What kind of salary are you looking for?

"What kind of salary are you looking for?"
"What pay range are you looking for?"

There are a couple of ways to answer this. If you state a figure, you risk stating something that is too high, or something that is too low. Either case, you will not benefit from this question. A lot of people suggest saying something like, "I'm sure whatever I'm offered will be a fair price." But I don't agree. It is a safe answer, but if I was the interviewer, I would appreciate numbers instead of a safe answer. So I recommend answering this question with a range. I'll explain this more in the negotiation portion, but just in case you skip that section, here are some examples.

"I'm expecting somewhere between $50,000 - $60,000."

If you know the pay for the position you are applying for. Then giving a figure is not that bad. Just state something a little higher with a small range included

"I know that the average pay for this position is roughly around $45,000, but because I have a couple years more experience, I would want something around $48,000 to $50,000."

If the salary range is already included in the job description, then you can answer that you are willing to consider any offers stated in the job description.

"The job description says that the salary will be around $45,000 to $53,000. I think it's a fair range."

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