Help! Salary expectations for mid-level UXer?

May 14, 2020 176 Comments

I just started looking at new positions, and it seems like every UX job is looking for someone with 5-7 years of experience, or someone fresh out of school. Because of that, I’m also having a hard time figuring out what the market rate would be for someone in my situation.

TLD: Based off the info below, what should my base salary/TC be?

- 3-4 YOE in UX
- Masters in HCI (aka UX research/design)
- Living in the Northeast (Boston)
- Current base salary 102k (TC ~110k)

#tech #ux #uxdesigner #tc #salaries #salary #salarycomparison #salarynegotiation #boston #productdesign #productdesigner #design #ui/ux

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TOP 176 Comments
  • Amazon
    amznmo

    Go to company page Amazon

    amznmo
    Levels.fyi
    May 14, 2020 12
  • New / Sales
    mwbO73

    New Sales

    mwbO73
    Ever thought about taking on multiple freelance contracts and starting your own thing? My wife did that with 3 yoe UI/UX, converted one contract to full on client that has net 3 new recurring clients (she gets about 30 hours a week billing at $90/hour++ (by ++ I mean her clients often ask her to rush work or work weekends/holidays and she makes x1.5+ on that) and then is free to take on more work if she wants. Once in a while she'll get people who she did apps for in the past reach back out for another easy 10-15k. But from her steady work from clients, she's making 140k. Of course she doesn't have equity or insurance, but that's what my job is for!

    Not trying to push you to start your own thing, but wanted to give you an option based on perspective from an outsider looking closely in. If you want any advice on how she got clients, happy to help. I helped her with a lot of Biz Dev too
    May 15, 2020 8
    • New / Sales
      mwbO73

      New Sales

      mwbO73
      140k is 30hrs/wk without 1.5x. if I were to guess her w2, it would look closer to 180k, and adding an extra 10 hours to be f/t, she'd be hitting 200k easy. she's also got some big web app prospects in the works (100k+) that is much easier to do/manage as a freelancer vs working at big tech f/t
      May 16, 2020
    • Talend
      YSRc46

      Go to company page Talend

      YSRc46
      "230k - 280k is where it becomes reasonable"...wooww.
      May 16, 2020
  • Capital One / Design
    dFhL33

    Go to company page Capital One Design

    dFhL33
    I’m in DC area with 3 years experience making 115 base
    May 15, 2020 12
  • Google
    YCrO17

    Go to company page Google

    YCrO17
    I have a question for OP. I’m currently in marketing but am thinking about switching to UX in a few years. I only have 1 YOE and make $130 TC (100k base). Is it even worth the switch...?
    May 15, 2020 14
    • Google
      hopesfam

      Go to company page Google

      hopesfam
      My advice for anyone that thinks schools and programs will help you get a nudge over someone that didn’t have the pedigree is all pure BS.

      With FANG, yeah sure if you went to CMU, Art Center, SVA and the likes, recruiter might put a bit more eyeballs on you, but there’s no fast track to getting a UX job especially at FB or G.

      The competition is fierce in these companies. And at FB right now, they only hire senior talents for most of the teams and orgs. The way you separate yourself from the pack is to put your past/current hard work and experience on the table, tell a strong narrative of what your role and responsibilities to the impact of the products are. Look at product/people problems from the lens of the market, people, and culture, and be able to zoom in deep on the details and the experience but zoom out on the second order effects it may have on the holistic/system design and experience.
      Dec 19, 2020
    • Google
      hopesfam

      Go to company page Google

      hopesfam
      And just to add one more note

      If you have 3-5 YOE, I suggest you put work into your craft and quality. How efficient and how good you are with tools especially prototyping will make a difference.

      If you are in the 5-8 YOE range, starting defining what kind of designer do you want to be. What do you want to be known for? What are your superpower(s) that you know you can contribute and make impact immediately.

      And if you are 8 YOE or above, you are at the cusp of tapping into leadership roles whether it is IC or Management. What is your contribution not just at the product output level but overall team and organization. How do you define the scope of the work and scale the work and set your visions and strategy. Your deeper thinkings and people influence is at a much greater needs here than your pixel level output.
      Dec 19, 2020
  • New / Design
    rxwh35

    New Design

    PRE
    Adobe, Microsoft, Amazon
    rxwh35
    Levels.fyi is a good resource for a guesstimate. I was a FAANG UX leader, and I can tell you that, as others have noted, those companies set the top of the market (especially FB & Google), but everyone benchmarks off that TC. Also, level has far more to do with comp than title/job family. I typically look at the SWE comp (more data points/companies). For UX, assume you’ll be about 5-15% lower than an equivalent SWE average DOE. You can also expect a cost of living adjustment for Boston vs BA or NYC (probably Seattle as well).
    If the company is smaller, they still need to compete for talent to some degree. Expect that they will target your comp somewhere between 75-85% of top of market.
    At your level of experience/edu (using Amazon’s leveling), expect to get leveled around L4 or L5. L3/L4 at FB or Google. Once you ballpark those and adjust for COL you’ll get a decent sense of your market value.
    May 15, 2020 3
    • New
      trojanh

      New

      trojanh
      Is there a difference between front end and UX? Pay the same about 15% lower than SWE!

      Also aren’t all the FAANG interviews still just LC same difficulty as SWE but very little web fundamentals mixed in
      May 16, 2020
    • Google
      Marketon🔥

      Go to company page Google

      Marketon🔥
      Nah that’s not always true. If you’re very good at your job you can get paid as much as a SWE however SWE will always get more equity
      Nov 19, 2020