what is the typical severance package for a c-suite level employee

Typical C-suite severance varies widely, but the median landing zone for a US public-company C-suite executive falls between 12 and 24 months of base salary, with the total package often worth 2–4× annual compensation once benefits, equity, and bonus are added. Here's what usually sits in the envelope and what drives the number.

What's typically included

• Base salary continuation: 12–24 months cash. The most common figure is 1.5×–2× base salary for "without cause" terminations, paid either as a lump sum or on the regular payroll.
• Pro-rated annual bonus: The current year's target bonus, prorated through the termination date (sometimes with a floor of 50–100% of target).
• Equity treatment:
  • Time-based RSUs/options: usually continue vesting through the severance period; some agreements add 6–12 months of accelerated vesting.
  • Performance-based awards: typically prorated based on actual or target performance.
• Health and welfare benefits: medical, dental, vision, and life insurance continued for the severance period (employer subsidy often preserved at active-employee rates, which is a meaningful perk under COBRA).
• Outplacement: 6–12 months of executive-level career services, with a typical spend of $25,000–$75,000.
• Other common pieces: legal-fee reimbursement, Section 280G gross-up (in CIC scenarios), continued participation in deferred comp plans, and reimbursement of unused vacation/PTO.

What shifts the number up or down

• Trigger type: Change-in-Control (CIC) severance is the big multiplier. A "double trigger" (involuntary termination within 12–24 months of a CIC) commonly pays 2×–3× base + target bonus, with full or accelerated equity vesting. Non-CIC severance is usually about half that.
• Company size & profile:
  • Small / private / pre-IPO: often 6–12 months + a smaller equity component.
  • Mid-cap public: 12–18 months.
  • Large-cap / Fortune 500: 18–24 months standard, up to 30–36 for top roles at tech, finance, and pharma.
• Industry: tech and finance tend to run richer; nonprofits and government-run entities run leaner.
• Reason for termination: clean "without cause" gets the full package; "for cause" (misconduct, gross negligence) typically forfeits almost everything except earned pay through the date.
• Existing employment agreement: the strongest lever — most executive offers include a severance schedule in the initial contract, and the difference between a well-negotiated and a poorly-negotiated agreement is often 6–12 months of total comp.

A rough total-package estimate

For a US public-company C-suite officer earning $1M total comp (say $500K base + $500K equity/target bonus), a typical without-cause severance in a non-CIC scenario lands in the $1.5M–$3M range all-in; CIC severance on the same comp frequently lands $3M–$6M+.

Practical takeaways

• Negotiate it before you sign the offer. Severance is far easier to lock in up front than to recover afterward.
• Read the equity treatment carefully. For tech and other equity-heavy roles, accelerated vesting can be worth more than the cash.
• Mind the 280G excise tax. On CIC payments above the IRS threshold (~3× the Section 4980 base), executives can lose 20% to excise tax unless there's a gross-up, a safe-harbor cutback, or a shareholder vote.
• Watch non-competes and non-disparagement. The severance check often comes with strings that limit future roles or commentary — these clauses are increasingly unenforceable in some states (CA, MN, OK, ND), but enforceable elsewhere.

If you want, tell me the executive's role, company size, and whether a change-in-control is in play, and I can put a tighter estimate on it.