What technical recruiting agencies really charge, and why

Recruiting fees look opaque from the outside, but the market really only has a few shapes. If you are comparing agencies for a technical search, here is what the numbers mean and what they should buy you.

The common models

Contingency firms typically charge a percentage of first-year salary, commonly in the high teens to mid twenties, paid only if you hire their candidate. Retained firms charge more, often a third of comp, split into installments that start when the search kicks off. Between the two sits the engaged or hybrid search: a small commitment fee that comes off the final placement fee, which keeps the agency focused without the full retained price tag.

What the fee should include

The percentage is not the real question. The real question is what work sits behind it. A search worth paying for includes role scoping and JD work, direct sourcing rather than job-board reposting, structured screening before you see anyone, interview coordination, and offer management. If screening tools like psychometrics are sold as a paid add-on, you are looking at a thinner service than the fee suggests. We include them in every search because fit screening is the job, not an upsell.

Cheap searches are usually expensive

A low fee that produces a mis-hire is the most expensive thing you can buy. One failed senior hire costs months of roadmap, team morale, and a restarted search. Judge agencies on the outcomes they are willing to stand behind: shortlist quality, time-to-hire, retention of past placements, and what happens if a hire does not stick.

Questions that expose the real price

Ask what percentage, on what comp definition, paid when. Ask what the replacement terms are and how long the guarantee window runs. Ask what is included versus billed separately. An agency with good answers will give them in writing without flinching.

Pricing conversations are also a preview of how an agency communicates. If the fee explanation is evasive, expect the search updates to be too. Want our structure explained on a live call, against your actual open role? Book a demo.