[soham]

When asked about salary, people often assume that's a loose ask, and mention their total cash compensation i.e. including bonus. Not including equity though. Bonuses at many companies are in the range of 10-20%, so if one is making 180k, it's easy to round up to 200k in conversation. Plus there are perks and awards.

180k is not uncommon at all. Several candidates from our course have had those numbers. And even otherwise, Sr engineers with a few years of experience, make 180k at most well known tech companies. Of course, not every Sr. engineer makes that much, but those who have had an excellent interview and have negotiated well, very often do.