The Salary Question in an English Interview: What to Say When They Ask

On a final-round call the recruiter asks: What are your salary expectations? Minutes later comes the follow-up, And what are you earning at the moment? It is one of the most common interview questions in English to arrive last, because by that point the interviewer wants you. Below: the three-part answer order, six answers written as spoken English, the monthly-versus-annual trap worked through line by line, and a five-line script to record before the call. Every figure is a placeholder to replace with your own research.

Why the salary question arrives late in the process

Early rounds filter for fit and skill, and the person asking has no budget to discuss. The pay conversation waits for a shortlist, because a range only means something next to a role, a level and a location. By now three things are tested: whether a band exists that your expectation fits, whether your number is defensible to whoever approves the offer, and whether you would move on money alone.

You are asked for a figure before anyone tells you the band, so use the frame the interviewer uses. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes the 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentile wage for each occupation, which is why the answer below is a range with a reason rather than one hopeful figure.

The three-part answer: range, anchor, flexibility

Part	What it does	A line that shows it
Range	Puts your number in the market, not your budget	For this level in Berlin I am looking at 65 to 75 thousand euros a year, gross.
Anchor	Gives one figure to check against the band	The number I have in mind is 72.
Flexibility	Shows the deal can move without moving your number	I can be flexible on the mix between base and bonus.

Range first, so the figure that follows is read as the middle of a market rather than a demand. An anchor second, giving the hiring manager one number for the approval request. Flexibility last, which keeps the talk open without publishing a lower price.

When the interviewer presses for one figure, drop flexibility: with a single number on the table it signals that the number itself is soft. Keep the range and the anchor, because those are what the interviewer can defend internally. With no figure ready at all, drop the anchor instead and answer with a range plus a question about theirs.

Six model answers, written as spoken English

Constructed practice material, not anyone's salary history. Each runs about 45 words, or 25 seconds at a calm pace.

1. Fresh graduate with no salary history: I do not have a salary history to compare with, so I looked at graduate roles in this city. The range I have seen is four thousand to four thousand five hundred a month, and I would be comfortable in the lower half while I am learning.

1. The same candidate asked for one figure: If you need a single figure, four thousand two hundred a month works for me, and I would want to understand the review at six months.

1. Mid-level switcher whose pay comes from another market: My current package is built in a different market, so it is not the right reference. For this role I am targeting 58 to 64 thousand a year, and I would like to hear what the band looks like for someone coming in at this level.

1. Senior candidate with a current package, asked what they earn now: My current base is 95 thousand with a target bonus of 15 percent, so the package is about 109 thousand. I am not asking you to match it. The number I have in mind here is 115 thousand base, and the rest is open.

1. When you cannot give a number yet: I would rather not anchor before I understand the scope. Could you tell me the range you have budgeted for this level? I will tell you straight away whether we are in the same area.

1. Reply to a band that sounds too low, with both units compared: That is above the band we have for this level. then Understood. Can I check one thing - is 78 thousand the annual gross figure, or is it 6,500 a month? My last role paid a thirteenth month, so the two may be closer than they look.

That last exchange is worth rehearsing, because a mismatch of units looks like a gap of thousands:

What is compared	Example	What it means
Annual against monthly	6,500 a month times twelve	78,000 a year
Including a thirteenth month	78,000 across thirteen payments	6,000 a month
The real gap	6,500 against 6,000	one band, read two ways

Say the numbers as words when you speak: seventy-eight thousand a year, six thousand five hundred a month, fifteen percent of base.

Reading the band: monthly, annual, gross, net and currency

Interviewers quote the unit in front of them, which is rarely the unit in your head.

The figure you hear	The question to ask	Why it changes the number
A monthly figure	Is that gross, and is it paid twelve or thirteen times?	A thirteenth month moves the annual total by about 8 percent
An annual figure	Is that base only, or base plus bonus?	A 15 percent target bonus is a different offer at the same base
A net figure	Is that after tax and social contributions?	Net depends on your tax status, not only on the role

Official statistics pick one convention and print it: the UK Office for National Statistics reports earnings as gross weekly and gross annual pay, and its April 2025 provisional estimate for full-time employee jobs is a median of 766.60 pounds a week - a national median, not a target for any role.

Settle the currency before you convert anything, answer in the unit the band uses, and never compare your net with their gross. Just so we are comparing the same thing - is that gross or net, and is it paid twelve or thirteen times a year?

What to say when you do not want to name a number yet

Deferring once is normal; deferring twice costs you. Three honest reasons to defer: you have not seen the band, your package is complicated by equity or relocation, or you are still gathering market data - and inventing another offer is a claim you may be asked to prove.

Give the deferral a shape: a range today, one figure once you have the band. I can give you a range today, and I would rather give one figure once I know the full package - could you share the band for this level? Asked again, treat it as the second ask and answer with a range.

Handling the question about your current earnings without breaking the negotiation

From 7 June 2026 the EU pay transparency directive requires employers in member states to give applicants the pay range before or during recruitment and forbids asking candidates about their current or previous pay. Several US states and cities ban salary-history questions, and the United States has no federal ban. In the UK, a contract term that stops you discussing pay is unenforceable where the discussion is to find out whether pay is connected to a protected characteristic. This is general information, not legal advice.

• Where the question is banned: I understand employers in this market are not able to ask about salary history, so could we look at the range for this role instead?
• Where it is allowed and you will answer, give the structure, not one number: My current package is 95 thousand base plus a 15 percent target bonus, and there is a share scheme I would not expect to replicate here.
• Where you would rather not: I can share the structure rather than the figure - the number that matters for this move is what the role is banded at.

Finish with a pivot back to this role, because a number with no destination sounds like an exit price: That is the package I am working from. For this move I am looking at 115 thousand base.

After the number: what to ask back about bonus, review cycle and benefits

The salary answer is not the end of the call; it is where you ask for the rest of the package.

Ask	Why it matters
What is the review cycle, and when is the first one?	A lower base with an early review can beat a higher base and a twelve-month wait
Is the bonus on target or discretionary, and how did last year pay out?	On-target and discretionary are different promises
What sits beyond base - equity, relocation, training, on-call pay?	These are usually the easiest parts to move

Ask the review question first, because it turns the conversation into performance rather than a fight over one figure.

A five-line self-script and the mirror drill

Write five lines, not a paragraph. Each has one job, so you can stop after any of them and still have said something complete.

1. Thanks for raising it - I have looked at the market for this role.
2. Based on similar roles in this city, I am looking at 58 to 64 thousand a year, gross.
3. The figure I have in mind is 62.
4. I can be flexible on the mix between base and bonus.
5. What range have you budgeted for this level?

Drill it in front of a mirror, or with a phone propped up and recording: once reading the lines, once without the paper, and once with someone interrupting after line two to ask What do you currently earn? The mirror shows what a recording cannot - whether you look away when you say a number, and whether you keep talking after it.

Check	Pass	Fix
Pace	the five lines finish inside 45 seconds	cut line two to one clause
Numbers	figures said as words, with the unit	say gross and a year out loud
Hedging	no more than one hedge in the script	delete I think maybe and sort of
Closing question	line five is actually asked	ask it before you hang up

Frequently asked questions

How should I rehearse the salary part of an English interview before the call?

Rehearse the question, not only the answer. Three takes are enough: one read from the script, one without the paper, and one where someone asks at an unexpected moment and in different wording. Listen once for content and once for pace, then check that the number in the recording is the number you meant to give. Practising alone, a mirror and one recording will do; the value is in the second take, not in a perfect first one.

Should I give a monthly or an annual figure when I am asked about salary in English?

Answer in the unit the interviewer uses, and say the unit out loud so nothing is ambiguous: sixty-two thousand a year, gross or five thousand two hundred a month, gross. If they quote a monthly figure while you hold an annual target, convert before you answer rather than during it, and keep gross with gross. When you cannot tell which unit the band is written in, ask one short question first, then give your number.