Ask HN: Comparing offer to current employment

[quantifiedCoder]

I've been on my current job for around 9 months. I do great work and everyone really likes me and I have a fantastic team that works around me. However a recruiter for a local company recently reached out to me and out of curiosity and a need for interview practice I went and interviewed with their team. They've got a great team and they're a little better put together with office space, hardware, etc. than my current employer.

Long story short they liked me and send me an offer of $80k base salary, 4 weeks of vacation, fully paid health insurance and a company funded health savings account to cover the copays, 401k with a similar match to my current company. However I'm fresh out of school and I'm not sure how to compare this to my current job.

My current job pays $65k base salary with $10k in bonuses paid out quarterly. I've had a really easy time hitting the criteria for these bonuses so I count them as part of my salary. 401k, 2 weeks of vacation, and a relatively affordable health plan ($90/month).

So on paper I will only make $5k more. I know vacation should be factored in but in all honesty I barely use vacation on my current job. Also I'll be getting $90 more a month as well as saving on the copays for Dr. Visits which should be factored in.

So my question is: Is this offer worth taking? Does it make sense? Or should I stick with my current company and hope that my loyalty will be rewarded? Should I take the offer to my current company and negotiate for better salary? Just looking for input and ideas.

[elmojenkins]

If the new company is adding value to your credentials and also has room to grow, then maybe its work taking the offer.

But if it's the same job, with only a few more dollars in your pocket, I would evaluate the situation a little more. As they say 'the grass is always greener on the other side', you don't want to trade 1 set of issues for another.

You've only been around for 9 months, In my book you're still 'the new guy', so I personally don't see much room for negotiation.

Don't wait for shit to change where you are at though, it wont.

[quantifiedCoder]

Credentials would remain about the same (Senior Developer -> Senior Software Engineer) I figure if I can negotiate them up to $85k it'd be worth the move. 4 weeks of vacation is worth something too I guess.