Impact of [low/high] Job Title vs. [high/low] Salary?

Wanted to get WSO member's opinions on the impact of higher titles on lower salaries vs. the other way round.

Some obvious differentiating variables would be the employee's age, negotiation hustle and previous background.. but consider:

- Guy A - Analyst - $85k base
- Guy B - Analyst - $120k base
- Guy C - Associate - $120k base
- Guy D - AVP - $85k base
- Guy E - AVP - $120k base

Point being, it's a mixed bag (and not just a hypothetical - there are real people with different backgrounds at these exact title-salary pairs out there in NYC).

What is your consensus around this variation? Is it just neutral due to the original variables stated (and more), or is there something negative/positive about a certain pairing? If you had two job offers with varying title/pay what would your desired path be? Some people prefer the title over the pay while others prefer the pay over the title..

0 Comments

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $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

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...”