What is the average base pay increase planned for 2026?

The median base pay increase planned for 2026 is 3.5%, consistent with actual pay increases given in 2025, according to Payscale's 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report.

How does Payscale affect confidence in pay increase competitiveness?

70% of Payscale customers are confident their pay increases are competitive, compared to 50% of non-Payscale users, according to Payscale's 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report.

Compensation Planning: Budgeting, Pay Increases & Cycles

Q: How do most organizations determine pay increases?

48% of organizations give pay increases based on performance, while over 40% are either using or considering across-the-board raises, per Payscale's 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report.

Explore compensation planning research, guides, webinars and more

Quick Guide

What’s the hidden cost of spreadsheets?‍

Here’s the story of a company who “lost” $11-million dollars in compensation because of a single incorrect entry.

Research Report

Payscale Index 2025 - US Wage Growth Trends

Particularly during times of quickly changing economic forces, organizations require precise and timely data in order to make informed decisions about allocating limited compensation budgets. The Payscale Index tracks quarterly changes in total cash compensation for full-time, private industry employees in 19 job categories, for three company sizes and 15 industries across 32 major Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the United States.

Research Report

2026 Salary Increases Preview Report

The Pay Increase Preview Report provides an early snapshot of what is in the full Compensation Best Practices Report, which reveals what salary increases organizations actually gave last year in 2025 and what they’re giving this year for 2026.

Webinar

Innovation in action: A year with Marketpay On-demand webinar

Join us for the Q4 Marketpay Summit to see how we’re working side-by-side with our customers to build the next generation of compensation intelligence.

Quick Guide

HR’s guide to effortless survey participation

Survey participation eating up your time? This guide shows you how to cut significant time from your survey participation workload.

Research Report

2025 End-of-Year Top Jobs Report

This annual report from Payscale looks at trends in the labor market and the hottest jobs of the year in 2025 as well as predictions for 2026.

Webinar

Let’s talk pay equity: Navigating U.S. pay transparency and the EUPTD with Payscale and Trusaic on-demand webinar

A fireside chat on how Payscale and Trusaic are partnering to help organizations tackle the fast-approaching wave of pay transparency and equity requirements.

Webinar

Align HR and finance for compensation budgeting success On-demand webinar

Join Payscale’s Chief People Officer, Lexi Clarke, and Chief Financial Officer, Philip Watson, for a candid conversation on how to build a strong HR–Finance partnership before planning begins.

Webinar

Let’s talk services: Turning comp chaos into strategy with Payscale on-demand webinar

A candid fireside chat on how Payscale’s Services team becomes the strategic partner you didn’t know you needed.

Whitepaper

Are you ready for your year-end cycle?

Amid economic uncertainty and sluggish job growth, HR practitioners face unique challenges. The pressure is on to prove ROI, while keeping their talent franchise intact.

Webinar

5 Ways to Get Ahead of the Year-End Compensation Planning Cycle on-demand webinar

Join Payscale’s Chief Compensation Strategist, Ruth Thomas, and Senior Director, Solutions Consulting, Allison skidmore as they discuss how to prepare for the upcoming season.

Research Report

Salary Budget Survey (SBS) 2025-2026

Payscale’s 2025-2026 Salary Budget Survey (SBS) provides unparalleled insights on projected salary increase budget submissions from 1,551 organizations collected between May and June 2025.

What base pay increase are most organizations planning for 2026, and how does that compare to last year?

3.5% is the median base pay increase planned for 2026, which is no change from actual pay increases given in 2025.

How are organizations deciding between performance-based pay increases and across-the-board raises?

48% of organizations give pay increases based on performance, but over 40% are either using or considering across-the-board or peanut butter pay increases.

How confident are organizations that their planned pay increases are competitive?

50% of non-Payscale customer organizations say they are fairly or very confident that their pay increases are competitive, which rises to 70% for Payscale customers.