Once a role is remote, “the market rate” stops being a single number. You have to choose which market you are paying against.
The three common approaches
- Location-based. Pay tracks where the person lives. Cost-efficient, but creates awkward conversations when people move.
- National band. One rate per country. Simpler and more defensible; more expensive in lower-cost regions.
- Global band. One rate everywhere. Strongest recruiting position, highest cost, hardest to sustain at scale.
Pick one and write it down
The specific choice matters far less than consistency. Ad-hoc decisions per candidate create pay inequities that surface later, and they always surface.
Say it in the posting
Telling candidates how remote pay is set removes an entire round of guessing on both sides, and screens out mismatches before anyone spends time on a loop.