Recruiting fees
How much do recruiters charge? The Society for Human Resource Management published a contingency fee of 20% to 25% of compensation, paid only if the role is filled, and a retained fee of 30% to 35% of total compensation, with most of that fee due even if you do not hire. On the Arca.ph marketplace, you pay a one-time 15% fee of first-year pay, and only if you hire. Done for you is 35% of first-year pay, charged once on hire. You hire and pay the developer directly.
The amount depends on the contract. SHRM published two structures. They are ranges in two articles, not a quote for every search, and not a survey of technology invoices.
Contingency means the fee is paid only if the role is filled. In How to Work Effectively with an Executive Search Firm (Mark Feffer, SHRM, July 18, 2016), SHRM wrote that contingency recruiters usually earn 20% to 25% of the role's first-year cash compensation. That compensation is salary, bonus, and signing bonus. The same article says a company may hire several contingency recruiters for one role.
A later SHRM article states the same contingency range with a broader basis. In What Is Recruitment Research? (Roy Maurer, SHRM, December 12, 2022), a contingent search means the client pays 20% to 25% of a candidate's total compensation, and only if you hire. The recruiting firm carries the risk of the search.
Retained means the firm is paid for the search, not only for a hire. The 2022 article states that retained search firms charge 30% to 35% of a candidate's total compensation. They bill one-third at the start, one-third when a slate of candidates is presented, and one-third when someone is hired. Two-thirds of the fee is due even if you do not hire.
The 2016 article describes a retained search as exclusive. The firm is paid whether or not it fills the role. It reports an industry standard fee of about 33% of the role's annual salary, bonus, and signing bonus. That 33% sits inside the 30% to 35% range from 2022. SHRM did not publish one percentage that every firm must use.
A recruiter fee percentage is not one number. On a contingency hire, SHRM published 20% to 25%. On a retained search, SHRM published 30% to 35%, and the 2016 article reports about 33% as an industry standard.
The percentage is only half of the bill. The 2016 article applies the contingency percentage to first-year cash compensation: salary, bonus, and signing bonus. The 2022 article says total compensation and does not define that phrase further. A bonus or a signing bonus raises the dollar fee even when the percentage stays the same.
Recruiting fees on a retained search buy an exclusive search, and they are not all due on the hire. SHRM's 2022 article splits 30% to 35% into thirds. You pay the first third to start. You pay the second third when the firm presents a slate. You pay the last third when someone is hired. If nobody is hired, two-thirds is still due.
That is the difference from a contingency fee. Contingency recruiting fees are paid only if the role is filled. Retained recruiting fees are mostly paid either way. The 2016 article also says the retained firm is paid whether or not it fills the role.
SHRM did not publish a separate tech recruiter fee in these two articles. A technology role is not given its own percentage there. The published structures are the ones above: 20% to 25% on contingency, and 30% to 35% on a retained search, or about 33% in the 2016 report of an industry standard.
Are recruiter fees worth it? They are, when you want a firm to run the search and you accept the published price. This page is about what a company pays. It does not cover a fee a job seeker might be asked to pay. The SHRM articles above do not publish that figure.
A contingency fee can be worth 20% to 25% when you want to pay only if the role is filled. SHRM notes that more than one contingency recruiter may work the same job. You pay the firm that fills it. The basis can include a bonus and a signing bonus, so the dollar fee can be higher than 20% to 25% of base pay alone.
A retained fee can be worth 30% to 35% when you want one exclusive firm. You accept that most of the fee is due even if you do not hire. That is a different purchase from a fee that waits for a hire.
The fee is a poor fit when you want a network to search and you want to pay only if you hire. That is the Arca.ph marketplace, and it is a different offer from a retained search.
Arca.ph is a network of remote engineers from around the world. Your own AI agent, such as Grok, Claude, or ChatGPT, searches and sorts that network. You choose who to meet. On the marketplace, Arca.ph does not bill a fee before a hire.
On the marketplace, you pay a one-time 15% fee of first-year pay, charged only on hire, and only if you hire someone Arca.ph introduced. That percentage is below the 20% to 25% contingency range SHRM published. The basis is also narrower than the 2016 contingency basis: first-year pay, not salary plus bonus plus a signing bonus. You hire and pay the developer directly. If the hire is not the right fit, there is a 3-month free replacement. See pricing.
Done for you is the other way. You bring the job. The Arca.ph team finds the people. Proctored English, cognitive and coding tests are included. The fee is 35% of first-year pay, charged once on hire. That percentage matches the top of the 30% to 35% retained range SHRM published. The bill does not. SHRM's retained model bills two-thirds before a hire. Arca.ph charges the 35% once, on hire. You still hire and pay the developer directly. There is a 3-month free replacement.
One example, so the percentages share a base. A developer paid $3,000 a month earns $36,000 a year. The lines below apply the published percentages to that $36,000. They are arithmetic on this example. They are not invoices SHRM collected. If a bonus or a signing bonus is part of the fee basis, a recruiter's dollar fee is higher than these lines.
On this example, $5,400 is $1,800 below 20% and $3,600 below 25%. Those gaps are the percentage difference on $36,000 of pay. They are not a savings promise for a role that pays a bonus. Done for you at $12,600 equals 35% of the same example. The difference is when the bill is due.
Hiring on Arca.ph is a short path. Skip reading every resume. Write the job, let your AI agent rank the network, then test and interview only the top few.
No AI agent? You can still read every profile and follow the same steps.
Already have a pile of applicants? Candidate screening: score every applicant, then test only the top few. To hire a developer fast, read How to hire a developer fast. To hire without a recruiter, read How to hire remote developers without a staffing agency or recruiter. To see what to know about a developer before you hire, read Vetted software developers: what to know before you hire. If your CTO quit and you still need engineers, read Fractional CTO: hire engineers fast when your CTO quits. To see the fee next to a monthly markup, read Staffing agency markup rates: how to hire your developer directly. To see how an assistant searches the network, read Searching for developers with your own AI assistant: how it works.
This is free after you sign up and sign the Arca.ph Client Agreement. It is expected pay, location, working hours and US time overlap, the resume, LinkedIn activity and recommendations, DevPost wins, published apps, and testimonials.
This is paid. A real person watches. It is proctored English, cognitive and coding tests with or without AI, the AI-build hackathon, the pair-programming Fire Drill, and recorded reference checks. You pay for the tests you order.
On the marketplace, you search with your own AI agent. Profiles are free to view once you sign up and sign the Arca.ph Client Agreement. You pay for the tests you order. If you hire someone Arca.ph introduced, you pay a one-time 15% fee of first-year pay, charged only on hire. A developer paid $3,000 a month earns $36,000 a year, so the fee is $5,400, once. You hire and pay the developer directly. If the hire is not the right fit, there is a 3-month free replacement. See pricing and Staffing agency markup rates: how to hire your developer directly.
Done for you is the other way to hire an engineer. You bring the job. The Arca.ph team finds the people. Proctored English, cognitive and coding tests are included. The fee is 35% of first-year pay, charged once on hire. You still hire and pay the developer directly. There is a 3-month free replacement. That option hires an engineer. It does not bill a third of the fee before a hire.
Create your account and start looking. Profiles are free to view once you sign up and sign the Arca.ph Client Agreement.
SHRM published two structures. Contingency recruiters usually charge 20% to 25% of first-year cash compensation, and only if they fill the role. A retained search usually charges 30% to 35% of total compensation. Most of a retained fee is due even if you do not hire. Both ranges are in the SHRM articles linked on this page.
A contingency recruiter fee percentage is 20% to 25%, which SHRM published. It applies to first-year cash compensation: salary, bonus, and signing bonus, paid only if the role is filled. A retained percentage in the same reporting is about 33%, or 30% to 35% of total compensation. The Arca.ph marketplace fee is 15% of first-year pay, only if you hire.
Recruiting fees on a retained search are billed during the search. SHRM published 30% to 35% of total compensation, in thirds: one-third at the start, one-third when a slate is presented, and one-third on hire. Two-thirds is due even if you do not hire. On Arca.ph, the 15% and the 35% are each charged once on hire.
Recruiter fees are worth the published price when a firm runs the search. Contingency is paid only if they fill the role. Most of a retained fee is due even if they do not. Arca.ph is a network of remote engineers your own AI agent searches and sorts. You pay 15% of first-year pay, only if you hire.
SHRM did not publish a separate tech recruiter fee in the articles cited here. The published ranges are 20% to 25% on a contingency hire and 30% to 35% on a retained search. On the marketplace, Arca.ph charges 15% of first-year pay, only if you hire. Done for you is 35% of first-year pay, once on hire.
On the marketplace, Arca.ph charges a one-time 15% fee of first-year pay, only if you hire someone it introduced. A developer paid $3,000 a month earns $36,000 a year, so the fee is $5,400, once. Done for you is 35% of first-year pay, charged once on hire. You hire and pay the developer directly. There is a 3-month free replacement.
Profiles are free to view once you sign up and sign the Arca.ph Client Agreement.