Two job offers sit on your desk. One has a flashy base salary, the other has a longer commute and a smaller bonus. Which one is actually better? Base salary alone almost never tells the real story. A modern offer package is a stack of moving parts — base pay, annual bonus, equity, benefits, and the hidden costs of getting to work and moving cities — and the number that matters is the one after you add all the value and subtract all the costs.
This job offer calculator puts two offers side by side. You enter the pieces of Offer A and Offer B, and it computes the total annual compensation for each, then shows the gap and which package wins. The formula is deliberately transparent: total compensation = base salary + bonus + equity + benefits − commuting cost − relocation cost. No hidden tax tables, no black boxes. You can adjust any figure and watch the better offer flip.
How to Use
- Start with Offer A Base Salary — the gross yearly pay printed on the offer letter, before bonus or equity.
- Add Offer A Annual Bonus. Use your realistic target bonus (often 5%–15% of salary), not a best-case number.
- Fill in Offer A Equity (Annualized). If you receive a $120,000 RSU grant vesting over four years, enter $30,000 — the value you earn each year.
- Estimate Offer A Benefits Value: employer-paid health insurance, the 401(k) match, paid time off, and wellness stipends.
- Subtract the real costs: Offer A Annual Commute Cost (gas, transit, parking, tolls) and Offer A Relocation / Sign-On Cost (moving expenses or any signing bonus you would have to pay back).
- Repeat the same six fields for Offer B in the right column.
- Read the result card: Offer A Total Annual Compensation, Offer B Total Annual Compensation, the Compensation Gap, and which package is Better Overall Offer.
The comparison is annualized, so one-time relocation costs should be converted to the period you actually plan to stay, or entered as a net one-time cost if you expect to leave early.
The Total Compensation Formula
A fair comparison treats every offer as the same annualized bucket. The engine computes:
Total Compensation = Base Salary + Annual Bonus + Equity (Annualized) + Benefits Value − Commuting Cost − Relocation Cost
Each piece is real money you either receive or spend in a year:
- Base salary is the guaranteed cash you can count on every paycheck.
- Annual bonus is performance-dependent, so enter a target you would reasonably expect.
- Equity is not cash yet. Annualize it across the vesting schedule and remember its value can move with the stock.
- Benefits have a real dollar value: a 5% 401(k) match on a $120,000 salary is worth $6,000 a year.
- Commuting and relocation are costs you would not otherwise pay, so they reduce the net value of an offer.
Run the worked example on the defaults: Offer A totals $176,000 ($120,000 + $20,000 + $30,000 + $10,000 − $4,000), while Offer B totals $102,000 ($90,000 + $10,000 + $5,000 + $8,000 − $6,000 − $5,000). The gap is $74,000 in Offer A's favor — even though Offer A also asks you to bear a shorter commute.
Why Base Salary Lies
Candidates obsess over the base salary line, but it can be the least informative number in the packet. A $130,000 base with no bonus, no equity, and a costly long commute can easily be worth less than a $110,000 base paired with a $20,000 target bonus, $30,000 a year in vesting RSUs, and a 5% 401(k) match. When you annualize equity and count benefits, the lower-base offer is worth tens of thousands more.
Equity deserves special caution. A "million-dollar" offer at a pre-IPO company usually means shares that vest over four years — $250,000 a year on paper — and those shares may be illiquid, volatile, or worth nothing if the company struggles. Compare equity conservatively, and weight it lower than guaranteed cash.
Examples
Example 1 — The default comparison. Offer A is a tech role at $120,000 base, $20,000 bonus, $30,000 annualized equity, $10,000 in benefits, and a $4,000 commute. Offer B is an in-house role at $90,000 base, $10,000 bonus, only $5,000 equity, $8,000 benefits, but a longer $6,000 commute and a $5,000 relocation. The calculator totals $176,000 vs. $102,000, a $74,000 win for Offer A.
Example 2 — The counterintuitive flip. Offer A looks better on paper at a $130,000 base, but offers no bonus, no equity, and a brutal $12,000-a-year commute. Offer B pays $110,000 base but adds a $25,000 bonus, $40,000 annualized equity, $12,000 benefits, and a $2,000 commute. After subtracting costs, Offer B's total comp comfortably exceeds Offer A's — the higher base salary was a trap.
Example 3 — The high-package stress test. A candidate compares a $1.5 million executive package (with $600,000 in annualized equity and $100,000 bonus) against a $200,000 staff role. The engine handles magnitudes beyond $1,000,000 without rounding errors, showing the executive offer at $2,220,000 and the staff role at $330,000 — a $1,890,000 gap. Use this to sanity-check large offers where equity dominates.
FAQ
How do I compare two job offers fairly?
Compare annualized total compensation for each offer, not just base salary. Add base salary, expected bonus, annualized equity, and benefits value, then subtract commuting and relocation costs. Whichever total is higher wins on pure money — the calculator does this side by side.
Should I include equity in total compensation?
Yes, but annualize it. If you receive a $120,000 RSU grant that vests over four years, add $30,000 per year. Remember equity is risky and illiquid: discount it in your head versus guaranteed cash, because its value can rise or fall with the company's stock.
What counts as benefits value?
Anything the employer pays on your behalf: employer-paid health insurance premiums, the 401(k) match (a 5% match on $120,000 is $6,000 a year), paid time off valued at your hourly rate, and wellness or transit stipends. These are real dollars even though they never hit your bank account.
Why subtract commuting and relocation costs?
Because they are costs you would not pay otherwise. A higher salary that forces a two-hour commute each day, or requires you to rent a second apartment near the office, nets less than it appears. Subtracting these costs shows the money you actually keep.
Is total compensation the same as my take-home pay?
No. Total compensation is the gross value of the whole package before taxes. It helps you rank offers against each other, but your actual take-home depends on federal, state, and local taxes, which this calculator does not withhold. Use a paycheck calculator afterward to estimate net pay.
How do I handle a one-time signing bonus?
Either enter it in the year you receive it, or spread it over the time you plan to stay if it comes with a clawback clause. Treat relocation the same way: if you must repay moving costs for leaving early, enter it as a net cost so the comparison reflects your real risk.
Disclaimer
This job offer calculator is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, tax, or career advice. Total compensation figures are estimates based on the inputs you enter; actual offers, vesting schedules, benefits, and tax treatment vary by employer, location, and personal circumstances. Equity values are especially uncertain and may fluctuate or become worthless. Always review your full offer letter and consult a qualified financial or tax professional before accepting or negotiating a position.