Hiring managers keep telling candidates that $100,000 is a lot. Let’s check that.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, consumer prices are up about 67% since 2006. So $100,000 today buys roughly what $60,000 did then. Compared with just 2016, it’s about $71,000.

That $80,000 “manager” offer? In 2006 dollars, it’s about $48,000. The $70,000 tech support role is about $42,000.

And that’s the general average. The things that actually decide whether a paycheck stretches have gone up faster:
* Housing costs are up about 75%, and the median home price has nearly doubled.
* Family health insurance premiums have more than doubled, from about $11,500 to roughly $27,000.

This isn’t new, either. In 2008, I watched a newly promoted director take $85,000 for a role whose previous holder made $135,000. The pitch was, “You don’t want that much. It’ll bump you into a higher tax bracket and complicate your life.” That’s a myth. Only the dollars above a bracket’s threshold get taxed at the higher rate, so a raise never lowers your take-home pay. In today’s money, that’s the difference between about $133,000 and $211,000. Lowballing has always come with a story about why less is better for you.

Six figures isn’t a reward anymore. It’s what a middle-class salary from 2006 looks like today and often not a comfortable salary if you have a family to support. If your salary bands still feel “generous,” check what year they’re set to.

Pay what the work is worth today, not what it felt like it was worth in 2006.