7 Signs You're Underpaid (And Exactly What to Do About It)

There's a specific kind of anxiety that comes from suspecting you're underpaid. It's not dramatic — it's a slow burn. You see a job posting for your exact role offering 20% more. A coworker lets their salary slip and it's noticeably higher than yours. You do the math on inflation and realize your "raise" last year was actually a pay cut.

But you're not sure. Maybe the market is different now. Maybe you're overestimating your skills. Maybe you should just be grateful to have a job.

Let me be direct: that uncertainty is expensive. Every month you spend wondering instead of acting is money you're leaving on the table. And no, this isn't about greed. It's about being compensated fairly for what you do.

Here's how to find out where you actually stand — and what to do about it.

Sign 1: New Hires Are Making More Than You

This is the most common — and most frustrating — sign. Companies often pay market rate to attract new talent while loyal employees' salaries stagnate through modest annual raises.

It's called salary compression, and it's rampant in tech.

Here's what happens: You joined three years ago at $90K. You've gotten 3% raises each year, putting you at $98K. Meanwhile, the company just hired someone with less experience than you at $115K because that's what it costs to fill the role today.

How to check: If your company publishes salary bands, compare yours to the current range for your level. If they don't, look at recent job postings for similar roles at your company or competitors.

The uncomfortable truth is that the single biggest pay bump most people get is by changing jobs. Internal raises rarely keep pace with market movement.

Sign 2: You Haven't Benchmarked in Over a Year

Markets move fast. What was competitive two years ago might be 15-20% below market today — especially in tech, where demand for specific skills can spike dramatically.

If you haven't looked at market data recently, you're operating blind.

How to check: Use multiple sources. Levels.fyi for tech (most accurate for individual companies). Glassdoor for broader ranges. LinkedIn Salary Insights if you're premium.

For role-specific data by city, CareerCheck's salary guides cover 14 tech roles across major cities with real market ranges — not self-reported averages that skew low.

Look at the median, not the average. Averages get distorted by outliers. If you're below the 25th percentile for your experience level, you're almost certainly underpaid.

Sign 3: Your Responsibilities Have Grown But Your Title (and Pay) Haven't

You started as a mid-level developer. Now you're mentoring juniors, leading projects, making architecture decisions, and occasionally interviewing candidates. But your title still says "Software Engineer" and your salary reflects it.

This is scope creep without compensation — and companies love it because they get senior-level output at mid-level prices.

The test: Write down everything you do in a typical month. Now look at job postings that match that description. What title do they use? What do they pay?

If there's a significant gap, you have a strong case for a title bump and salary adjustment. And you should make that case — because every month you operate above your pay grade is a month you're subsidizing your employer.

Sign 4: Your Company Is Hiring Aggressively But Not Giving Raises

When companies are growing and hiring, they're spending money to attract talent. If that spending doesn't extend to retaining existing employees, it tells you something about priorities.

Watch for these patterns:

Multiple open headcount on your team

"Exciting growth phase" messaging from leadership

New hires getting sign-on bonuses

Your raise was "frozen" due to "budget constraints"

If the company can afford to hire but can't afford to retain, they're betting you won't leave. Sometimes they're right. But they shouldn't be.

Sign 5: Recruiters Keep Offering Higher Numbers

If you get recruiter messages on LinkedIn (and in tech, you probably do), pay attention to the numbers they mention. If multiple recruiters are quoting ranges 15-25% above your current salary, the market is telling you something.

One outlier doesn't mean much. But a pattern does.

Important caveat: Recruiter-quoted ranges are often the top of the band. A more realistic comparison is the midpoint of what they quote versus your current total compensation (base + bonus + equity).

Sign 6: You're in a High-Demand Specialty But Paid Like a Generalist

Some skills command premiums that general salary data doesn't capture. If you specialize in:

Machine learning / AI

Cloud architecture (especially multi-cloud)

Security engineering

Data engineering at scale

Platform / infrastructure engineering

...you should be earning more than a generalist at the same level. These specialties consistently show 10-25% premiums in market data.

Check role-specific data: a Data Scientist in Berlin earns differently than a Software Engineer in Berlin. A DevOps Engineer in Seattle has a different market rate than a Backend Engineer in the same city.

If your company treats all engineering roles the same regardless of specialization, you're probably leaving money on the table.

Sign 7: Your Gut Keeps Telling You

Sometimes you just know. You've been at the same company for years, gotten minimal raises, and avoided looking at market data because you're afraid of what you'll find.

That avoidance is itself a signal. If you were confident you were fairly compensated, you wouldn't feel the need to avoid the question.

Trust the instinct. Then verify it with data.

What to Do About It

Knowing you're underpaid is step one. Here's step two.

1. Get Your Number

Before any conversation, you need to know your market value. Not a vague sense — an actual number.

Research your specific role, city, experience level, and specialization. Use the CareerCheck salary explorer to see ranges for your exact situation. Cross-reference with Levels.fyi and Glassdoor.

Your target should be the median for your experience level, adjusted for your specific skills and the cost of living in your area.

2. Build Your Case

Numbers without context don't persuade. Build a document that includes:

Market data: "The median salary for a Senior Data Engineer in Berlin is €75K. I'm currently at €62K."

Your contributions: Quantified achievements from the past year. Revenue generated, costs saved, projects shipped, problems solved.

Scope expansion: Any responsibilities you've taken on beyond your original role.

This isn't an emotional argument. It's a business case.

3. Have the Conversation

Schedule a dedicated meeting with your manager. Don't ambush them during a 1:1. Frame it as a career development discussion.

Script: "I've been reflecting on my compensation relative to market rates and my contributions over the past year. I'd like to discuss adjusting my salary to better reflect my current role and impact. Based on market data and my achievements — specifically [top 2-3 wins] — I'm looking for an adjustment to $X."

Be specific. Name the number. Don't apologize or hedge.

4. Be Ready for Pushback

Common responses and how to handle them:

"We don't have budget right now." "I understand. When is the next budget cycle? Can we put this on the agenda and agree on a timeline?" "You're already at the top of the band for your level." "Then let's discuss a promotion to the next level, given I'm already performing at that scope." "We value total compensation, not just salary." "I appreciate the full package. That said, my base salary is 18% below market median. Can we close some of that gap?"

5. Know When to Walk

If you've made a clear, data-backed case and the answer is still no — with no timeline, no promotion path, and no creative alternatives — the market is offering you what your current employer won't.

Loyalty is admirable. Loyalty that costs you tens of thousands of dollars per year is just expensive.

The average salary increase when changing jobs is 10-20%. Internal raises average 3-5%. The math speaks for itself.

The Cost of Doing Nothing

Let's say you're $15K below market. That's not just $15K this year. It's:

$15K in lost earnings this year

$75K over 5 years (assuming your future raises build on a lower base)

$150K+ over your career (since each subsequent job often anchors to your previous salary)

One uncomfortable conversation versus six figures over your career. That's the actual trade-off.

Start With the Data

Stop guessing. Stop wondering. Get the number.

Check your market value with CareerCheck's salary guides — real data for 14 tech roles across major cities worldwide. Then decide what to do with what you find.

Because the only thing worse than being underpaid is not knowing it.