# Salary Negotiation Email After a Job Offer: Counter Examples > Counter a job offer by email: thank them, say you want the job, name one figure with a reason and keep the door open. Subject lines and a sample counter. Source: https://hidengpt.com/write/salary-negotiation-email # I got a job offer, the salary is lower than I hoped, and I need to write a counter offer email without losing it. Bring the offer, the figure you want and the reason behind it: market data, your current pay or a competing offer. HidenGPT's Email format drafts a short counter that thanks them, says you want the role, names one number and asks if they can meet it. You get a polite, firm email, not an ultimatum. Updated October 15, 2026 · by the HidenGPT team Try it with your own details Enter to send · Shift+Enter for a new line ## How to do it in HidenGPT - 01 Before you write, decide your figure, the one reason you will give for it, and what else you would accept if the base salary cannot move (a signing bonus, an extra week of leave, a start date, a review after six months). - 02 Pick Email under “Use it for”, set Email type to Business email and Length to Medium, and write “meet a base salary of $96,000” or your own figure under Your ask. - 03 Put the offer as they wrote it, your figure, your reason and your fallback in the main box, and your name under Signature in More details. - 04 Check that the draft names one number, not a range, says plainly that you want the job, and doesn't mention your rent, your debts or anything you can't back up. - 05 Reply in the same thread as the offer, within a day or two, and be ready for a call: many recruiters answer a written counter by phone. [Email / Newsletter](https://hidengpt.com/tools/email): Subject lines that get opened, emails and newsletters that get replies. ## Why this is different from asking your boss for a raise A raise request goes to someone who already knows your work, so it argues from results. A counter offer goes to a recruiter or hiring manager who has just decided they want you, and who usually has some room inside a pay band they set before the interviews. Your position is strongest between the offer and your yes; once you accept, it is gone. That changes the email. It does not need a list of achievements: they interviewed you. It needs four things, in this order: 1. Thanks, and a clear statement that you want the role. 2. One figure, slightly above what you would accept, so there is room to meet in the middle. 3. One reason in one sentence: what similar roles pay, what you earn now, a competing offer, or a scope that is bigger than the posting said. 4. A question that makes yes easy: “Is there flexibility to get to $96,000?” A range (“$94,000 to $98,000”) invites them to pick the bottom of it. A list of five reasons reads as nervous. And “I need more because of my rent” makes your costs their problem, which they are not. ## Example: a counter offer email, 108 words Subject: Re: Offer for Senior Data Analyst Hi Dana, Thank you for the offer. I'm excited about the senior data analyst role and the claims dashboard project, and I want to make this work. Before I accept, I'd like to discuss the base salary. Similar senior analyst roles in Denver are posted between $92,000 and $100,000, and the role as we discussed it includes leading the dashboard work from the start. Would there be flexibility to bring the base to $96,000? If the base is fixed at this level, I'd be glad to talk about a signing bonus instead. I'm happy to jump on a call this week if that is easier. Best, Alex Rivera What it does: one figure, one reason, one fallback, and two clear signals that Alex will say yes. What it leaves out: a deadline, a threat, and any personal cost. ## Other reasons, and the lines that go with them Use whichever reason is true for you, and only one or two of them. Your current pay: “My current base is $85,000, and I'd like the move to be a step up. Could we look at $93,000?” Say it only if it is true, and check first whether your state or city limits what employers can ask about pay history; volunteering it is your choice. A competing offer: “I have another offer at $95,000. Northwind is my first choice, and if you can get closer to that number I'm ready to sign.” Never invent one. Recruiters sometimes ask to see it, and a bluff that is called usually ends the conversation. Scope: “The role now includes managing two analysts, which wasn't in the posting. I'd like the salary to reflect that.” When the money truly can't move, ask about the rest of the package in the same email: a signing bonus, the start date, remote days, extra leave, a salary review after six months written into the offer. Ask for that in writing, too. And if they say no to everything? Thank them, and decide. A plain “Thank you for checking. I'm happy to accept the offer as it stands” closes the loop without any lasting cost. ## What the Email format does with a counter offer Business email puts the purpose in the opening paragraph and ends on one clear next step, which is the shape a counter needs. Medium length, 120 to 250 words, leaves room for thanks, the figure and a fallback; Short, 50 to 120 words, works if you have already talked on the phone and only need to put the number in writing. The draft opens with a subject line of about 50 characters, and with Subject line ideas switched on you get three alternatives. Replying in the offer thread, keep their subject with “Re:” so the email sits next to the offer. The format is told not to invent facts: if you give no market figure, it will not make one up, and a gap shows up as a placeholder such as [number] for you to fill. Its spam check flags words like “urgent” and “100%”, which have no place in a negotiation anyway. On a plan, a voice built from 2 to 5 of your own emails keeps it sounding like the person they interviewed, not like a template. ## Not the right tool if - Asking for a raise in the job you already have. That is a different conversation with different evidence; there is a page for it. - Legal questions about an employment contract, non-compete or equity terms. Ask an employment lawyer before you sign those. - Inventing a competing offer or a current salary. The email works on true numbers, and a made-up one can cost you the offer. ## Other ways to do it A phone call, then an email that confirms it Many people find it easier to hear the reaction live. Send a short email afterwards that restates the figure and anything else agreed. Salary data from job postings and pay surveys Postings in your city that show a pay range, and public sources such as the US Bureau of Labor Statistics' occupation pages, give you a figure you can defend. Writing it yourself from the four parts Thanks, the figure, the reason, the question. The example above is short enough to adapt in ten minutes. ChatGPT or another chatbot Fast for a first draft, but it often adds a paragraph about your “passion for the mission” or suggests a percentage you never gave it. Replace those with your own numbers. ## Questions ### How do I write a counter offer email for salary? Thank them, say you want the role, name one figure with one reason, and ask whether they can meet it. Keep it under about 150 words and reply in the same thread as the offer. ### Is it okay to negotiate salary by email? Yes; putting the figure in writing is common and gives the recruiter something to take to the hiring manager. Expect a phone call in reply and prepare the same number for it. ### Can negotiating make them withdraw the offer? It is uncommon when the counter is polite, specific and reasonable, but it can happen. That is why the email says you want the job and gives a fallback instead of a demand. ### What subject line should a salary negotiation email have? Reply to the offer email and keep its subject, such as “Re: Offer for Senior Data Analyst”. If you start a new email, use something plain like “Question about the offer for Senior Data Analyst”. ### How much more should I ask for? A figure you can explain with one reason, a little above what you would accept. This page gives no percentage, because the right number depends on the role, the city and the pay band. ### What if they say the salary is final? Ask about the rest of the package: a signing bonus, the start date, leave, remote days or a pay review after six months. If nothing moves, thank them and decide whether to accept as offered. ### Is it honest to use AI to write my counter offer? Yes, as long as every number and reason in it is true. HidenGPT drafts from what you give it; you check the figures, cut anything you would not say on the phone, and send it as yours. ### Can I try it before I pay? Yes. Visitors get 2 drafts a day on the homepage with no account, enough for the counter and a reply to their answer. Pro is $3 for the first month if you want saved drafts and your own voice. ## Related - [I just got the offer I wanted, and I need to reply to accept it in a way that sounds professional and gets the details right.](https://hidengpt.com/write/accept-job-offer-email) - [I have to turn down a job offer, and I want to say no without burning a bridge with people I liked.](https://hidengpt.com/write/decline-job-offer-email) - [I want to email my boss to ask for a raise without sounding like I'm begging or threatening to quit.](https://hidengpt.com/write/email-asking-for-a-raise) - [I need a thank-you email after my interview that doesn't sound copied.](https://hidengpt.com/write/thank-you-email-after-interview) - [I sent an email a week ago and nobody has answered. 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