What Is Negotiable in a Job Offer? 10 Things Beyond Salary, With Scripts

What can you negotiate in a job offer besides salary?

Pretty much anything that's written down, plus a few things that aren't yet. The question isn't whether a term is negotiable. It's how much it costs the company to say yes. Cheap asks get granted. Expensive or precedent-setting asks get pushback.

A sign-on bonus is a one-time cost that doesn't raise the salary band, so hiring managers often have more room there. A later start date costs nothing but patience. A title change can be harder than it looks because titles map to pay grades. Severance and contract language cost nothing today, which is exactly why a lot of employers will agree to reasonable changes if you ask politely and early.

The table below ranks the common items by how often they move. Treat it as a rough guide based on how these terms usually work, not a promise. Startups, unionized roles and government jobs all play by different rules.

Sign-on bonus: the easiest money to ask for

If the base salary won't budge, a sign-on bonus is the most natural ask. It's also the standard way to cover what you're walking away from, such as an annual bonus that pays out in March or stock that vests next quarter. Give the number. "My current bonus of $18,000 pays out in February" is far stronger than "I'd lose some money."

Read the repayment terms. Many sign-on bonuses must be paid back if you leave within 12 or 24 months. Ask for repayment to be prorated (so leaving at month 9 of 12 means you return a quarter, not all of it) and for no repayment if the company lets you go. California's AB 692 restricts these "stay or pay" terms, though it still allows a sign-on bonus repayment that is prorated, interest free and limited to a retention period of two years or less. AB 1697, signed September 30, 2026, delayed the law so it covers contracts signed on or after January 1, 2027. If you're in California, check which rules apply to your offer date.

Equity and vesting: the fine print matters more than the share count

A four-year vest with a one-year cliff is common at US startups, which means you get nothing if you leave before your first anniversary. You can ask for more shares, but the terms around them are often easier to change and worth more.

Things to ask about: the strike price and the latest 409A valuation, the type of options (ISOs or NSOs), how long you have to exercise after you leave, and what happens if the company is acquired. Under Internal Revenue Code section 422, ISOs generally lose their tax treatment if you exercise more than three months after leaving, so options you exercise after that window are taxed as NSOs. Single-trigger or double-trigger acceleration (vesting speeds up on a sale, or on a sale followed by your termination) is a fair ask for senior roles. If you're offered restricted stock you can buy early, remember that an 83(b) election must be filed with the IRS within 30 days of the transfer under section 83(b)(2). Miss it and there's no fix.

Start date, title and remote work

Start date is the easiest win in any negotiation. Two weeks' notice to your current employer plus a week or two off is normal, and most hiring managers would rather wait than lose you. Ask once, give a reason, and offer a firm date.

Title matters more than people admit, because your next employer will read it on your resume. If the role you interviewed for is senior in scope but the letter says "Specialist," say so. Companies sometimes can't move the pay grade but can adjust the title, or will commit in writing to a title review at six months.

Remote work is where verbal promises go to die. If a recruiter said "fully remote" and the offer letter says nothing, the company can usually call you back to the office later. Ask for the arrangement, your work location, and any travel expectations to be written into the offer itself.

Is severance negotiable in a job offer?

Yes, though fewer people ask than should. No federal law requires severance pay for ordinary layoffs, so if it isn't in writing you're relying on the company's policy at the time, which can change. Executives routinely negotiate severance upfront. Mid-level employees can too, especially if they're leaving a stable job to join a riskier one.

A reasonable ask is a set number of weeks of base pay (often tied to seniority) plus paid COBRA premiums if you're let go without cause in your first year. Check how "cause" is defined. A vague definition like "conduct the company deems detrimental" can wipe out the promise.

If you're 40 or older, any severance agreement that releases age discrimination claims has to meet the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act. Under 29 U.S.C. section 626(f), you generally get 21 days to consider it (45 days in a group layoff) and 7 days to revoke after signing.

Non-compete scope and IP carve-outs

These two clauses decide what you can do after you leave and on your own time. Both are usually written broader than the company needs, and both are more negotiable than people assume.

Non-competes depend heavily on state law. California voids nearly all employee non-competes under Business and Professions Code section 16600, and Minnesota banned new ones in 2023 (Minn. Stat. section 181.988). There's no federal ban: the FTC's 2024 rule was set aside by a Texas federal court in Ryan LLC v. FTC (N.D. Tex. 2024), and the FTC dropped its appeals in September 2025. In states that do enforce them, ask for a shorter term, a list of named competitors instead of a whole industry, and a release if you're laid off. Our guide on how to negotiate a non-compete has email scripts for each of those.

Invention assignment clauses often claim anything you create while employed. California Labor Code section 2870 protects inventions you build entirely on your own time and equipment, unrelated to the employer's business, and Washington, Illinois, Minnesota, Delaware, North Carolina, New Jersey and New York are among the states with similar statutes. Elsewhere, the contract controls. Either way, list your prior inventions and side projects on the schedule most agreements include. If there's no schedule, ask to add one.

PTO and relocation

• PTO: No federal law requires paid vacation, so the offer letter or the handbook sets your days. Experienced hires can ask for extra days to match what they had. In California, earned vacation counts as wages and must be paid out when you leave (Labor Code section 227.3), so a use-it-or-lose-it policy isn't allowed there.
• Relocation: Ask for a fixed amount or a list of covered costs (movers, temporary housing, a house-hunting trip). Moving reimbursements are taxable income for most employees. The 2017 tax law suspended the exclusion and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 made that permanent, with exceptions for active-duty military moves and certain intelligence community employees. Ask for the payment to be "grossed up" so the tax doesn't come out of the amount you actually need.
• Repayment: Relocation packages often have their own clawback. Ask for the same prorated terms you'd want on a sign-on bonus.

Can an employer ask your salary history, and do they have to share the pay range?

In a growing number of states, no and yes. Salary history bans stop employers from asking what you earned before or using it to set your pay. California (Labor Code section 432.3), New York (Labor Law section 194-a), Massachusetts, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington are among the states with bans that cover private employers, and Virginia's took effect July 1, 2026. Some states cover only public employers, and cities such as New York City and Philadelphia have their own rules. The list keeps growing, so check your state.

Pay transparency laws go further and require a pay range in the job posting, or on request. Colorado, California, Washington, New York and Illinois all have versions, Virginia's took effect July 1, 2026, and Massachusetts added one for employers with 25 or more employees on October 29, 2025. Thresholds and details vary by state; see our state-by-state pay transparency data page for specifics.

Why this matters for negotiation: if the posted range is $95,000 to $125,000, you know where the ceiling is. And if a recruiter asks what you make now, you can usually decline and give your target instead.

How do you ask for more without losing the offer?

Offers pulled over a polite negotiation are uncommon, but it does happen, usually when the ask is vague, aggressive or comes after you've already said yes. A few habits keep you safe: say you're excited first, make every request specific, bundle your asks into one message instead of trickling them out, and get the final terms in a revised offer letter before you resign from your current job.

Here are scripts you can adapt:

• Sign-on bonus: "I'm excited to join. One gap: my $15,000 annual bonus pays out in March and I'd forfeit it by leaving now. Would a $15,000 sign-on bonus be possible to bridge that?"
• Start date: "Could we set my start date for June 2? That lets me give proper notice and start fresh."
• Remote work: "Since we agreed the role is fully remote, could that be added to the offer letter along with my home location of Denver?"
• Severance: "Since I'm leaving a stable role, I'd feel better with eight weeks of base pay if the position is eliminated in the first year. Is that something you can include?"
• IP carve-out: "I maintain an open-source library and a small Etsy shop. Could we list both on the prior inventions schedule so it's clear they stay mine?"

Get it in writing before you resign

Everything above only counts if it ends up in the signed document. Recruiters change jobs, managers forget, and most offer letters say they replace all earlier promises. Ask for a revised letter, read it line by line against your notes, and only then give notice. Running the final version through an automated review is a quick way to spot a clawback, a broad non-compete, or an invention clause you didn't negotiate.