LIFE · BMC FIELD MANUAL
Job Offer Comparison Checklist: Pay, Benefits, Time and Risk
Salary is the headline, not the offer. Put the role, cash, benefits, time, location, conditions and downside into one dated record, then ask the questions that can change the decision before giving notice anywhere else.
The useful answer
- Do not resign from a current role until the new offer, material conditions and start date are written and appropriately confirmed.
- Separate guaranteed cash from target, discretionary, recoverable, vesting or contingent compensation.
- Price health coverage, retirement, leave, commute, schedule and unpaid time with the same care given to salary.
- Keep a question log, decision deadline and signed final documents; verbal assurances belong in writing before they carry weight.
Freeze the offer into one written baseline
Save the job description, offer letter, benefit summaries, compensation plan, employee classification, work location, manager, start date, decision deadline and every attachment. Note the document date and version. Build a two-column list: what is explicit and what remains assumed. A friendly recruiting call is useful context, but it does not replace the written terms that determine pay, eligibility, schedule or conditions.
Confirm whether the role is employee or independent contractor, full-time or part-time, exempt or nonexempt as stated by the employer, permanent or fixed-term, and at-will or governed by another agreement where applicable. Labels alone do not settle every legal question; the IRS notes that worker status depends on the actual relationship and degree of control. Escalate uncertainty before accepting, especially when taxes, benefits or intellectual-property terms change with classification.
- Role: title, responsibilities, reporting line, team, location and travel.
- Status: employee or contractor, hours, term and stated overtime classification.
- Dates: acceptance deadline, contingencies, start date and review cycle.
- Documents: offer, compensation plan, benefit summaries and referenced policies.
Separate guaranteed cash from possible cash
Record base salary or hourly rate and the actual pay frequency. For hourly work, model realistic paid hours and clarify overtime, shift differentials, minimum schedules and unpaid periods. For salary, do not convert to an hourly figure until expected work time, commute and recurring after-hours duties are visible. Add sign-on, relocation, retention and guaranteed first-year amounts separately from bonus or commission targets.
For every variable component, request the written plan: eligibility, formula, quota or performance measure, ramp period, payout timing, discretion, caps, chargebacks, clawbacks, forfeiture and treatment after leave or termination. A target bonus is not guaranteed pay. A sign-on payment with a repayment clause is partly a liability until its condition expires. Build conservative, expected and upside scenarios rather than adding every maximum to salary.
- Guaranteed: base pay and any unconditional fixed payment.
- Variable: bonus, commission, overtime, differential and profit sharing.
- Recoverable: sign-on, relocation, training or equipment amounts with repayment terms.
- Timing: first paycheck, payout dates, waiting periods and review dates.
Read benefits as contracts and calendars
For health coverage, collect the Summary of Benefits and Coverage for each relevant option, employee premium by pay period, deductible, out-of-pocket maximum, network, prescription structure, employer account contribution and eligibility date. Include dependent cost and current clinicians or medicines when those matter. Do not treat the employer's total benefit value as money available to the employee. Compare the household's likely use and worst-case exposure with qualified help when needed.
For retirement, request plan eligibility, employer contribution or match formula, vesting schedule, employee contribution options, fees and the Summary Plan Description when available. The Department of Labor explains that ERISA-covered plans provide participants information about features and vesting, but not every plan or employer falls under the same coverage. Record paid leave accrual, holidays, parental or caregiver leave, disability and life coverage, education support and other benefits with their eligibility dates and repayment conditions.
- Health: premium, deductible, out-of-pocket maximum, network, drugs, accounts and start date.
- Retirement: eligibility, match or contribution, vesting, investment menu, fees and rollover questions.
- Leave: vacation, sick time, holidays, parental leave, accrual, carryover and approval rules.
- Other: disability, life, education, professional dues, equipment and reimbursement.
Price the time, place and operating reality
Write the expected schedule, core hours, shift, on-call duty, travel percentage, weekend or evening demand and how performance is measured. For remote or hybrid work, confirm the normal worksite, required office days, who can change them, geographic limits, equipment, internet or phone reimbursement, travel to the office and tax or payroll implications. A policy can change more easily than an individual written agreement, so understand which document controls.
Estimate recurring commute time, parking, tolls, transit, meals, clothing, childcare or dependent care and unpaid preparation. Then price the transition: gap between paychecks, benefit waiting period, unused leave treatment at the current job, relocation deposits and any required purchase. Money is not the only cost, but converting predictable friction into a monthly number makes offers easier to compare honestly.
- Time: ordinary week, peak periods, on-call, travel and review expectations.
- Place: assigned location, hybrid cadence, relocation and change authority.
- Cost: commute, parking, meals, care, equipment and professional wardrobe.
- Transition: first pay date, coverage gap, relocation and current-job obligations.
Audit conditions, downside and company evidence
List every contingency: background or reference check, drug testing where applicable, credential verification, immigration authorization, board approval, financing, customer assignment or other condition. Ask when each is satisfied and what can change the start date. Review confidentiality, invention assignment, nonsolicitation, noncompetition, arbitration, repayment and severance language with qualified counsel when the consequence is material. Do not assume a clause is harmless because someone says it is standard.
Research the employer's product, customers, leadership, recent public filings when applicable, layoffs, funding or revenue model, and the specific team's turnover and open roles. Separate verified facts from anonymous anecdotes. Ask why the role is open, what success at 30, 90 and 180 days looks like, what budget and authority exist, and what caused the last person to struggle. A higher offer can reasonably compensate for risk, but only when the downside is visible.
- Contingencies: exact requirement, owner, status and deadline.
- Restrictions: duration, geography, activities, repayment and dispute route.
- Business: public filings or official evidence, customers, runway, leadership and recent change.
- Role risk: vacancy reason, turnover, authority, resources and measurable success.
Use a weighted decision and a clean acceptance
Choose five to eight factors before scoring: guaranteed cash, likely cash, health cost, retirement, schedule, growth, manager, commute, mission or risk. Give each a weight totaling 100, score each offer on the same scale and write one sentence of evidence for every score. The number does not make the decision; it exposes which assumptions are doing the work. Run a downside test in which bonus is zero, commute rises or hybrid policy changes.
Send one concise question list, prioritize material gaps and request revised written terms for agreed changes. Accept only the final version, then confirm start logistics and keep a complete copy. If declining, be prompt and professional without inventing a counteroffer. If leaving another job, follow the resignation and handoff plan only after the new offer's material conditions are sufficiently resolved. The best comparison leaves an audit trail strong enough to explain the decision six months later.
- Weights: decide what matters before one glamorous number dominates.
- Scenarios: conservative, expected and upside; include one downside case.
- Questions: group by compensation, benefits, role, schedule, conditions and documents.
- Close: signed final offer, resolved contingencies, start instructions and saved records.
Frequently asked questions
How should I compare salary with benefits?
Keep guaranteed cash separate, then model employee premiums, likely healthcare exposure, employer retirement contributions, leave, recurring work costs and eligibility dates using the written plan documents.
Should I resign after a verbal job offer?
A verbal offer leaves material terms and conditions uncertain. Obtain the written offer and resolve significant contingencies and timing before taking an irreversible step.
How do I value a target bonus?
Do not add the target to guaranteed salary. Review the written formula and history available to you, then use conservative, expected and upside scenarios that reflect discretion, quota, timing and forfeiture.
What if the employer will not provide benefit documents?
Ask for the Summary of Benefits and Coverage, retirement-plan information and written eligibility terms. If material information remains unavailable, record that uncertainty as a real cost and decision risk.
Sources and further reading
Claims checked against these official or professional sources on October 12, 2026.
- U.S. Department of Labor — First JobOfficial starting-job guidance on reviewing health and retirement benefit information before enrollment.
- U.S. Department of Labor — Workers and FamiliesOfficial EBSA resources for comparing and protecting job-based health and retirement benefits.
- U.S. Department of Labor — ERISAOfficial explanation of plan information, participation, vesting, fiduciary and claims protections for covered private plans.
- Internal Revenue Service — Employee or Common-Law EmployeeOfficial explanation that worker status turns on the actual relationship and control, not the label alone.
- HealthCare.gov — Job-Based CoverageOfficial federal starting point for understanding job-based coverage and Marketplace interactions; individual eligibility requires current fact-specific review.