Deflecting the early number question, anchoring, evaluating a full package, and negotiating without risk.
3 questions in HR, Screening & Offer.
Price the whole package before you argue about base, then make one counter that names a specific number, says which components you would take it in, and justifies it against the market for the role rather than your own needs. A sequence of separate asks is what makes a recruiter stop moving.
Deflect once to ask for the budgeted range, since whoever names a number first sets the anchor and the recruiter already has one; if pressed, give a researched range with your target near its bottom and tie it to market rather than to your current salary.
Ask what the panel saw that put you at the lower level before you argue, because level drives your band and your next promotion, not just this year's pay. Then either counter with evidence against their own criteria, or get the path to re-levelling in writing. Use this compensation answer to show the decision, trade-off, and evidence rather than a memorised definition.