What do sales recruiters actually charge in 2026?
Anthony Herrera
Sales
Recruiting
GTM
Early Stage
Anthony Herrera
Sales
Recruiting
GTM
Early Stage
"MHB."
That's what a prospective client called me early in my recruiting career when I shared what our fee would be to help him hire a salesperson.
I wasn't quite sure what he meant.
So naturally, I asked.
"Money-Hungry B*****d."
Yep. That's what he called me. No, the B wasn't for buddy.
I remember being a little taken aback. I mean, I was just explaining what our recruiting services cost, and he couldn't believe we'd charge that much to help him hire someone.
To him, it sounded greedy.
And you know what? I can understand why someone might think that.
When you hear that a recruiting firm is going to charge you $20,000, $40,000, or even $75,000 to hire someone, your first reaction might be, "For what? Finding me a candidate?"
But after 20+ years in recruiting, executive search, and people strategy, I've developed a much greater appreciation for what actually goes into a successful search and, more importantly, the value it can create for an organization.
Because here's what I've learned.
You're not just paying a recruiter to find someone. You're paying for the process, the expertise, the relationships, the access to talent, and the time it takes to get the right person into the right seat.
And when we're talking about go-to-market (GTM) talent, the right hire can have an enormous impact on revenue growth, profitability, and ultimately the value of a business.
So I thought I'd break down a question I get asked all the time.
And what are you really paying for?
Recruiting is a service.
And like most professional services, there's quite a bit more involved than what you see in the final deliverable.
Think about what goes into finding and hiring a great GTM professional or leader.
First, you've got to understand the business, the position, and what success actually looks like. Then you've got to identify potential candidates, many of whom aren't actively looking for a job.
You've got to reach them, get their attention, engage them in a conversation, and determine whether they have the experience, capabilities, and motivation to be successful in the role.
And then you've got to actually recruit them.
That means navigating compensation expectations, career motivations, interview processes, competing opportunities, and ultimately getting that candidate to say yes.
We call that last part the recruiting close.
And trust me, finding a great candidate and convincing that candidate to leave a good job to join your organization are two very different things.
Now, the level of service and support you need from a recruiting firm can vary significantly depending on the position you're trying to fill.
Which is why there are different ways recruiting firms structure their fees.
For GTM positions, there are three primary search models I want to walk through.
On one end of the spectrum, you've got contingent search.
On the other end, you've got retained search.
And right in the middle, you've got what we call contained search, sometimes referred to as an engaged search.
Each model serves a different purpose, and understanding how they work can help you make a much better decision when engaging a recruiting partner.
This is probably the model most hiring managers are familiar with.
It's pretty straightforward.
You engage a recruiting firm to help fill a position, and you only pay the firm if they successfully place a candidate.
That's why it's often called a success-fee model.
For GTM positions, contingent recruiting fees commonly range from 20% to 25% of the candidate's first-year base salary, although the percentage and compensation basis can vary.
Some firms, including Pursuit on certain searches, calculate their fees using the candidate's total first-year guaranteed compensation. That can include things like signing bonuses, guaranteed commissions, or ramp bonuses.
Here's an example:
Let's say you're hiring an account executive with the following compensation package:
· Base salary: $100,000
· Signing bonus: $10,000
· Guaranteed ramp bonus: $10,000
· Total first-year guaranteed compensation: $120,000
If you've agreed to a 20% fee based on that total guaranteed compensation, your recruiting fee would be $24,000.
If the agreement were based strictly on the $100,000 base salary, that same 20% fee would be $20,000.
That's an important distinction, and one I'd encourage every hiring manager to understand before signing a recruiting agreement.
With a traditional contingent search, there's no upfront fee. You pay when the recruiter successfully places the candidate, according to the agreement's payment terms.
Most recruiting firms also offer some type of placement guarantee.
At Pursuit, for example, we offer a standard 90-day replacement guarantee. If the candidate leaves or is terminated within that period, we'll conduct a replacement search at no additional recruiting fee, subject to the terms of the agreement.
So why wouldn't every company just use contingent recruiting?
Well, here's something worth understanding.
With contingent search, the recruiting firm is assuming essentially all the financial risk.
They're investing their recruiters' time, their technology, their resources, and their expertise without any guarantee they'll get paid.
And naturally, that can impact how firms prioritize their searches and allocate resources.
That doesn't mean contingent recruiting isn't effective. It absolutely can be.
But there are situations where an organization needs a more dedicated and comprehensive approach.
Which brings us to the other end of the spectrum.
Retained recruiting is typically associated with senior executive positions, highly specialized roles, and searches where the organization needs a significant amount of advisory support.
Think board-level positions, C-suite executives, and certain highly specialized leadership roles.
In these situations, you're often asking a recruiting firm to do quite a bit more than simply identify and present candidates.
You may need help developing the role itself, establishing the success profile, understanding the competitive talent landscape, or determining what type of compensation is necessary to attract the caliber of executive you're looking for.
A comprehensive retained search might involve market mapping, competitive research, candidate identification, leadership assessment, extensive interviews, referencing, compensation advisory, and management of the entire recruiting process.
You're paying for a dedicated process, not just the successful placement.
And that process comes with a different fee structure.
Retained search fees commonly range from around 25% to 33% of first-year compensation, depending on the firm, position, and engagement structure.
And here's an important distinction. Some retained firms calculate their fees based on base salary and guaranteed compensation, while others include target bonuses and other incentive compensation. So it's important to understand exactly what compensation is included when evaluating a proposal.
Unlike contingent recruiting, the fee is typically paid in installments tied to agreed milestones or a predetermined payment schedule.
Let's use another example:
You're hiring a senior GTM executive with the following first-year guaranteed compensation:
· Base salary: $200,000
· Signing bonus: $20,000
· Additional guaranteed compensation: $80,000
· Total first-year guaranteed compensation: $300,000
Let's assume a 30% retained search fee.
That would be a $90,000 recruiting fee.
A common retained fee structure might look something like this:
$30,000 upfront to initiate the search.
$30,000 at an agreed milestone, such as presenting the initial slate of candidates, or on a predetermined billing date.
$30,000 at the final milestone, potentially adjusted based on the actual compensation of the candidate hired.
The exact structure varies. Some retained firms bill installments on a fixed schedule rather than tying them to candidate presentations or a completed hire.
And it's important to understand that traditional retained fees are generally commitments to the search process itself. They aren't necessarily contingent on a successful placement.
Now, here's my perspective.
I absolutely believe retained search has its place.
If you're a Fortune 500 company searching for a senior executive, conducting a board-level search, or recruiting for a highly specialized leadership position, a comprehensive retained engagement may make perfect sense.
But for most GTM searches, particularly within early-stage and growth-stage organizations, I don't believe a traditional retained search is always necessary.
In fact, I think there's a pretty significant gap between what a traditional contingent search provides and the level of commitment required for a fully retained engagement.
And that's exactly why I'm a big believer in the third model.
This is a model we've really embraced at Pursuit.
And while it's not unique to us, it's something I believe makes a tremendous amount of sense for companies that are scaling their GTM organizations.
Think of contained recruiting as a hybrid between contingent and retained search.
You still have a success-based placement fee, often somewhere around 20% to 25% of the candidate's first-year compensation, but you're also making a smaller financial commitment upfront to initiate the search.
At Pursuit, our contained search initiation fees generally range from $7,000 to $15,000, depending on the position and complexity of the engagement.
That upfront fee is credited toward the total recruiting fee, rather than added on top of it.
And unlike a traditional retained search, you don't have additional milestone payments throughout the process.
The remaining balance is tied to successfully placing the candidate, based on the terms of the engagement.
Here's an example.
Let's say you're hiring a VP of Sales.
The total first-year guaranteed compensation is $300,000, and you've agreed to a 25% recruiting fee calculated on that compensation.
That's a total recruiting fee of $75,000.
Under a contained engagement, you might pay $10,000 upfront to launch the search.
That allows the recruiting firm to begin dedicating resources to the engagement, developing the search strategy, identifying and engaging candidates, and helping you navigate the recruiting process.
And the remaining $65,000 isn't due until the candidate has been successfully placed, according to the agreement.
So why would a company choose this model?
Because there are plenty of searches where you need more than someone sending you resumes.
Maybe you're a founder hiring your first VP of Sales and need help determining what that leader should actually look like.
Maybe you're a CRO building out a new market or GTM organization and need a recruiting partner who can dedicate the resources necessary to execute the search.
Or maybe you're a head of talent acquisition who has a great internal team but needs additional expertise, market intelligence, and access to a specialized talent pool.
In those situations, contained recruiting can be a great solution.
You're making a smaller upfront commitment to secure a more dedicated search process, while keeping the majority of the fee tied to a successful placement.
And for a lot of growth-stage organizations, I think that's a pretty compelling model.
Here's another thing I find interesting.
You could talk to three recruiting firms about the exact same position and receive three completely different proposals.
One might charge 18%.
Another might charge 22%.
And another might charge 30%.
So what's the difference?
Well, part of it comes down to the type of engagement, but a lot of it comes down to the recruiting firm itself.
You've got everything from a one-person recruiting shop to boutique firms specializing in a particular function or industry, all the way up to global recruiting organizations.
And they all operate differently.
Some have very little overhead. Others have invested heavily in technology, research, recruiting teams, training, and infrastructure.
Some have spent decades developing relationships in a very specific industry. Others have broader recruiting capabilities across multiple markets and functions.
And here's something I think is important.
Bigger doesn't necessarily mean better. And cheaper doesn't necessarily mean a better value.
I've known some outstanding independent recruiters who are incredibly effective because of their specialization, relationships, and years of experience.
And I've seen larger firms that have tremendous capabilities, resources, and execution capacity.
What matters is whether that particular recruiting firm has the experience, expertise, relationships, technology, and capacity to execute the search you're asking them to perform.
So when you're evaluating recruiting firms, I'd encourage you to look beyond the fee.
How many similar searches have they successfully completed?
How well do they understand your industry and the specific role you're hiring for?
What does their network look like?
How do they identify and engage candidates who aren't actively looking?
What recruiting tools and resources do they have available?
And probably most importantly, how are they going to determine whether someone is actually capable of being successful in your organization?
Because having access to a candidate and knowing how to recruit, assess, and close that candidate are very different things.
Too often, the conversation starts with the recruiting fee.
And I get it.
You're running a business. You've got budgets, operating expenses, and profitability targets. Of course you want to understand what you're spending.
But I'd encourage you to think about it a little differently.
The question shouldn't just be, "How much is this recruiter going to cost me?"
It should also be, "What's the cost of getting this hire wrong?"
Think about that for a second.
If you hire the wrong account executive, you're not just out the recruiting fee.
You've got the salary, onboarding, training, leadership time, missed sales opportunities, and potentially months of lost productivity.
And if you're hiring a VP of Sales or CRO who's responsible for building and leading your revenue organization?
The financial impact of getting that hire wrong can be enormous.
You're talking about revenue growth, gross profit, team performance, employee retention, and potentially the enterprise value of the business.
That's why I believe the value of a great recruiting partner is so much bigger than simply finding someone to fill an open position.
It's about helping organizations make better talent decisions.
And when you make better talent decisions, you build better teams.
And better teams build better businesses.
Here's the quick breakdown.
These are illustrative industry ranges, not universal pricing standards. Actual fees, compensation definitions, guarantees, and payment terms vary by firm and agreement.
All three models have their place.
And the right answer depends on the role you're hiring for, the complexity of the search, your internal recruiting capabilities, and how much support you actually need.
Which brings me to the next question.
How do you know which recruiting model is right for your particular search?
That's what I'm going to break down in my next newsletter.
I'll share the 7 questions I think every founder, CEO, CRO, and talent leader should be asking before engaging a recruiting firm.
Because ultimately, the goal isn't to hire someone at the lowest possible recruiting fee.
It's to find the right talent, build an elite team, and create meaningful business results.
And after 20-plus years in this business, that's something I believe in more than ever.
As for that client who called me an MHB?
I still laugh about it.
But I also appreciate the lesson. If someone doesn't understand what they're paying for, it's our responsibility to help them understand the value.
