About this tool
The Job Offer Comparator is built for one decision: when you have 2 or 3 offers in different cities, which one actually pays more once tax and rent and groceries are stripped out. Most offer-comparison tools either treat total compensation (TC) as a single number that ignores tax or compare only gross base salary. Both are misleading. A 250,000 USD San Francisco offer and a 220,000 USD Seattle offer look 30,000 apart on gross. After California state tax kicks in and Bay Area rent eats 4,500 a month, the same role in Seattle can clear the same take-home and leave more in your bank account.
This tool walks all the way through: city, currency, base, bonus, RSU vest, sign-on, 401k or super or pension employer match, employer-paid health value, PTO days, relocation budget, and visa status. It applies a city-specific effective tax rate, normalises every offer to USD, scales by a published cost of living index (Bangalore = 100), and reports each offer's annual take-home, purchasing power, and 4-year economic value. Results update as you type. Nothing leaves your browser.
How to compare two or three offers properly
- Pick the city for each offer. The currency symbol, COL index, and effective tax rate update automatically.
- Enter base, bonus %, and RSU annual vest in the offer's local currency.
- Add sign-on, employer match, health value, PTO, and relocation. The model amortises sign-on to year-1 and subtracts relocation from the 4-year value.
- Read the ranked table. Offers are ranked by purchasing power (take-home divided by COL index) and 4-year economic value.
- Scroll to the bar chart for the 4-year USD comparison and the city quality-of-life cards for tech ecosystem, climate, and healthcare notes.
- Test sensitivity at the bottom: if the RSU share price doubles, how much does each offer change?
The math
Effective tax rates are blended: federal + state + city + payroll. They are planning figures, not the marginal rate on your last dollar. For a deep dive on US blended effective rates, see our marginal vs effective calculator.
City effective tax + COL index used
| City | Currency | Effective tax | COL index (BLR=100) | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | USD | 40% | 380 | Federal + CA state (13.3% top) on $250K-$400K AGI. |
| Seattle | USD | 30% | 320 | No state income tax. Federal + 7% B&O for self-employed. |
| New York City | USD | 38% | 410 | Federal + NY state + NYC local on $250K+. |
| Austin | USD | 30% | 240 | No state tax. Federal only. |
| London | GBP | 40% | 380 | PAYE: 40% above £50,270, 45% above £125,140. NI 2-12%. |
| Toronto | CAD | 40% | 300 | Federal + Ontario combined on CAD $250K. |
| Vancouver | CAD | 36% | 320 | Federal + BC combined, lower than ON. |
| Sydney | AUD | 40% | 350 | Federal stage-3 + 2% Medicare Levy on AUD $250K. |
| Bangalore | INR | 30% | 100 | New regime; effective on ₹50L+ income with surcharge. |
| Dubai | AED | 5% | 280 | 0% personal income tax. Corporate tax 9% above AED 375K only. |
| Singapore | SGD | 22% | 350 | Resident bands top out at 24% above SGD 1M. Effective ~22% at SGD 350K. |
Effective tax rates blend federal + state + city + payroll (FICA / NI / Medicare Levy / EPF). COL index uses Numbeo with Bangalore as base 100. Real personal rates depend on filing status, deductions, and pre-tax contributions. For US-specific bracket detail see the 2026 IRS brackets tool.
How to use the Job Offer Comparator
The Job Offer Comparator runs entirely in your browser. Pick a city for each of up to three offers, enter your numbers in that city's local currency, and read the ranked output. The page renders a side-by-side table, a bar chart of 4-year USD value, and city quality-of-life cards. Inputs never leave your device.
- Privacy: nothing is logged, sent, or stored by 3Tej. Inputs disappear when you close the tab.
- Speed: results update as you type. No network round trip.
- Offline use: once the page is cached, it works without internet.
- No signup: no account, no email, no rate limits.
When you would use this
- Cross-city move: SF vs Seattle vs Austin. Same role, very different take-home.
- Cross-country move: US vs London vs Sydney. Currency, tax, and visa change everything.
- Remote arbitrage: same TC but you can pick where to live. Pick the lowest-COL acceptable city.
- Sign-on negotiation: see exactly how much a 20K bump in sign-on closes a gap with a competing offer.
- RSU sensitivity: if the share price doubles or halves, how does your offer ranking shift?
Frequently asked questions
How is RSU vesting handled in the comparison?
RSUs are amortised over a 4-year vest with a standard 1-year cliff at most US tech employers. The tool treats the entered annual RSU figure as the steady-state vesting value once you are past the cliff. Sign-on bonuses are amortised over the first 1-2 years (we use year-1 here). For a clean 4-year economic value, the tool computes base x 4 + bonus x 4 + RSU x 4 + sign-on minus relocation cost. If your RSU grant uses double-trigger acceleration (common at private tech), assume zero value until IPO.
What does double-trigger acceleration mean for RSUs?
Most private-company RSUs at startups use double-trigger vesting: time-based vesting and a liquidity event (IPO or acquisition) both must occur before shares actually vest. Until the liquidity event happens, your nominally vested RSUs are worth zero because you cannot sell. Public-company RSUs are single-trigger time-based and vest on schedule. This tool assumes single-trigger when you enter a value; reduce the RSU figure to zero for pre-IPO grants you do not expect to liquidate.
What is a sign-on clawback and should I worry about it?
Most sign-on bonuses are paid in lump sum (sometimes split year-1 + year-2) but are subject to clawback if you leave within 12-24 months. The clawback is usually pro-rated: leave at month 6 of a 12-month clawback and you repay roughly half. The tool assumes you stay long enough to fully earn the sign-on. If you might leave early, value the sign-on at zero in the comparison.
Visa sponsored vs own: how does it change the offer value?
If your visa is sponsored (H-1B, Tier 2, 482) the offer is tied to that employer. Quitting risks losing legal status. This is invisible economic cost: you have less negotiating leverage and less freedom to walk. If you own your visa (green card, citizen, PR) the offer is portable. The comparator treats visa status as a flag but cannot quantify the loss-of-leverage discount; many candidates apply a 10-20% personal discount to sponsored offers.
What is the COBRA gap and why does it matter when switching offers?
In the US, when you leave an employer your health coverage typically ends within 30 days. COBRA continuation lets you keep the old plan but you pay the full premium plus 2% admin (often $500-$1,500 per month per person). If your new offer has a 30-90 day waiting period before health coverage activates, you bridge with COBRA or a marketplace plan. Add $1,500-$4,500 to the relocation cost line for a single-month gap, more for a family.
Why does cost of living matter? It is gross not personal.
Cost of living indices like Numbeo are city averages that include grocery, transport, utilities, and rent. They reflect what a typical resident spends. Your personal spend may be 20-50% lower if you avoid the expensive neighbourhoods, do not own a car, or share rent. Treat the COL-adjusted purchasing power figure as an upper-bound corrective on gross comp, not a personal budget. The comparator uses Bangalore as base 100 and scales other cities accordingly.
When should I negotiate a higher sign-on bonus?
Sign-on bonuses are the easiest part of the offer to negotiate because they do not affect band-banding or internal equity. Reasons recruiters approve a sign-on bump: you are walking away from an unvested RSU grant at your current employer (ask for replacement equity or sign-on equal to the abandoned vest), you have a competing offer with a sign-on, the offer base is below your target by 5-15%. Sign-ons of 20-50% of base are common at US tech. Bake the after-tax sign-on into the year-1 TC comparison.
Are relocation benefits taxable?
Mostly yes, in the US. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act removed the moving-expense exclusion for non-military taxpayers through 2025. Employer-paid relocation is taxable income unless your employer grosses it up (some do, especially at senior level). UK, Australia, and Canada have similar partial-taxability rules. Treat employer-paid relocation as taxable comp unless you have written confirmation of a gross-up. The comparator subtracts net relocation cost from 4-year value.
Is the Job Offer Comparator accurate?
The math is exact for the inputs you provide. The effective tax rates are blended planning figures, not your specific marginal rate. For a real personal plan, model your actual deductions, pre-tax contributions, and credits with a local adviser.
Is the Job Offer Comparator free?
Yes. 100% free, no signup, no payment, no API key. The site is funded by display ads that appear around the tool but not inside the calculation flow.
Are my inputs saved?
No. Inputs stay in your browser tab. Closing the tab discards them.
Can I use this on my phone?
Yes. The tool is responsive and tested on iOS Safari, Android Chrome, and major desktop browsers.
How do I report a bug?
Email hi@3tej.com with the URL of this page and a description of what you saw vs expected. We typically respond within 72 hours.
How accurate is the Job Offer Comparator?
The arithmetic is exact. The effective tax rates and COL indices are blended planning figures. Real outcomes depend on filing status, deductions, and city-specific rents.
Does this work offline?
Yes. Once the page is loaded, it works without internet.
Why are results different from another offer-comparison tool?
Most calculators ignore cost-of-living adjustment, treat all RSUs as guaranteed, or skip state tax. This one applies all three.
How do I share results?
Screenshot the ranked table or bar chart. The page does not generate shareable URLs - inputs stay in your browser only.