Despite new pay transparency laws in states like California and New York, startups are still incredibly opaque about compensation. A recent analysis of 50,000 startup job postings showed that even when ranges are posted, the spread is often absurd—think "$120,000 to $250,000." That's not a range; that's a guessing game.

If you wait until the recruiter screen to ask about salary, you've already lost leverage. Here is how you find the real numbers before you ever get on a Zoom call.

Ignore the Aggregator Estimates

Let's start with what doesn't work: Glassdoor, Indeed, and LinkedIn salary estimates. These platforms rely on self-reported data that is often years out of date. More importantly, they blend data across company stages.

A "Senior Product Manager" at a 10-person Seed stage startup and a "Senior Product Manager" at a 500-person Series D company might have the same title, but their compensation structures are entirely different. The Seed PM might make $140k with 0.5% equity. The Series D PM might make $210k with RSUs.

Aggregators average these numbers together, giving you a median that is wrong for both scenarios.

The H-1B Database Hack

This is the most underutilized tool in the job seeker's arsenal. By law, US companies must disclose the exact base salaries they pay to foreign workers on H-1B visas.

This data is public. Sites like H1BData.info allow you to search by company name and job title. If you want to know what Stripe pays a Data Scientist in San Francisco, you don't have to guess. You can look up exactly what they paid the Data Scientists they hired last year.

While this only shows base salary (not equity or bonuses), it gives you a verified, un-fudged floor for negotiations. If the H-1B data shows they paid $165,000 for your role last year, and the recruiter tells you the budget is $140,000, you know they have room to move.

State Law Leverage

Even if you don't live in a state with pay transparency laws, you can use them to your advantage. Because remote work is ubiquitous, many startups hire in California, New York, or Colorado.

If a remote-friendly startup is based in Texas (no transparency law) but is open to hiring in Colorado (strict transparency law), they often have to post the range anyway. If they don't, search for the exact same job title at the same company on a Colorado-specific job board. You will often find the range listed there, even if it's hidden on their main site.

The Peer Whisper Network

The most accurate salary data doesn't live in databases; it lives in Slack communities and Discord groups. Niche communities like Women in Product, specific engineering Discords, or alumni Slack groups have dedicated #compensation channels.

Don't ask "What does Company X pay?" Instead, ask directionally: "I have an interview for a Senior Backend role at a Series B fintech in NYC. They're asking for my expectations. Is $180k base + 0.1% equity market rate right now?"

People are much more likely to correct a specific number than to volunteer one from scratch. You will get immediate, highly accurate feedback from peers who have recently navigated the exact same market.

Information asymmetry is the employer's biggest advantage in a negotiation. Take it away from them before the first interview.