[USER]

How much is a WFH option worth for you?
I’ve tapped out at my current role at $103k per year and was told I will only be getting 2-3% increases regardless of performance for the foreseeable future.

I was also told promoting to a senior role which would open up my compensation is off the table for several years.

I just was told of a new role opening up at my company, but it would require a 30 minute commute and being in office 5 days a week with some travel.

Right now I work from home and have young kids in daycare, so when school is closed having flexibility has been wonderful.

I anticipate that this job could net me $10k more a year in salary- but would change my lifestyle.

What’s WFH and 0 commute worth to you?

[Rebekah]

I worked remote for 9 years before leaving my w2 last year. I wouldn’t have been even slightly tempted to let it go for a 10k increase.

Honestly though, toward the end, even 100k more would not have tempted me… maybe earlier in my career, but not in the last few years.

As we got further along in our FI journey, flexibility and options became way more important than a high salary, high stress role.

For your personal situation, it depends on where you’re at with your FI and family goals… everyone’s path is unique.

RTO would come with its own increased cost in both $$ and time, so 10k doesn’t seem like enough to voluntarily return to office.

If you’re looking for a number that would be more worthy of consideration, perhaps 25k+ ??

[Stef]

Tons especially with kids. Way more than $10k. Once they start school, you’d spend that much every summer in childcare alone.

And even more after school, as school hours are more limited than daycare hours.

Being present allows you much more flexibility in who can watch your kids, how, and when.

[Jessica]

You couldn’t pay me $100k to add stress of getting myself well put together and out the door for daycare dropoff, a commute, and less flexibility let alone 10k.

That would be such an unmanageable lifestyle shift for me.

Plus, evenings and dinner after that commute back, less time with kids/fam. So much to factor in.

[Kelly]

I could spend $10K on gas, office attire, wear and tear on my car and time lost driving.

It would be >$10K

[Edna]

Stay at home
Hone/ learn new skills
When your kids are in school and you don’t need daycare- then move to the office or a hybrid situation.

Find another stream of income from home or reduce your expenses if you need more income.

[Audrey]

I’m WFH with travel once a month with 3 kids in daycare
The flexibility is everything.

Don’t change.

[Kevin]

When my job stopped letting us work from home I took a job elsewhere that was a 10K pay cut.

Best decision I ever made!

[Tony]

No reasonable salary increase could possibly offset office time over WFH. After WFH for the last 11 years, I would never take an in-person job if I didn’t absolutely have to; on the contrary, I’d be willing to take a significant pay cut to keep my WFH.

At a minimum, you should calculate your current hourly ‘clocked-in’ time of your WFH routine at your current salary vs the ‘clocked-in’ time of the new job and new salary calculated in hours *with* commute times added.

Then make sure to add up all the ancillary costs that come with office time (office appropriate attire, gas, additional car wear and tear, tolls (where applicable), getting up earlier to get ready to commute, lunches/coffees/happy hours with colleagues, etc. etc.

[Nicole]

When I worked from home 15 minutes away I spent from the time I woke up a bit after 8am until 6pm I was basically working.

Not all of that time was actually at work, but it was spent getting ready for work or driving to/from work etc.

Being at home – I work my hours and that’s it, every minute I’m not being paid for is no longer being used for anything related to work.

Especially if you have kids hat home, I’d be looking for significantly more than $10k to make up for the lost value of WFH.

For me personally someone could offer to double my salary and while I’d have to seriously consider if it was worth it, I don’t know that I would actually take it.

[Michelle]

WFH is priceless in general and especially when you have kids. Fewer and fewer jobs are offering full remote.

Stick with what you have.

[Karla]

This is a good question, and it’s about more than just what commuting costs.

I think it would take 20-30K more to make me commute everyday again.

[Jania]

Giving up WFH would take a LOT. I don’t WFH but if I did 10k wouldn’t be worth the added stress and commute.

[Elsa]

50k+ for commute and travel. I have young kids, and travel adds more stress to your spouse

[Yana]

10k is not enough. As many have pointed out, that bump in pay will melt away under the cost of gas, office attire, car wear and child care.

I would even argue that 20k would not be enough to make it worth it.

As a working mom with 2 kids, it’s hard to put a price tag on something as invaluable as being present with my kids when they are home.

If it were me, I’d keep the WFH gig, and look at what other levers I could pull to move the FIRE needle closer (paring down your expenses, tax optimization, etc.).

[India]

In the near term, $10k isn’t worth it to me to be in the office. Keep in mind that you’ll lose a bit of that to gas + other costs too.

The main reason I would consider switching companies is to go *back* to working 100% remotely.

My employer mandated a 3 day/wk RTO last year (for “increased collaboration”) and it’s awful being back in the office.

They just pulled VPs back in 4 days/wk and I suspect the rest of us will have to follow shortly.

I otherwise enjoy my team and company, but the RTO isn’t working as well for my family. Below are some examples.

I lose over 2hrs of personal time + sleep due to having to commute and get “office ready”. Chores that I could be doing in the background (like running a load of laundry) or on lunch breaks (cooking, cleaning, fitness, etc.) during the work day now take up more of my limited personal time.

I spend more $$ on personal upkeep/ clothing/ gas/ vehicle maintenance/ etc.

Our childcare and family logistics are more stressful to navigate with young children in daycare. Phone call saying a kiddo is sick and needs to be picked up?

Adds new stress between the increased visibility of leaving work early + having to commute to pick up a kiddo who isn’t feeling well.

I’m less productive. There are SO many office distractions and interruptions which make it harder to focus on work.

I have to leave work early to pick up the kids vs working longer hours at home.

Increased stress and mental energy from all of the above + lower quality of life that also decrease productivity.

The worst part is that we all sit in our cubes on the same calls we could be taking from the comfort of our own homes.

The team members I primarily work with live in another state.

Zero increase in collaboration, much lost on a personal level and in work satisfaction.

[Melissa]

To me personally it wouldn’t be worth $10k to give up full time WFH. You’ll spend that much in time and gas commuting

[Stephanie]

I WFH FT and I wouldn’t be okay with a commute and going into the office every day unless my salary were doubled, it’s that valuable to me.

[Author]

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