Guide
Salary versus bonus, fixed versus variable pay
A practical guide to comparing more guaranteed salary with more variable upside.
The question is not just which total is larger
A bigger bonus opportunity is not the same as a bigger salary. One offers more certainty month to month. The other may offer more upside, but only if it is actually paid.
Why after-tax comparison matters
Two structures with similar headline value can land differently in net pay once tax is applied. That is why the salary vs bonus calculator is useful when the fixed-versus-variable mix is the real issue.
What the calculator does not decide for you
It does not tell you how reliable the bonus is, whether the target is realistic, or whether the company tends to pay out consistently. That part still needs judgement.
Best next step
Use the calculator for the cash view, then save the scenario and note anything about certainty, timing, or culture that could change the real decision.
Related guides
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How to compare salary, bonus, pension, and job offers
A practical framework for comparing compensation properly, using spendable pay, pension value, and decision quality rather than one headline package number.
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Gross pay versus spendable pay
Why compensation decisions get clearer when you stop treating gross salary as the same thing as usable cash.
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Worked examples
Worked example
Salary of GBP 50,000 versus GBP 45,000 plus GBP 10,000 bonus
A worked example showing why a package with higher variable pay can still be weaker in spendable-pay terms than it looks on paper.
2 min read
Worked example
Comparing two job offers with different bonus structures
A worked example showing how two offers can look close on paper while landing differently in after-tax cash and certainty.
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Worked example
Bonus of GBP 20,000 after tax
A larger worked bonus example showing why the cash you keep is often lower than the headline award suggests.
2 min read
How to use PayPath here
Run the relevant calculator for your live numbers, review the methodology if the assumptions matter to your decision, and save the strongest scenarios in the workspace if you are comparing more than one option.