Rs 18 LPA job offer but take-home only Rs 6 LPA? Founder reveals how companies inflate CTC

Founder explains breakdown of a Rs 18 LPA CTC offer. (AI-generated image)

A salary figure can look impressive on paper, but it does not always reflect what will actually reach an employee’s bank account. For fresh graduates, high-paying job offers can appear attractive, yet the reality behind the headline numbers can be very different.

Sahil Thakur, founder of BlockseBlock, recently highlighted this issue on LinkedIn. He shared the story of one of his students who received an offer from a startup, quoting a salary of Rs 18 lakh per annum (LPA), a figure that sounded exceptional at first glance.

When Thakur broke down the numbers, however, the reality was clear. The fixed base salary was just Rs 6 LPA, while the remaining Rs 12 LPA was tied to conditional bonuses and equity that may never materialise.

According to Thakur, the offer included several conditional components in addition to the fixed base salary. A performance bonus of Rs 4 LPA, which was linked to achieving 120% of performance targets. “The catch is that targets are set by the manager and structured so that only around 10 per cent of people actually meet them,” Thakur noted.

The offer also included a retention bonus of Rs 3 LPA, which would be paid only if the employee stayed with the company for two years. “Most people quit within 18 months,” he added.

Finally, the remaining Rs 5 LPA came in the form of Employee Stock Options (ESOPs). These were calculated based on the company’s current valuation and vest over four years. However, the shares would only have value if the company went public or was acquired; otherwise, they could end up being worth nothing.

“So what the candidate really gets is Rs 50,000 per month. That’s Rs 6 LPA. Not Rs 18 LPA,” Thakur wrote. Summing up, he said the offer guaranteed Rs 6 LPA, while the remaining Rs 12 LPA was “imaginary.”

Thakur criticised companies for inflating cost-to-company (CTC) figures using bonuses that are difficult to achieve and equity that may never materialise. “Rs 18 LPA looks far better than Rs 6 LPA. Most freshers don’t ask for a detailed breakup - they just see the big number and say yes,” he said. He also advised the student, “You’re not making Rs 18 LPA. You’re making Rs 6 LPA with a lottery ticket.”

The post sparked discussion from professionals with similar experiences. One user commented, “The ESOPs remind me of my old company where the founder promised ESOP to every cofounding team member, including me, but we never got it.”

Another user added, “Forget about freshers, there is a decent % of laterals who don’t know their CTC breakup.”

Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content shared on social media. Moneycontrol has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.