How do I compare RSUs with salary in a tech job offer?
By Kyu-Hun Lee · Published · Updated
Short answer: Compare the salary with the shares expected to vest and become available during the same year, not the entire grant. For ordinary public-company RSUs that settle at vest, the value generally enters wage income. Whether you can sell those shares, and at what price, determines how useful that value is for your living budget.
Turn the grant into a year-by-year schedule
A $160,000 grant over four years is not automatically $160,000 of annual compensation. If the award genuinely vests evenly, a simple planning starting point is $40,000 per year at the assumed stock price. A cliff, back-loaded schedule, delayed start date or price movement changes that result.
Use share counts and vest dates from the offer documents. Build a small calendar with each vest, the assumed share price and any sale restriction. Keep refresh grants separate unless they are contractually committed; a recruiter’s description of typical refreshers is not a guarantee.
Taxable value and spendable cash are different
The IRS identifies restricted stock and RSUs as forms of equity compensation that can be wages subject to federal withholding. For a straightforward public-company award that settles when it vests, compare the wage value with the net proceeds available after taxes. Later price changes after acquiring the shares can create a separate capital gain or loss when sold.
Private-company awards can involve service and liquidity conditions or deferred settlement. An option is a right to buy shares, not the same instrument as an RSU. Do not enter an illiquid grant’s headline value as cash in a monthly budget. Our tool assumes the RSUs you enter are sellable and sold at vest; it does not model later gains or deferred settlement.
Sources: IRS information letter 2024-0010: equity compensation and withholding; IRS Topic 427: Stock options
Run a cash-first case and a stock-price downside case
Compare the two offers with RSUs set to zero first. This exposes the budget supported by salary and your expected cash bonus. Then enter the annual vesting value. Finally, reduce that equity value to 70% of the starting assumption, for example, to understand how much your conclusion depends on the stock price. This is a sensitivity test, not a stock-price forecast.
Check how much of your income and savings would depend on one employer. Also compare benefits, role quality, vesting forfeiture on departure and the expense of moving. An offer that looks larger on paper may leave less cash available when you need it.
Put your own offer into the comparison
Separate recurring salary, bonus and sellable RSUs from a signing payment and moving costs. Change the assumptions and download a free report.
Compare my offersCommon questions
Should I enter the entire four-year RSU grant?
No. Enter only the value expected to vest and be sold during the modeled year. Use the actual vesting schedule rather than assuming equal annual vesting.
Can I use this calculator for startup options?
No. Exercise costs, liquidity, AMT and sale-related taxes need a different model. Keep options outside the spendable-cash comparison.
Sources and scope
Source links checked September 24, 2026. Check the year displayed on tax forms; some sources explain general rules using prior-year examples. These guides are educational and have not been independently reviewed by a tax professional. Our calculator supports a narrower set of scenarios than the rules discussed here. Read the model’s scope.