Stop Guessing Your H1B Salary: How the Work Visa Insights Wage Calculator Works

Your Salary Negotiation Has a Secret Weapon

When you receive an H1B job offer, the number in the offer letter is not arbitrary — it is constrained by Department of Labor prevailing wage requirements, your employer's internal equity, and what they have paid every previous H1B employee in your role. All of that data is public, and the Work Visa Insights Wage Calculator puts it in your hands before you sign.

What Is a Prevailing Wage?

The prevailing wage is the DOL-mandated minimum an employer must pay an H1B worker in a specific occupation and geographic area. It is derived from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey and is set at four levels corresponding to experience:

Your employer must certify which level applies to your role when they file the LCA. That certification is public record.

What the Wage Calculator Shows

Navigate to Wage Calculator on Work Visa Insights. Enter:

• Job title or SOC code
• State and metro area (wages vary significantly by location)
• Experience level

The calculator returns:

1. DOL prevailing wage for your level and location — the legal minimum your employer must pay
2. Median LCA wage — what employers are actually certifying for this role in this metro
3. Wage range — 25th to 75th percentile of real LCA filings
4. Employer comparison — how your current or target employer's LCA wages compare to the market

How to Use It for Negotiation

Before the Offer

1. Run the calculator for your target role and metro
2. Note the median LCA wage — this is your market anchor
3. Note the DOL Level III prevailing wage — this is the benchmark for a mid-senior role

If the recruiter gives you a number below either of these benchmarks, you have data to push back: "Based on DOL prevailing wage data and LCA filings for this role in this metro, the market rate is $X. I'd like to discuss getting the offer closer to that figure."

After the Offer

1. Search for your employer specifically in the LCA module
2. Look at their actual LCA filings for your job title
3. Compare the median they have paid previous H1B workers to your offer

If 50 previous H1B employees in your role were certified at $145,000 and your offer is $115,000, you have a specific, data-backed case to make.

Common Misconceptions About H1B Wages

"My employer is paying me the prevailing wage, so it's fair"

The prevailing wage is a minimum floor, not a market rate. It is often set using OEWS data that lags the actual market by 2–3 years. LCA data — which reflects what employers are actually paying right now — is a better benchmark.

"I can't negotiate because they need to change the LCA"

This is partially true for timing reasons, but nothing prevents an employer from paying you above the LCA-certified wage. The LCA sets a floor. Negotiate up from there.

"Remote work means prevailing wage doesn't matter"

For H1B workers, the prevailing wage is tied to the worksite location, not where the employer is headquartered. If you work remotely in Texas for a San Francisco employer, the prevailing wage is calculated based on your Texas worksite, not San Francisco. This can significantly affect your minimum.

Reading the Wage Level Distribution

The Wage Calculator and LCA module both show wage level distributions for each employer. Use this as a quality signal:

Healthy distribution (tech company, software roles):

• Level I: 10% | Level II: 35% | Level III: 45% | Level IV: 10%

Warning sign (IT staffing firm):

• Level I: 75% | Level II: 20% | Level III: 5% | Level IV: 0%

IT staffing firms and body shops historically use Level I wage certifications to minimise their wage floor. If you're being placed through a staffing intermediary, verify the wage level on your LCA before the petition is filed.

Try the Wage Calculator

Open the Wage Calculator → — enter your role, location, and level to see your market rate in under 60 seconds.