Imagine a hypothetical Accounting Manager in the middle of a first phone screen. The conversation has gone well, the recruiter has been warm, and then comes a quiet pause and the question: “What are your salary expectations?” She names a number off the top of her head, hears a polite “great, that works,” and spends the next three years wondering whether “works” meant “bargain.”
If you work in accounting, finance, HR or office administration in Ontario, this guide is for you. This moment shows up in almost every hiring process, and your answer sets the baseline for your offer, your future raises and often your next job’s starting point.
The question is a negotiation checkpoint, not a trick. A prepared answer protects your confidence and your use. Below, we cover how to research a realistic range, how to phrase your answer at different stages, how to handle pushback or a low offer, and what Ontario’s pay transparency rules mean for the conversation in 2026. Professionals in these fields often move between roles where pay bands vary widely, so a researched answer matters more than a rehearsed one.
What Employers Are Really Asking When They Want Your Salary Expectations
Hiring managers and recruiters are screening for three things at once: budget fit, how well you understand your market value, and how you communicate under pressure. A calm, specific answer tells them you have done your homework. A vague or visibly uncomfortable one tells them you may be unsure of your own worth, which can carry into how you negotiate on the job.
The question also lands differently across disciplines. In accounting and finance, scope often drives the number: an Accounting Manager who leads month-end close and audits sits in a very different band from one who reviews work prepared by others. In HR and administration, an Executive Assistant supporting a senior leadership team carries a different level of responsibility than a general administrative role, even when titles look similar. Employers are listening for whether your range matches the actual scope of the position.
A recruiter asking early is usually trying to avoid wasting your time or the employer’s. If your expectations and the budget are far apart, it is kinder for everyone to know that in the first conversation rather than the fourth interview. An honest, researched range helps both sides.
Current salary, expected salary and target range
These three get mixed up constantly, and answering the wrong one can cost you.
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Current salary is what you earn today. You are not obliged to lead with it, and it often anchors the conversation lower than the role deserves.
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Expected salary is what you hope to earn in the new role, and it is what most employers mean by “salary expectations.”
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Target range is the span you are willing to accept, with a floor you would genuinely say yes to. This is the version worth preparing.
If you are unsure which question is being asked, it is perfectly professional to clarify: “Are you asking about the range I’m targeting for this role?”
How to Research and Set Your Salary Range in Ontario
Never walk into a screening call without a number in mind. Use more than one source so that no single data point misleads you.
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Salary guides. Local guides beat national averages because pay in Kitchener-Waterloo, Hamilton-Halton, Niagara and the GTA does not move in lockstep. Elby publishes a free 2026 Accounting & Finance Salary Guide and a 2026 HR & Office Administration Salary Guide covering Southern Ontario regions.
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Current job postings. Look at comparable roles in your region. Because of pay transparency, posted ranges are far more useful than they used to be.
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A specialized recruiter. A recruiter who works only in finance and administration sees real offers and candidate decisions every week, which is market information published surveys tend to lag behind.
Then adjust for the factors that move salaries: years of experience, designations such as a CPA or CHRP, systems skills like NetSuite, Dynamics or SAP, industry, company size and whether the role is hybrid or on-site. Build a range roughly 10 to 15 per cent wide, and make sure the bottom is a number you would truly accept. A range of $60,000 to $100,000 tells an employer you have not done the work.
One trade-off to keep in mind: a researched range is a starting point, not a guarantee. A small employer with a tight budget may not be able to match the market midpoint, and a flat refusal to move can cost you a role that offers strong benefits or growth in other ways. Know your floor, but stay curious about the whole package.
Ready-to-Use Ways to Answer at Different Stages
How you answer should shift with where you are in the process. Adapt these to your own role and wording.
When the posting already lists a range
Use it. If you see a posted range, you can say: “I see the posting lists $70,000 to $85,000. Based on my experience, I’m targeting the upper end of that range.” That is clear, confident and grounded in the employer’s own budget.
When it is too early to say
In a first screen, you may not yet understand the scope. A reasonable response is: “I’d like to understand the full scope of the role first. Could you share the range you’ve budgeted for this position?” Asking for the employer’s range is a common, professional move, and in Ontario many postings already include it.
When you are asked for a number
Give a range and tie it to value. An illustrative example for an Accounting Manager: “Based on my research and my experience leading month-end close and audits, I’m targeting $105,000 to $115,000, depending on the full compensation package.” For an Executive Assistant: “For a role supporting a senior leadership team with this scope, I’m looking in the range of $75,000 to $82,000, and I’m interested in hearing more about benefits and flexibility.” These figures are illustrative only, so replace them with numbers from your own research.
Think total compensation
Base salary is only part of the picture. Before you commit to a final number, ask about bonus history, health and dental coverage, RRSP matching, in-office expectations, vacation and personal days, professional development budgets and CPA support. A slightly lower base with strong RRSP matching, a reliable bonus and real flexibility can be worth more than a higher base without them.
Mistakes to Avoid and How to Handle Pushback or a Low Offer
A few errors come up again and again:
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Sharing your current salary first. Focus on what the role is worth, not what you earn today.
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Naming a number without research. Guessing undermines your credibility.
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Making the range too wide. It signals uncertainty.
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Negotiating against yourself. Once you share your range, pause and let the employer respond.
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Forgetting to say why. Tie your number to results, such as shortening month-end close, leading an HRIS rollout or managing a demanding executive calendar.
If the offer lands below your range, thank them, restate your range and the value behind it, and ask whether there is flexibility on base salary or other parts of the package. If the base cannot move, ask about a salary review at six months, an extra week of vacation or a professional development allowance. Stay warm and specific. For a deeper look at this stage, see our guide on what top accounting candidates expect from an offer.
Ontario Pay Transparency and What It Means for Your Salary Conversation in 2026
Since January 1, 2026, Ontario employers with 25 or more employees must include the expected pay or a pay range in publicly advertised job postings. That range generally cannot be wider than $50,000, unless the role pays more than $200,000.
For job seekers, this changes the conversation in three practical ways:
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You start with real data. The posted range shows what the employer has budgeted.
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You can aim higher within the range. If your experience, designation or systems skills exceed the posting, targeting the upper half is reasonable.
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You can ask about it directly. If a role lists no range, you can raise it politely, and if the employer has fewer than 25 employees or the role is not publicly advertised, the rules may not apply.
Transparency does not replace negotiation. A posted range tells you the budget, not where within it a candidate will land. Your experience and the value you can show still decide that.
Walking Into Your Next Conversation Prepared
Before your next screen or interview, set aside an hour. Pull three comparable postings in your region, check them against a current salary guide, write down a range with a floor you would accept, and practise saying it aloud with one sentence on the results behind it. If you also want a second set of eyes, a recruiter who places finance and administrative professionals across Ontario every week can sanity-check your number against real offers.
Elby Professional Recruitment works with accounting, finance, HR and administrative professionals throughout Ontario, including smaller markets like Simcoe and Thorold, and handles the salary conversation on your behalf when you are placed through us. When you are ready to talk through your next move, reach out to our team or download the salary guides above and start with your numbers.