Questions to Ask Job Offer
Questions to ask once an offer is on the table, covering pay and equity terms, benefits costs, reporting lines, why the role is open, and the paperwork you would be signing.
The questions
Open any question for the note
Can you send the full offer in writing, including anything we agreed verbally?
Why ask it
Start here, because a promise about a title, a start date, or a remote arrangement that never reaches the letter is not enforceable and rarely survives a manager change. Reluctance to write something down usually means it was never firm.
What is the base salary, and where does it sit in the band for this level?
Why ask it
Being told you are at the bottom of a band is useful news: it means there is room, and it also means your next raise may just be catching up. If the company says it has no bands, ask how pay decisions get made instead.
How does the bonus work, and what did people at my level actually receive last year?
Why ask it
Target and payout are different numbers. Ask what portion depends on company performance versus your own, and whether last year's payout came in at target, above, or well below.
If there is equity, how many units, over what schedule, and at what current value?
Why ask it
A dollar figure alone hides everything that matters: unit count, vesting cliff, strike price, and the valuation the dollar figure was derived from. For a private company, also ask what happens to vested shares if you leave before any liquidity event.
What will the health plan cost me: premium, deductible, and out-of-pocket maximum?
Why ask it
A strong salary can be undone by a plan that costs several thousand more a year, which is easy to miss because benefits are presented as a perk rather than a price. Ask for the actual plan documents rather than the summary slide.
When does coverage begin, and will there be a gap after I leave my current job?
Why ask it
Waiting periods of thirty to ninety days still exist, and a gap matters a great deal if anyone on your policy is mid-treatment or expecting. If there is a gap, it is a reasonable thing to ask them to cover.
How much paid leave is there, and how much of it do people on this team actually take?
Why ask it
The second half of the question is the informative one. Unlimited policies can mean less time off in practice, and a manager who cannot recall the last two-week vacation anyone took has told you the real policy.
What is the retirement contribution or match, and when does it vest?
Why ask it
A generous match on a multi-year vesting schedule is not yours until it vests, which changes what leaving early would cost you. Worth converting into an annual figure and adding to the salary you are comparing.
Is there a signing bonus, and does it have to be repaid if I leave?
Why ask it
Clawback windows of one to two years are common, and relocation support often carries the same condition. Read that clause carefully; it is the part that quietly locks you in.
What would you need to see from me in the first ninety days for this to be going well?
Why ask it
A specific answer tells you the role is understood and gives you something to be measured against. A generic answer about learning the ropes suggests nobody has thought about what this hire is for, which is how people end up drifting toward a bad review.
Who does this role report to, and how long have they been in that seat?
Why ask it
Your manager shapes the job more than the company does. A manager appointed last month, or a reporting line still being decided, means the role you accept may not be the one you start.
Why is this position open?
Why ask it
New role, backfill, or replacing someone who left tells you whether you are inheriting a mess, a vacuum, or a growth mandate. If it is a backfill, ask what the previous person found difficult.
Who else is on the team, and who has left in the past year?
Why ask it
Turnover concentrated in one team is the single clearest signal available before you join. Companies rarely volunteer it, and most interviewers will answer honestly when asked plainly.
Which parts of the job description reflect where my time would actually go?
Why ask it
Descriptions are wish lists written by committee. Asking for the realistic split surfaces the unglamorous majority of the work, which is usually where people discover the role is not what they thought.
How is the company funded, and what does the runway or profitability picture look like?
Why ask it
You are entitled to ask before you resign from something stable. A confident, specific answer about revenue or funding stage is reassuring; deflection to vision and momentum is not.
What is the promotion process, and who at my level has been promoted in the last two years?
Why ask it
A documented process with no recent examples is a process on paper. Names, or at least a count, tell you whether advancement here happens or is merely available in principle.
What are the expectations around hours, on-call, and being reachable in the evenings?
Why ask it
Better asked as a question about norms than about policy, since the policy is rarely the practice. Ask when the team's day typically ends and how often the last month required weekend work.
What is the arrangement on location or remote work, and can it go in the offer letter?
Why ask it
Remote and hybrid terms have been revised at many companies with little notice. If the arrangement matters to you, it needs to be in the letter rather than in your recruiter's memory.
Am I being asked to sign a non-compete, non-solicit, invention assignment, or arbitration agreement?
Why ask it
These usually arrive with onboarding paperwork after you have already resigned, which is the worst moment to read them. Ask for the documents now, and take advice if the restrictions would limit your next move.
How long do I have to decide, and who should I speak to about the terms?
Why ask it
A deadline of a day or two is a pressure tactic, and most employers will extend when asked. Knowing whether the recruiter or the hiring manager holds the budget also tells you who to negotiate with.
Evaluating an Offer You Have Already Received
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Read the letter, not the pitch
- Total the whole package in annual figures: base, expected bonus, employer retirement contribution, and the real cost of health cover. Compare that number, not the salaries.
- Check the start date, title, reporting line, and location against everything you were told in interviews. Discrepancies are almost always in the employer's favor and almost always negotiable now rather than later.
- Find the at-will or notice clause, the clawback terms on any bonus, and what happens to unvested equity if you are laid off.
- Ask for the benefits summary and any agreements you will be required to sign before you accept, not after.
Negotiating without souring it
Ask once, clearly, and with everything in one message
Bundle your requests: salary, start date, signing bonus, leave. Returning three times with new asks is what makes employers wary, not the asking itself.
Name what would make it easy to say yes
A specific number with a short reason works better than an open invitation to improve the offer. If the salary is fixed, ask what else has flexibility, since sign-on payments and start dates often do.
Get the revision in writing before you resign
An agreed change that exists only in an email thread with a recruiter who then leaves is a problem you can avoid by waiting for the amended letter.
Signals worth slowing down for
- A same-day or next-day deadline, especially paired with pressure not to talk to anyone else about it.
- Refusal to put an agreed arrangement in the letter while insisting you can trust them on it.
- No one can tell you why the role is open, or the answer changes depending on who you ask.
- Compensation described only as a range, or equity described only in dollars with no unit count or valuation.
- Notable turnover in the team you would join, particularly among people who held your role.