Job Switch Calculator
Compare your current job with a new offer on effective pay: fixed and variable pay, bonus, commute and one-time costs, not just CTC.
Your details
Current job
Salary paid every month, before deductions.
Use what you have actually received in past years.
The rest of your working days are WFH.
New offer
Ask the employer how variable pay has paid out recently.
One-time items
Check whether it has to be repaid if you leave early.
How it's calculated
- Verdict thresholds (BrainRank convention): 10% or more = financially better; 3% to 10% = slight improvement; within ±3% = approximately equal; below −3% = potentially worse.
- Pre-tax comparison. Commute uses 48 working weeks a year; the per-day cost of notice buyout and unpaid days uses current monthly fixed pay ÷ 30.
Formula
- Effective annual pay = fixed + variable × expected payout % + bonus + other cash − commute
- Commute = cost per office day × office days a week × 48 weeks
- Annual difference = new effective pay − current effective pay
- First-year difference = annual difference + joining bonus − relocation − notice buyout − unpaid gap
CTC includes employer PF, gratuity and benefits, and assumes variable pay is paid in full, so a CTC hike can overstate what you gain. This compares the cash you can expect, after the cost of getting to the office.
Verdicts are based on the change in effective annual pay: 10% or more is financially better, 3% to 10% a slight improvement, within ±3% approximately equal, and below −3% potentially worse. These thresholds are a BrainRank convention to help you read the numbers, not a rule.
This is a pre-tax estimate. Income tax and PF reduce both sides; run each fixed salary through the In-Hand Salary calculator for take-home pay. It does not value growth, stability, leave, insurance or work-life balance; weigh those yourself.
This is an estimate. Your actual figures depend on your employer's salary structure and policies; check your payslip or offer letter.
Worked example
₹12 lakh CTC (₹10.5 lakh fixed, ₹1 lakh variable usually paid at 80%), 5 office days at ₹250 a day, against a ₹14 lakh offer (₹12 lakh fixed, ₹1.5 lakh variable expected at 70%), 3 office days at ₹500 a day, with ₹40,000 relocation and 15 notice days bought out.
- Verdict
- Financially better
- Current: effective annual pay
- ₹10,70,000
- New: effective annual pay
- ₹12,33,000
- Effective annual difference
- ₹1,63,000
- Effective pay change
- 15.2%
- First-year difference incl. one-time items
- ₹79,250
Financially better: effective pay changes by 15.2% (+₹1,63,000 a year), while the CTC changes by 16.7%. One-time costs are recovered in about 7 months.
Frequently asked questions
Why compare effective pay instead of CTC?
CTC includes items you don't receive as cash every month, and assumes variable pay is paid in full. Two offers with the same CTC can leave you with quite different amounts.
How do I estimate the variable pay I'll actually get?
Use what you have received in past years for your current job. For a new offer, ask the employer how variable pay has paid out recently for the role.
Does this include income tax?
No, it is pre-tax, so both jobs are compared on the same basis. Use the In-Hand Salary calculator to see take-home pay for each fixed salary.