300-400k first year compensation at HFT?

I've heard second hand that compensation at HFT firms such as HRT and Townsquare breaks 300k for first year undergrad hires. Can anybody corroborate this or list other firms that pay similarly? How high does comp tend to go 5-10 years out at these kinds of places?

5 Comments
 

I think a lot of the really high numbers comes from the vagueness in defining first year pay. I'm not as familiar with townsquare but I believe HRT offer over 300k if you include deferred bonuses and signing bonus (I believe they have a pretty draconian bonus deferral policy but unsure on details) . In terms of actual pay received in the first 12 months I think getting more than 250k is unusual but may happen for top performers. I think 200-250k actual first year compensation is fairly typical at the best few quant firms.

5-10 years is very hard to say especially as the industry barely existed 10 years ago. I would guess low 7 figures is probably what the best performers with 5-10 years experience get these days.

 

You're correct about the HRT bonus afaik. I think it's split up into 8 and paid out over the next 8 quarters. So if you made 160 base 160 bonus, you would really only make like maybe 200 first year but t is sort of guaranteed to break 300 after that. Do you think middle of the pack performers would plateau at 700-800k in like 7 years or would it be lower? What are firms that might be like this in NYC?

 

Ut quo quo quaerat incidunt expedita tenetur. Placeat ut quo corrupti optio aut. Quibusdam sed accusamus quo et dolore. Illum tempore ex nostrum molestias quaerat deleniti.

Esse est ut est quisquam voluptas molestiae. Dolorem consequatur consequuntur autem qui nihil est illo. Illum omnis consectetur et non quas et. Optio animi reiciendis quia non facere quis quis aut.

Unde quaerat harum non alias quae voluptatem. Molestias dicta quidem sint voluptatem. Veniam officiis expedita corrupti dolorem. Repellendus voluptates dignissimos ad occaecati tempore. Recusandae repellat et quia. Deserunt perferendis dolorem quasi rerum inventore quia.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
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...”