Should I take RSUs or more cash in my offer?

I've negotiated dozens of RSU-vs-cash trade-offs for senior candidates. The right answer depends on three variables: company-specific risk (is the company a stable post-IPO public co, or a pre-IPO scale-up?), your personal liquidity (do you need cash in the next 12 months for rent, mortgage, or expenses?), and the grant size (is the equity 15%+ of total comp, or 5%?).

The tax mechanics matter. UK RSUs are taxed as income at vest (PAYE), not at grant. If your shares vest at £20,000 and you're a higher-rate taxpayer, you owe £8,400 income tax + £400 NI immediately, even though the cash is now in shares not money. Most employers sell-to-cover (auto-sell enough shares to pay the tax). If yours doesn't, you must reserve cash or hold shares that might fall before you can sell.

When to take cash. If you need the money in the next 12 months, take cash. If the company is pre-IPO and you don't have visibility into the cap table, take cash. If the equity is less than 10% of total comp, take cash — the upside is too small to justify the risk. If the company has high revenue concentration (one big client), take cash. If you're in a senior role where compensation is competitive across multiple offers, cash gives you optionality the next role won't credit.

When to take RSUs. Post-IPO public companies with stable revenue and a credible growth thesis. Equity grants of 15%+ of total comp where the upside is materially larger than the downside. Roles where the company is genuinely transformative and you want to participate in the upside (Anthropic, OpenAI, Stripe in their growth phase). Cases where you have other liquidity sources (existing investments, partner's income) and don't need the immediate cash.

Vesting schedule matters as much as grant size. Standard tech RSU vests are 4 years with a 1-year cliff, then quarterly. If you leave before the cliff, you get nothing. If you leave at year 2, you've vested 50%. Negotiate the schedule explicitly — accelerated vesting on acquisition is now relatively common at senior levels and worth asking for. Some employers also offer 'refresh' grants annually, which is what makes long-tenure equity meaningful.

What I tell candidates: don't optimise for the highest-headline-comp offer if it's mostly equity at a company you wouldn't bet on. Cash-heavy offers from credible employers often beat equity-heavy offers from speculative ones, especially for candidates in their 30s and 40s who need predictable cash flow.