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Ask HN: Question about startup salary

4 points by needadvice ↗ HN
I've been offered a position in a bay area startup (10th employee) and since this will be my first opportunity working for a startup, I'm looking for some advice. The equity package is reasonable, but I'm not so sure about the salary. They're offering about 75K - I have abt 4 years of s/w experience, albeit in a different technology. Is this a reasonable offer ?

8 comments

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kqr2
Read this recent thread/article and reexamine your equity position:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1151743

Also, read this:

http://www.tonywright.com/2008/a-newbies-guide-to-startup-co...

What is your % stake in the company? If you aren't getting a good piece of equity then I would push for a market rate salary based on your position and years of experience.

needadvice
thanks - i'm getting around 0.3%
coryl
Whats the current valuation of the startup? Raised money? Profitable?
starkfist
No, that is not a reasonable offer. It is a typical offer, though.
needadvice
typical of most bay area startups ?
starkfist
Yes. The prevailing package for employee 10 is 70-80K with 0.5-1.5% of the options.
ismarc
Something else to remember is that when they get acquired, depending on where you moved to as they grew, you're left with a crappy payout and either get eliminated by the buying company or you're stuck with a well below market rate salary stuck at the company's "max annual increase" which usually tops out at 10%. Essentially, get salary reevaluation at set intervals locked into a contract with the salary adjustments only allowed upwards and based on your past and company performance.
csspixel
75k is not bad, considering "abt 4 years of experience". I would say make sure to enjoy working there before anything else.