Goldman Sachs salary and bonus expectations for U.S. bankers

Historically speaking, Goldman Sachs has set the standard for compensation among large Wall Street investment banks. But Goldman is currently undergoing a bit of a facelift as it seeks to diversify its revenue streams and rely less on what has been its bread-and-butter: sales and trading. This dynamic, mixed with a fairly disappointing first quarter performance, resulted in the bank cutting compensation and benefits costs from $4.1bn in the first quarter of last year to $3.3bn during Q1 of 2019.

That all being said, Goldman Sachs still remains one of the better payers on Wall Street, as well as London, though a crunching of the numbers reveals an interesting narrative. As you can see in the two charts below, average salaries and bonuses at Goldman Sachs outpace rivals at every rung except the first one, according to a new report from Wall Street Oasis. Analysts, on average, earn a salary of around $87k, roughly $3k less than their counterparts at the other top 10 investment banks in New York. The average bonus for analysts at Goldman in New York is $44k, short of the $48k average taken home by rivals.

Elsewhere, Goldman reigns supreme, particularly at the vice president and managing director levels; salaries and bonuses are upwards of 20% higher at Goldman Sachs compared to competitors. VPs at Goldman can earn bigger bonuses than directors and MDs at competing banks, according to the report. In short, if you do well enough at Goldman to earn a promotion, your earning power should be dramatically improved.

One note of interest, however, is that Goldman seems to employ more young bankers and fewer grey hairs than any other big bank. As of February, roughly 36% of Finra-registered Goldman employees had three years of experience or fewer. Meanwhile, just 8% of Goldmanites have 20 years of experience or more, making it the only bank that didn’t hit the double-digit percentage threshold. While Goldman pays its senior bankers above market, the Finra numbers suggest the bank relies more on young, lesser-paid analysts than its competitors.

What’s the average Goldman Sachs salary?

Average salaries range from $87k for analysts to $350k for managing directors.

What’s the average bonus at Goldman Sachs?

The average bonus at Goldman Sachs is $44k for analysts and $202k for vice presidents. (Note: The average bonus for Goldman MDs was withheld due to sample size).

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