French Phrase
Tu t'attends à quel salaire ?
Meaning
Literally, “You expect what salary?” – in English we would say “What salary are you expecting?” It’s a direct way to ask a candidate or a colleague about the amount of money they hope to earn.
When to use
Use this sentence in informal or semi‑formal contexts such as a job interview, a networking coffee, or a salary‑negotiation role‑play. It’s more natural among peers; with a manager you might soften it with a conditional or a polite form.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Tut'attendsàquelsalaire?
t'attendre à
A reflexive verb meaning ‘to expect’. It always takes the preposition à before the thing expected.
Quel + noun
‘Quel’ is the masculine singular interrogative adjective; it precedes a masculine noun without an article.
Question without inversion
In informal spoken French you can keep the normal word order and just raise your intonation; no need for inversion (e.g., ‘Quel salaire attends‑tu ?’).
Pronoun elision
The reflexive pronoun ‘te’ becomes ‘t’ ’ before a vowel or mute h, as in ‘t’attends’.
🗨In Conversation
Tu t'attends à quel salaire ?
What salary are you expecting?
Je vise environ 45 000 € brut par an, selon le poste.
I’m aiming for about €45,000 gross per year, depending on the position.
✕Common Mistakes
Quel salaire tu attends ?
The verb ‘attendre’ is not reflexive here; you need the reflexive form ‘t’attendre à’. Also, the correct order is ‘Tu t’attends à quel salaire ?’ or the inverted form ‘Quel salaire attends‑tu ?’
Tu attends à quel salaire ?
Missing the reflexive pronoun ‘t’ ’; the verb must be ‘t’attendre à’.
Tu t’attends à quel salaire‑là ?
Adding ‘‑là’ changes the nuance to ‘that particular salary’, which is unnecessary and can sound odd in a neutral question.
↔Alternatives
Quel salaire espères‑tu ?
What salary do you hope for?
Quel salaire souhaites‑tu ?
What salary do you wish for?
Quel salaire vises‑tu ?
What salary are you aiming at?
Quel salaire envisages‑tu ?
What salary do you envisage?
Cultural Tip
In France, discussing salary too early in the interview process can be seen as aggressive. It’s common to wait until the employer brings up compensation or after a formal job offer. When you do ask, keep the tone neutral and avoid sounding demanding; using the informal ‘tu’ is fine with peers, but with a recruiter you might switch to ‘vous’ – e.g., ‘Vous attendez quel salaire ?’