Cruise is open to negotiating, and they are usually one of the better-paying companies in the industry. In addition to that, Cruise's compensation ranges can be pretty fluid. This can be a double-edged sword as it means that you can start your new role with a salary gap vs. peers if you don't negotiate properly.
- Base Salary
- Cruise Equity Package (see Cruise rsu vesting schedule below)
- Cruise Signing Bonus (not included in every Cruise offer package)
- Performance Bonus (varies by level)
- Stock Refreshers
Cruise has rolled out a new equity program that helps provide employees the opportunity to sell RSUs before IPO. It is called the Cruise Recurring Liquidity Opportunity (RLO). The program allows employees to sell any amount of vested equity each quarter. In the past, private companies like TikTok have offered something similar but typically less frequent intervals and at lower share prices vs. the true value. It sounds like Cruise's intent is to assess the true value as accurately as possible, but we'll have to wait and see.
Cruise's annual bonuses are quite high compared to other companies. Some target numbers for software engineering positions are listed below.
- L3 - 20%
- L4 - 30%
- L5 – 30%
- L6 – 40%
- L7 – 50%
- L8 – 50%
Cruise doesn't have a company-wide approach to remote work. They let the manager and the employee decide what's best in a particular situation. You can learn more from their blog regarding their philosophy on remote work. With that being said, Cruise remote salary and equity will be discounted on the basis of location, which is still normal in the industry. Only a few companies (e.g. Bolt) don't discount based on where you choose to work/live within the US.
Cruise helps with relocation packages when you are required to move and the package is pretty strong (typically $15k + additional benefits for junior/mid-level employees). You should of course expect a higher $ figure for more senior roles. Corporate housing is another important piece and you should push for 2 months vs 1 month.
As is the case at many tech companies, the most negotiable component is equity. However, one interesting thing to note is that at Cruise base salary has more room for negotiation than at other tech companies.
Cruise does not require written offers in most cases, but they will ask for other details like the level and location of the offer. In unique cases (e.g., if you quote extraordinarily high numbers), they might ask to see a written offer. However, this can be deflected if you prepare correctly.
It will require more than just a strong competing offer. You will also have to play your hand perfectly during the negotiation + crush the interviews to get an above band offer. All that said, it is possible at Cruise unlike some other companies which only go above band for L7+ leadership positions.
Your hiring manager can play a role in your negotiation at Cruise. You should focus on building a solid relationship with them by discussing projects and the team - your goal is to have them be very excited for you to join. This will increase the odds that they support your recruiter in securing the top of band or above band compensation.
The eng hiring process at Cruise typically has four stages: recruiter/HM screen, technical phone interview, virtual onsite, and lastly, the offer stage (if you reach this point, this is where your Cruise salary negotiation process will begin).
Cruise pays a lot more compared to Waymo. For instance, let's consider a L5 Cruise software engineer's salary vs. L5 at Waymo. L5 top of band comp is about $500k per year (base, RSU, performance bonus, signing bonus / 4) at Cruise, but at Waymo, it is only $400k.
While negotiating at Cruise, the focus should always be on the main components like base pay, equity, and Cruise sign on bonus. Cruise does have an unlimited PTO policy which has its pros and cons. Generally, Cruise managers are pretty good about not shaming people for taking time off. It's certainly better than Amazon's 2 week PTO but not materially better than 4/5 weeks off at Google. Other than that, you can expect the standard tech benefits as part of your offer. These are not really negotiable, and it also doesn't usually work to point to another company's benefits as justification for higher compensation - the more optimal strategy is comparing monetary components to monetary components.
L3
L4
L5
L6
L7
L8
L9
Equivalent Level at Google
L3
L4
L5
L6
L7
L8
L9
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Coming from a non-FAANG background, I was shocked to find out how much I could be earning. Before I signed up with Rora, I made the mistake of telling Amazon my current compensation. Thankfully, Rora knew exactly how to fix it and ended up getting me an offer that was 2.3X what I previously made and more than $600K higher than Amazon’s initial offer!
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The mock negotiations were a big part of why I was able to get this increase. Going into the negotiation, I assumed the key factor was what to say but I quickly learned that how you say it is equally if not more important. This was clear when over the course of the call"no" turned into "I'll see what I can do" and eventually"I think we can make this work". A big part of this was also having someone with me on the calls to provide real time guidance. This took a lot of the stress out of the situation. I can't recommend this team highly enough!
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Cruise
has a unique set of negotiation policies. If you don’t have experience negotiating with them, you risk losing out on large amounts of money because of very small mistakes.
There are many of these rules you need to know to get the highest
Cruise
offer possible