Geographic Differentials

A geographic differential is a percentage adjustment applied to a national market dataset — used when local data isn’t the best fit (e.g., for remote or international employees).

Instead of benchmarking based on a specific city or country, a geo-diff applies a cost-of-labor adjustment to the US national average to reflect pay expectations in that location.

Use Geographic Differentials if:

• You have a remote-first team across many regions

• You want a streamlined way to manage ranges without maintaining local benchmarks for every country or metro

• Your goal is to create a tiered, transparent, and scalable global pay structure

• You don’t have reliable or representative local market data for a region

When Geographic Differential is selected in your Company Profile:

• U.S. employees are matched to one of three tiers:

  • 115% (e.g., SF, NYC)

  • 110% (e.g., Austin, Boston, LA, Seattle)

  • 100% (U.S. national average – used for most other locations)

• Non-U.S. employees are matched to a percentage discounted off the U.S. national average (e.g., UK = 80%, India = 40%)(see List of Global Geographic Differentials below)

Kamsa’s geo-diff percentages are based on real local market compensation data. We analyze verified HRIS-sourced salary data for each country, then calculate an average discount relative to the U.S. national benchmark. These are then:

• Rounded to the nearest 10% for consistency

• Reviewed by compensation experts to ensure validity

• Updated periodically as labor markets shift

This approach balances simplicity, scalability, and accuracy — especially for lean teams operating globally.