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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallA Microsoft employee-created spreadsheet reportedly contains nearly 600 voluntary, self-reported entries on base pay, raises, cash bonuses and stock awards. The figures offer a glimpse of what contributors say they earn, but they are not official Microsoft pay bands, and reporting does not establish that the company’s systems were breached.
What the reported Microsoft salary spreadsheet contains
India Today reported ranges drawn from the spreadsheet by Microsoft job level and business organization. The figures below are reported submissions, not verified compensation bands. The report does not establish that the ranges represent typical pay or a representative distribution.
Reported figures by job level
| Microsoft level | Reported base salary | Other reported compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Level 59 | $111,000–$134,000 | Not stated in the cited India Today report for this level. |
| Level 67 | $239,100–$280,000 | Annual raises of 0.5%–1%; cash bonuses up to $110,000; stock awards up to $300,000, as reported by India Today. |
These are spreadsheet ranges, not official company salary bands. A range endpoint does not show how many people earned that amount or where most submissions fall.
Reported figures by organization
| Organization | Base salary reported | Cash bonus reported | Stock award reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud + AI | $111,000–$450,000 | Up to $300,000 | $9,000–$1.4 million |
| Azure | Up to $252,000 | Not stated in the cited India Today report for this organization. | Up to $294,000 |
| Microsoft AI | Up to $232,000 | Not stated in the cited India Today report for this organization. | Up to $140,000 |
India Today’s figures show why base salary alone does not capture the reported package: bonuses and stock awards can add substantially different amounts. The available figures do not support ranking organizations as definitively better paid; roles, locations, seniority, sample sizes and equity timing are not controlled in the reporting.
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Are the reported salary figures official?
No. Inc. reported that nearly 600 employees contributed information and that Microsoft had 223,000 employees as of June 30, 2026. Inc. said Microsoft declined to comment and the submissions had not been verified by the company. The Next Web likewise noted the sample’s small size and the possibility of self-selection: employees with unusually good or poor outcomes may be more inclined to contribute.
“Leak” is therefore an imprecise shorthand if it suggests a confirmed intrusion. The reporting describes an employee-created spreadsheet of voluntary disclosures; it does not establish that Microsoft’s internal salary database was exposed. The entries should not be treated as proof of any individual employee’s compensation.
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What the spreadsheet cannot establish
Nearly 600 self-selected entries are a small fraction of Microsoft’s reported workforce, not a companywide survey. The reported ranges alone cannot establish average pay, a companywide pay gap, discrimination, or why compensation differs. The coverage does not provide a representative sampling method, independent verification, or enough comparable detail on geography, job scope, tenure, performance and the timing of stock awards to support those conclusions.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Microsoft’s stated U.S. pay-transparency policy
In a June 8, 2022 statement, Microsoft said its U.S. employee agreements specifically highlighted employees’ rights to discuss or share employment terms and conditions. The company also committed to publicly disclosing salary ranges in U.S. internal and external job postings beginning no later than January 2023. That statement provides policy context; it does not authenticate the later spreadsheet, and it concerns U.S. policies rather than every jurisdiction.
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