MetLife
New York, NY · founded 1868
MetLife is a 150-plus-year-old insurance and employee-benefits giant headquartered in the landmark MetLife Building over Grand Central. It is a large, stable, deliberately risk-averse place: employees describe genuinely good work-life balance and flexibility as the main draw, offset by market-lagging pay and slow career progression. The company leans hard into its 'great place to work' recognition - Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For, Fortune World's Best Workplaces 2025, and Great Place to Work certification across 33 markets - and runs internal-mobility programs (MyPath, EXCELERATE) and a funded ideas pipeline (Experimentation Gateway). If you want a steady, benefits-rich employer and can accept a big-company pace, it fits; if you want fast advancement or top-of-market comp, look harder.
see the full file on MetLifedocumented benefits (24)
| Partner leave | yes |
|---|---|
| Adoption leave | yes |
| Fertility support | yes |
| On-site childcare | yes |
| Help paying for childcare | yes |
| Lactation rooms | yes |
| Retirement match | Pension plan; MetLife does not publish the contribution or match rate for the UK |
| Employer pays full premium | yes |
| Mental health | yes |
| Dental | yes |
| Vision | yes |
| Disability | yes |
| Life insurance | yes |
| Days in office | 3 |
| Office policy | Hybrid across MetLife Gulf: work from home up to two days a week, depending on role |
| Volunteer days | yes |
| Flexible hours | yes |
| Commuter benefit | yes |
| Internal course catalog | yes |
| Campus or amenities | Global headquarters in the landmark MetLife Building at 200 Park Avenue, straddling Grand Central Terminal in Midtown Manhattan |
| Median filed wage | $127,796 |
| Gender pay gap, median | 28.9% |
| Gender pay gap, mean | 22.1% |
| Bonus gap, median | 52.9% |
what MetLife pays
Median of 31 certified wages filed with the US Department of Labor: $127,796.
Half of MetLife's certified filings fall between $116,273 and $134,895.
| role | median | filings | range |
|---|---|---|---|
| lead full stack software engineer | $135,408 | 4 filings | $127,796 to $139,194 |
| sr. full stack software engineer | $127,796 | 3 filings | |
| sr release train engineer | $132,080 | 2 filings | $119,850 to $132,080 |
Source: US Department of Labor, FY2025 Q4. Read 2026-07-27.
notable perks
- Experimentation Gateway: an internal funding pool for employee-submitted ideas, with 100+ experiments funded
- MyPath internal talent marketplace where colleagues find internal projects and gigs across the company
- A day off to celebrate your culture and heritage
- Maternity coaching for return-to-work mothers
- Occasional early Fridays
- Support for continuing post-graduate education and career education reimbursement
the legal floor where they are
Set by law, not by MetLife. It applies to every employer in NY.
| IVF cycles the state covers | New York requires three IVF cycles, from large groups only. Insurance Law §§ 3221(k)(6)(C) and 4303(s)(3) require large group policies to cover 'three cycles of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) used to treat infertility and prescription drugs that are prescribed for the IVF treatment'. Large group means more than 100 employees, and the law applies to policies issued or renewed on or after 1 January 2020. Age restrictions are not permitted, and an insurer may not discriminate on age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status or gender identity. Small group and individual plans must cover basic infertility treatment such as intrauterine insemination but are NOT required to cover IVF. THE LIMIT THAT DECIDES WHETHER THIS REACHES YOU: the Department of Financial Services states that 'the IVF law does not apply to self-funded ERISA plans', nor to Medicaid managed care, the Essential Plan or Medicare. KFF's 2025 employer survey puts 67% of covered workers in a self-funded plan and 80% at firms of 200 or more, so at most large New York employers this law does not apply and the fertility benefit on the page is the company's own choice. (New York Insurance Law §§ 3221(k)(6)(C) and 4303(s)(3), effective 1 January 2020.) |
|---|---|
| Adoption leave the law gives | 12 workweeks of UNPAID job-protected leave in any 12-month period on the placement of a child for adoption or foster care, and only for employees who meet the FMLA eligibility test. There is no federal paid adoption leave. (Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 29 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1)(B) and 2612(c); eligibility at 29 U.S.C. 2611(2) and (4). Quoted from the 2023 edition of the US Code.) |
| Pay when you are ill | No federal law requires any paid sick leave. The FLSA does not require payment for time not worked, and the FMLA gives 12 workweeks of UNPAID job-protected leave in any 12-month period for a serious health condition, and only for employees who meet the FMLA eligibility test. Any paid sick time comes from a state or city law, or from the employer's own choice. (Fair Labor Standards Act, per the Department of Labor's statement on payment for time not worked; Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 29 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1)(D) and 2612(c). Quoted from the 2023 edition of the US Code on govinfo.gov.) |
Every claim above is sourced and dated. See sources on the full page.
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