[joezydeco]

In either case, it never amounts to more than a $10K swing in comp. Same for vacation time.

Yes, it's a polite way to brush off the question. But the end result is the same. A job offer way lower than what you're making, and now they have $20K in a bucket to go a little higher when you try to negotiate.

[adregan]

Last 2 positions I’ve had haven’t had 401k matching and the health insurance costs are eye watering. I might consider an improvement in both to be worth a fair bit.

[joezydeco]

In my experience, those are the two things that are impossible to move. They're built into company HR structures and they don't bend them for individuals unless you're C-suite.