Stability Is the New Raise: BambooHR 2026 Compensation Trends on Pay, Incentives, and Employee Priorities

• 4.8% – Average raise this year (back up to 2023 levels)
• 83% – Prefer pay tied to performance
• 66% – Received a raise after changing jobs in 2025
• 55% – Believe fairer compensation would end quiet quitting
• 43% – Say their company has no salary transparency

However, a full third (33%) saw no salary increase in the past year, and nearly half (45%) still say they’re underpaid. While most employees (67%) describe today’s market as employer-controlled, they’re also finding new ways to advocate for value, meaning, and balance at work in spite of the challenges they face.

In this year’s compensation trends report from BambooHR, we surveyed 1,500 full-time, salaried US employees to see how they’re navigating pay, incentives, benefits, and transparency in a market where stability is replacing survival.

Employees recognize an employer-defined market, but they’re reclaiming agency by talking openly about compensation and advocating for policies that reflect real-life needs.

Resilience is rising: fewer employees (40%) report struggling to make ends meet due to rising costs (down from 50% in 2024). Almost half (45%) of respondents say they could remain financially stable for more than six months if unemployed (up from 33% in 2022).

Confidence is edging back as well: nearly half (46%) feel comfortable asking for a raise, and 37% have proactively asked their employer to add or improve benefits—moves that signal long-term planning, not short-term survival.

At the same time, employees are still weighing tradeoffs. Many feel squeezed: 38% say they’re overworked, 45% say they’re underpaid, and nearly 1 in 3 fear layoffs. More than a third are hesitant to ask for a raise because of those layoff concerns. In short, people are running a careful risk calculation and choosing their opportunities as stability replaces survival.

After two turbulent years, base pay is ticking up, though who gets salary increases, how much they receive, and how those raises are perceived remain uneven—especially across gender, level, and company size.

Two-thirds (67%) of US salaried employees received an increase this year, and the average bump climbed back to 4.8%, up from 3.6% in 2024. Still, a third (33%) saw no change—evidence that the recovery is uneven and far from complete.

The gender gap narrowed, but there’s still work to be done: while the gap between who got a raise narrowed, the amount each received is still not close enough. This year, 70% of men and 65% of women received some increase (vs. 64% men and 55% women in 2024); among those who did get a bump, men averaged 5.0% (4.8% last year; 4.9% in 2023) and women averaged 4.5% (2.7% last year; 3.5% in 2023).

Satisfaction reflects the difference: 30% of women were dissatisfied with their most recent raise, compared to 22% of men.

Despite the increases, overall salary satisfaction lags behind. Only 57% say they’re satisfied with their most recent increase—an improvement from 50% in 2024, but still just over half of employees. And 27% still report negative emotions about their pay, a share that has shrunk (33% last year; 30% in 2023) but remains material.

Individual contributors (ICs) feel it most: 32% of ICs were dissatisfied with their raise, compared to 25% of team leads/managers and just 11% of VP+.

When it comes to company size, smaller organizations are feeling the pinch. A majority of employees at small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMBs) (<50 employees) say they didn’t receive a raise in the last year (56%), compared to 31% at mid-market (50–499) companies and 27% at enterprise (500+) organizations.

Dissatisfaction tracks the same pattern: 31% of SMB employees were dissatisfied with their most recent salary increase, versus 25% at both mid-market and enterprise firms.

Performance-based pay has moved from perk to preference—and for many employees, it’s a way to regain control and plan for stability.

Today, 63% of workers have incentive-based pay on top of salary (37% do not), and a strong 83% say they prefer a mix of salary plus incentives—only 16% favor salary-only structures.

Among those already on incentive plans, 47% say they prefer incentives over salary-only pay, and interest is spreading: 1 in 6 (18%) who don’t have incentives want to switch, and 25% would even accept a lower base for the chance to earn more through bonuses.

Preference also skews younger, with 91% of Gen Z favoring incentive-based pay compared to 75% of Baby Boomers.

Yet there’s a knowledge gap: 22% admit they don't understand the benefits of an incentive-pay system. And while incentive-based pay can be motivating, it can also add excess pressure rather than channel effort: employees with incentive-based pay are more likely to vent job frustrations to coworkers on offline channels at least weekly (51%) than salary-only peers (35%).

In addition to preferring incentive-based pay, employees are also choosing a calculated contribution that balances effort with reward as a path to stability. And they’re clear about what would help: 55% say that if effort were rewarded, quiet quitting would disappear.

Views of work reflect that shift: 53% still see work as set hours, 47% define it as tasks to complete regardless of time, and 59% say results matter more than hours as long as the work gets done. In other words, incentives set the promise; day-to-day effort is how employees cash it in.

Job loyalty is back, but it’s transactional. Employees are staying longer when they see a path to stability—aka “job hugging”—but they’re still ready to move when the value is clearer somewhere else.

Job hopping every few years is no longer seen as the surest route to higher pay: only 16% of employees say it’s the best way, while 46% believe tenured roles with merit increases are the primary path.

There are notable differences in those who favor tenure plus merit versus changing jobs among generations:

• 53% of Gen Z
• 49% of Millennials
• 39% of Gen X
• 44% of Baby Boomers

Employees say changing jobs about every four years is right for career growth, though 1 in 5 say people should never change jobs for growth unless forced by circumstances. These are the signals of “job hugging”—staying longer where stability and progress feel real.

Even so, movement still pays. Among those who did switch roles this year, 66% received a raise (up from 42% in 2024), with an average salary increase of 15.3% (vs. 12.4% last year). Satisfaction is also high: 75% of job changers are glad they moved, and only 10% regret the decision.

Employee intent is conditional: many would leave for the right offer, but high pay can keep them in place. Most employees would entertain a compelling offer—78% would consider leaving for higher pay, and it would take about a 16.7% increase to make them move. At the same time, money can anchor people in place: 51% say they’d stay in a job they dislike if the salary is high, up from 47% in 2024 and 44% in 2023.

Meanwhile, active search pressure continues to ease: 43% say they’re looking or considering looking for a new job, down from 51% in 2024, and 1 in 6 (18%) have boomeranged to a previous employer in the past three years—another sign that stability and familiarity carry weight.

If 2025 is the year stability replaces survival, this is the other side to the story: employees are working toward stability while managing real economic and work pressures—and they’re using a wide range of coping tactics to get there.

Almost all employees (93%) report using at least one coping strategy for handling work stress.

Many turn to connection and quick mental breaks: 51% speak with a coworker, and 47% “doom-scroll” to decompress. Others use clinical support: 20% take anxiety medication because of work, and 17% have started therapy due to work-related stress.

During work hours, coping shows up in several ways: 41% used drugs or alcohol during work in the last year, 25% admit to drinking on the job, and 14% report microdosing during work hours.

Incentive-based pay can be motivating—or it can add pressure if goals feel opaque or out of reach. Compared with salary-only peers, employees on incentive-based pay—whose income depends partly on performance—are more likely to report:

• Using drugs or alcohol during work hours in the last year (46% vs. 31%)
• Microdosing during work hours (17% vs. 8%)
• Venting frustrations to coworkers on offline channels at least weekly (51% vs. 35%)
• Enjoying alcohol alone at least monthly after work (66% vs. 48%)

Outside the office, social outlets are shifting. Only 15% of employees still attend weekly happy hours. Instead, 35% enjoy alcohol alone at home after work, and 32% say they “bed-rot” after work.

Monthly, 43% of in-office employees attend happy hours, while 62% enjoy an at-home drink after work instead and 46% meet up with coworkers outside of work. And venting has largely moved off official channels: 66% message coworkers about work frustrations at least monthly; 45% do so weekly.

Employees are pushing for the fairness and predictability that come from salary transparency, and they’re not waiting for HR to start the conversation.

Nearly half of employees have already compared notes: 49% have disclosed their salary to a coworker.

Instead of leading, many organizations are trailing the conversation: 43% say their company has no pay transparency, 32% don’t trust their employer to accurately benchmark salaries given the economy, and only 12% report a culture that encourages talking about pay.

This gap between employee behavior and company policy is exactly where pressure builds—and why transparency is becoming a baseline expectation rather than a “nice to have.”

Policy signals matter, too: 33% fear being reprimanded for discussing compensation, and 46% say their organization lacks a visible compensation philosophy. When the “how pay works here” story is missing, people will write their own version, often by comparing with peers.

Employees are pushing for options that support wellbeing and financial stability: 83% wish their company offered more benefits, and 37% have already asked leaders to add or improve offerings.

The top requests are clear and practical, signaling a desire for long-term security and everyday support:

• Retirement: 38%
• Wellness: 37%
• Mental health PTO days: 30%
• Paternity leave: 24%

Who’s advocating most? Nearly half of Millennials (49%) and Gen Z (46%) have asked for new or improved benefits, compared to 31% of Gen X and 24% of Baby Boomers.

Seniority matters, too: 50% of VP/C-suites have requested changes, versus 46% of managers and 15% of ICs.

Access still varies widely across companies.

Larger employers tend to provide more benefits: paid paternity leave is offered by 52% of 500+ employee companies (vs. 19% of <50 employees and 42% of 50–499 employees), and wellness benefits by 51% of 500+ companies (vs. 17% of <50 employees and 38% of 50–499 employees).

Employees’ work location also shapes access: 42% of remote/hybrid employees report having PTO for mental health days versus 33% of in-office employees.

Financial security is inseparable from today's benefits conversation. As the most common type of benefit offered by organizations, retirement benefits can signal employees’ commitment to long-term stability—and their expectation that employers will help them plan, save, and stay.

Here’s how preparation and access show up in the data:

• 70% of salaried full-time workers are enrolled in retirement benefits.
• 55% plan to continue working part-time in retirement.
• 53% are confident they’ll retire comfortably.
• 20% say they don’t need to save for retirement because they expect to work full-time their whole life.
• 49% of companies with <50 employees offer retirement benefits compared to 73% for mid-sized companies and 78% for enterprises.

By generation, plans to work part-time in retirement are highest among Baby Boomers (60%), Gen X (58%), and Millennials (56%), compared to Gen Z (42%). Retirement confidence is lower for Baby Boomers (48%) and Gen X (45%), versus Gen Z (57%) and Millennials (61%).

BambooHR conducted this research using an online survey prepared by Method Research and distributed by RepData among n=1,500 adults (age 18+) in the United States who are full-time salaried employees. The sample was equally split between gender, with a spread of age groups, race groups, and geographies represented. Data was collected from August 29 to September 20, 2025.

The BambooHR Compensation Trends Report is an annual study of salaried employees’ pay, benefits, and sentiment. This edition follows the same methodology as prior reports to enable year-over-year comparisons.

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