Where are the high paying roles? Are they real?
My background is 3 years investment banking and 2 years private equity/private credit. Over those 5 years, my comp has been $160K, $230K, $242.5K, $249K and $285K respectively. All in NYC, my IB experience was at a solid global bank (not BB or EB) and my buyside firm has $10B+ in AUM.
I see all these posts/surveys/etc where Associates in our industry are making $300K+, even $400K, but I haven't seen this is practice.
Megafund / prestigious IB role? You get paid at a discount for the privilege of working at their firm.
Middle market / lower middle market? We don't pay as much as the "big guys" but you'll still get a great experience.
Outside of NYC? Our cost of living is way lower, so your pay is less.
Private credit? Our returns are lower than PE, so your pay is less.
I recently got an offer from a LMM PE fund that topped out at $260K. I tried to negotiate for $300K+ and they ended up retracting the offer.
Are people actually being paid $300K+ or is everybody hyping it up? Can someone point me to the firms/paths that pay more? Where are the best places, in terms of comp, to climb the ladder in 2026?
(Yes I know the best answer to get paid more is to get promoted to VP+, but I'd prefer to do this at the right place if I can)
if you want more upside, join a HF or a startup. srsly, $300 isn't that big a #. different paths though with much higher variance of outcomes
PE is a mature / hierarchical industry, and performance has been poor ICYMI. ppl are understandably being stingy b/c there are no realizations... unless youre on a team that's kicking butt, it's a long road to making $$. idk if first 5 years is even enough time to evaluate career success / getting paid. most people don't start snowballing $$ before mid/late 30s.
at your level, ur still a cost center more than revenue center. you don't get paid for good models and decks -- it's judgment, relationships, ability to **profitably** deploy capital (again, you haven't been working long enough to prove investment skill on PE timelines).
my 2c: decide if you like the work enough to take the longer road to $$. then, you should map out your skills and figure out which ones you need to develop / how to get that experience (assuming you want to stay in privates). then if you see a real growth opportunity, you can jump on it
For reference I’ve made about $175k, $215k, $340k (including A2A bonus), $220k (very painful, stub bonus), $325k over the calendar years.
Banking in NYC. Top performer throughout (read: been getting fucked since day 1). And while I am grateful and have no complaints, I know for a fact there are people that have made much more at other firms.
Here’s the punchline of the joke. Comp discussion on WSO tends toward call it 90th percentile outcomes. If you’re at a top firm, ranked top bucket over years, get promoted, get grinded out, you will hit and hell even exceed the numbers you see posted around here.
But the stars and moons and galaxies need to align for that outcome. One VP doesn’t like your face for some reason and you don’t get good staffing and it might be a 20% haircut each year, but your life might be 20% better which allows you to live.
We're you at a top BB and will you get paid in full next year?
Based on the most helpful WSO content, here's the breakdown of high-paying roles and whether the $300K+ figures are realistic:
1. Are $300K+ Associate Roles Real?
Yes, they are real, but they are typically concentrated in specific segments of the private equity industry: - Megafunds (e.g., Blackstone, KKR, Bain Capital): These firms are known for offering top-tier compensation packages. For example, first-year associates at Apollo Global Management reportedly earn as high as $395K, and other megafunds often hover in the $300K+ range. - Top Middle Market Firms: While middle market firms generally pay less than megafunds, some top-tier ones (e.g., The Riverside Company, Warburg Pincus) still offer competitive compensation, especially for high performers. - Private Credit vs. PE: Private credit roles tend to pay less than traditional private equity due to lower returns, as you mentioned. If you're targeting $300K+, private equity is the better bet.
2. Compensation Trends by Role and Firm Type
3. Where to Look for High-Paying Roles
4. Why Haven't You Seen $300K+ in Practice?
5. How to Maximize Your Comp in 2026
In summary, $300K+ associate roles are real, but they are concentrated in megafunds and top-tier middle market firms. To climb the ladder and maximize comp, targeting these firms or focusing on promotion to VP+ is key.
Sources: 2017 Private Equity Report – 8 Category Highlights, 2017 Private Equity Report – 8 Category Highlights, Investment Banking to Private Equity - 6 Things You Should Know, Investing in Private Equity
APO pays +$400k for first year associates brother
Do you work there or have proof? I've interviewed there twice but never secured an offer, so never got to see real numbers
I work there and have been paid such amounts lol
is this just for private equity and hybrid value or also credit and other roles?
Know that PE and HVF can be incredibly sweaty, is credit any better?
As I understand it, this is comp for the equity investing teams. Don’t know about credit but would imagine it’s not that far behind (granted there are many different credit teams all with different return profiles and deal velocities)
Any true UMM or MF pays $300k for associate 1, in or outside of NYC for PE. I don’t know any that don’t…
I'm at a midmarket shop in NY (lateral VP) but based on my comp, I assume we pay >300k to ASOs. They get worked for it though.
2 years IB then 1 year PE (got burnt out) and now in corp dev making $340k all in with 60ish hours not bad.
what industry and type of company?
public or late stage growth or sponsor-backed
sponsor backed non-tech, ev of $15b+
Echoing the above $300k+ all-in comp for first year pe associates is a pretty common package even for umm / true mm shop
any good culture shops paying 300k+
bump
There’s a lot of MM+ shops even in NYC/SF paying like $270K range to start
And then MM/LMM non NYC/SF can be even lower
OP what you’re experiencing is that There’s bias / each chamber on WSO
This gotta be the dumbest fucking post. Like this is just inaccurate idk why people are upvoting this. Pretty much all MF/UMM PE firms are paying $350k-$450k for Asso 1/2 and BBs are in the ~$350k range for Associates too (all 3-4 years total experience). Not to mention EBs or HFs.
Wholeheartedly agree. Comp for juniors is largely tied to fund size. Bigger funds pay more. I can’t think of hardly any funds above $5B that don’t pay $300k+ for associate 1
when u talk about fund size are you referring to their most recently raised fund that they’re now investing out of/have recently closed or do you mean the firms total AUM?
Man I've never worked in NYC and was in both MM IB and now MM PE. Outside of your 2nd year I outpaced you in comp every year. $10bn AUM firm and you aren't even cracking 300k 5 years in ?
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