Tech recruitment agency fees
In the UK, tech recruitment agencies typically charge 15 to 25% of the hire's first-year salary, paid when they start. In the US it is typically 15 to 25% of first-year base, and up to 30% for specialist AI and machine learning roles. Hurren & Hope charges 20% of base salary for permanent hires, and you choose whether to pay it as one invoice or monthly while your hire stays.
Our fees and the market ranges on this page were checked in September 2026
Our feesThe same fees apply in London, New York and San Francisco. UK fees are plus VAT.US clients pay no VAT.
For every permanent hire below executive level. You choose how to pay the same fee:
On every hire when you give us three or more roles to fill. It is our loyalty rate, and it is published here rather than negotiated behind closed doors. Committing to more hiring over the year? We can agree a lower rate.
For CTO, VP and C-suite searches. One third at engagement. The balance is paid on start, or monthly over 12 months through Pay While They Stay, and those payments stop if your new leader leaves.
We have run executive searches for decades. What is new is how you pay.
About executive searchYou pay a day rate for the contractor. Our margin is a fixed figure agreed before the engagement starts, shown separately on the contract and fixed for the engagement. That transparency builds trust with contractors and clients alike: you can see exactly what the contractor is paid and what we are paid.
We work at speed, through a network of professionals we have built over more than 20 years of contract recruitment, so we aim to have a shortlist and paperwork raised within 3 days.
Contract hiring is available in the UK only. In New York and San Francisco we recruit permanent and executive roles.
Embedded recruitmentA dedicated recruiter in your Slack and ATS, working under your brand, for £5,500 a month (plus VAT)$9,500 a month, plus 8% of base salary per hire paid monthly over a year. If a hire leaves, the per-hire payments stop. Three month minimum, then 30 days' notice.
What the fee is calculated onMost agency fees are a percentage of first-year salary, but "salary" is not always defined the same way. Some agencies work the fee out on more than base pay, adding a guaranteed bonus or car allowance. Before you compare two quotes, check what each one is a percentage of.
Ours is always first-year base salary, for permanent and executive hires alike.
Rebates and protectionMost UK agencies take the whole fee on day one and refund part of it on a sliding scale if your hire leaves in the first 8 to 12 weeks. Here is how that compares with our two ways to pay.
Most US agencies take the whole fee on day one and offer a 60 to 90 day guarantee, which is usually a replacement rather than a refund. Here is how that compares with our two ways to pay.
| What you are comparing | Typical agency | Hurren & Hope Single invoice | Hurren & Hope Pay While They Stay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee | 15 to 25% of first-year salary15 to 25% of first-year base, up to 30% for specialist AI and ML roles | 20% of base salary | 20% of base salary |
| What the fee is worked out on | Usually base salary, but some agencies add guaranteed bonus, car allowance or other pay | Base salary only | Base salary only |
| When you pay | All of it when your hire starts | All of it when your hire starts | 12 monthly instalments from the start date |
| If your hire leaves | A sliding-scale rebate for the first 8 to 12 weeks, then nothingA 60 to 90 day guarantee, usually a replacement rather than a refund | A refund for every month after the month you let us know, at any point in the 12 months | Payments stop the month you let us know, at any point in the 12 months |
| How long you are protected | 8 to 12 weeks60 to 90 days | 12 months | 12 months |
Typical agency terms are market ranges from published UK and US fee guides, September 2026. Hurren & Hope fees for UK clients are plus VAT.
Worked exampleA senior engineer on £90,000$180,000 base salary. The last column shows what you would have paid if they left in month 5.
| How you pay | Total fee | When it is paid | If they leave in month 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hurren & Hope, Pay While They Stay (20%) | £18,000$36,000 | £1,500 a month for 12 months$3,000 a month for 12 months | £7,500 paid, nothing more owed$15,000 paid, nothing more owed |
| Hurren & Hope, single invoice (20%) | £18,000$36,000 | One invoice on the start date | £7,500, after a £10,500 refund$15,000, after a $21,000 refund |
| Hurren & Hope, loyalty rate (18%) | £16,200$32,400 | £1,350$2,700 a month for 12 months, when you give us three or more roles to fill | £6,750$13,500 paid, nothing more owed |
| Typical agency at 25% | £22,500$45,000 | All of it when your hire starts | £22,500, as the rebate period has ended$45,000, or a replacement if still inside the guarantee |
All Hurren & Hope fees for UK clients are plus VAT, added to each invoice.No VAT is charged to US clients. 25% is the top of the typical market range, used here for comparison.
Across the marketIf you are comparing agencies, these are the four things most likely to change the percentage you are quoted.
A staff ML engineer or a first head of sales is harder to find than a mid-level developer, so specialist and leadership roles are usually quoted at higher percentages.
Giving one agency the role on its own often lowers the percentage, because the consultant is not racing three others to the same shortlist.
Salaries differ sharply between London, New York and San Francisco, so the same percentage produces very different fees. Our salary benchmarks show the gaps.
Hiring a team rather than one role usually brings the rate per hire down. Ours drops to 18% on every hire when you give us three or more roles to fill, and we can agree a lower rate for a larger committed volume.
A 20 minute call with Mark or Mike. You get a salary benchmark and a clear quote before you commit to anything.
In the UK, contingency agencies typically charge 15 to 25% of first-year salary, paid when the hire starts. In the US the typical range is 15 to 25% of first-year base, rising to 30% for specialist AI and machine learning roles. Retained executive search usually costs 25 to 35% in both markets. Hurren & Hope charges 20% of base salary for permanent hires and 25% of base for executive search.
For permanent technology roles, most agencies quote somewhere between 15 and 25% of first-year salary, with senior and hard-to-fill roles at the top of that range. Always check whether the percentage is of base salary or of a wider package, because that changes the fee more than a point or two either way.
With contingency recruitment you pay only when someone is hired, usually as one invoice on their start date. With retained recruitment you commit and pay before anyone is hired, in exchange for a dedicated search: executive search is usually paid in thirds. Pay While They Stay is a third option: nothing up front, then 12 monthly instalments that stop if your hire leaves.
No. Our fee is worked out on first-year base salary only. Bonus, commission, car allowance, equity and benefits are never included.
Yes. Give us three or more permanent roles to fill and every hire is 18% of base salary instead of our standard 20%. If you have more hiring planned over the year and are happy to commit to a number of roles, we can agree a lower rate still. If you then hire fewer than the number agreed, the difference in fees is payable. You can pay by single invoice or monthly through Pay While They Stay, at 1.5% of base salary a month on the 18% rate.
For permanent roles, nothing is paid while we search. You either pay one invoice on your hire's start date, or pay monthly for 12 months from the start date through Pay While They Stay. For executive search, one third is paid at engagement and the balance on start or monthly over 12 months.
If you paid a single invoice, you get a refund for every month after the month you let us know they are leaving, for the full 12 months, so you end up paying exactly what you would have paid monthly. If you pay through Pay While They Stay, the month you let us know they are leaving is your last payment, at any point in the 12 months, whatever the reason they leave.
For UK clients, yes: all our fees are plus VAT. Clients in the US are not charged VAT.
Contract roles are charged as a day rate. Our margin is agreed up front as a fixed figure, shown separately on the contract and fixed for the engagement, so you can see exactly what the contractor is paid and what we are paid. We supply contractors in the UK only.
Our embedded recruiter costs £5,500 a month in the UK (plus VAT) or $9,500 a month in the US, plus 8% of base salary per hire paid monthly over 12 months, which stops if the hire leaves. There is a three month minimum, then 30 days' notice. Against our own 20% fee, it costs less once you are hiring about seven people a year in the UK, or six in the US.
Our fees at a glance
