The research problem most candidates have

The standard advice is to "do your research before negotiating." What that advice misses is how to do that research well.

Most candidates spend twenty minutes on Glassdoor, find a wide range ($90K–$140K for a senior software engineer, for instance), and walk into the conversation no better equipped than before. Wide ranges are useless anchors. A number you can't defend is worse than no number at all.

The goal isn't to find a number — it's to find your number, and to be able to justify it with specifics.

Start with government disclosure data

The most underused source of salary data in the United States is the Department of Labor's H-1B disclosure database. Every year, companies that sponsor H-1B visas are required to disclose the exact wages they pay for specific roles, at specific locations, at specific companies.

This is real, audited compensation data — not self-reported survey responses that skew toward whoever bothers to fill out the form.

What it tells you:

• Exact salary paid to a specific job title at a specific company
• The job level (entry, experienced, qualified, fully competent)
• The location — so you can compare New York vs. Austin vs. Seattle compensation for the same role
• How many people in that role were hired, and at what wage

What it doesn't cover:

• Equity, bonuses, or total compensation
• Companies that don't sponsor H-1B workers (common in smaller firms and certain industries)

Use it as your baseline — the verified floor of what companies actually pay, not what they say they pay.

Layer in peer benchmarks

Once you have a government-data baseline, validate it with peer-reported data from sources that skew toward accuracy:

Levels.fyi is the most reliable source for technology roles. The data is structured by level (L4, L5, etc.), and total compensation breakdowns include base, bonus, and equity. Filter by company, location, and years of experience.

Blind gives you anonymous salary disclosures from verified employees. The sample size is smaller, but the data is current and specific. Look for recent posts (last 90 days) to avoid stale numbers.

LinkedIn Salary is useful for roles outside of tech. It draws from a larger, more generalist pool and lets you filter by geography and years of experience.

Your network is the source most people avoid and shouldn't. Salary conversations with trusted peers at comparable companies are the highest-quality data you can get. You don't need to ask directly — "I'm evaluating an offer in the $X range, does that sound right for your market?" is enough to get a useful signal.

Adjust for the variables that matter

Raw market data always needs adjustment. Three variables change your number significantly:

Company size and stage. A Series B startup competing for senior talent will often pay above public-company market rates in base salary (to compensate for lower equity liquidity). A large enterprise may pay below peer-startup base rates but offer RSU grants with guaranteed liquidity.

Geography. Remote-first companies increasingly pay location-adjusted salaries. Know whether your target company uses local market pricing, national median pricing, or a blended model — and factor it in.

Your specific leverage. If your skills are scarce (e.g., you have deep experience in a specific infrastructure technology the company is betting on), your number sits at the top of the range, not the middle. If you have a competing offer, you have hard leverage — use it.

Build a defensible case, not a wish list

Once you've done the research, you're not looking for a single number. You're building a range with a rationale:

1. Floor — The minimum you'd accept given competing options and cost of living. Never mention this number.
2. Target — Your researched market rate adjusted for your specific leverage and their company profile.
3. Ask — Slightly above your target to give yourself room to negotiate down without landing below it.

When you present your counter-offer, lead with evidence:

"Based on the H-1B disclosure data for [Company] and comparable roles at [Peer Company A] and [Peer Company B], the market rate for this level in [City] is in the $X–$Y range. Given my background in [specific skill], I'd like to discuss a base of $Z."

That framing — a specific range, a specific source, a specific reason you're at the top of it — is much harder to dismiss than "I feel like I deserve more."

The number you don't have

The one number you almost never have until you're in the room is the company's internal salary band for the role. Every company has one, and most recruiters know it. Some will share the range willingly; many won't unless you ask.

Ask: "Can you share the salary band for this role? I want to make sure we're working in a realistic range before we go further."

If they share it and your target is above the band's midpoint, you know the negotiation is viable. If it's above the band's ceiling, you have a decision to make — not a negotiation.

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LightningHire's Salary Negotiation Coach uses H-1B disclosure data to benchmark your specific offer against what companies are actually paying for your role, level, and location — then drafts a counter-offer you can send immediately.

Evaluating an offer right now? Try the tool free — it takes about three minutes.