Salary expectation questions: what recruiters can ask and how to ask it

A salary expectation question asks what a candidate wants to be paid in the new role; a salary history question asks what they earn now or earned before. In many US states and cities, employers and the recruiters acting for them may not ask about pay history, while asking about expectations is generally allowed. Many of the same places now require a pay range in the job posting. So the working rule is: share the range, ask what they are looking for and how firm it is, and record that, not their current pay.

Expectation or history: where the line is

The distinction is about time. Questions about what the candidate wants next are expectation questions. Questions about what they are paid now, or were paid before, are history questions, and that includes bonuses, benefits and equity in several states. A question that asks for an expectation but is built on current pay ("what would it take to beat what you're on?") is a history question in disguise; the Massachusetts Attorney General's guidance specifically warns against framing expectation questions to draw out history.

Wording that works on the call

When you have a range: share it first

"Before we go further, the client's range for this role is [$X to $Y] base, plus [bonus or benefits summary]. How does that sit with what you're looking for?"

Leading with the range is faster than a negotiation about who names a number first. In states that require ranges in postings, the candidate may already have seen it, and pretending otherwise costs you credibility.

When you do not have a range yet

"What are you looking for in base salary for your next role? And apart from base, what else is part of the number for you?"

Then ask how firm it is: "Is that a floor, or a target you'd be flexible on for the right role?" The firmness is as useful to the client as the number.

When the candidate asks for the range before answering

Give it. "Fair question. It's [$X to $Y] base." If you genuinely do not have one, say so, and say when you will: "The client hasn't confirmed it. I'll have it by Thursday, and I won't put you forward until we've both seen it."

When they will not name a number

"That's fine. If an offer came in within [$X to $Y], would you want to move forward?"

A yes or no to a range is all you need to screen. Do not respond by asking what they earn now.

When they volunteer their current salary

"Thanks. I don't need your current salary, and in some places I'm not allowed to use it. What matters is what you're looking for next."

Then do not write the figure down. More on why in the documentation section below.

When their number is above the range

"That's above the top of what the client has told me. I can take it to them, but I'd rather be straight with you now: they may not move. Is [top of range] something you'd consider for the right role, or is [their number] a floor?"

If it is a floor, say you will check and come back, and do not submit until the client has agreed to see someone at that level. An out-of-range submittal without warning damages the client relationship more than a missed candidate.

When they would forfeit a bonus or unvested equity

Candidates leaving before a bonus date or vesting event will raise it, and clients need to know. New York City's Commission on Human Rights says in its salary history FAQ that employers may ask whether an applicant will forfeit deferred compensation or unvested equity, and its value and structure. Other places define pay history broadly (Vermont's definition of compensation includes bonuses and equity-based pay), so confirm before asking about amounts elsewhere. Asking what the candidate needs the offer to account for is the safer wording:

"Is there anything you'd be walking away from by moving that we need to plan the offer or start date around?"

What good and weak answers sound like

Salary history bans and pay transparency laws by state, as of September 2026

The table covers the statewide laws we checked against the government or statute pages linked, plus New York City. "Range in postings" means a pay range or figure must appear in job postings. Thresholds are the employer-size thresholds stated in each law. Where a recent law's primary text was not readable online, we say whose summary we relied on.

Not in the table: Hawaii, Nevada and Rhode Island have pay disclosure laws with their own triggers, and Delaware's posting requirement takes effect on September 26, 2027, as summarized by Ogletree. Several cities and counties have their own laws, including Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo in Ohio, as listed in this July 2026 Bradley Arant summary. For local salary history bans, HR Dive keeps a running list.

What this means for an agency desk

• You are usually covered. Several of these laws name agents, recruiters or employment agencies directly. Do not assume the client's legal team carries the risk for what you ask on a screen.
• Post the range the client gave you. If the client will not give one for a role in a covered state, that is a conversation to have at intake, not after the ad goes live.
• Use one habit everywhere. Rules differ in detail, but "share the range, ask expectations, never ask history" follows the common thread of the laws above and is simpler than tracking which candidate is where. Check the edge cases, such as forfeited equity, locally.

How to document pay in the ATS

Record what the candidate expects, how firm it is, and what you shared, with dates. Leave out current or past pay, even if the candidate volunteered it. The laws above differ on whether a volunteered figure may be used: Illinois's labor department says not even then, while New York allows confirming it only when the candidate raises it to support a higher offer. A figure that is never written down cannot be relied on by anyone downstream.

PAY — [Role] — [Date]
Range shared:   $[ ]–[ ] base, plus [bonus / commission / benefits summary]
Shared by:      recruiter on call / job posting / both
Expectation:    base [ ]   variable [ ]   other [ ]
Firmness:       floor / flexible / unsure
Candidate said: "[short exact phrase]"
Start-date or offer constraints: [e.g. bonus paid in March]
Re-confirmed:   [date, stage]

The same rule applies to the submittal: write the expectation and its firmness, never the current figure. The recruiter phone screen template has a logistics block with these fields, and our guide on what not to write in interview notes covers the rest of what stays out of the record.

Keeping the number stable to offer

Most pay surprises at offer stage are numbers that drifted and nobody re-checked. Three short checkpoints prevent almost all of them:

1. Before you submit. "Just confirming before I send your profile: you're looking for [number], and [range] works. Still right?"
2. After the first interview. Candidates often revise upward once they learn more about the role. Ask directly: "Now that you've met them, has anything changed in what you'd need?"
3. Before the client drafts the offer. Confirm the number, the firmness and any competing offers, and tell the client the same thing you heard, in the same words.

If the number moves, find out why before you pass it on. "The role is bigger than I thought" is a conversation the client can have. "I got another offer" is a timing problem you need to handle that day. Presenting the number and the reasons to the client is covered in how to present candidates to clients.