Facebook. We all know it, most of us love it. At least most of us use it: the company had an average of 1.86 billion monthly active users as of December 2016.
The company currently has 17,048 employees, with offices all over the US and across the world. Analysts are predicting that Facebook’s profit will grow an average of 32 percent each year over the next few years.
But Facebook is already one of the largest tech companies around, with 2016 annual revenue of $27.6 billion. And it is consistently ranked by employees as one of the best places to work for.
If you’ve got your eye on the largest social networking site in the world for the next step in your career, you’re not alone. But before you apply it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the company and find out more about what you can expect to be paid if you work there.
History
Facebook started out with a hack — Zuckerberg went into Harvard’s protected files and downloaded private dorm ID images in order to gather faces for the site’s predecessor “Facesmash.”
Current CEO Mark Zuckerberg launched “Thefacebook” in 2004, along with co-founders Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes, and Eduardo Saverin. The website was exclusive to Harvard students when it started out, but soon expanded to other schools and, ultimately, to anyone age 13 and over.
The company held its initial public offering in 2012. Shortly afterwards, in 2015, Facebook set the record for fastest company in the S&P 500 to reach a market cap of $250 billion. In addition to the website, Facebook currently owns and operates many other companies, including Instagram, WhatsApp, and Oculus.
Culture and Atmosphere
This journey is 1% finished. That’s the quote you’ll find lining the walls at Facebook HQ. It’s a constant reminder that there is still plenty of work to be done to achieve the company’s mission of a more open and connected world. That mission applies in-house, too, where an open and transparent culture reigns. Mark Zuckerberg himself hosts a weekly Q&A with employees every Friday. This kind of open culture is not only great for employees, it’s what helps keep the company booming.
From Facebook’s website:
We encourage people to be bold. Our open culture keeps everyone informed and allows people to move around and solve the problems they care about most. We work in small teams and move fast to develop new products, constantly iterating and improving.
The company’s hacker roots are also prevalent in the culture. Employees are encouraged to solve problems creatively and make decisions quickly.
Facebook Headquarters
The company’s open culture requires an open floor plan, and the new headquarters is up to the challenge. The building, which opened in 2015, boasts the largest open floor plan in the world. Appropriately, it is located at 1 Hacker Way in Menlo Park, California.
The space is built for ultimate collaboration. Many employees say it’s hard to walk around without bumping into someone, and sometimes, that’s where magic happens.
The 430,000 square-foot office was designed by no less than Frank Gehry, and local artists were commissioned to decorate the interior. Employees have also been known to decorate the walls with their own artwork, if the spirit strikes them. And in true open-culture fashion, Mark Zuckerberg’s desk sits in the middle of it all.
On the roof, you’ll find a nine-acre park with a walking trail, 400 full-grown trees, and plenty of seating. Plus whiteboards and wi-fi so you don’t have to stop working to smell the roses. The roof is both literally green and metaphorically green — more than 100,000 native plants in the rooftop park cut down on the energy used for heating and cooling the building.
Benefits and Perks for U.S. Employees
Facebook offers its workers some of the top benefits in an already benefit-rich industry. There are delicious free food options all day, and vending machines with keyboards and other computer accessories so you don’t have to go through paperwork and IT delays for cables and screen wipes. You can also play ping-pong, Guitar Hero, chess, and basketball, take advantage of free dry cleaning, and get your bike serviced for free while you work.
But many offices in Silicon Valley offer perks like these. What makes Facebook special? Let’s take a closer look.
- Parental Leave
Facebook has arguably the best parental leave policy in the industry (possibly in the country). New parents (that’s mothers AND fathers) get four months of paid leave, which they can take at any time during the child’s first year. They also get “baby cash” to help with startup expenses, and money on top of that for babysitters.
In addition, the company offers adoption and surrogacy assistance, and covers egg-freezing and IVF treatments.
- Time Off
The company aims to make its offices as comfortable as your home, but they also know that employees need time off, whether it’s for vacation or for something else. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg recently announced that the company would offer up to 20 days paid leave in order to mourn the loss of an immediate family member, and up to 10 days paid leave to grieve an extended family member.
Employees can also take up to six weeks off to care for a sick relative and three days of “paid family time,” which is intended for those who are caring for a family member with a short-term illness, like a child who is home from school with a fever.
- Health and Wellness
Facebook employees report that they get the red carpet treatment when they go to the doctor, whether it’s on-site or not. (There is also a dentist on-site at HQ.) Many single employees are 100 percent covered for health insurance, and co-pays are reportedly very low.
Also in the health category, you can find an on-site gym at the company’s headquarters, and employees get a generous subsidy each year for gym memberships on top of that.
- Ad Dollars
One interesting perk Facebook offers is $250 in credits each month to spend on Facebook ads for employees or their family members. Though this benefit often goes unused, it’s a pretty great one for those who have a side business or employees with family members who have startups.
Paysa CompanyRank
Paysa’s CompanyRank algorithm measures the quality of technical talent over time. This data is gathered from an analysis of 7.45 million job changes across 198,000 companies over the past 15+ years.
Facebook currently ranks at number five, just behind companies like Google and Airbnb. In the last five years, Facebook has risen to number one, and has never dropped below the top five.
Facebook Salaries
So, how much do Facebook employees make? Based on Paysa data calculated from 7,700 profiles, the average market salary for Facebook employees is $285,000 per year, ranging from $170,000 to $411,000. Average market salary includes $132,000 base salary, $31,000 annual bonus and $121,000 annual equity.
Average Facebook salary, per Paysa data.
The top five highest-paying Facebook jobs, from highest to lowest are:
Senior Engineering Manager
The average market salary for Facebook Senior Engineering Managers is $566,000 per year, ranging from $348,000 to $805,000. Average market salary includes $217,000 base salary, $60,000 annual bonus and $288,000 annual equity. Skills that are most in demand for this position include machine learning, algorithms, and technical leadership.
Average Facebook Senior Engineering Manager salary, per Paysa data.
Engineering Manager
The average market salary for Facebook Engineering Managers is $476,000 per year, ranging from $329,000 to $634,000. Average market salary includes $206,000 base salary, $46,000 annual bonus and $224,000 annual equity. Skills that are most in demand for this position include machine learning, algorithms, and technical leadership.
Average Facebook Engineering Manager salary, per Paysa data.
Director of Product Design
The average market salary for Director of Product Design at Facebook is $415,000 per year, ranging from $312,000 to $526,000. Average market salary includes $222,000 base salary, $57,000 annual bonus, and $136,000 annual equity. Most demanded skills include interaction design, user experience, and user interface design.
Average Facebook Director of Product Design salary, per Paysa data.
Director
The average market salary for a Director at Facebook is $406,000 per year, ranging from $268,000 to $555,000. Average market salary includes $199,000 base salary, $57,000 annual bonus, and $150,000 annual equity. Top skills required include product management, strategic partnerships, and business development.
Average Facebook Director salary, per Paysa data.
Senior Data Engineer
The average market salary for Senior Data Engineers at Facebook is $319,000 per year, ranging from $284,000 to $355,000. Average market salary includes $177,000 base salary, $40,000 annual bonus, and $102,000 annual equity. Top skills needed include Java, Hadoop, and Sql.
Average Facebook Senior Data Engineer salary, per Paysa data.
Working at Facebook
Facebook ranks in the top five out of 100 company salaries, as calculated by Paysa. The top five highest-paying jobs at Facebook are Senior Engineering Manager, Engineering Manager, Director of Product Design, Director, and Senior Data Engineer.
It’s a lofty goal to pursue working at Facebook, but most employees agree that if you can make the team, it’s worth it. With some of the best benefits and perks in Silicon Valley, an open environment that invites everyone to help Facebook hack its way to even more success, and generous salaries, the company is a great place to start or continue your career.
Paysa allows you to compare salaries across companies, job titles, and locations. Our market data shows that 36 percent of professionals are underpaid relative to market. Paysa users are using the data we’ve gathered to make up to $39,000 more than they were before they found this site. Sign up today to personalize Paysa for you.
