Article · 15 min read

The Next Evolution of Transparent Salaries: Our Remote-First Formula and Salary Calculator

Buffer Free Intermediate

This is a real, published pay formula, not opinion: Salary = (SF 50th-percentile benchmark x cost-of-living multiplier x role multiplier) x experience factor, with the location adjustment set to three clean bands (100 / 85 / 75 percent) instead of a made-up discount. That is exactly the transparent location-aware band your answer argues for, and Buffer even ships a public calculator and open salary sheet so anyone can see how their number is built. Steal the structure and swap SF for a Bengaluru benchmark to price talent in Jaipur or Coimbatore defensibly rather than by gut.

  • A defensible location adjustment is a small set of published bands (100/85/75), not a per-person haggle or a random discount
  • Anchor to one benchmark market, then apply role and experience multipliers so two people at the same level land in the same place
  • Publishing the formula (and a calculator) is what turns 'you earn less because of where you live' from resentment into a rule everyone can see
Open on buffer.com ↗

The question it answers

  1. How do I hire and manage across Indian cities so it does not become second-class remote?

Read with it

  1. GitLab runs 2,000+ people across 60+ countries with zero headquarters, so their handbook is the closest thing to a field manual... The GitLab Handbook Article · 45 min read GitLab's Guide to All-Remote GitLab
  2. Before you lock in location-based bands, read the honest case against them: this lays out where cost-of-living pay breeds... Sifted Article · 10 min read Should you earn less because you live somewhere cheaper? Sifted
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