclusion-from-applicant-to-empowered-negotiator)

What Purpose Does the "Desired Salary" Question Serve?

Before you can answer the question effectively, you must first understand why employers ask it. The "Desired Salary" field isn't just a casual inquiry; it's a strategic tool used by recruiters and hiring managers for several key purposes. Understanding their motivation gives you a powerful advantage.

The primary function of this question is candidate screening and budget alignment. Every open role has a pre-approved salary range or budget allocated to it by the finance and HR departments. This range is determined by internal pay scales, market data for the role, and the position's level of seniority. When a recruiter receives hundreds of applications for a single position, the "Desired Salary" field becomes a first-pass filter.

Filtering Out-of-Budget Candidates: If a role is budgeted for $80,000 - $100,000, and a candidate enters "$150,000," the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) or the recruiter may immediately flag or discard that application. It's a blunt but efficient way to ensure they only spend time on candidates who fall within their financial parameters.
Identifying Potentially Under-qualified Candidates: Conversely, if the budget is $80,000 - $100,000 and a candidate enters "$45,000," it can be a red flag. The recruiter might assume the candidate is too junior for the role, doesn't understand their market value, or lacks the confidence and experience required for the position's responsibilities.
Setting the Anchor for Negotiation: The number you provide becomes the "anchor" in the negotiation. In psychology, anchoring is a cognitive bias where an individual depends too heavily on an initial piece of information offered when making decisions. If you state "$75,000," you have just set the starting point for the discussion. It becomes psychologically difficult for the company to offer $100,000, even if it was in their budget. By stating a number, you've established the initial benchmark, and all future discussions will revolve around it.

### A "Day in the Life" of Your Answer: A Recruiter's Perspective

To make this more concrete, let's imagine a day in the life of a corporate recruiter, Sarah, who has just posted a "Senior Project Manager" role.

9:00 AM: Sarah logs into her company's ATS. There are 150 new applicants for the role. The approved salary range for this position is $110,000 to $135,000.
9:15 AM: She runs a filter. First, she excludes anyone whose "Desired Salary" is above $140,000. This immediately removes 20 candidates. She'll only revisit these if the initial pool is weak.
9:30 AM: Next, she looks at the lower end. She sees several applicants who put "$70,000." She briefly scans their resumes and confirms they only have 1-2 years of experience, making them too junior for a senior role. They are moved to a "Consider for Future Junior Roles" folder.
10:00 AM: Now Sarah has a manageable pool of about 80 candidates. She notices many applicants left the field blank or wrote "Negotiable." She flags these for review, as it indicates they are savvy. She then starts prioritizing candidates whose desired salary falls squarely within the company's range, for example, those who entered "$125,000" or provided a range like "$120,000 - $135,000." These candidates have demonstrated they understand the market for this role and seniority level.
2:00 PM: During a phone screen with a promising candidate, Sarah brings up compensation. The candidate says, "Based on my research for a Senior Project Manager role in this city with my level of experience and PMP certification, I'm targeting a base salary in the range of $125,000 to $140,000. I'm of course open to discussing the full compensation package." Sarah makes a note: "Confident. Prepared. Aligns with our budget." This candidate has just positioned themselves at the top end of the company's range, maximizing their potential offer.

As you can see, your answer to "for desired salary what should i put" is a critical data point that directly influences whether you proceed, how you are perceived, and where the eventual negotiation will begin and end.

How to Determine Your Target Salary: A Deep Dive

The single most important step you can take before entering a number is to conduct thorough, data-driven research. You should never guess or base your desired salary on what you "feel" you deserve or what you "need" to cover your bills. Your target salary must be based on your market value—the price the current job market is willing to pay for your specific combination of skills, experience, and education in a particular geographic location.

Your goal is to arrive at a well-defended target salary range, not a single number. This range should have three key points:

1. Your "Walk-Away" Number: This is your absolute floor. It's the minimum total compensation you would accept, below which you would politely decline the offer. This should be based on your financial needs, but also on your market-based minimum.

2. Your "Target" Number: This is the realistic, well-researched number you'll aim for. It sits comfortably within the market range for your role and experience level.

3. Your "Reach" Number: This is the top end of your range, an ambitious but still justifiable figure you'd ask for if the role is a perfect fit and you are a top candidate.

### How to Research Your Market Value

To build your range, you need to become an analyst of your own career. Use the following authoritative sources to gather data points. Look for the salary of the *specific job title* you are applying for (e.g., "UX Designer," not just "Designer").

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS): The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) is the gold standard for government-collected data. While it doesn't provide granular data for every city, it gives you a rock-solid national median pay figure and outlook for hundreds of occupations. For example, the BLS reports the 2022 median pay for Software Developers was $127,260 per year ([Source: BLS OOH](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm)).
Reputable Salary Aggregators: These sites use user-reported data and job listings to provide more specific salary ranges. It's crucial to use multiple sources and compare their data.
Payscale.com: Provides detailed salary reports based on job title, years of experience, location, and even specific skills. As of late 2023, Payscale reports the average Marketing Manager salary in the U.S. is $70,000, with a typical range of $49k - $105k.
Salary.com: Tends to use employer-reported data, which can sometimes be more accurate. It provides a bell curve of salaries, showing you the 25th, 50th (median), and 75th percentiles, which is incredibly useful for establishing your range. For a Registered Nurse in Chicago, IL, Salary.com might show a median salary of $89,500 as of November 2023.
Glassdoor.com: Excellent for company-specific research. If you are applying to Google, you can look up the specific salary ranges for your role *at Google*, often broken down by level. For example, Glassdoor might show a "Level 4 (L4) Software Engineer" at Google in Mountain View, CA has an estimated total pay of $267,000/year, including base and additional pay.
Levels.fyi: An indispensable resource for roles in the tech industry. It provides extremely detailed, verified compensation data broken down by company, level (e.g., L3, L4, E5, Senior, Staff), and location. It's particularly useful for understanding the breakdown of base salary, stock grants (RSUs), and bonuses.

### Building Your Research Table

Create a simple spreadsheet to track your research. This will serve as your evidence. Here's a template you can use for your target role:

| ---------------- | ------------------------- | ------------ | ---------------- | ------------------------ | ------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------- |

### Don't Forget Total Compensation

Base salary is only one piece of the puzzle. A $100,000 salary at a company with poor benefits can be worth less than a $95,000 salary at a company with excellent benefits. When calculating your target range, you must consider the Total Compensation Package, which includes:

Base Salary: Your fixed, bi-weekly or monthly pay.
Performance Bonus: An annual or quarterly bonus tied to your performance and/or the company's performance. This can range from 5% to 30%+ of your base salary.
Stock Options or Restricted Stock Units (RSUs): Common in tech companies and startups. This represents ownership in the company and can be a significant part of your compensation, though it often comes with a vesting schedule (e.g., you get 25% of your grant after the first year, then the rest vests monthly over the next three years).
Health Insurance: Compare the quality of the plans (PPO vs. HMO), the monthly premiums you'll have to pay, and the deductible amounts. A company that covers 100% of a great PPO plan's premium is offering thousands of dollars in value per year compared to one that only covers 70% of a high-deductible plan.
Retirement Savings: A 401(k) or 403(b) match is free money. A company that matches 100% of your contribution up to 6% of your salary is offering you a guaranteed 6% annual return on your investment. This is a huge factor.
Paid Time Off (PTO): Compare the number of vacation days, sick days, and paid holidays. A company with "unlimited PTO" sounds great, but research may show employees take less time off than at companies with a fixed, generous PTO policy (e.g., 4 weeks).
Other Perks: Consider the value of things like a remote work stipend, commuter benefits, wellness programs, professional development budgets, and paid parental leave.

By researching these elements, you can confidently build a target *total compensation range* that is grounded in hard data.

Key Factors That Influence Your Salary

Your market value is not a single, static number. It's a dynamic figure influenced by a confluence of factors. Understanding how each of these variables affects your potential earnings is the most critical part of building your salary argument. When you state your desired salary, you are implicitly claiming that your unique combination of these factors justifies that number.

###

Level of Education

Your formal education provides the foundational knowledge for your career and acts as a primary signaling mechanism to employers.

Degrees: A Bachelor's degree is the standard requirement for most professional roles. However, possessing a Master's degree, MBA, or Ph.D. can significantly increase your earning potential, particularly in specialized fields. For example, in finance, a candidate with an MBA from a top-tier business school can command a starting salary tens of thousands of dollars higher than a candidate with only a Bachelor's degree. According to a 2021 report by the BLS, individuals with a master's degree had median weekly earnings 18% higher than those with a bachelor's degree. For a doctoral degree holder, that premium rose to 35% higher.
Certifications: Industry-recognized certifications validate your expertise in a specific domain and can directly translate to higher pay. They demonstrate a commitment to your craft and prove you have a standardized, high level of skill.
Project Management: A Project Management Professional (PMP) certification can increase a project manager's salary by an average of 16% in the U.S., according to the Project Management Institute's Earning Power survey.
Cybersecurity: A Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) is one of the most sought-after credentials. Professionals holding a CISSP can often command salaries well over $150,000, significantly higher than non-certified peers.
Cloud Computing: An AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional or Google Professional Cloud Architect certification can add a significant premium to an IT professional's salary, as these skills are in exceptionally high demand.

###

Years of Experience

Experience is arguably the single most important factor in determining your salary. Employers pay for proven results and the wisdom that comes from navigating real-world challenges. Salary growth is not linear; it typically occurs in distinct stages.

Entry-Level (0-2 years): At this stage, you are paid for your potential and academic background. Your salary is at the lower end of the market range. Your primary goal is to learn and build a track record. *Example Salary:* An entry-level Data Analyst might earn between $60,000 and $75,000.
Mid-Career (3-8 years): You have moved beyond entry-level and are now a fully proficient contributor. You can work independently and have a portfolio of successful projects. This is where you see significant salary growth as you are no longer just an investment but a reliable asset. *Example Salary:* The same Data Analyst, now with 5 years of experience and a promotion to "Senior Data Analyst," could see their salary increase to the $95,000 - $120,000 range. According to Payscale, the salary jump from early career to mid-career can be as high as 40-60% depending on the field.
Senior/Lead (8-15 years): You are now an expert. You may lead teams, mentor junior employees, and be responsible for the strategy and execution of critical business functions. Your compensation reflects this high level of responsibility and impact. Stock options and larger bonuses often become a more significant part of your pay. *Example Salary:* A Lead Data Analyst or Analytics Manager with 10 years of experience could command a salary of $130,000 - $160,000+, with significant additional compensation.
Principal/Director Level (15+ years): At this stage, you are setting the direction for a department or an entire technical domain. Your value is strategic. Compensation is heavily weighted towards leadership, vision, and business impact, with base salary being only one component of a much larger package that includes substantial equity and executive bonuses.

###

Geographic Location

Where you work has a massive impact on your paycheck. This is driven by two main forces: the local cost of labor (the demand for your skills in that area) and the cost of living (how much it costs to live there).

High-Cost, High-Pay Metropolitan Areas: Cities like San Francisco, San Jose, New York City, and Boston have extremely high costs of living but also a dense concentration of high-paying companies (especially in tech and finance). Salaries are adjusted upwards to attract talent. A Senior Software Engineer who might make $150,000 in a mid-tier city could command over $220,000 in base salary in the Bay Area, with total compensation reaching well over $350,000 (Source: Levels.fyi, 2023 data).
Mid-Tier and Growing Cities: Locations like Austin, Denver, Raleigh, and Seattle offer a balance. They have strong job markets and salaries that are well above the national average, but with a cost of living that isn't as extreme as the top-tier cities.
Lower-Cost, Lower-Pay Regions: Salaries in many parts of the Midwest and South are generally lower, but this is offset by a significantly lower cost of living. A $70,000 salary in Omaha, Nebraska may provide a similar or even better quality of life than a $110,000 salary in New York City.
The Rise of Remote Work: The explosion of remote work has complicated geographic pay. Some companies have adopted a single, national pay rate regardless of location. However, many large companies (like Google and Meta) have implemented a location-based pay model, where they adjust your salary based on the cost-of-labor tier of the city you live in. When negotiating for a remote role, it's critical to understand the company's philosophy on geographic pay.

Sample Geographic Salary Variation for a "Marketing Manager" (5 years experience):

| City | Estimated Median Base Salary | Relative Cost of Living Index (US Avg = 100) |

| ------------------ | ---------------------------- | --------------------------------------------- |

| San Francisco, CA | $115,000 | 191 |

| New York, NY | $105,000 | 167 |

| Austin, TX | $90,000 | 104 |

| Chicago, IL | $85,000 | 105 |

| Atlanta, GA | $82,000 | 102 |

| Kansas City, MO| $75,000 | 87 |

*(Salary data is illustrative, based on averages from Payscale and Glassdoor. Cost of Living data from sources like BestPlaces.net).*

###

Company Type & Size

The type of organization you work for is a major determinant of your compensation structure.

Large Public Corporations (e.g., Fortune 500, Big Tech): These companies typically offer higher base salaries, structured bonus programs, and robust benefits packages. For tech companies like Meta, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google (FAANG), compensation is famous for its high base salaries and very large annual RSU grants, leading to extremely high total compensation figures. They have defined pay bands and leveling systems.
Startups: Compensation at startups is a story of risk and reward.
Early-Stage (Seed/Series A): Cash is tight. Base salaries will often be below market rate. The trade-off is a potentially significant grant of stock options. This is a high-risk, high-reward proposition; if the company succeeds and goes public or is acquired, that equity could be life-changing. If it fails, it's worthless.
Late-Stage (Pre-IPO): As startups mature and raise more funding, they can offer more competitive base salaries that are closer to market rates. The equity is still a major component, but it's generally considered less risky than at an early-stage company.
Non-Profits: Organizations in this sector are mission-driven. Salaries are almost always lower than in the for-profit sector. While you may not maximize your cash compensation, the "psychic income" of contributing to a cause you believe in is a major draw for employees.
Government: Government jobs at the federal, state, and local levels offer predictability and security. Pay is determined by structured grade and step systems (like the General Schedule or GS scale for federal employees). While base salaries may not reach the peaks of the private sector, government roles are known for excellent benefits, generous pensions, and strong job security.

###

Area of Specialization

Within any given profession, specialists almost always earn more than generalists. Developing deep expertise in a high-demand niche is one of the fastest ways to increase your earning power.

IT/Software: A generalist "Software Engineer" has strong earning potential. But a Software Engineer who specializes in Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning can command a 15-30% salary premium due to the

For Desired Salary, What Should I Put? The Ultimate Guide to Naming Your Price and Maximizing Your Offer

Table of Contents