accepted an offer recently, sharing the numbers because i wish more people did this.
Role: Software Engineer (L3, mid-level), NYC office Base: $165k RSU: $120k over 4 years (25% cliff at year 1, monthly after) Signing bonus: $15k Target bonus: 10% of base
Total year-1 comp with signing comes out around $211k depending on how you count the bonus. Year 2 onwards it's more like $195-200k at current stock price.
They weren't super flexible on base but did move on RSUs a little after i pushed. recruiter was pretty straightforward about the band. Squarespace pays solid but is not at big-tech RSU levels, which you probably knew going in.
benefit package is good. healthcare, 401k match, generous PTO. they still have the commuter benefit which most places have quietly killed.
4 replies
numbers_only
consistent with what i've seen for L3 NYC. base is on the lower end of the NYC SWE market right now, RSUs are okay, signing bonus is a standard retention play. fair package for a mid-market company.
finance_faye
the 10% target bonus is worth factoring in more than people usually do. if you actually hit it consistently that adds real money over 4 years. did they tell you what % of employees typically get it?
contractor_kai
recruiter said the program pays out at target in most years but didn't give a specific number. i took it with a grain of salt and modeled it at 80% to be conservative.
tired_recruiter
as a recruiter: moving on RSUs when they didn't on base is a classic move. they protect their internal base equity bands but have more flex on equity. useful to know for negotiation.