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Reply to a job offer and ask for more

Paste the offer, what you'd accept and what you know about the market, and get a short reply that says you're pleased, asks for one specific change with a reason, and keeps the door open, plus what to send if they meet you halfway or say no.

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The prompt

I've received a job offer and want to negotiate before I accept. Write the reply.

The offer: [ROLE, BASE, BONUS OR EQUITY IF ANY, START DATE, ANYTHING ELSE THEY SAID]
What I'd accept happily: [NUMBER OR CHANGE]
What I'd walk away under: [NUMBER, or "I'd take it anyway, but want to try"]
Why I think I'm worth more: [e.g. two other conversations at a higher range, a competing offer, a specific skill they said they lacked, the posted range was higher]
What matters to me besides money: [e.g. a later start date, remote days, title, a signing bonus instead of base]
How they've been so far: [e.g. warm and quick, formal through a recruiter]
Channel: [email, or talking points for a call]

Write it like this:
- Open by being genuinely glad about the offer and the people, in one sentence, no gushing.
- Ask for one specific change (two at most), with a number, and give the reason in one sentence. Don't apologise for asking and don't threaten.
- Make it easy for them to say yes: show that the change gets to a quick acceptance.
- Under 150 words. Leave placeholders where I need to fill in a name or a figure I didn't give you.

Then give me two short follow-ups: what to send if they meet me halfway, and what to send if they say the number is fixed.
  • negotiation
  • job-offer
  • salary

What it generates

Example

Subject: Re: Offer for Senior Product Designer

Hi Priya,

Thank you for the offer, and for the conversations over the last few weeks. I enjoyed meeting the team and I'd like to make this work.

Before I accept, I'd like to ask about the base salary. The offer is at 78,000. Based on the range in the posting and two other processes I'm in at the moment, I was expecting something closer to 86,000. If you can get to that figure, I'm ready to sign this week and confirm the 3 November start.

If base is hard to move, I'm open to talking about a signing bonus or an earlier review instead.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best,
[Your name]

If they meet you halfway (say 82,000):

Thanks for coming back so quickly, Priya. 82,000 works for me. Please send the updated letter and I'll sign it today. Really looking forward to starting on the 3rd.

If they say the number is fixed:

Thanks for checking, I appreciate the straight answer. I'd still like to join. Could we put a salary review at six months in writing, with 86,000 as the target if the first two quarters go as we both expect? If that's possible, I'm happy to sign.

NoteThis is an example. Results change between runs and model versions. Claude Prompts is a fan project and is not affiliated with Anthropic.

Getting the most from this prompt

Ask for one thing

Negotiations go wrong when the reply is a list: more base, more holiday, a better title, a later start. The other side can't tell what matters and picks the cheapest item. The prompt makes you choose. One specific number with one reason is easy to take to a hiring manager and easy to approve.

The reason is the message

"I was expecting more" is a feeling. "The posted range went to 90 and I'm in two other processes at that level" is a fact the recruiter can repeat upstairs. Fill in the "why I'm worth more" field with the strongest true thing you have, and nothing you'd be embarrassed to be asked about.

Decide your walk-away before you send

The two follow-ups exist so you don't have to think under pressure. Write down the number you'd accept and the number you'd decline before running the prompt, and the halfway reply writes itself. If you'd take the offer anyway, say so in the prompt: the reply gets softer, and the second follow-up asks for a review date instead of pushing again.

How to use this prompt

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