How to Use Glassdoor to Earn More Money

Advertiser Disclosure ▾

This page contains affiliate links from which we receive a compensation. Like many publications Wise Bread is supported by affiliate commission from partner companies whose products appear on our site. This may influence which products we write about and the location and order in which products appear. We aren't able to cover every product in the marketplace.

Wise Bread Picks

• Travel Rewards Credit Cards
• Cash Back Credit Cards
• 0% Balance Transfer Credit Cards

Ever get the feeling that your company isn't paying you enough? Job search and employer-review site Glassdoor is ready to give you the evidence.

The site recently released the beta version of Know Your Worth, an online tool designed to help employees determine if they are indeed being underpaid. Glassdoor officials say that workers can use this tool not only to determine whether they are being paid fairly for their work, but as inspiration to ask for raises or hunt for better jobs.

How Does It Work?

The service is free, though you do need an account with Glassdoor. Fortunately, this is free, too. Once you've created your account, Know Your Worth will ask for some basic information: your job title, the name of your employer, your salary, and the location of your office. You'll also have to provide your education level, the college from which you graduated, and your birth date.

Once you plug in these numbers, Know Your Worth will tell you whether you are being underpaid based on your value in today's jobs market. The tool will also tell you by how much you are being underpaid.

In a news release, Glassdoor said that it relies on the millions of salary reports that the site has collected over the years. The site also analyzes real-time supply and demand trends in specific job markets.

How Accurate Is the Site?

That's hard to say, as it's still in beta mode. In a test run, Know Your Worth reported that a hypothetical editor of a trade magazine in Chicago making $50,000 was about $5,900 underpaid.

Know Your Worth, though, is a good starting point for employees who are wondering if they are underpaid. In its news release, Glassdoor reported that 65% of employees wish that they had a better grasp of whether they are being paid fairly.

What Next?

What happens if you run Know Your Worth only for it to say that you are being underpaid by $10,000? First, know that the tool is just an estimate, and that it might not accurately reflect your exact situation. Secondly, don't just get angry or depressed by the numbers that Glassdoor's tool spits back at you. Resolve to do something about it.

Your first step might be to ask your current employer for a raise. To increase your odds of success, though, do this right. Don't just march into your boss' office. Instead, set up an appointment with the people who actually have the power to boost your salary. And prepare for this meeting.

You can reference the Glassdoor numbers, and you should bring a copy of them to your meeting. But don't rely on those figures entirely. You also need to create a compelling argument for why you deserve a raise.

Have any of your initiatives or projects that you spearheaded resulted in a boost in your company's bottom line? That's important information to bring up. Are you doing the work of several people because your company has yet to fill open positions it created way back during the country's economic downturn? Mention that, too.

The key to negotiating a higher salary is to provide concrete examples of your worth to the company. If you've led successful rollouts of new products or services, this is important to highlight. If you've built the top-producing sales team in your company, share that knowledge.

What If Your Negotiations Fail?

What if, after presenting Glassdoor's numbers and the concrete evidence of your worth to the company, your employer refuses your request for a raise anyway? It can happen. Your bosses are not under any obligation to pay you more, even if you clearly deserve a pay bump.

You then have only two options: You can remain at your job, without sulking about what you feel is a salary that is too low, or you can hunt for a new, better-paying one. This last option? It might be better for your mental health.

People don't want to work in an environment in which they feel underappreciated. If you feel that you deserve a better salary, and it's clear that you won't earn it at your current job, the time is right to start searching for a more fulfilling position.