How to Ask for More Money Job Offer: Scripts & Emails (2023)

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Asking for money after a job offer is a process. Once you learn the process with a little organization, research, and preparation you build your skills to successfully ask for, and get, more money.

Before we get into the steps of how to ask for more money let’s dive into what variables in a salary negotiation can get you more money. More money doesn’t always have to mean base pay. More money can also be things that positively impact your annual household earnings. Below is a list of things you can negotiate for in addition to base pay that will positively impact how much money you earn and have to spend.

How to ask for more money job offer (Things you can negotiate for that impact your household earnings):

• Additional paid vacation days
• Adoption and fertility support
• Base pay
• Bonuses
• Caregiver stipend (e.g. for child care or eldercare)
• Commissions
• Commuter stipend
• Health and wellness stipend
• New computer and office set-up stipend (e.g. new ergonomic standing desk and laptop)
• Phone stipend
• Professional attire stipend (e.g. You typically don’t take meetings and now have to attend a board meeting in a suit you will rarely use)
• Professional development stipend
• Profit sharing
• Relocation expenses
• Retirement savings contributions
• Severance pay
• Signing bonus
• Stock options
• Tuition reimbursement
• Work from home stipend
• Work day meal and snack stipend

Now that you have an idea of what you can negotiate for other than base pay, let’s dive into the steps to ask for more money after you receive a job offer.

How to ask for more money job offer (Steps):

1. Research and know your value in the market
2. Research and know your value to the company
3. Remove fear by determining your Worst Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (WATNA)
4. Set minimums and compensation goals
5. Build your confidence by practicing what you’ll say
6. Ask where the offer falls on the compa ratio scale for the position
7. Confirm that the offer is negotiable
8. Make your ask
9. Get agreed to final details in writing
10. Say thank you

1. Research and know your value in the market
The first step in asking for more money is to know your worth. Perform market research to see what similar companies, in the same industry, at the same stage, and in the city the company uses to benchmark pay are paying a person with your education, training, skills, experience, and track record of success to complete the job’s duties and responsibilities.

3. Remove fear by determining your Worst Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (WATNA)
To successfully ask for, and negotiate for, more money after receiving a job offer it’s important to remove fear of the unknown. This fear can hold you back from asking for and negotiating for what you’re worth. A tactic to remove fear is to determine your worst case scenario if asking for more money doesn’t go your way. This is formally referred to as determining your Worst Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (WATNA).

Here’s a few WATNA examples…

4. Set minimums and compensation goals
Once you know what the market is paying, what your value is to the company, and your personal WATNA set your acceptable base pay minimum and competitive base pay goal. In addition, consider the benefits and job perks you must-have and those that are nice-to-haves that you are willing to accept in a negotiation in lieu of base pay when there is no budget. Setting these metrics and defining your compensation goals will help guide you to successfully ask for more money and get it!

This question formally asks the employer in HR terms “How does my job offer compare to median pay for the position?”

The employer’s response will tell you a lot about how the offer was put together and how much you are being offered in comparison to the median paid salary for the role. This information can help to reinforce your set minimums and compensation goals or help you to readjust them.

7. Confirm that the offer is negotiable
Before you start negotiating with an employer make sure to confirm that the offer is negotiable by asking “Is the offer negotiable?” Confirming that an offer is negotiable ensures that both you and the employer are on the same page.

You don’t want to end up in a situation where you ask for more money and the job offer isn’t negotiable or the employer presented the offer and forgot to state it was “Best and final.” In these situations asking for money without confirming that the offer is negotiable can be off putting to the employer and in very extreme cases result in a job offer being retracted.

8. Make your ask
Once you’ve confirmed that an offer is negotiable you’re ready, ask for a meeting with your potential employer to discuss the offer. During the meeting, state your case calmly and confidently, and make your ask.

If they counter-offer with a lower salary than you asked for, be prepared to negotiate. Remember, the goal is to come to an agreement that is fair for both parties and leaves you feeling good about the offer.

To hit your compensation goals be prepared to use your pre-determined must-haves and nice-to-haves to be flexible and achieve a win-win.

9. Get final agreed to details in writing
Once you reach an agreement make sure that every agreed to detail is in your Employee Offer Letter. If a detail is not in your Employee Offer Letter it does not need to be upheld. This is a very important step to successfully ask for, and receive more money, perks, and benefits, overtime.

Leadership in companies constantly changes. While your new boss may be upstanding and fulfill every promise you negotiated if they leave or are replaced by a new person, that individual has no legal obligation to ensure what you agreed to is upheld unless it is in your Employee Offer Letter. To ensure you consistently get the base pay, benefits, job perks, and other incentives you successfully negotiate for, make sure to get every detail (no matter how small) written into your Employee Offer Letter.

10. Say thank you
To successfully ask for more money after a job offer you want to say “Thank you” throughout the salary negotiation process and after you ask for more money no matter the outcome of your negotiation.

Saying thank you throughout the process makes you more likable and consequently more persuasive. Saying thank you at the end of a negotiation regardless of the outcome shows your level of professionalism and is something that the employer will remember.

How to ask for more money job offer (Tips):

To increase your chances of successfully asking for more money be sure to:

• Be calm
• Be confident (but not cocky)
• Be flexible without compromising your must-haves and base pay minimums
• Be friendly and personable
• Be prepared to walk away from an offer if it doesn’t meet your goal and if you can (based on your WATNA)
• Be professional
• Express gratitude throughout the process
• Not be emotional
• To have open body language (e.g. don’t fold or cross your arms)
• To listen intently and consider what the employer is saying
• Think about asking for more money as a collaboration between you and the employer
• Think about a win-win outcome
• Use market data and personal performance data to create a persuasive logical case

Below are a few suggested scripts you can use to help you ask for more money when you receive a job offer.

Whether you’re asking for more money in-person or via it is important to:

• Be gracious
• Communicate that you’ve done your research
• Counteroffer with a specific number, specific numbers increase your credibility (e.g. $67,842.00 comes across more credible and persuasive than $68,000.00 or a percentage)
• Communicate a desire to work together to determine equitable compensation
• Communicate your willingness and eagerness to get started by sharing a proposed start date
• Give the employer a reason to get back to you promptly by sharing a proposed start date