How to answer 'What are your salary expectations?'

When a recruiter asks "What are your salary expectations?", they are asking you to make the first offer. This guide shows you how to answer with a range you can back up with public pay data, when it makes sense to hold back, and what employers in states and cities with salary history bans may and may not ask. It is for anyone filling in an application form, taking a recruiter call or sitting in an interview where the money question comes up.

Why employers ask and what they do with the answer

Employers ask early for three practical reasons. They want to screen out candidates whose expectations are far above their budget, they want to know where to pitch the offer, and they want a sense of how you value yourself.

That second reason is the one that costs people money. Whatever number you say first tends to become the reference point for everything that follows. If your figure sits inside the employer's budget, the offer often lands close to it, even if the budget went higher.

So treat your answer as the opening move of a negotiation, not a form field. Your goal is simple: say a number that is high enough to leave room, grounded enough to sound credible, and attached to a role you understand.

One distinction matters from the start. Salary expectations are what you want for this job. Salary history is what you were paid before. In several states and cities, an employer can ask the first but not the second. More on that below.

Give a range, deflect or ask for theirs: choosing your approach

You have three basic moves. None is always right; it depends on how much you know about the budget and how early you are in the process.

A range usually beats a single number. A range signals flexibility without giving up value, as long as the bottom of it is a figure you would genuinely accept. Never put your walk-away number at the bottom. The employer will hear the bottom figure most clearly.

Deflecting buys time, not leverage forever. It is reasonable to say you want to learn more about the role first. If you are asked a second time, give your range. A third round of dodging can look evasive.

Asking for their range is often the strongest first move. Employers set a budget before they post a job. In some states they must share it in the posting or when asked, which changes the whole conversation (see below).

Building a defensible range from public data

A range is defensible when you can explain where it came from. Your best free source is the federal Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. As of October 2026, the newest OEWS release on the BLS OEWS data tables page is the May 2025 data, with national, state, metro area and industry tables.

How to read the numbers

Three terms come up again and again:

• Median: the middle wage. Half the people in the job earn more, half earn less. It is a better guide than the average, which a few very high earners can pull up.
• Percentiles: the 10th percentile is the wage that only 10% of workers earn less than; the 90th is the wage that only 10% earn more than. The 25th and 75th percentiles mark the middle half of earners.
• Range: the gap between those percentiles. A wide range means experience, employer and location move pay a lot.

Worked example: an accountant changing jobs

Here is an example using real federal figures. Suppose you are an accountant with several years of experience applying to a role at a bank or insurer.

The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which uses OEWS data, reports these May 2025 figures for accountants and auditors:

Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Accountants and Auditors, Pay tab. For context, the median for all occupations in the same release was $50,980.

How you might turn that into a range:

1. Start with the right slice. You are applying in finance and insurance, so the relevant midpoint is the $93,290 industry median, not the $83,680 national figure.
2. Place yourself on the curve. If you hold a license or certification the job asks for and have solid experience, you have a case for sitting above the median. If you are newer, the median itself is a fair target.
3. Check location. Use the OEWS state and metro tables for your area. Pay in a large, expensive metro can sit well above the national figure; a smaller market can sit below it.
4. Set the bottom of your range at or above a number you would happily accept. In this example, a bottom figure just above the industry median, with a top figure that stretches toward the upper part of the distribution, is easy to defend. Reaching for the $144,090 top-10% mark only makes sense for senior or specialist roles.
5. Write down your reasoning. One sentence is enough: "Based on BLS data for this role in this industry and my [certification/years of experience], I'm targeting [low] to [high]."

Adjust for the whole package

OEWS figures describe wages. They do not give you a full picture of bonuses, equity or the value of benefits. If the employer offers a large bonus, a strong retirement match or generous paid leave, you may accept a lower base. If benefits are thin, push the base higher.

For role-specific benchmarks, see our salaries by role coverage, and for metro comparisons, salaries by city.

Scripts for forms, recruiter calls and interviews

These are templates. Swap in your own figures and phrasing so they sound like you. Keep the focus on the number and the role, not on your personal finances.

Online application forms

Forms are the hardest place to negotiate, because you cannot ask questions back.

• If the field accepts text: "Open to discussing; targeting a competitive package for this role. Happy to share a range once I learn more about scope."
• If the field requires a number: enter the top of your researched range, or the midpoint if the role is a stretch for you. Entering a placeholder such as 0 or 1 to dodge the question can backfire if the employer screens on that field, so give a real, researched figure.
• If there is a range field: use your researched range, with the bottom set at a number you would accept.

Recruiter phone screen

Recruiters usually ask early because they need to confirm you fit the budget.

"Before I give a number, could you share the budgeted range for this role? I want to make sure we're aligned."

If they push back:

"Based on what I've seen for [job title] roles in [industry/city], and with my [X years/certification], I'm looking at [low] to [high] in base salary. That's flexible depending on bonus, benefits and the scope of the role."

If their range is lower than yours:

"Thanks for sharing. My research puts this role closer to [your range], mainly because of [specific skill or credential]. Is there flexibility at the top of the band for the right candidate?"

Interviews with the hiring manager

By this stage you know more about the role, which gives you more to anchor on.

"Now that I understand the role includes [responsibility you learned about], I'd expect to be in the range of [low] to [high]. I'm confident that reflects the market for this level of work."

If you still want to delay:

"I'd like to focus on whether I'm the right fit first. If we get there, I'm sure we can agree on a number that works for both of us."

When asked what you earn now

"I'd rather focus on what this role is worth. Based on the market data for this position, my expectation is [low] to [high]."

That answer works anywhere, and in places with salary history bans the employer usually should not be asking in the first place.

When the job ad already lists a range

Pay transparency laws in a growing number of places mean many ads now show a salary range. That is useful, but read the rules carefully before you anchor on it.

• California: employers with 15 or more employees must put a pay scale in any job posting, and any employer must give an applicant the pay scale for the job on reasonable request, according to the California Labor Commissioner's Equal Pay Act FAQs. The pay scale is defined as a good faith estimate of what the employer reasonably expects to pay at hire, and it does not have to include bonuses or benefits.
• Colorado: the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act requires employers to disclose compensation in all job postings, internal and public, along with information about benefits, per the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.
• Washington: since January 1, 2023, employers with 15 or more employees must include a wage scale or salary range and a general description of benefits in postings. The state's L&I job posting policy ES.E.2 says the range should be the employer's genuinely expected pay, with a clear minimum and maximum, so open-ended phrases like "$60,000/per year and up" do not meet the standard.

Rules also differ for remote jobs. California's Labor Commissioner reads its posting rule as covering any position that may be filled in California, in person or remotely, and Washington's policy covers remote jobs that a Washington-based worker could do.

How to use a posted range

• Aim for the upper half if you meet all the requirements. The bottom of a posted band is often meant for candidates who meet the minimum qualifications.
• Do not quote the bottom of their range back to them. If the ad says one figure to another, an answer like "the range in the posting works for me" invites an offer at the low end. Name the part of the range you are aiming for.
• Check it against OEWS. If the posted range sits well below the market median for your area, say so politely and use the data.

Template:

"The posted range is [low] to [high]. Given my [specific experience], I'd expect to come in toward the upper end, around [your figure]."

If you think a posting breaks a disclosure rule, the state agency is the place to raise it. Colorado reported 3,049 pay transparency complaints filed since January 1, 2021, in a table updated October 7, 2026. For how these laws are spreading, see our pay trends coverage.

Salary expectations vs salary history: what employers may ask

This is where state and city law really matters. There is no single rule that covers every job, so what an employer may ask depends on where the job is and, in some places, on the size of the employer. Here are examples from official statute and agency pages.

Sources: California Labor Commissioner FAQs on Labor Code section 432.3; Colorado CDLE; RCW 49.58.100; New York State DOL, Labor Law section 194-a; NYC Commission on Human Rights.

What this means in practice

• Expectations questions are generally fair game. California's Labor Commissioner says this outright. A ban on history questions is not a ban on talking about money.
• Volunteering your history changes things. In California, New York and Washington, if you share past pay on your own, the employer may be able to consider or confirm it. Share it only if it helps you, for example when your current pay is above their range.
• New York has a specific counteroffer rule. An employer may confirm your prior pay only if, at the offer stage, you respond by citing your prior pay to support a higher number.
• Washington allows confirmation after an offer. Once an offer with compensation is on the table, the employer may verify history.
• Public jobs can be different. California makes an exception for salary information that is already public under records laws.

If you think an employer broke one of these rules, each agency takes complaints: California's Labor Commissioner (within one year of learning of the violation, per its FAQ), Colorado's Division of Labor Standards and Statistics, Washington L&I, the New York State Department of Labor and the NYC Commission on Human Rights. California penalties run from $100 to $10,000 per violation. For advice on your own situation, talk to the agency, a union representative or an employment lawyer.

If your state is not listed, check your state labor department's website, and your city's, because some local rules go further than state law.

Mistakes that cost money

• Naming a number before you have done any research. A guess anchored to your current pay can carry an old salary into a new job. Check the OEWS tables first.
• Giving a range whose bottom is your minimum. The employer anchors on the low end. Put your real floor below the range, not in it.
• Using the national median when your industry or city pays more. In the example above, the finance and insurance median for accountants ($93,290) sat well above the national median ($83,680).
• Answering with your current salary in a ban jurisdiction. You are not required to, and volunteering it can let the employer use it.
• Forgetting the rest of the package. A base figure that looks fine can hide a weaker bonus, retirement match or leave policy. Ask what is included before you agree.
• Treating the first answer as final. Saying a range on a screening call does not stop you from revising it once you learn the job is bigger than advertised. Say so: "Now that I know the role includes [X], I'd adjust my expectation to [Y]."
• Over-explaining. Give your range, one reason, and stop. Long justifications sound like doubt.

What to do next

Before your next application or recruiter call, do three things:

1. Look up your job title in the latest OEWS tables for your state, metro and, if available, your industry, and note the median and the upper percentiles.
2. Write your range on paper, with a one-line reason, and decide your private walk-away number.
3. Check whether the state or city where the job is located has a salary history ban or a pay range disclosure rule, and ask for the range if the posting does not show one.

Then practise your script out loud once. Saying the number calmly is half the work. For more ways to push an offer up, browse our negotiation guides.