I joined amazon a month ago and my TC including stock is 200k. Since im here for at least next four years for the stocks to be vested, im wondering what is a realistic goal to make in terms of TC. Is reaching a TC of 400k possible by the end of next 4 years?. Im not talking about jumping to other companies to hike up my pay, but just staying at Amazon for the next 4 years, and making a goal which is realistic. If i dont get promoted at all or get no more stocks annually, im just looking at a flat TC of 200k annually(considering stock remains around 1200$) Im currently sde 2, and would like to stay on the engineering side for the next 4 years. What is the maximum TC i can expect at the end of next 4 year, if i do really good? but if sde ladder doesnt take you to 400-500k i might change to management later on.
Itās outside the realm of possibility. Unless you are a rock star and get some special grants. The only way is if stock appreciates a lot.
But it is possible if u worm really hard and are a rock star?
Staying at amazon for 4 years :( good luck!! You got this!
Lol. I would coz of stocks
Thatās not a financially smart way of looking at it. The company is sure as hell not looking at it that way. Your equity will refresh every year. If you do well, you should have a constant stream of equity. It doesnāt matter that it vests over four years. A year from now, youāll have new refresh equity for year 5. Year after that, youāll have get equity for year 6. Itās how they fool you into thinking that you need to stay and/or not look elsewhere. The way to think about it is your comp is an annual stream of income. Calculate what your annual comp will be. Compare that to any other market offers you have every year. If you have a better offer, thereās no sense in waiting the four years. Any competitive offers will at least match your unvested equity. So whether you leave one year out or three years out, your in the same boat.
When I joined amazon as level 4, tc was 120k. After many years, promotions, and offers from competitors it got up to about 200k. Finally I got an offer from oracle and got walked out with it (they didnāt offer any match/raise). I would not count on staying for long to get a raise. Counter offers and leaving and coming back are proven to work though.
Getting promoted to SDE3 and making 300k would be an attainable goal for you to set over the next four years
OP, I have never worked for AMZ, so take this with a grain of salt. I would be very surprised to see you making 400k annually within 4 years based on my experience with similar companies. Typically, your initial grant is the biggest and equity refreshers donāt quite measure up (are maybe 75% of what vests). Another factor is cost of living adjustments. Iām sure Phoenix pays less than the Bay Area, but the net result may still be better due to more affordable housing, etc. So remember that 250k may be equivalent to 400k elsewhere. Assuming you are a total and undisputed rockstar, you could maybe edge out a 25% annual increase each year (highly unlikely). Your TC would still come in below 400k. Better for you to do 2 years at AMZ, then use it as leverage and move to another company who will pay a premium for your experience over there. Youāll see much bigger gains this way.
Great points! But if i move after 2 years ill be missing out majority of my stocks
Or...that stock becomes leverage in a negotiation to the new place. They would have to meet and exceed. Youāll also find the the majority of your learning happens in the first year at any new place. That means those are the years when the company is giving the most to you.
Is it possible? Sure. I dowant to turn this around and ask you what you're looking for. I think you're setting an artificial goal that is not related to your primary goal.
Well i would like to hit 400-500k by the time im 35. Im 31 now. I know its a very shallow goal, but it keeps me excited atleast!
Iām 34 and make > 400k. There is nothing too special about me, so it is definitely possible. My biggest gains came as I moved between companies though. When they have a fish on the hook there is no reason to feed it more bait. Paparazziās question is good though and Iād challenge you to dig deeper than the number. Is the money about status for you? Is it about affording a particular lifestyle? Is it personal satisfaction in being acknowledged as āthe bestā at your craft? Is it about a nest egg/early retirement? If it is simply about maximizing income, your best path will be to convert as much of your active income to passive income and to keep your costs low. Most millionaires have multiple sources of income and they leverage their wealth to build more wealth.
400-500k target comp *without* taking into account stock appreciation is L7+ territory. Not achievable for most people. Took me less than 5 years to go from SDE1 to SDE3 and that was hard enough. Getting to principal is at least another 3 years fron there.
Very unlikely.
Does amazon seriously give out that much stock?
Says the msft guy with a surprised look
My current tc is 145k base , 45 + 30 sigon and 125 stocks. Im based in phoenix