The 15 Best Salary Calculators and Comparison Tools

Are you looking for salary information about a specific role? These salary comparison websites will help you determine your earning potential.

Reviewed by Melina Theodorou

Best Salary Calculators and Comparison Tools

Whether you are a jobseeker or a recruiter looking for salary information, utilizing a high-quality salary calculator will help you get a better idea of what you can expect.

Meanwhile, if your performance review is coming up or you are ready to negotiate a higher salary, you could use these tools to your advantage. There is nothing more powerful than being equipped with information to that will help you secure better compensation.

But where should you go for this information? We have compiled a list of the 15 best salary comparison tools that are available to you. Let's explore these options.

1. Payscale

Payscale’s free salary calculator can be used by recruiters, employees, potential job applicants, and managers. People can calculate their salary based on several criteria, including the type of role, job title, city, state, country, education, qualifications, and years of experience.

The average salary calculated by Payscale is quite reliable, and is based on salary data gathered by other users with similar criteria as you who received an actual salary offer by employers. The calculator also includes bonuses and overtime pay.

Overall, the Payscale salary calculator can be an excellent tool for employees who are negotiating an existing contract or advancing to a higher-level job.

2. Salary.com

Salary.com has a reliable salary calculator that uses various criteria to determine salary, including the type of job, level, and the state where you want to work in.

The site offers a diverse list of jobs in numerous fields and takes into account qualification and skill requirements. Additionally, the Salary Wizard tool allows people to search for jobs and compare salaries, average time off, bonuses, and cost of living in different areas. It also provides a free salary comparison report.

For those interested in a personalized salary report, they can access this by paying $29.

3. Glassdoor

Glassdoor’s salary calculator is an important tool for potential employees. The platform provides salary information by position and provides a rough estimate of what you expect to get paid. It also considers the location, employer, job title, current salary, and years of experience when generating your results.

The base figure provided for the salary estimate is usually not that far off from the actual salary. Another great feature of this calculator is that it provides you with salary information that you could expect to get with more experience or in another city.

4. Monster

Monster has a straightforward salary calculator. All you do is enter your job type and location. This information gives you a graph with the average salary and the national average for that job. It also gives you a percentage of how far off a particular salary is from the national average.

The Monster salary calculator relies on its immense data bank of jobs on its site. However, it is important to note that this calculator only provide you with the starting base pay as it does not consider your skill level, experience, or education. 

5. Indeed

Compared to other salary calculators on this list, Indeed's salary calculator is not as intuitive. It is based on robust data collected over the years and estimates salaries based on average figures and either the type of job, company, or the city where you plan to reside.

Essentially the calculator tool asks for the job title, location, company, level of experience, and skill level and produces a graph highlighting what other people earn in a similar role at the same area. There is also a comparison tool that allows you to enter two different cities to determine which one offers the highest salary.

6. Hired

With Hired's salary calculator you can insert your role, years of experience and city. You also have the option to filter your results by skills, locations, industries, and company types to get a more refined salary estimate. Meanwhile, it should be noted that the salary data is from real interviews and offers on Hired, and not self-reported salary information. You can also compare data across different cities and countries and get a better understanding of your earning potential across the world.

7. Salary Expert

Salary Expert’s salary calculator is similar to Payscale’s and can be used by jobseekers, employees, recruiters and managers. The calculator utilizes several criteria to determine salary, including location, grade, type of job, and skill level.

By knowing the exact amount of salary, you will be in a much stronger position as a potential employee negotiating a contract with an employer. The basic report provides the average salary for that particular job, the cost of living, and compares skill levels for the same position. You can also research salaries for many different professions.  While the basic average salary report is free, personalized salary reports do have a fee.

8. NerdWallet

NerdWallet offers an excellent tool that allows you to calculate both salary and the cost of living for different cities. This calculator considers factors such as quality of life data, cost of public trasnport, education costs, and taxes. Most salary calculators do not maintain such precise numbers. But what you will get from NerdWallet is how much you will save at the end of the day, which is vital information for most people.

Even if you are employed, this can be an exceptional resource if you are working towards a promotion.

9. Totaljobs

Totaljobs possesses a simple but effective salary calculator that is designed to help people based in the UK renegotiate their salary or ask for a raise.

You key in your job type and location, and it will give you the average salary for your specific position. This way, you can determine what others doing the same job are making in different companies and across other parts of the country.

10. Dice

Dice also offers a simple salary calculator. All you do is type in the job title, location, and years of experience, and it gives you an estimated salary. One problem with this calculator is that you have to insert a street location instead of a city or state. The graph shows the range of salary only in that location.

Dice salary data are limited to engineering, tech professionals, and computer specialists. However, the salary prediction is quite accurate and matches companies' offers on their websites. 

11. The Salary Project

The Salary Project by Career Contessa offers is a free salary calculator. To start, you will need to complete an anonymized survey composed of ten questions that allows the site to gather information regarding your gender, date of birth, current experience, and salary.

The Salary Project offers a personalized experience and allows you to see the real salaries of other people. Once submitted, you will receive a customized salary report that will show how your salary compares to what others earn, based on data collected by the website.

12. LinkedIn Salary

LinkedIn Salary also provides a decent salary calculator. However, one must sign up on LinkedIn to use this tool and it’s only available in a few select countries, including the US and the UK.

LinkedIn members provide their salaries anonymously, which are then used to calculate different salaries for different professions. The calculator can be adjusted to reflect results based on your skills, experience, industry, company size, and location.

13. Robert Half

Robert Half is not only one of the best employment agencies, but it also has one of the best salary calculators. All you have to do is insert the role and city, and it gives you an approximate salary figure which is not far from the real deal.

Their salary projections are focused on seven sectors: finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, administrative and customer support, legal, healthcare, and human resources professions.

14. Educate to Career

Educate to Career offers a comprehensive tool for salary calculation. Just type in the profession and region of the country where you want to work. It will also ask you to provide your level of experience to provide an accurate salary report.

You can modify the search by changing the education level, skill or location. There are no forms, and the website is free. The only downside is that it does not provide information on bonus pay, benefits, or overtime.

15. CareerBuilder

CareerBuilder provides a free salary calculator on their website, suitable for potential employees, managers, and human resource professionals. All you do is key in your job and insert the city you prefer for work. Based on this, it will provide you with information about the average salaries for that role.

The data also contains information about all the jobs available for that profession. The only disadvantage is that the calculator does not consider skill level or experience. However, if you want to get a rough idea of what the salary prospects of certain roles are, this is an excellent tool to use.

Final thoughts

knowledge and information are everything; it’s important to be aware of where you sit on the pay ladder.

This is the power of salary calculators and websites, as they can provide you with a treasure trove of information that may be critical to your career objectives, and perhaps financial goals.

So, the next time you get a job offer or sit in front of a pay review board, don’t go in blind. Do your research, know how much you are worth, and make your next career decision accordingly.

Have you used any of these salary calculators? Which ones do you prefer? Let us know in the comments section below!

 

This article is an updated version of an earlier article originally published on 16 October 2018.