How do bonuses work for Analyst 1? Does it depend on the firm/how it does that year?

I know there are a lot of topics on bonus but I am still sort of confused on how they work.

How does a first year analyst bonus at a BB work? Do different BB's pay higher bonuses for analyst 1, or is it just dependent on how the firm/group does that year?

For example would a JPM Analyst 1 make more than a BofAML or Barclays or any other BB analyst? Or would the difference just be not that much 5-10k?

And how does your team decide if you are a "top" bucket or "mid" bucket analyst etc?

7 Comments
 

ngreenbanker2, bummer your thread hasn't had a response yet. Sometimes bots are smarter than humans anyways:

  • Larger Consulting Firms: How does it work; When does billing start? question: how does it all work and when does the billing start? I'm good at what I do but have only ... a somewhat big (maybe even really big) consulting company to help me with the final steps, working out the ... limited knowledge of the consulting world. How to best proceed? Contact c
  • Took an Associate job at a tiny firm, how screwed am I? bank literally working on deals that are like $3-20mm. It was the only job I could get and I had to ... spending all that money and time on an MBA. And I feel trapped. The worst part is that I have prior ... experience here seriously. It's even more frustrating by how far I got with the
  • Boutique Firms- How to find such a firm? the small work force. How do you find such a firm? This may be more challenging for me since I want to ... , that's 200-500 million they make for clients. They get 15% of that, so 30-75m respectively to split among ... manages 10.5B in assets, and works with numerous other firms (p/e, hedge funds, com. fu
  • Same analyst interviewing me at different firm... how screwed am I? I have a superday in a few days with a boutique. Problem is, one of the analysts that I will be ... resume? I tweaked a few things and I'm worried I will get called out on it.- The impression he had of ... incompetent during the interview for not being able to answer some technicals, told me I wasn't a good ...
  • Office surrounded by HF/PE firms, how to use this location to my advantage? and even so, how would you get past the reception that most of these places have? Any examples of how ... office. Is it best to stick to the traditional methods mentioned above or are there alternatives in ... a situation like this when it comes to networking? Is there anything I can do in person? A CV drop is all ...
  • Tier 2 Undergrad--- Tier 2 Firm--- How to get into PE/VC? situations on how to start networking for these places and get on level with my peers at BB /similar shops. ... respectable but definitely not on a BB level and I have serious doubts that given my undergrad and current ... with me? How can I crack my way into one of these shops? I have heard it's very bad form to reach ...
  • How Do You Transfer Money out of China? (for those of you working there) How does it work? it gives around $17k for about 3 months. But I am confused about how this whole process works ... this true? For those of you who have, or know someone working in Mainland China, how does it work? Does ... the bank we work for wire th
  • More suggestions...

Any pros willing to rescue this discussion? @Pradeep1986" pnesvold cliffhangerending

I hope those threads give you a bit more insight.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

Hi does anyone know about this!

Does it really make a difference depending on what BB you are at? Or does it just depend how the bank did in IBD etc for that year?

 
Most Helpful

Depends.

Some banks call folks who've been working for up until about 6 months "first years" and others are a full year. With the former, everyone gets a flat stub bonus because there aren't any real ways to distinguish between different analysts yet (since everyone is still ramping up on the learning curve).

Full bonuses are a function of overall bank performance, your performance (as gathered through peer and manager evaluations) and your group/division's performance. Banks work to a compensation ratio which can vary from year to year depending on market conditions but in general, bonus numbers are broadly within the same area across similar firms at the junior level. Buckets are split out into top, next best, mid (which the majority will get) and bottom tier - delta between buckets is normally ~$5-15k.

Was obsessed with finance, now do product in tech
 
Funniest

Wtf... "the difference not that much 5-10k?" boy that's the difference between a rolly and an omega

What concert costs 45 cents? 50 Cent feat. Nickelback.
 

Nihil et voluptate id et voluptates. Ut quidem non culpa natus consectetur quia placeat fuga. Provident nam maiores quis sint aliquam officiis. Perspiciatis ipsam quia enim et deserunt omnis quos alias.

Aut veritatis vero eveniet quas error saepe sint error. Natus repellendus perspiciatis eaque.

Beatae voluptas sit et dignissimos fugit pariatur. Perspiciatis quasi quis voluptas commodi neque. Voluptatem sint necessitatibus aut ut. Ut incidunt ea laboriosam atque.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”