How do I ask for a raise and what do I say?

Make it a business case backed by evidence and market data, delivered in a scheduled conversation, not an emotional appeal or a surprise ambush. The single biggest predictor of success is preparation before the conversation, not performance during it. **Before the meeting:** 1. **Document your impact for the last 12 months.** Specific projects, with outcomes and numbers wherever possible. 'Rebuilt the onboarding flow, cutting drop-off from 40% to 24%.' Managers frequently don't remember your wins — this document does the remembering. 2. **Research market rate** for your role, level and location. Use salary sites and, more accurately, people in comparable roles. Know the number you're asking for and why. 3. **Know your ask.** A specific figure or percentage, not 'a raise'. 4. **Time it well.** After a visible win, during or just before budget/review cycles, and not during a hiring freeze or a bad quarter. Timing is often the deciding factor and it's the one people ignore. **The conversation:** Request a dedicated meeting — 'I'd like to set aside time to talk about my compensation and growth' — rather than raising it at the end of a one-to-one. Then: 'Over the past year I've [two or three specific impacts]. I've taken on [expanded scope]. Based on market data for this role, the range is [X to Y], and I'm currently at [Z]. I'd like to discuss moving to [specific number].' Then stop talking. The silence is uncomfortable and you should let it sit. **Handling the likely responses:** - *'There's no budget right now.'* Ask: 'I understand. What would need to be true for this to happen, and when can we revisit it?' Get a specific date and criteria, in writing. A vague 'let's see' is a no dressed as a maybe. - *'You need to do X first.'* Excellent outcome — pin down exactly what X is, and confirm that achieving it means the raise. - *'Yes, but less than you asked.'* Usually worth accepting, plus a conversation about the path to the rest. **What weakens the case**: personal financial need (real, but not a business argument), comparisons to specific colleagues' salaries, threats you won't follow through on, and apologising for asking. **The honest structural point**: internal raises are often capped at a few percent by policy, while changing jobs frequently produces much larger jumps. If you're substantially below market and the answer is a soft no twice, the market is telling you something. Interviewing elsewhere is legitimate information-gathering, not disloyalty.