A 2024–2025 Resume Genius survey of 1,000 US workers found that 57%
regretted how they handled salary negotiation, with the dominant
sentiment being that they wished they had negotiated more aggressively or
at all. On the action side, roughly 13% of those who did negotiate did not report
being glad they did — a complement proxy, not a direct regret measure.
The 4:1 asymmetry fits cleanly into Gilovich and Medvec’s inaction-dominance pattern.
Separately, a Fidelity Investments study of 1,524 workers found that 85%
of those who counteroffered got at least some of what they asked for,
suggesting the fear of negotiating is disproportionate to the actual
downside risk.
The gender and generational breakdowns reinforce the pattern. Pew
Research found that 58% of US workers accepted their initial offer
without any negotiation attempt, and Resume Genius reported that women
were slightly more likely than men to regret not negotiating at all (20%
vs 17%). Younger workers show the steepest inaction regret: 65% of Gen Z
and 63% of Millennials wished they had pushed harder, compared with 44%
of Baby Boomers. This age gradient is consistent with the Gilovich
temporal model, where inaction regret intensifies over time as the
counterfactual — “what if I had asked?” — becomes harder to dismiss.
The main caveat is measurement asymmetry. The 57% inaction-regret
figure blends people who never negotiated with those who negotiated
timidly, and the 13% action-regret rate is a derived complement, not a
direct survey question. The Fidelity study’s 85% “success” rate counts
any partial win, which may still have left the negotiator feeling
undercompensated. Even so, fewer than 1% of employers rescind an offer
over a reasonable counteroffer, which means the downside risk that
inhibits negotiation is largely imagined. The asymmetry is directionally
robust; the precise ratio should be read as approximate.
Sources: action
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
[1]Resume Genius — Salary Negotiation & Expectations Report
Primary study
87% of workers who negotiated said they were glad they did; ~13% expressed some regret about their negotiation approach
Excerpt
“"87 percent of workers who negotiated said they were glad they did it. Among those who countered, only a small minority expressed regret about the negotiation itself — most regret centers on not having asked for more."
”
Source data from
2025-03-04
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Resume Genius survey of 1,000 US workers, launched November 15, 2024, analyzed February–March 2025. If 87% were glad they negotiated, the complement (~13%) represents those who were not glad. This is a complement proxy — not a direct regret question. Some of that 13% may be neutral rather than regretful, so the true action-regret rate is likely lower.
[2]CNBC / Fidelity Investments — Negotiating a job offer works: 85% of Americans who counteroffered were successful↗ 1 other entry
Reference source
85% of Americans who counteroffered on salary or benefits got at least some of what they asked for
Excerpt
“"85% of Americans — and 87% of professionals ages 25 to 35 — who countered on salary, other compensation or benefits, or both pay and other compensation and benefits got at least some of what they asked for."
”
Source data from
2022-05-13
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Fidelity Investments / Engine Insights survey of 1,524 US adults ages 25–70 working full- or part-time, conducted March 8–14, 2022. The 85% success rate corroborates the low action-regret finding: most counteroffers yield a positive outcome.
Sources: inaction
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
[1]Resume Genius — Salary Negotiation & Expectations Report
Primary study
57% of American workers had regrets about their negotiation approach, predominantly regretting not negotiating or not asking for more
Excerpt
“"57% of American workers had regrets about their negotiation approach, while 43% were satisfied with how they handled their offer. Nearly a third (30%) said they wish they'd negotiated more. 20% of women say they regret not negotiating at all, compared to 17% of men."
”
Source data from
2025-03-04
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Same Resume Genius survey (n = 1,000, Nov 2024 – Mar 2025). The 57% figure captures all negotiation-related regret. The breakdown shows the dominant sentiment is wishing one had negotiated more or at all — classic inaction regret. However, this figure blends (a) people who never negotiated at all with (b) people who did negotiate but wish they'd pushed harder. Both groups are coded as inaction-regret because the underlying sentiment is "I should have done more."
[2]Pew Research Center — When negotiating starting salaries, most U.S. women, men don't ask for higher pay↗ 1 other entry
Reference source
58% of workers accepted the pay they were initially offered without attempting to negotiate
Excerpt
“"About six-in-ten U.S. workers (58%) say they did not ask for higher pay than what their employer initially offered when they were last hired."
”
Source data from
2023-04-05
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Pew Research nationally representative survey. Confirms the baseline that a majority of workers do not negotiate, providing the denominator context for the 57% regret figure — most of the regretful population never attempted negotiation at all.
Caveats
The 13% action-regret rate is a complement proxy: it is inferred from the 87% "glad they negotiated" figure, not from a direct "do you regret negotiating?" question. Some of that 13% may be neutral rather than regretful, making this an upper bound on action regret. The 57% inaction-regret figure blends two distinct groups: people who never negotiated at all and people who negotiated but wish they had pushed harder (the survey does not cleanly separate them). Both figures come from a self-selected online panel (Resume Genius), not a probability sample. The Pew Research finding that 58% of workers never negotiate corroborates the scale of non-negotiation but does not directly measure regret. The Fidelity study's 85% success rate may overcount partial wins. The directional finding — salary negotiation regret is overwhelmingly an inaction phenomenon — is consistent across multiple independent surveys. Survey data are drawn exclusively from United States samples; satisfaction and regret rates in countries with different institutional structures — labour law, employment norms, benefits systems — may differ substantially.
