How to compare two job offers

The best offer is not always the one with the largest headline number. A useful comparison separates what is guaranteed, what is conditional, what the job costs you and what remains unknown. The goal is not to produce a magical score; it is to make the trade-offs visible.

Preserve the two source offers

Copy each offer exactly as written. Record currency, pay period, gross or net status, start date and decision deadline. Keep this source column untouched. Put conversions, annualisation and estimates in separate derived columns so an assumption never becomes “what the employer offered.”

If either offer is incomplete, ask for the missing terms in writing. Job title and salary are not enough to compare employment.

Compare guaranteed compensation

Start with base pay and fixed allowances. Confirm how many payments occur each year and whether an allowance is included in base salary. For foreign-currency pay, note who chooses the exchange rate, who pays transfer fees and whether the employer can change the settlement currency.

Then model take-home pay using the same rule version and assumptions for both offers. A tax estimate is a scenario, not a payslip. Show the result as a range when an input is uncertain.

Keep variable pay separate

Bonus, commission, overtime and equity can matter, but their advertised value may not be guaranteed. Record:

• The target and maximum.
• The conditions for earning it.
• The payment date.
• Whether the employer can change the plan.
• Any vesting or continued-employment requirement.

Use zero, expected and strong scenarios instead of counting the maximum as salary.

Compare benefits and personal costs

List leave, pension, health cover, equipment, data, training and review timing. Do not assign a cash value unless you can support it. Alongside benefits, calculate the costs each job creates: commute, meals, power, internet, equipment, childcare or relocation.

Time is also a cost. Compare normal hours, required overlap, on-call expectations and commute time. A role with slightly lower cash may leave materially more usable time; a higher-paying contractor role may require you to fund benefits and income gaps yourself.

Compare risk and career value

Write down the evidence you have about the manager, team stability, probation, notice, role scope and company. Mark unknowns clearly. A famous employer is not automatically low risk, and a small company is not automatically high risk.

Finally, compare the work itself: the problems you will own, the skills you can build, decision-making authority, likely manager quality and where the role can lead. These are judgments, so keep them separate from cash calculations.

Make the decision auditable

Create three views: guaranteed monthly cash, realistic first-year value, and the non-financial decision. Change one uncertain assumption at a time. If the preferred offer changes easily, that assumption deserves more investigation before you sign.

An offer comparison tool should organise evidence, not decide your life. Keep the written offers, record your assumptions, and ask the employer to confirm any term that materially changes the result.