Maybe it's possible to do more interviews and get offers to compete against each other? This could maybe give a higher pay boost. And be less stressful than doing many interviews with an existing job.
Like it or not, being currently employed is a very strong signal in favor of you being employable. If you quit, prospective employers can't tell if you've been fired, or if you're the type of person who can't keep a job, or any other number of negative signals. (Yes, I know it's not perfect or fair. Please don't shoot the messenger).
> Maybe it's possible to do more interviews and get offers to compete against each other?
Possible, but not as helpful as you'd think unless you're a top-1% candidate with a resume to back it up.
Focus on finding a company you want to work for, with people you want to work with. If you ignore everything and focus only on money, one of two things will happen:
If compensation is your highest priority, just skip straight to interviewing at FAANG companies. It's extremely rare to find small companies willing to pay FAANG level compensation.
If FAANG is not an option, be careful about high-paying companies that aren't well-known. Some of them are good places to work, but others lure in inexperienced engineers with high salaries and then work them 80hrs per week until burnout, then replace them with the next round of engineers.
That said, if you're planning on preparing for interviews, not having a full time job might be beneficial. If you're young and willing to live within your means, you can stretch 10s of thousands in savings quite far.
The advantanges you lose when you aren't gainfully employed:
1. The ease of use of obtaining the first interview from a recruiter.
2. Hiring manager's inability to call references at your current company (good or bad depends on your situation at the current one)
3. The inability of a potential employer to discuss a salary and benefits lower than your current one.