total comp
/ˈtoʊtəl kɒmp/
Very CommonEverything you earn from a job combined: salary, bonuses, stock, benefits, and perks.
Often abbreviated TC in tech forums. In some communities it is specifically salary plus equity and bonus with benefits excluded. Context matters.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | base is lower but total comp is 40% higher once you add RSUs and bonus | The offer looks worse on salary but is actually much better all in. | reddit, 2023 |
| 02 | TC or GTFO they say on blind but nobody counts benefits the same way | Total comp comparisons are messy because people include different things. | x, 2024 |
| 03 | always negotiate total comp not just salary. they can move things even when base is frozen. | Employers can offer more through bonuses or equity even if salary is capped. | tiktok, 2024 |
| 04 | my total comp went up 60k this year and my salary didn't change. RSUs hitting. | Equity vesting added noticeably to total earnings without a raise. | x, 2024 |
Use it when
- Comparing two offers where salary numbers alone are misleading.
- Sharing what you make when including all forms of pay.
- Evaluating whether an offer is competitive.
Do not use it when
- You specifically mean only the base salary figure.Use “base salary” instead.
Variations and related forms
Total comp vs base salary
total comp
Total comp includes everything: salary, bonuses, equity, and benefits.
VS
base-salary
Base salary is only the fixed annual cash portion before any extras.
Origin and context
HR and finance term that went mainstream in tech culture. Blind, Levels.fyi, and Glassdoor normalized TC comparisons, making it a standard benchmark for evaluating job offers by the mid-2010s.
- First seen
- pre-2000s
- Confidence
- high
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/total-compUpdated: 2026-08-28License: CC BY 4.0